AN: There is some vulgar language in this chapter. All readers are warned...
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"Legally owning Bandhavgarh Cabin was a huge relief for Molly and I," I explained to Dave, "I had thought that it would allow us to carry on like any member of society. We wouldn't be living off of her uncle's charity..."
"Though you could say you only got it because of Mike's charity," Dave pointed out.
"True," I sighed, "but tried to insist that he didn't have to give it to us, but he repeatedly said that because we stood up to Beauregard, we'd done more then enough to earn it..."
"I take it Beauregard didn't take it that way when he found out," Dave quipped.
"No," I sighed, "No he didn't. But at the time, we figured that we would be far enough away from him that he wouldn't be concerned with us."
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After the meeting with Michael York's lawyers and the deed to "Bandhavgarh Cabin" being handed over to me, I called Dave to tell him that I would be taking the rest of the day off and went to the school to wait for it to let out so I could tell Molly the good news. I pulled into the parking lot in front of the school and quietly waited for their day to let out. I didn't have to wait too long as the doors opened and a line of children came out of the building and converged on waiting cars and mini-vans in the parking lot. A few minutes later the teachers and a familiar figure came out.
"George!" Molly cheered and came forward when she saw me waiting for her.
"Hey, Molly," I replied with a smile, "How was your day?"
"Pretty good," Molly smiled back as I opened the door for her, "Mrs. Fitzpatrick seems to approve of my work... although all the kids apparently want to BE tigers now."
"Well, who wouldn't want to be beautiful like you?" I asked her.
"Flatterer," Molly smirked and swatted me with her tail.
I was silently amazed at how good she was getting at using an appendage she didn't have before.
"How was your day?" Molly asked.
"Very good," I smiled as I got in and started my truck's engine, "and I have very good news..."
"It's ours?" Molly asked, looking up, "ow!"
I chuckled a little at that and looked over my shoulder to see Molly rubbing her head, which she had apparently bumped when she inquired about the cabin.
"Legally," I said with a smile, "we can officially start moving in. And no one can say we don't have the right to be there."
We backed out and I began to head back to Molly's uncle's home. I whistled a short happy tune as Molly and I were enjoying some good fortune for once.
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We returned to Molly's uncle's home, which was empty at the moment. I shrugged that off as Frank Rhoer and his daughters worked fairly long days for Mr. Beauregard, so I didn't expect them to be back at four o'clock.
"So how do you want to do this?" Molly asked me as I let her out of the back seat, "I'm pretty sure this "Dave" will give you the time off since he's been so informal about everything."
"Are you asking if I want you there to help move in?" I asked.
"Essentially," Molly answered.
"Well, if you don't have the time because of your work schedule, it's okay," I told her, "I mean most of the stuff that will need to be moved out will be trucked out here from Illinois and they'll have professional movers do all of that sort of stuff."
"And most of that stuff will be my computer, TV, books, papers, CDs, CD player, pencils, pens, etcetera and the same will go for you too," Molly spoke, "and we'll need to sort how we deal with them."
"It'd only be two TVs between us," I told her, "we can keep one in our bedroom and one in the living room. The computer can go in whatever spot we use as a den."
"Captain Problem Solver to the rescue," Molly chuckled, "so what is our next step?"
"I would think it would be to call home," I said, "tell them what they need to ship out and what they can sell... or would you think having them ship everything and we sell what we don't need or can't store be the better option?"
"The second option is the better option," Molly answered, "knowing how my parents have acted, they might have already sold a lot of my stuff."
I sensed some hostility in the comment, and disgusted with how Molly's parents had responded to her transformation, I had no wish to argue. In fact I agreed with her.
"Okay," I nodded after a moment, "and since we have all your cloths here already, as well as most of mine..."
"I'm not wearing your cloths," Molly pointed.
"Most of my clothes are here, with us," I corrected, "how's that?"
"Better," Molly smirked.
"It'll take a little while for the rest of our stuff, most of the stuff that we'll need to do here will revolve around buying the things that we'll need," I continued, "food, which we'll need to completely stock up on... I don't know if they have enough meat here for you... as well as things like soap, shampoo, laundry detergent, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera."
"If buying food is that necessary, we can go to Kalispell, or Whitefish, or even Bigfork and Somers when it comes to stocking up on meat," Molly sighed, "and hunting season isn't that far away... I'll take time off during the hunting season and hopefully I'll be successful. We can fill that deep freeze with venison."
"You're not planning on..."
"It's an instinctual thing, George," Molly sighed, "I see them on occasion, and my mind gets excited about stalking and chasing them... and since Leona told you there was no cure for what that freak show did to me... I've found that I need to accept what I've become. I am a tigress, George. Maybe more civilized then a mundane tigress and smart enough to know that people aren't viable food options... but as you said... I need a place like this to be who I am..."
I wanted to say something, but Molly was right. I had urged this sort of move. I rationalized that the open land would give Molly the room to blow off steam and as I thought back, I realized that I had done this with the expectation that Molly would want to hunt. That made me wonder if I was really worthy of her. Molly didn't like being turned into an animal when the freak show did it to her, and in that moment, all they had done was change her physical form. It was I who truly made her an animal.
"I'm sorry, Molly," I said weakly.
"It's alright, George," she answered, "you heard Leona at the trial. Some of this was bound to happen."
"But you can fight it, can't you? You can be you?" I asked, "I made you do this!"
Molly turned and gave me an odd look. It was then that she noticed my own guilt. She lifted me up into a hug and I could feel her giving a low rumble in her throat, like she was trying to purr... but obviously couldn't.
"Some of this was bound to happen," Molly repeated, "Leona had said that I'd have to deal with a tigress's instincts. I can fight those instincts, yes, but with some of them, they are pretty strong. And how long would society have trusted me back "home"? Especially considering how all the people there were treating me. Eventually I would have snapped there and attacked someone. The form came with the instincts attached, George. You've actually done me a great favor and been the best man I could ever hope for. NEVER think less of yourself for how things are... I mean... here, yes I'll be more of an "animal"... but here I have the freedom to make a choice. Here I can choose to hunt deer... and if I do, that is my choice, which may not be so much of an instinctual reaction."
"But you wanted to be human again," I said weakly.
"Of course I did," Molly answered, "but Leona told you that was impossible. Would you rather I go mad reaching for something that could not be reached?"
"No," I sighed, "I'm sorry."
Molly only gave me a firm hug.
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"We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening calling home and receiving the congratulations from family on being able to get our own place to stay," I told Dave, "though there were some things that I left out... such as Molly's acceptance of what she was, but there were some things that I did mention that I immediately regretted mentioning."
"You told him about Mike's rivalry with Beauregard?" Dave asked, and after I nodded, "bet you got an earful."
"He was more concerned that I was walking into the middle of an existing political fight," I sighed, "and at the time though, I was excited about having a place and giving Molly a chance to succeed... I wasn't really focused on a potential fight..."
"Why do I get the feeling you're now drawing ME into this..." Dave spoke.
"You're getting ahead of me, Dave," I sighed, "you'll understand this better if you know everything."
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The next morning began early for both Molly and I. Molly to get ready for work, Meredeth, Nessie and Frank Rhoer to begin their work as well, and I was beginning to get things ready to move into Bandhavgarh Cabin.
"It'll be great to have you living close by," Nessie said to Molly while Meredeth cooked a mountain of eggs, "I trust we can visit from time to time."
"Of course," Molly answered and was about to say more when there was a knock at the door.
"I got it," Frank Rhoer spoke as he came out, "You guys enjoy your breakfast."
I watched as he approached the door, and I noticed Molly turn one of her ears, as if to listen in. Frank Rhoer opened the door to reveal a man and a small film crew following. One of them noticed Molly standing at a sort of counter table and practically freaked out.
"Holy crap it's loose!"
Molly growled at being referred to as "it".
"Excuse me, sir," Frank Rhoer said politely, "please don't call my niece "it". Her name is Molly."
My own urge to protect Molly came to the front of mind and I made my way toward the door.
"Lot's of people name their pets, uh..." the first man spoke.
"Frank Rhoer," Frank Rhoer said plainly.
"Frank Rhoer? We're looking for a George Wayne," the man said.
"That would be me," I said, as I came forward, "and Molly ISN'T pet. She isn't an "it" either. She is Molly, and I would prefer it if you called her "Molly" or "Ms. Rhoer", not "it"."
"You do realize that that's a tiger," the man answered.
"Tigress," I corrected, "and that is only because of freak show geneticist. You should have seen that on the news."
"Who are you?" Frank Rhoer demanded of the man.
"I am Benjamin Fyre, I'm with the television program Fatal Attractions on Animal Planet," the man answered, "our offices received a letter saying that "Ms. Rhoer" was descending into being a mindless animal as a result of this freak show and that George Wayne was still living with her and wasn't turning her over to a specialized sanctuary that could properly take care of her. My employers wanted me to come and find out for sure, and if it did..."
"And if it did you intended to profit off of my girlfriend's "pain"," I growled at him, "I didn't contact you to be part of your program. Molly ISN'T mindless, nor is she in danger of becoming so. I don't know what sort of stunt you're pulling, but it is over now."
"This isn't a stunt," Fyre answered, "if you won't accept the interview, we won't film. We won't force you to do anything."
"Stop treating her like she's a mindless animal," I yelled at him and poking an accusing finger into his chest, "Molly is a person. She may be a tigress, but she a person as well."
Fyre backed off.
"Listen, I'm sorry," Fyre spoke, "the letter told us that she was descending into mindlessness and was being kept as a pet. We didn't know if it was true or not..."
"Who wrote the letter?" Frank Rhoer asked, placing a hand on my shoulder if only to try and restrain me.
Fyre turned to a third man that I didn't see earlier, and he looked much more like a lawyer. The man handed Fyre a piece of paper. Fyre then turned to hand it to Frank, but I grabbed it before that could happen, and I then read the letter:
"To Whom It May Concern:
I am not much of a fan of your show, but I do recognize its potential as a tool to get people to make smart decisions with their lives. Dangerous wild animals should not be kept as pets, and your program serves to educate a lot of people that foolishly think otherwise. Because of this, I feel it is my civic duty to inform you of a topic for coverage on your program.
I'm sure you're aware of the trial of a Eugene Changes, a geneticist who through some scientific formula turned a fair number of people into anthropomorphic animals. One of the victims of the man's actions has recently been brought to Columbia Falls, Montana, and I have had the opportunity to meet the unfortunate victim of Eugene Changes' actions. Let me say, that what the man did was horrible, and my soul aches for his victims, but what I saw in that victim was something truly frightening. The victim was turned into a tigress and when I met her, was rapidly deteriorating into a mindless state, as if she were any other wild animal. She was being cared for by a rather uneducated individual who doesn't understand how dangerous a five hundred pound predatory animal is.
If you could do anything to help this individual see the error of his ways, it would be appreciated. If you need more information, please write back.
Sincerely,
Pierre Beauregard, Head and CEO of R.A.M."
"That son of bitch," I growled angrily tossed the letter to Frank and went out the door.
"It'd be best if you and your crew left," Frank Rhoer said to Fyre while Molly came chasing after me.
"George!" she called after me as I started my truck up, "George, what's wrong?! What is it?!"
I barely noticed. I simply drove straight toward Beauregard's home. I found him at his gate, smirking like a cat that had eaten a prized canary.
"You bastard," I swore at him.
"Hurts, don't it, son?" Beauregard smirked.
"Molly is not some mindless animal!" I yelled at him.
"I would say she is," Beauregard answered, "I offered her a position that would have paid well, and she turned it down."
"Because you wanted her to go out and hunt wild animals because you don't like them!" I countered.
"No one but stupid liberals like them, boy," Beauregard answered, "You know the people who want to reintroduce the wolf are all stupid tree huggers living in Washington DC, New York, or New Jersey that don't know how dangerous and deadly the wolf is. I guarantee you that EVERYONE in Montana didn't approve of the reintroduction of wolf to Yellowstone, and we, the citizens of Montana joined with our neighbors in Wyoming to protest the reintroduction of a cattle killer... but the liberals in Washington went ahead with it and reintroduced it. And now it's running rampant. Killing cattle and people. And I guarantee you, a cheer will echo across this state the day the wolf is extinct. That, boy is a promise. And I offered your girlfriend a chance to share in that victory. But she rejected me..."
"She is not a mindless animal!"
"She threatened to eat all my cattle," Beauregard answered.
"Only ONE cow, as needed," I answered, "not all of them. And only after you made your ridiculous job offer her. You essentially wanted her to be a hired thug against animals!"
"She still threatened to eat my livelihood," Beauregard replied, "and I take my threats personally, boy. So until you go on back to your city and live in your deluded little liberal world where you don't have to work and make money... which I never understood... and never realize that NO ONE with a brain wants the wolf on this Earth, you will feel the full pressure I can bring as the head of R.A.M., Ranchers Against Molly..."
I turned to face him.
"And Frank is a member," Beauregard smirked.
"This means war, you asshole," I grumbled as I walked back to my truck, and I then turned, and said firmly, "you won't get away with this."
"I already have," Beauregard smirked again as I drove off back toward Frank Rhoer's home.