The Bear: A Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

Daddy’s shoe and I don’t know why he would have stuck his shoe on the meat but maybe he was trying to help the lamb. There are flies on the meat because it should be in the fridge. There is no fridge and I hear my name.
    “Anna.”
    I look up and I don’t know the voice. There isn’t anyone else around the camp because I don’t know where my parents are.
    “Anna.”
    It’s not the wrong way round way like Stick says it. The voice is whispery soft like a ghost and I look up because it must be flying in the branches. I look up and walk a step closer to the place where the campfire is and look around because the ghosts will scare me. The whispery voice says something else and I know there are ghosts because no one who sounds like that knows my name. I look in the canoe that is sitting with its feet in the water over by the fire rocks and there are no ghosts inside. The black log in the fire has a little bit of white coming up from it and it looks like the tail of a ghost.
    “Anna.”
    The ghost whispers from the fire and makes my stomach butterfly jumpy so I bend my knees to sit and hug them and sniff Gwen.
    “Here, sweetie. Look.”
    I turn my head and I see Momma is lying in the plants. There is a flat circle in the camp that is covered by needles and then there is a part with plants that people don’t walk around so it’s the part where the plants stay. I can’t see Momma but I can see the bottom of her foot. Or it’s not her foot but it is her shoe. A special shoe that is good for going in a canoe because I should always wear shoes when I am camping. I look down and my feet are standing in the needles and they don’t have shoes on them. Little piggy toes sit at the end of my feet and they look pink. Piggy pink. I don’t want to put on my shoes I want my mom to put on my shoes. I can’t find my shoes and I haven’t looked because she will ask but it’s too much mess mess mess and my shoes are by the door and there is no door.
    My mom has her shoes on because I see one standing up in the plants. The toe points to the sky. These are shoes that you can get wet and they won’t stink. They have rubber that helps her not slip on rocks. Even though she did slip on a rock when she was helping Stick to get out of the canoe. He is a heavy little fella and they went tip and the canoe got water in it because the rubber didn’t stay on the rock. Stick cried. Momma put him on the side of the water and he got to sit in her lap and cry even though he wasn’t really hurt. She hugged him with both her arms around so he was in the warm and soft place and she rocked and said “It’s okay; it’s okay.” Stick cried even though it didn’t hurt anymore because he loves sitting on Momma. When he stopped crying she asked him if it was all better and he said “You okay, Momma?” and put his hand on her cheek. He got even more hugs when it should have been my turn. I have to walk there and Momma is not coming here. She would come if it was Stick so that’s not fair. The special shoe is sitting up in the plant and it is not far away and I don’t like the fire knowing my name.
    “That’s my momma,” I whisper to the ghost.
    I don’t want the ghost to follow when I walk into the plants and I think of poison ivy. It looks like every other plant and has green leaves that are shiny like all of them everywhere. Momma should be careful. But she doesn’t move and then I am beside her and I look and there is blood and I get so scared that my heart jumps in my throat and a frog is in my mouth. She is hiding a little bit in leaves and maybe that is to cover up the blood so I won’t see it but I can.
    “Anna, it’s okay,” she whispers and her sound is not hers. “Come here, sweetie.”
    “Blood.”
    “It’s okay; it’s okay.” She closes her eyes and it feels like a really long time and I wonder if she fell asleep and then when I’m going to shout to wake her up the eyes pop open. “Come close to me.”
    The blood