Rain 13

Rain 13.

A few yards past ‘their’ maple tree, the trail begin its slight incline. Anne called for Moose. The dog nowhere in sight. She continued the call for the dog. 

     The trail behind Jack’s house, now the Graham’s, kept its slight incline until reaching the ten foot  long bridge spanning above the narrow thirty foot drop to the ravine that divided the Graham’s property and that of their other next-door neighbor. The same ravine in which Jack’s body had been  found. Anne reached into her pocket making sure the small item she had deposited there earlier was still there. She called for Moose again. And again the dog hadn't came to her. But her husband did. 

     “ Wait up,” Thomas called. He had begun his steady climb through the trail by the maple tree. Anne watched his approach as he came closer and closer to where she stood waiting. 

     Two months after Jack’s memorial service, she finally brought up the subject of separation to her husband. Thomas had waived her off. She persisted. A week later she laid in a hospital with bruises and several broken bones  she suffered from a car accident. The police said, someone had cut her  car’s brake line and that she was lucky to have survived the accident.     Thomas Sutton’s  support  had put the local mayor into office. Thomas Sutton’s financial contribution to the local law and fire departments had help the city balance its budget for many years in the past and would probably help again  in the future. They weren't going to willingly investigate a generous and powerful person like him. Not then nor few months later, when Moose woke Anne up to the strong odor of leaking natural gas in her house where she was sleeping alone. 

     “ Where is the dog? “ Thomas asked as he reached for his wife’s  hand. 

     “ She isn’t here yet,” Anne said. “ Maybe I should go up to the Graham’s house?” 

      Thomas shook his head. “ She’ll come, “ then he called the dog’s name once, twice,” Let’s keep walking. She’ll find us.” So they did. 

     The ten foot long bridge, one of the three bridges along the trail,  came into view. Anne reached into her pocket and quietly took out the item she kept in there. She click the item once then twice. 

     “ What was that?. “ Thomas halted his step and  stood listening. 

     “ What?” Anne returned the question. Her hand with the clicker was back in her pocket. 

     Thomas gave himself sometime to listen again. He  gave  up and continued his walk. 

     They were on one end of the bridge. Anne took out the clicker again. Clicked it once, twice. 

     “ Did you hear it?” Thomas asked. Anne shook her head. By then Moose had showed up atop the small grassy inclined edging the trail. She had that excited look  she got when she saw her mistress. Her ears perked up, her tail wagged. 

     Anne clicked the clicker again, once, twice. Moose’s ears, stood up. Her front legs crouched ready to charge. Her upper lip pulled back showing her sharp teeth and fangs. She growled. 

     “ The stupid dog going to charge on us.” Thomas said by Anne side. His breathing began to catch. He was worried. 

     “ She is. “ Anne agreed. Then turned and began to run for the bridge. Thomas followed. But Moose was on them in seconds. 

      The dog cornered them against the bridge railing, she moved to her left when they moved to their right and vice versa. She had them circled at the middle of the bridge. Thomas yelled at the dog. The dog became more upset, and moved into  a crouching position, jaws open wide, ready to pounce. 

     Anne leaned her body against the railing, Thomas next to her, in his panic had let go of her hand. Anne clicked the clicker once , twice. Moose tightened the circle around them. She growled some more. Her angry saliva wetted her large lower jaw.

     Anne leaned her body harder against the top wooden bar of the railing. She bumped herself to that wooden bar for few times. The wooden bar shook a little before suddenly breaking away from the railing’s two nearest wooden post…..

     ……Thomas who was also leaning on the wooden bar, lost his balance. His upper body falling backward…...

     ……The two lower bars of the railing caught his knees. For a brief seconds Thomas’ arms flailed against the empty surface above the ravine like a broken pair of wings, tried to pull himself upward but unable. A surprise then panic then full of terror played in his eyes......

    ....... He screamed. 

     .......Anne screamed. 

     ........Moose whined.

      The momentum created by the weight and length of Thomas body falling  into the ravine couldn't be stopped. Anne heard the crack of broken bones against the jagged rocks of the ravine’s retaining wall. Then a silent splash of broken heavy object hit the bottom of the ravine where some rain water had pooled together.

     “ Tom?” Anne called.” Tom….Tom….? “ she called and called again. Only part of Thomas body could be seen from where she kneeled  behind the two lower bars of the railing. “Tom… Tom..?” 

     Her husband didn't answer her. 

     Anne reached for Moose to hold her back. The dog, anxious, took her turn to look down into the bottom of the ravine then looked at Anne. Back and forth. She didn't understand what had happened.

      In the last few months, Anne, her mistress, had brought back the game she had been trained to play as a puppy by her original owner. Growls and showing her fangs whenever the dog clicker was clicked twice in succession. Wasn’t  that  the game they played earlier?