James Hoch - Heckel Casey

Just as we took off running, three large mountain lions appeared in front of us.

"What the…" Jack shouted.

"I think they're with us," I yelled back. "At least, I hope so." We ran and the trio of large cats attacked the few men who were closest to us, allowing us some distance. Some of the other men chasing us turned around and fled at the sight of the mammoth cats.

We got to the horses. Jack threw Missy up on the back of his horse and sped off. As I mounted Hope, I looked back to see the large mountain lions fending off several men.

Suddenly a large crack from a rifle ruptured the shouting and quelled the yelling from the cult mob. I looked ahead to see Jack slump.

"Heckel, I think my dad has been hit!"

"Keep going," I yelled to her as I raced ahead. "The more distance between us and that mob, the better."

Slowly, the angry taunts as well as the random rifle shots diminished as we left the cult behind. After about a half hour, I told Missy to stop. I reached up to take Jack down from the horse.

"Is he all right?" Missy asked, jumping down.

"I don't know. He's lost a lot of blood."

I set Jack on the ground and felt for a pulse. It was weak.

Missy screamed when she saw the three bloodstained mountain lions walk into the clearing.

"It's okay. They won't hurt you," I said as I checked Jack over. There was a big hole in the middle of Jack's back, close to his spine. Hell, the damn bullet is dangerously close to his heart or his spine. What the hell do I do now?

"Take it out," I heard Missy say as she stood looking down at her father. "You have to try. You have to save him. We can't lose him. Please."

I felt like I was in shock. My insides were shaking.

"Please, hurry before it's too late."

Suddenly, I felt like someone slapped me in the face. I was sure it was Sela giving me her usual pep talk and my head was as clear as a cloudless sky. I dictated a list of things for Missy to do. The mountain lions studied us as if they knew what their job was. All three cats paced around a perimeter keeping guard.

After we made a good-sized fire, I set my old boy scout knife on a rock to sterilize it. I pulled off my T-shirt and handed it to Missy. "Rip this up into small bandages."

She eagerly complied.

"I wish we had some water," I said softly as I cleaned the area around the wound.

"Wait," Missy said grabbing a handful of wanna-be bandages and running off into the surrounding dark. One of the mountain lions followed her. She came back a few minutes later with wet bandages.

"I remembered there was a small brook over there when we rode into this clearing," she said out of breath.

"Excellent," I said as I picked up the glowing knife. I used one of the wet bandages to wipe the blade. "Okay, you try to soak up the blood as much as possible. We are going in fast and get that bullet. Ready?" Missy nodded her head and had a determined look on her face.

For some odd reason or feeling, I knew exactly what to do. It felt as if the world's finest surgeon was expertly guiding my hand.

"I feel the bullet. I…think…I can pry it out. No, wait a minute." The hole was big enough for me to reach in and grab the slug. "There! I got it," I said, holding up the offensive near-fatal projectile.

Missy had an enormous smile of relief on her face and released a huge breath of tension. She took one of the bandages and applied pressure on the wound. I wiped off the bullet and put it in my pocket, thinking that Jack might like it as a souvenir.

"Missy, you need to go back to camp and bring a cart to transport your Dad. We need to get him back so we can better clean that wound. Hurry. I don't know if those people are still looking for us or not. At any rate-"

"What happened?" Jack mumbled softly.

"Daddy!" Missy said loudly, leaning down to kiss his cheek.

"Don't move, Jack. You've been hit," I said.

"Holy shit, you got that right," Jack said, drifting in and out of consciousness.

"Go now, Missy, and hurry. Bring one of the doctors with you."

Missy got on Jack's horse and rode off. One of the mountain lions raced after her. The other two continued to circle the campfire.

"Thanks," I whispered as I flashed a smile at the two big cats.

Jack's pulse was improving and he continued to regain consciousness. While waiting for Missy and the others, I kept myself busy maintaining the fire and monitoring Jack's condition. At one point, one of the large mountain lions walked up to Jack and licked his face, making him grin. The big cat sat down next to him and purred loudly.

"I'm thirsty," Jack said.

"I'll be right back," I said running off to find the small brook. I tripped on a rock and landed a few feet from the water. "Clumsy," I muttered as I soaked the cloth.

"Open your mouth, Jack," I said turning his head slightly. I drizzled the water into his mouth and he drank eagerly.

"Thanks, Heckel. I could drink a gallon," he said weakly.

"I think the troops are here," I reported as several horses rode into the campfire's light.

One of the doctors quickly checked Jack over. I got up and out of the way. The big cat remained next to Jack.

Vonnie and Missy came running up to Jack and knelt down beside him.

"He's going to be fine," the doctor said. "Heckel, you did great. We'll get him bandaged up and loaded onto the cart."

Vonnie hugged me until I thought I was going to pop. "Thank you so much, Heckel, for saving my family."

As we rode into our camp, we were met by thunderous applause. Sela ran up to take Hope's reins.

"Well, done," Sela said as I slid off Hope. She quickly hugged and kissed me as if I had just won the Kentucky Derby.

"No problem. Well, actually…" Before I could explain what happened, I heard Jack call my name. I went over to the cart where he was lying.

"Save your strength," I said, peering down at Jack.

"About those mountain lions," he said softly.

"Yeah, I'll tell you tomorrow. You'll be…um…wowed, I'm sure. You get a good night's rest."

"Thanks, Heckel…for…saving my little girl," Jack said reaching up to shake my hand.

His hand was cold. I held it for a long time to warm it up. The doctor instructed three other men to lift Jack out of the cart carefully and put him in his tent. After we got Jack settled, I said good night to Vonnie. Both she and Missy kissed my cheeks at the same time. I blushed.

"Take good care of Jack. See you in the morning."

As I walked back to my camp, I saw the three mountain lions lying in the field twitching their big fluffy tails. Gradually, their size was reduced to that of a normal house cat. They played with each other for a few minutes and then two of them took off in the direction of Jack's campsite. Jerky came running toward me and leaped into my arms.

"Thanks, buddy. You were awesome tonight!"

The Nevada landscape is boring. I just don't see the attraction. Why in the world would anyone want to live out here? Too many stupid rocks, Madeline thought as the RV sped down I-80, leaving Winnemucca.

A loud banging sound came from the back of the motor home and broke her concentration.

"Damn! Son of a bitch," she heard Quincy utter as the RV slowed to a crawl.

"What's wrong?" Madeline asked, coming up behind the driver.

"I think we have a problem," Quincy said as he turned off the engine. He took out a small laptop computer and attached a cable to a port at the bottom of the steering wheel. After several minutes, he knew what was wrong.

"Looks like it's the fuel lift pump. That's why we have no power. That bang must have been it falling off or something."

"Well, get a new one." Madeline ordered as if the local garage over the next hill would have one readily available.