Sylvia was in a three truck convoy winding through the jungle just inside Venezuela. The trucks contained the a****ls she had acquired for the resort from the Guarani people. The trip had been long and was going to be still longer. She was in the middle truck of the three, a pickup that contained Thor, Wolf, and a goat. She was dozing as she sat in the passenger seat of the truck. The drive had been uncomfortable and she didn’t see that changing any time soon. The weather was hot and humid, exactly what the jungle was supposed to be.

The driver nudged her shoulder, respectfully. Sylvia wasn’t just an older woman, but a woman who clearly had the means and influence for such a trip to covertly get a****ls out of Brazil and into Venezuela. She straightened up, fussing with her hair absently, as if the way her hair might look in the jungle could be important.

“Is there a problem?”

“The dog, Senora.” He was pointing to the back of the truck.

She turned in her seat as the truck slowed to a stop. The driver honked to warn the truck ahead that they were stopping. Wolf was agitated. Wolf was tremendously agitated. As the truck slowed, Wolf jumped from the back, his head held high in the air, moving one way and then another. Sylvia swore quietly and scrambled out of the cab of the truck.

“Wolf! Come back here.” She looked at Thor in case he might be ready to do the same thing, but he seemed quiet. He was watching Wolf, but he seemed to be at peace with the world. Wolf came back to the truck, but he continued to keep his head high in the air, as if he were trying to determine a scent, a direction of a scent, or … something … whatever it was, it was very deliberate for him, but clearly it was only for him.

Wolf pranced back and forth, turning around the truck in pursuit of something only he knew what. Then he stopped about 20 feet behind the truck. He was facing southwest and he stood perfectly still. To Sylvia, it was eerie to see his concentration on nothing that was evident to anyone or anything else. The last thing Sylvia remembered about the event was Wolf stopping and turning to her. He then turned back to the same direction and released a long, piercing howl that sounded to her filled with pain and mournfulness. He then leapt into the jungle and disappeared. They called and searched, but they had to continue their trek if they were to reach their destination by nightfall. He was gone.

* * * *

The Guarani people left the river. It wasn’t as soon as the canoe disappeared around the bend. They couldn’t even have said why they delayed. They knew I was leaving. They knew I was gone. But, the black panther remained, so they remained, at least for a while. Slowly, a few at a time, then more together, they left the side of the river. But, the panther remained. When the last of the people had left and returned the short distance to the village, the panther still waited.