Page 61 of Wild Life

“I want your ass tonight as payment for putting up with your theatrics.”

“You’re a freaking sex maniac.” Everything was about sex to him. The man couldn’t get enough.

“No, I’m just a maniac for you.”

I rolled my eyes.

We heard a grunt in the distance and froze.

“What’s that sound?” I whispered.

Aleki sprang into action, sprinting toward it.

“Poaka!” I shouted, struggling to keep up.

Under a tree, trapped in a nest of vines, was Poaka. He thrashed against the thorns pressing into his body, embedding them further into his flesh. His high-pitched squeals pierced my eardrums.

Aleki rushed to free him, but I caught a glimpse of a shadow in his path. Black stripes on silver skin. I had seen that pattern before on research trips.

I grabbed Aleki’s arm, keeping him from advancing. “Snake!” It was highly venomous and slithering straight for Poaka. One bite could take down a human and no doubt kill a pig.

I sprang into action, running as fast as I could.

“Maris!”

I stomped on its tail, effectively gifting it a new target: Me.

The creature swerved and lunged at me, missing.

With reflexes faster than lightning, Aleki darted out and caught it around the throat before it could strike at me again.

“Protect your eyes!” I cried. He turned at my voice, narrowly missing a violent spray of venom.

Aleki hurled the snake into the air, throwing it far away into the brush.

I moved hastily to Poaka. “Quick, let’s get out of here before the snake’s friends show up, too.”

Aleki ripped the unruly plants around Poaka into pieces. “What did you do to yourself, buddy?”

I gently peeled the spiky threads away. Blots of blood on beige fur did not escape my notice.

In the field, I had sometimes had to free bats from man-made traps, so I was able to work calmly on a moving subject. Poaka writhed from pain, and Aleki helped to keep him steady as I extracted the thorns.

“Poor baby. I knew you needed me.” I hated myself for having left him. My gut had told me that he was in trouble, but I hadn’t acted fast enough. “I’m so sorry for leaving you. Please forgive me.”

Aleki tried to console me. “It’s not your fault.”

“If we hadn’t shown up…” My voice broke. It destroyed me to think what might’ve happened if we had arrived seconds later. I kissed Poaka’s head between his ears, and Aleki took over the task of de-vining.

Poaka settled some when the thorns had been removed. His fur was a mess, weeds and fibers tangled all through it.

A short bush nearby caught my eye. I plucked one of the stalks, and gel oozed from the tear. It was related to aloe and was exactly what I needed.

“This will help your cuts,” I said gently and smeared the viscous liquid onto a laceration.

Poaka shrieked violently from the temporary sting.

“Shhh, it’s okay. You’ll be better in no time.” I continued to apply the substance to each wound while Aleki held him still.

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