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Elisha · (07-11-2013)

*It feels as though Eric Rex has only had his eyes closed a moment. As if he had just blinked. He vaguely remembers his bedroom, but has no recollection of how he got to where he is. He's lost in the woods. Deep in the woods. He stops to try and listen to the wind in the trees, but he can't hear anything over the growl of his stomach. Not until the coyotes, that is.

He looks around and sees nothing but the leaves move. The hunger is unbearable. How long has it been since he last ate? He remembers a grilled chicken breast and baked potato before going to his room, but how long ago was that? How did he get here? Who left him here.

He thinks he'd better call Sal. He stuffs his hand in his pocket and the phone isn't there. He checks all of his pockets...nothing. No phone, no water in sight, lost with no idea where he is, and Rex is starving.

Above him, he hears something move in the tree. It was too loud to be the soft wind blowing by. He stops, dead in his tracks and looks up. It takes a few unbearable moments, but he spots it. A squirrel had lept between the branches. Rex slowly squats to the ground and picks up a rock before rising again. He hurls the rock at the squirrel and it crashes to the ground.

On a normal occasion, Rex wouldn't eat his meat raw, but this is life or death. He's on the verge of death. He barely mustered the strength to throw the rock and he gets light-headed bending over to lift his kill. Once he has the dead squirrel in his hands, he doesn't hesitate. Rex bites into the stomach, cracking ribs, and tearing it's flesh. The warm blood runs down his chin and trickles onto his bare chest.

He tears the legs off and pulls the meat from the bones. Within moments, practically all of the edible parts, and some not-so-edible, have been devoured. Rex takes a step in a random direction. The only bad move when you're lost in the woods is no movement at all. That was one of the first things he had learned as a survivalist. That first step almost brings him to his knees as the hunger peigns strikes again.

This shouldn't happen. This time, he starts to panic. He attempts to take another step and falls flat on his face. He can taste mud and his hand landed on something. A stick? He opens his eyes, and finds that it is indeed, a stick. One that has been sharpened to a fine point on one end. He sits up and rests for just a moment. The hunger eating him from the inside.

Finally, Rex rises to his feet. Something roars nearby. He pushes through a few bushes and sees it. A few feet under him is a full-grown grizzly bear, and it heard him. Without waiting to become the prey, Eric Rex attacks. He leaps from his vantage point and drives the stick straight into the bears heart. The bear roars again and sends Rex hurtling into a stump before falling down.

Eric sits and watches. Looking for any sign of life. Any movement at all. None. He gets up and walks to the bear, bleeding into a stream. Water. He puts a hand on it's back and goes to cut it open, and it rolls over. Before his very eyes, the bear has become his father. The father that died when he was just 8 years old. The abusive monster that was murdered by his mother. The man that he has blamed for making him an orphan.*

Rex's Father: You killed me! You worthless bastard! If it weren't for you, your mom and I would've been ok! You killed me and you put her in prison! IT WAS ALL YOU AND NOW YOU'VE DONE IT AGAIN!

*Rex closes his eyes. He knows it isn't real now, but the pain cuts deep. He breathes deeply and reopens them. Eli is staring him in the face.*

Eli: But it's ok, man. I forgive ya'. I'm your father now.

*Eli stands up and stretches his arms out. At that moment, he hears Lacey scream in the distance. He begins to run through the woods, desperately trying to find her. The trees get more and more dense, until he can no longer run. He's getting tangled in vines and can't move as her screams are getting louder and more hysteric. A branch falls and hits him in the head, sending him back into the mud.

Rex sits up in his bed, Lacey is still screaming. He leaps up and rushes into her room. She's standing in her pajamas and staring out of her window. Rex rushes to the window, lifting her, and sees a Oldsmobile drive away.*

Lacey: He was watching and he...and he...

Rex: Shh shh shh, sweetie. It'll be ok. It's all going to be ok.

*Rex strokes the little bit of hair Lacey has starting to grow back before putting her back to bed. She falls asleep, as does Rex two hours later in the chair next to her bed.

Eric sleeps late the next day and wakes up to find Lacey already awake and out of bed. He checks his phone and he finds a voicemail left by Eli. He listens and calls him back. Rex gets Eli's voicemail.*

Rex: Eli, I don't know what's going on with you. The very first thing I learned in the military, and this has grown more and more important to me since, is that trust in your partners is the key to survival. If you can't trust the mem you're working with, you will fail. I'll tell you this now, and this will be the last time I tell you...Emma-Lee tried to seduce me and I rejected her. What Mary-Beth saw was her pulling me on top of her. If that's not a good enough explanation for you, I don't know what to tell you. I'll see you on Sunday and I'll be ready to go. Trust me. I'm a man of my word.

*Rex hangs up the phone and walks into the living room. He had recently purchased a TV, the first one he's had in years, just so Lacey could watch cartoons on the weekend. She's sitting in front of it, laughing.*

Lacey: Look, Daddy! It's Uncle Sal!

*Sure enough, there he was. Sal Valencia had apparently paid for an early-morning ad. Rex hadn't seen this one yet.*

Sal: Hi. I'm Sal. Sal Valencia. Attorney at Law. And I'm here today to ask you, "Have you been discriminated against due to your religious beliefs?" Has someone made fun of you, called you crazy, or been violent toward you because of the way you choose to worship? It can happen anywhere. The workplace, the bar, home, grandma's, a wrestling ring, the hospital, community fundraisers. If it has, give Sal a call at the law offices of Academi Law Firm at 1-800-GODS-LAW. Again, that's 1-800-GODS-LAW. We'll be here waiting to help you!

*Rex couldn't believe his eyes. Lacey looked up at him.*

Lacey: Daddy, what is God's law?

Rex: There is no God.

Lacey: That's not what Mr. James said.

*Rex simply rubbed her head and left the room. He called Sal. Voicemail again. How convenient.*

Rex: Sal, this isn't what The Academi is about. You know this. Stop the ads. Now.

*Rex hangs up. He feels the anger bubbling up inside him. He thinks about smashing the phone, punching a hole in the wall, throwing the TV out of the window. He pours a glass of orange juice instead. Trust. Trust is what's needed.*

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