(Chapter 2 can be found here)
Chapter 3
On the North side of the Saw-grass where the tall, blondish-brown blades bleached by the summer sun met the cut hay field, a long slender shadow slithered silently. The shadow’s pinkish-red forked tongue stretched out into the open air, tasted and returned. The little red fork thrust forward again to the right and returned. Again, it shot out and returned, fast as lightening, but this time to the left. Nagas could smell-taste both the mouse and the praying mantis not far from him. He slid silently closer to listen to their conversation and perhaps score a meal or two. When he reached striking distance, he slowly tightened his constricting muscles and waited patiently for the right time to spring at the little mouse.
Nagas watched as Lawrence climbed skyward into the grass leaving the distraught mouse alone with his thoughts. The snake’s tongue flicked more quickly, anxious for his meal. He looked again toward the spot where he had last seen the praying mantis. He was still there. He was moving wildly back and forth on the flimsy blades while looking at Andre. Nagas could tell that the bug was trying to get the mouse’s attention. He had his pinchers to his mouth, not eating but talking; not talking but yelling. Nagas realized that not only could Lawrence see Andre but he could also see himself.
In a flash, Nagas released and contracted his scale covered muscles and sprung through the air toward Andre. Halfway through his flight he opened his large pink mouth as he prepared to grab the mouse. Yet, he was not quick enough. Lawrence’s warning had registered in Andre’s brain just in the nick of time and the little mouse ducked, rolled, and began running through the Saw-grass.
Nagas slid to a stop in the dirt and sticks scattered on the ground. He saw the tail of the mouse darting left and right as he dodged rocks and stalks. A little puff of dirt sprang up behind each foot as he ran.
Nagas began sliding quickly after him hissing, “You can run but you can’t hide, Moussssse.”
The black rat snake moved like lightening after Andre. His graceful slide-coil-uncoil motion gave the appearance of floating or gliding on air. His pink tongue flicked quickly and constantly tracking Andre’s every twist and turn as he closed the distance between himself and the little mouse.
Andre ran like he’d never run before. He zigged and zagged through the grass, over rocks, and through little indentations in the earth created by human boots. His father had taught him that to survive a snake or a cat ambush, he must zig-zag constantly while moving forward. Andre’s father also taught him to ever be on the lookout for a hole in the ground or some other tight spot in which to hide.
Andre continued to run, jump, zig, zag, and duck as he ran through the Saw-grass. Nagas was close behind but somehow Andre managed to stay ahead of him. Andre looked ahead and a wave of fear flowed through him. He could see the North side of the Saw-grass where the tall blades ended and the mowed field began.
He heard his father’s voice in his head, “Andre, only go into the cut fields if there is no other choice. There are more holes to hid in there but you will be exposed not only to the predators on the ground but also the ones in the air.”
Andre looked to the right and recognized the East end of the Saw-grass. He had no other option, he had to go into the cut field. He looked skyward and saw a beautiful blue sky with wispy white clouds floating lazily by.
“Not a bird in sight”, he thought and ran out of the tall Saw-grass into the cut field. The fescue and timothy grass were about as tall as Andre and each time he jumped he could see a long way in front of him. With each jump he looked from side to side for a hole to hide in. Nagas continued the pursuit following Andre into the field. His sleek black body was mostly hidden beneath the short-cut grass only shinning in the Autumn sun when he crossed a wheel path left by the mower.
Andre continued his zig-zag motions as he ran through the field ever looking for a hole in which to hide. As he ran on, a light shadow passed over him. It was barely noticeable and the mouse wondered if it was simply his imagination or a light cloud passing between him and the sun. He jumped high and turned to his left hoping to see if Nagas was still chasing him. What he saw filled him with fear and then relief. At the moment he jumped to look he saw a jumble of feathers and scales tumbling in the field. Nagas was in a fight for his own life with a red-tailed hawk that had been watching the pursuit carefully from high above.
Andre climbed down and began to make his way back to the protection of the tall patch of grass. He stopped here and there to nibble on a piece of dead grass or things that looked like seeds. He began thinking once again of the events from earlier in the day and his rage began to grow. After wandering through the cut field for some time he found that he was approaching the Saw-grass not far from Sun Rock. He lifted his little head above the grass and peered as far as he could toward the rock. He saw it’s smooth surface and tiny white lights reflecting the sun. Beyond he could see a steady stream of yellow-jackets coming and going, bringing in tributes for their queen.
Andre wanted to get even with them then and there but knew he needed a plan. He wondered what a little mouse like himself could do against so many viscous and deadly enemies. He thought of digging a hole or many holes around the opposite side of the rock so that when it rained the nest would be flooded. He considered piling rocks on top of Sun Rock and creating an avalanche late at night to trap them all beneath the ground. He thought of his mother and father and wondered what they would do or say to him at this moment. Would they help him to make a difference or say, “this is just the nature of our world, Andre. Life and death are in a beautiful dance here; so are joy and sorrow. You cannot change that but you can change how you dance.” He thought of Lawrence and wondered if he had ever experienced anything so painful. The praying mantis’ words echoed in his mind, “The choice is yours but the choice will not affect you alone.”
“The choice is mine,” thought Andre, “and no, it will not affect me alone. It will affect everyone, everyone who let us down. Everyone who failed to warn us! Everyone.”
A malicious grin grew on the mouse’s face as a plan began to form. He looked toward the busy bees coming and going from their nest and lept toward the edge of the Saw-grass, but his feet didn’t hit the ground. Instead he continued upward as though gravity had been turned off just as he lept. He saw the tall grass far beneath his feet as his tail dangled helplessly in the air. Around his body a cage of living steel gripped him tightly but the talons did not pierce his skin. Below he could see the cut field and to the right, the strip of Saw-grass. Beyond that the yard and home of the humans. Higher and higher he climbed and soon all that he knew disappeared from sight.
(Chapter 4 Available when highlighted)
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