From: Steve Wilson, ranch manager

  To: All ranch employees

  Report at once to ranch HQ for assignment. A major systems failure has allowed animals at the research center to exit the holding pens into open ranchland. Report to ranch HQ at once. If you are closer to the research center report there to security officers.

  Dillon was already at the headquarters loading fully tacked horses into trailers when Matt got there. He was issued two elk hunting rifles and fifty rounds, and a trailer was hooked up to his truck. Two ranch hands who had shown up were put into his truck with him, and he was told to drive to the ant farm. They speculated about what was going on as they drove, guessing that they would be sent out to track and kill the escaped lions. “Shouldn’t be too difficult t’ track ’em,” Matt told the two men. “I expect they’re chipped.” All three had their adrenaline running at the prospect, Matt’s tempered by the thought of what they might be facing.

  There was considerable confusion at the ant farm as the horses were unloaded and the ranch crews prepared to start pursuit. PAS personnel issued tranquilizer rifles and directed the crews to use them before live ammunition. Apparently there had been yet another failure in both the surveillance and access-control systems, and the lions, generally active in the hours around dawn, had taken advantage of open gates to go exploring. Matt knew that there was a variety of game species on the ranch, particularly in this area so close to the Lewis and Clark National Forest, so it did not surprise him that given the opportunity the lions wanted to go have a sniff around. He cursed the fence contractor, whose work was almost, but not quite done. The secure perimeter around the ant farm was incomplete.

  His team included Ronnie and the two men who had ridden with him from the ranch. As they waited for orders Matt told them, “I’ve got ’em on the geolocator on my tab. They’re not far, but they’ve gone down ravines. My guess is they’ve never been loose and they’re just followin their noses.”

  “They’re not wild animals?” one of the ranch hands asked.

  “Glorified zoo animals at best. But they’re still dangerous. They may follow some scents, but they probably have no huntin experience. I hope they got fed this mornin.”

  “I’d say if they’d been fed they’d be home asleep,” Ronnie said. “Got your piece?”

  “No time, just these huntin rifles.”

  “I got my .357 before we came down here,” Ronnie told him and indicated his saddle bags.

  “Probably more scared and confused than we are,” Matt replied. “Hope the tranq darts work, I’d hate t’ have t’ kill ’em.”

  At that moment Billy, one of the PAS techs, came up to them leading a horse and looking surprisingly like he knew what he was doing. “Hey, Matt, let’s go northeast to the group here.” He indicated a cluster of icons on Matt’s tab. Once they were mounted, Billy called in on his radio, reporting how many were in their party and their direction, and they headed out.

  It was well after eight, and it took another hour of riding through ravines, creek beds, and hilly scrub before they arrived in the area of the group they were pursuing. Billy directed them with a skill and confidence that indicated to Matt that it was not his first time on a hunt like this.

  Using geolocator tags, Billy located Dinah. They didn’t see the cubs, but Billy said the young cubs would be somewhere near her. They had no trouble tranquilizing Dinah, and they quickly found the cubs and disabled them, too. Billy called in a recovery team with trucks, ropes, and nets to return the animals to the ant farm.

  “This ain’t hardly huntin,” Ronnie said. “We’re like a bunch of dog catchers.”

  On their way back Matt rode side by side with Billy. “What are these animals? Why are they here?” Matt asked.

  “They’re lions, that’s all. Mr. Bell wanted them to have bigger spaces, I guess.”

  “Bullshit. Kitty’s cubs don’t look normal,” Matt said after a pause. “They’re bigger, and more muscled.”

  “Can’t comment on that,” Billy replied. He kicked his horse into a trot and rode ahead of the group. Matt was seething. This whole incident had been completely unnecessary. He wondered why PAS had waited two hours before summoning help.

  When they finally got back to the ant farm at noon, the news was worse: Kitty’s family had gone north, into the central part of the ranch and in the direction of ranch headquarters. They had moved much further and faster than Dinah’s group, and from what he heard in the radio chatter, it would be almost dark before they were subdued. Not only were the larger juveniles on the loose, but not all of them were showing on the geolocator.

  He called Shel and told her to stay inside whatever building she was in. These animals were big and scary, and he didn’t want her to take any chances, no matter how small. Four-hundred pound juvenile lions with mouths full of teeth and loose on the ranch were a serious threat. Reports were now coming in that the trackers were finding dead wildlife.

  Both Moppet’s and Rashida’s groups had moved into the thousand-acre enclosure, and it was fairly easy for crews of ranch hands, contractors, and PAS staff to create a temporary line across the incomplete section of fence by mid-afternoon to prevent them from escaping. They could be left to roam the big enclosure and rounded up when the last of the other lions had been returned.

  In the late afternoon Matt and Ronnie and a couple more ranch hands were sent out to help the groups tracking Kitty’s family. They heard there had been an injury and that the animals continued to elude the trackers. As they approached the general area of the hunt, they saw a helicopter circling the valley ahead of them, then they heard gunfire.

  “Those aren’t tranq shots,” Ronnie said, and they picked up their pace. Matt called in on his ranch radio, and they were told to go west toward the Smith River and wait at the top of the cliff above the next bend in the river to wait for instructions. The cliff was sixty feet or so high and steep. The river below them made a giant S-shaped bend.

  They saw the four lions huddled up together on a flat gravel bar just up the river. A stream coming into the river separated the gravel bar from the base of the cliff, so the lions had water on two sides of them and forest on the third. To Matt it looked like Kitty and her three cubs, though the cubs were much larger than Kitty.

  Matt called in. “There’s four animals on the gravel bar across the crick at the bottom of the cliff.”

  “Got that. Hold your positions. We are coming out of the trees in thirty seconds. Do not fire.”

  Matt’s group on the cliff waited on their horses in silent anticipation. The lions were watching the tree line. It was getting late, and the cliffs opposite them were casting shadows across the river and almost to the trees. A line of eight men emerged parallel to the tree line, all with rifles raised, and came to a stop about twenty yards from the animals. Matt could hear some brief talk among them. Then, just as he saw one of the lions jump up and turn, he heard the soft sound of tranquilizer rifles. Another cub jumped, and the last two lions turned and ran toward the river. One stopped, and Matt knew it was Kitty by the tuft at the end of her tail. She collapsed. The other, largest of the group, plunged into the fast-moving river.

  The men on the bar moved out toward the river in careful pairs, inspecting each lion and binding their feet together. Matt watched, riveted, as the lion in the river swam strongly, but the current pushed it downstream toward the cliff, into the bend, back into the deeper shadows at the base of the slope. From his position on top of the cliff he saw it emerge from the river and begin to scale the steep slope at a remarkable rate. Shots rang out, but the animal continued and was at the top, not fifty yards away from Matt’s group, in under ten seconds. Based on his research over the last two weeks, he knew no ordinary lion could have swum the river like that or climbed the cliff in such rapid leaps.

  “Go after him! Take him down!” Matt’s radio crackled. The other men heard it, and they all put spurs to their horses and galloped along the flat cliff top toward the point where the lion had come up.

  There was no sign of the lion where they thought he had come over the top, and now that it was almost sunset the light was fading fast. The flat land was a couple of hundred yards wide or so parallel to the river, then it began to rise and fall in the normal rolling profile of the area. The slopes were generally tree covered. Matt checked his tab, but there was no icon for the lion, although he could see unmoving icons for the animals on the gravel bar. A helicopter was approaching.

  “What do you think, Ronnie?”

  “I’m good till dark, but not in the trees. You see how that thing just hopped up that slope? It could jump and take me off my horse without touchin the horse. Does it show on your locator?”

  Matt shook his head. “There’s no icon for it. The chip’s gone dead or been damaged. You’re a better tracker than me, and now we’re on safari. Let’s see if we can find where it came up, mark that, and let the guys with dogs take it.” Ronnie agreed, and the four of them dismounted and broke up to survey the area around where they thought the lion had come up. All were nervous, alert, and carried their rifles at the ready. Matt called in what they were doing and was told to stay in the open away from trees or rocks that might hide the lion.

  It was almost dark when Ronnie found tracks. “Hey, Matt,” he called. “Here’s the biggest cat tracks I ever saw!” Matt and the other two ran to where Ronnie was. They saw that the distance between the tracks was over ten feet, and when they followed them away from the cliff edge, the distance became even greater. “Holy shit!” Ronnie said. “This guy looks like he’s in a hurry. What do we do?” he asked Matt.

  Matt called in their findings. “I have you on the geolocator,” replied the controller. “We will have a helicopter to you in under an hour with supplies for you and your horses. You will camp there for the night, and the helicopter will be back before dawn with a tracking crew. The crew will take your horses, and you will return in the chopper. Understood?”

  “Yeah. Any advice on whether this thing will come and visit us tonight?”

  “The chopper will bring a Texas Lion Ranch security officer and a set of motion detectors to make a perimeter for the night. Maintain an armed watch and keep weapons close. We need those horses at first light so they get priority. You guys can sleep tomorrow.”

  Chapter 13

  Shel saw the message about the systems failure at the ant farm just before seven. She threw on her clothes and made it to the ranch in her best time ever. On the ranch road she passed several pickup trucks, a couple with horse trailers, going the other way. Outside the admin building she saw a number of ranch hands clustered around Steve. Dillon had a few horses on the hitching rail in front of the barn looking like they were ready to go somewhere. He waved to Shel as she crossed the road to the office, and she turned to walk to where he was standing near the barn.

  “Pretty excitin for a Monday,” he said with a smile. “Have any trouble gettin here?”

  “Nooo,” she replied, drawing it out to ask the question Why would I?

  “I heard they closed all the roads, especially down south. What I can tell from the radio traffic so far is it’s all confusion. Who knows what’ll happen today, but maybe by noon somebody’ll at least have a plan.”

  “Do you think it’s serious? Like they might have to shoot the lions or anything?” Shel asked. After all the energy she had put into trying to discover the nature of the project, she felt a proprietary interest in their welfare.

  “When the ants first came, I guess that’s seven or eight years ago, took a while t’ learn t’ control ’em. Gave the hands more trouble than regular bison. Not bad, but it took a while t’ learn how t’ handle ’em. This is gonna have some learning curve too,” Dillon said.

  “What are you doing today?” she asked.

  “I’m keepin the barn clean and the horses ready. If any don’t go out right away, they’ll be ready when they’re needed. When they come back we’ll have t’ take care of ’em so they’re ready t’ go again soon. And I’ll be cleanin my huntin rifle, in case any strangers come callin.” He winked at Shel when he said that, perhaps to reassure her—she wasn’t certain.

  “I’ll go see what I can do. If there’s not coffee, I’ll make a big pot. Want some?” she asked as she started back to the office.

  “Call me, and I’ll come and get it.”

  Tom and Bridget were in the office when Shel walked in. “Morning, Shel,” Tom greeted her with a serious tone. “Thanks for coming in. We are pretty confused at the moment about what’s happening down at the farm. The first of our guys are probably just getting there now.”

  “Is it serious, do you think?”

  “I have no idea, but a bunch of lions wandering around our ranch can’t be good. What I need you to do today is answer the phone.” He picked a piece of paper up off the desk and handed it to her. “This is your script. What I need you to say is simple. One, who is calling? I want a list of everyone who calls to ask what is going on. Two, we’ve heard about animals getting loose at the research center, but we have no confirmed information. Three, we have no details about the type of animals involved, no comment on what types are there. And four, call this number at PAS for official information.” It was an out of state number. She read the script, which was direct and to the point.

  “OK. Does PAS really have someone who knows what’s happening?”

  “I’d guess that number is just a message box. If people call back our story is that we know nothing, which at the moment is completely true. I think PAS sat on this for at least an hour before calling us, so my guess is they’re in total panic mode for now. Just focus on our official line: we don’t know anything. And no extra information, like we are sending men to help. We know nothing and we have no details and no comment beyond—call the number.” Shel nodded. “Oh, and just go ahead with your regular work today too. Everything on the ranch is normal.” She nodded in response to his wry expression.

  “Is there coffee?” Shel asked. “I told Dillon I’d make some if there wasn’t any.” Tom said he would love to have some, and Bridget said she’d help before going out with Mary to do a census of the neighborhood. They needed to know exactly who was on the ranch. Some people may have left for off-ranch jobs and at least some of the kids had made the school bus before the alarm went out.

  By eight thirty Shel was settled in at her desk. Dillon had come for coffee and told her to call him if she needed to go anywhere so he could accompany her because today nobody should be out alone. At nine she got a call from an angry hay truck driver who had been refused entry at the ranch gate. She put him on hold, called Tom, and was told there would be no deliveries today. That didn’t pacify the driver, but it was all she could tell him.

  A few minutes later a call on her tab caught her off guard: “Good morning Michelle, it’s cousin Colin. How are things today?”

  She paused to think before she spoke, “It’s just another sunny day here at the edge of the High Plains. What are you up to?”

  “I’m going to be passing through Great Falls again later today and thought to buy you dinner.”

  “Well,” she said carefully, “we have a livestock problem here today and the ranch is busy until we figure it out so I probably can’t make it tonight.”

  “Too bad,” he replied. He was smooth when he needed to be. “I’ll call back when I get to town and maybe it’ll be all cleared up and we can get together. You’ve got my number if anything comes up. Talk to you later.” He terminated the call on a note of pleasant optimism. Shel wondered if all the calls were being recorded. Out here her tab worked through the ranch’s com system. How did he know so soon? Does he really have someone else here? Even if he does, I don’t like it that he knew and called so early.

  At about ten the calls from news organizations began to trickle in. She made notes about the callers and their questions, which she did not answer before directing them to the PAS number. She was on edge, and the few other people who came in, mostly family members of employees who lived in the neighborhood, were as well. Bridget had sent Shel, Tom, and Steve a list of the people known to be on the ranch, and it included a few children who had missed the bus or were home sick today.

  Matt called her on her tab a little after noon. She could hear worry in his voice.

  “It’s confused here, but some of the lions are still out and headin north, toward your part of the ranch.”

  “Are you going to catch them?”

  “I’m sure they’re workin on that, but these are big guys. Don’t go outside unless you’re with someone who has a big gun, I mean .357 or larger, and knows how t’ use it. If this lasts until later, don’t go outside after sunset no matter who you are with. OK?”

  “Yes. Matt,” she replied, feeling the weight of his serious tone. “what’s going to happen?”

  “I dunno. We rounded up one group t’ the south and just got back. I think we’re goin t’ be sent north t’ help those guys. Don’t take any chances, and don’t be alone if this lasts past sundown. Please.”

  “Sure. You make it sound dangerous.”

  “It is. We’ll talk next time we’re together. I love you,” he said as he ended the call. She sat in her chair staring at the tab. He’s never said that before, this must be serious.

  She felt hot, and after a few moments she noticed she was taking in quick, shallow breaths. He loves me? It was wonderful. She could feel every part of her body for a moment, and she thought she might float up off the chair. What if he finds out what I’ve been doing? No, he can’t. He’ll hate me.

  Her thoughts twisted and turned as she tried to make sense of what to do. Then her tab rang with an unidentified call.

  “What the fuck is going on there?” It was Colin. “My people are practically hysterical!”