Crissa's Mate

Chapter Eight

The next morning, as planned, the group assembled in front of the hotel where both Dr. Dekker and their guide, Svend, were waiting for them. Crissa was equipped only with a camera, while the others were outfitted with the varied apparatus of their trade. These included tape recorders, binoculars, kits for collecting samples, and most prominent was the rifle which the professor had slung over his shoulder. Crissa had remembered that this powerful weapon was equipped with both live ammunition, as well as tranquilizing darts. This gave her, and perhaps the others, a feeling of security no matter how limited it might be.

"Good morning!" Svend said, with an enthusiastic voice. His English was slightly broken and simplistic but it was a relief to the students. He was a rugged looking man of perhaps fifty, with a beard showing some gray, shoulder-length hair of the same color, and a surprisingly fit body. He wore military fatigues, and also sported a rifle, similar to that of the professor's. With this combative appearance he maintained an incongruent optimistic smile. His overall rustic appearance and the fact that he was knowledgeable of the area, gave the team even more confidence that the outing might be a safer than they had imagined the night before.

Everyone returned Svend's greeting with a similar response and the professor stepped forward to organize their trek through the village and later into the adjoining dense woods.

"I see everyone is bright and ready for our hike today," he announced. "Before I turn our tour over to Svend, I want you to all be observant of the village and surrounding territory here. Should any of you see anything of interest to our investigation don't hesitate to bring it to all of our attention."

Everyone nodded and adjusted their back packs for travel. Crissa looked closely and David and he winked and smiled at her. She returned a smile which she hoped the others did not see, just as they began to walk behind their guide.

"As you can see," Svend began, keeping up a vigorous gait, "this village follows along the river there."

Sure enough, the little stone and log constructed houses did not spread out too far away from the water source. In the distance, they could see the flatter, fenced areas which were devoted to crops of green and penned enclosures where livestock was kept not far from the habitation. Sheep and cattle could be seen grazing within these green fenced areas, and Crissa also noticed a couple of work horses, serenely feeding on the lush groundcover. It was truly an idyllic setting where a bright blue sky met with the deep green earth, and forested mountains loomed in the distance.

As they followed a footpath, which wound its way between and among the humble houses, the group could see curious villagers halting in their daily routines to look back at them questioningly. As they neared one of the houses more closely, they viewed a family which had come out onto their porch to watch them. Svend greeted the family in German and they slowly seemed more relaxed with the intrusion, yet not totally accepting of the foreign group peering into their remote lives.

Crissa could see the family had a mother, father, an elderly grandfather and two tall young men like Jannick. These seemed to be eyeing her and the other two females with intense interest. It was an uncomfortable moment until out of the house ran a young boy and girl, seeming to be twins, who were darling in their awkward and naïve mannerisms. They stared at the researchers as well with a curious cautiousness, eventually clinging to their young mother who came out wearing an apron to supervise them.

As they passed by the family on the porch, Crissa could still feel the young men's eyes were on her and she wondered if Julie and Mary had the same ineffable sensation. Moving further along the cobbled path, they came to more houses of different sizes, some wooden and others older stone structures which obviously were hundreds of years old. Once again, the inhabitants took a serious interest in their presence. One of the villagers, a man in his thirties, wearing the overalls of a farmer approached Svend and it was obvious he wanted to inquire about the guide's accompanying strangers and the purpose of their presence. After several serious interchanges of dialogue, the man nodded at the group and motioned for them to wait as he went into his home to fetch something to show them.

While the group waited, the man came back from his house carrying the heavy gray pelt of a wolf. It was large and the hair thick and course across what would have been the back of the large animal. Like the wolves they all were familiar with in North America, this specie's fur was mottled gray and black with highlights of while, From the size of the pelt as the man laid it on the stone path, they all could determine it was a large specimen, probably a male.

Everyone moved closer to look at it, and Mary and Josh stroked the coarse fur, sizing up its similarity to the wolves they had studied in Canada and Alaska.

"He says it weighed ninty kilos," Svend told the group and this corresponded to some of the largest wolves known in North America. A further conversation ensued between the professor, Svend, and the villager in which it was asked if some hair samples could be taken from the pelt for their research. The man agreed to it, though seemed guarded and uncertain about the purpose of the sample.

Further questions were asked of the man between the professor and translations by Svend. Finally, Svend spoke up for the benefit of the group.

"This man says he had put a two meter fence up last year. To keep the wolves out because he was losing his sheep. He shot this male and two more over the past month when they were still getting inside the pen and slaughtering in animals. It all happened just over there, some thirty meters from us."

The farmer pointed toward the high fences.

The group looked over toward the area and then at each other, silently lamenting the fact that three species were killed. Svend seemed stunned and reluctant to further report what the farmer said.

"He also tells me that on each time the wolves were able to somehow unlock the gate and pass through the door to slaughter his animals before they dragged them out."

No one of the team responded. They just contemplated how this could have happened. After several moments, the man said more to Svend and was visibly animated when he reported it.

Once again Svend seemed shocked by the story and hesitated in telling what he had learned to the group.

"He claims that his neighbor . . . another farmer closer to the forest, killed a female wolf of this size inside his house. He says like here with his gate, the beast was able to enter by opening a shuttered window, something only a human hands can do."

Crissa felt a sudden chill run up her back, and she heard Brad and David whispering phrases of amazement to each other.

"He says it is a curse here now. A curse of wolves that goes back to the times before all of us. When wolves and man could become one to survive."

The professor just quietly nodded at this revelation. Something he seemed not entirely shocked to hear.

To all of this, Crissa, and certainly the other members of the group, instantly understood just what all the speculation was about regarding this trip. And more clearly, what the professor's true research interests were about.

The farmer then said something lastly to Svend, almost in confidence to not be repeated. This seemed to unnerve even the seasoned hunter and guide as he listened.

"What did he say?" Brad boldly asked the guide.

Everyone waited for the answer.

Svend looked solely at Professor Dekker when he gave the interpretation.

"He said . . . no one in the village trusts each other these nights. For no one knows which of them have the ancient curse of the forest. Which of their neighbors are wolves by night . . .  and men and women by day."

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