Chapter 1: Hunted

I prop the camera on a branch, and take at least ten pictures. The distance is approximately fifty meters. The lenses are good so there is no problem. I have positioned myself behind a thick bush. Despite that, I am not sure that I am safe. I will be in trouble if they notice me. I am trying not to think about that. They are all gathered around a cage. It is quite big. Inside, a German shepherd is growling ferociously. The bulldog is silent. There is blood on his fur. He tries to reach the neck of his opponent. The shepherd avoids the attack and bites him. More blood appears. The sight is disgusting. But the men are enraptured with it. I recognize one of them. He is politician. I see the mayor too. The price of the pictures is getting higher. The scandal will ruin their careers. They deserve it. Treating the poor animals like that! They are beasts, not the dogs. A man is looking at my hiding place. I crouch. I have to go. It is too dangerous here. I step back. My booted foot crushes a twig. The noise looks like a gunshot to me. The man is pointing at me. There is not doubt that he has seen me. The panic is trying to paralyze me. I put the camera into my handbag and run as fast as possible. I hear their footsteps approaching, but don't look back. The grove is near. My car is there. What they are going to do if they capture me? A gunshot answers me. I turn and see my pursuers. They are closer. Finally, I reach the grove. My car has to be no more than hundred feet away. A stone trips me. I sprawl on the wet leaves. My heart is pounding. I rise to my feet and head towards the car. I am able to make out its outlines. To my horror, I see a man standing beside it. They have found my car! What I am supposed to do now? I rush into the dense woods to the left.

More than fifteen minutes, I am running through the woods. I don't hear their cries anymore so I stop to rest under a huge fir. Where is the road? Why did I leave my cell into the car! There are only trees around me. The sun is setting. It's getting darker and colder. My heart is not beating so fast now. I sit on the ground and try to think. After a minute, I make for the west. The slightest noise startles me. I stop from time to time, and listen. No one is following me.

The darkness makes even the walking dangerous. A couple of times, I hit my head against low branches. I stop and wonder what to do. The moonlight is too weak.

Suddenly, I hear them. They are talking about me. The light of a torch is reaching towards me. I rush into the pitch-black darkness. This is the only option. I run nearly a minute, miraculously avoiding branches and tree trunks. Then, I catch my leg on a low scrub and fall. The shin of my right leg bumps upon a tree. The pain is so violent that I barely stifle my cry. I clutch my injured leg, and moan slightly. Gradually, the pain abates to a tolerable level. I look around me. The torch is not visible anymore. I prop myself on the tree, and struggle up to my feet. As my right foot touches the ground, the pain intensifies. I attempt to put weight on it. Bitter tears well up from my eyes. I can't walk! They will find me, and then they ... I slump, lean on the tree, and wait.

An owl startles me. It makes my flesh creep. The minutes are ticking away. It looks like my pursuers are gone. The dark forest is not as frightening as before. I feel my calf cautiously. My fingers touch the upper part of the leather boot. It cut into my flesh. My calf is swollen. I slide the zipper a few inches down. This eases the pain. Possibly, if I rest for a while, I will be able to walk. Gradually, tiredness overwhelms me. I huddle against the tree and close my eyes.

The cold wakes me up. The darkness is pitch-black. I am shivering. My body is numb. The knee-deep blue skirt do not protects me from the cold. I rub my stockinged legs. Inadvertently, I touch the swelling. The pain makes me cry out. Is my leg broken? Anything but that! My chances to escape are gone if it is broken. They will find me tomorrow and ... What can I do?