Chapter 1
THE GIGANTIC GRIZZLY
Once long ago, a ten-foot grizzly by the name of Old Half Paw roamed the mountains of the Wasatch Front, striking fear into the hearts of men and beasts alike. This grizzly caused unparalleled damage and destruction, killing and plundering everywhere he went. But there was one man with the courage and determination to protect his family and community from this great beast: Gilbert Roberts!
“Gilbert! Gilbert!” came the frantic cry of distress.
Gilbert turned from the fence he was repairing to see Joseph running toward him with great speed, fear and anxiety visible in his eyes.
“What’s wrong, Joe?”
Joseph came to an abrupt stop. He struggled to get his breath, his chest heaving. As he panted, he breathed out three words of terror. “Bear...woods...enormous!”
Gilbert’s eyes widened. “What? Now Joe, take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then start again and tell me what happened.”
Joseph bent over, resting his hands on his legs as he took a couple of shaky breaths. He looked up at Gilbert, panic-stricken.
“Joe, are you all right? Sit down and rest for a bit.”
As Gilbert led him to a stump, he could feel Joe’s arm trembling. Joseph sat down, leaned over and rested his elbows on his knees. Then he took a long, deep breath.
After a few seconds, he looked up at Gilbert and said anxiously, “I’ve never seen a bear that enormous in my whole life.”
Gilbert knelt down beside him and watched his hired hand with concern. Joseph was in his thirties, a tall, lean man, with brown hair and blue eyes. He was a strong, level-headed, and confident man, but all confidence seemed to have left him now.
“I was working next to the woods by the West Mountains, chopping firewood. While I was working, I heard the most blood-curdling roar. I quickly hid behind the pile of logs I’d been chopping. I didn’t see a thing, but I didn’t dare go out in the open. I heard a scuffle, and after a while this grizzly came out of the woods. I was peeking through the cracks of the logs so he couldn’t see me, but when I saw how enormous he was . . .”
Joseph’s eyes widened and he took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and continued. “Gilbert, my heart was pounding so loud, I was sure he’d hear it. I’ve never seen a grizzly that big before! Then, just as quickly as he showed himself to me, he sneaked back into the woods again.”
Gilbert was stunned. He had heard of several bear attacks on sheep in the North Country, but nothing this close to home. This was not good. He frowned and the creases between his eyes deepened.
“Joe, are you sure of what you saw?”
Joseph straightened up to his full stature and answered, “As sure as the ear on the side of my head, which probably wouldn’t be there any longer if I wouldn’t have hid. Remember that mountain man, Jedediah Smith?”
Gilbert shook his head. “What about him?”
“He startled a grizzly and it went right after him. It mauled him so bad it smashed his ribs and tore his ear off. That grizzly nearly killed him. The only reason Smith survived was because he played dead. One of his men sewed his ear back on, but he didn’t do a good job. It was crooked.”
“Did he ever get it fixed?”
“Naw. He had to live with it that way. Now I know this isn’t 1823, but grizzlies are just as dangerous now as they were back then.”
Joseph sat, still shaking as he watched Gilbert’s reaction to the news.
Gilbert did not say a word. He stood and rubbed his chin as he looked toward home, deep in thought. After a few seconds, he said soberly, “I’ll report this to the city council on Monday. But during the meantime, don’t tell anyone about it, at least not yet. We don’t want to frighten the community unnecessarily and start a panic.”
Joseph nodded. “Anything you say, but this will be hard to keep under my hat, especially from my wife.”
“Most importantly, I don’t want you to mention any of this to the family, especially Melinda. She doesn’t need anymore stress in her life. After what happened to her twelve years ago, she couldn’t handle this sort of news, no matter what. She’s never forgotten it, and neither have I. I could have lost her that day.”
“I won’t, Gilbert. You can count on me.”
“I just don’t want Melinda finding out about it. Thanks, Joe.” Gilbert’s first thought after hearing Joe’s news was about how this would affect his wife.
At the age of forty-two, he was a ruggedly handsome man, standing at six feet and two inches tall. He had piercingly dark brown eyes, wavy brown hair, and his complexion was tanned from long days spent working in the sun. His shirt wasn’t able to hide the bulging muscles that rippled along his chest, broad shoulders, and arms. He was a rancher and dairyman, not to mention a loving husband and father of three children.
After Joseph walked away, Gilbert furrowed his brow, rubbing the stubble on his chin and wondering why a bear had come down this far from the mountains. The town of Paris, Idaho was located among the Rocky Mountains and the bears pretty much stayed in the woods, not where there was civilization. In fact, in 1819, a mountain man called Fats McKenzie called this area Bear Lake Valley because of all the black bears that roamed these mountains, and also after the most beautiful aqua-colored lake he had ever seen. Even now in 1908, bears still roamed these mountains.
Gilbert had been fixing a weak spot in the fence, but now he was thinking of the problem at hand. He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped the sweat and grime from the back of his neck and forehead, then stuffed it in his pocket again. As he stood thinking about the situation, he heard his wife’s voice calling from the house. It woke him from his trance and he quickly responded.
“Yes, Melinda. I’m out here,” he yelled.
Melinda started walking toward Gilbert with a pitcher in one hand and a glass in the other. “You’ve been out for a while. I thought you’d like a drink to refresh yourself.”
“Thanks, Sweetheart.”
As he watched his wife gracefully walk toward him, he felt like the luckiest man on earth. Melinda was a strikingly beautiful and shapely woman with a graceful walk that had intrigued him since the day he met her. She was unusually tall with enchanting green eyes and dark auburn hair. At thirty-eight years old, she looked just as lovely as the day he met her, if not more so. She was dressed in a lavender muslin dress that fit snugly to her bodice, which was gathered at the waist, and a long white apron covered the skirt of her dress.
As Melinda approached, he watched her intently. Gilbert noticed her creamy Irish complexion and the gentle curves of her figure. Her dark auburn hair was placed loosely upon her head in a bun and the sun hit it just right to accentuate the red highlights. Her beauty and gentle swaying motion were captivating to Gilbert. How he loved this woman!
“Gilbert, you look tired.”
She stood in front of him and poured fresh cool water into a glass, then handed it to him. He smiled at her and drank the whole glass in a few gulps.
“Another?”
Gilbert nodded as he watched her pour him another glass, thinking that she looked mighty fine. She always tried to look her best for Gilbert and that pleased him very much. Just before she handed him his second glass, she stood on her toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek, then handed him the glass. Gilbert smiled and then gulped down the water in no time.
“Another?”
Gilbert nodded and she reached for his glass, but Gilbert slowly shook his head. He took the pitcher from her hand and set it on a nearby tree stump along with the glass.
Looking at her mischievously, he said, “No, not another drink. Another kiss.”
Then he slid his hands around her waist and pulled her close to him. Holding her in his arms, he gave her a warm, lingering kiss. Her lips were sweet, and the scent of her was appealing. As he held her protectively, her closeness and tender kiss warmed his very soul.
Melinda was a little surprised by his protective embrace and sudden affection. When he leaned back and looked into her eyes, she could see the genuine love that he had for her.
“Gilbert? What’s come over you?”
“Nothing.”
Gilbert pressed the softness of her against his chest and she cuddled in his embrace, laying her head on his shoulder. As she felt his arms tighten around her, she noticed that Gilbert was very quiet and she sensed that something was bothering him.
“What’s wrong? Are you all right, Gilbert?”
“Yup. I am now.”
Melinda could feel his bristled cheek against hers and she laughed softly as he teasingly nibbled her neck. “Stop it, Gilbert. That tickles.”
She quickly pulled her shoulder upward, as if to protect her neck.
Gilbert finally gave in to her pleas and smiled. “I won’t be much longer. It’s getting late and I’m hungry. I’ll be in soon.”
When he released his hands from her waist, she reached up on her toes and gave him a tender kiss on his lips. Then she quickly turned around, picked up the pitcher and glass, and headed back to the house.
Savoring the taste of her sweet kiss still on his lips, he watched her gracefully walk away, her skirts gently swaying back and forth with each step.
After a moment, he called out to her, “Hey, you! After that sort of kiss, maybe I’ll be in sooner than I thought.”
Melinda turned around and saw him grinning and chuckling. Gilbert’s chuckle was low and pleasant, the kind that warmed the atmosphere and it made her feel comfortable inside. When their eyes met, she smiled coyly, then turned around and headed toward the house.
After Melinda checked on the stew that was simmering, she looked over at Kayla, her four-year-old daughter and asked, “Will you go out to the meadow and call Jenny? It’s time to eat.”
Kayla jumped to her feet, laying her baby doll on the sofa, and headed out the door.
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