17
The old cottage stood alone, empty and cold. Ralph skirted around it, taking a wide berth, checking that no one was there. He wasn’t about to make the same mistakes again. Being taken by surprise by that madman, that was not something he wanted to repeat. So, taking his time, he looked and waited.
At last, satisfied that no one was there, Ralph went up to the doorway and breathed in the unmistakable tang of decay. He fumbled inside his bag and brought out the camping-lamp and switched it on. He held it up. The light threw out a weak, sickly beam that still managed to illuminate the interior so that he could see the deer exactly where his attacker had hurled it, crumpled up in the corner.
The smell was ghastly and he had to force himself to move further into the confines of the room.
