about amongst the reeds. Whistler was soon made aware of it and gradually the Park heard that the Beast was back in action. They tried again – keeping eyes peeled, ears open for a clue.
Meanwhile the Warden had come to the realization that the ruse of penning the deer was not going to work. The hunter was too clever to come near and there was no benefit to the deer themselves, who were becomingfretful and difficult to feed. So the barricades came down and the nightly vigils were ended. The deer ran free again and exulted in the feeling. The Warden was reduced to tramping over the Reserve again in daylight hours. He was becoming convinced that the threat was over. Fox and his associates knew better.
‘It’s beaten us again,’ he complained to Vixen. ‘How does it manage it?’
‘It’s a superior creature,’ she answered. ‘Superior in cunning, superior in hunting, superior in every way. Husky’s name for the Beast was “Stealth”, and stealth is the essence of the animal. It has a sort of stealth that we cannot begin to understand.’
‘And with all of us – every animal around – out looking for it! The humans are beaten too. Where does it go?’
With the deer herd available again as an unlimited food source, the Cat had no need to return to the place of its last kill. So the motley collection of birds and animals who had that corner under special scrutiny had no reward for their pains. However, at last a sort of clue did emerge from an unexpected source.
Adder had not encountered the surprising she-viper again. After their first meeting he had not felt that he had given a very good account of himself and he wished he could put that right. He felt she had somehow got the better of him and he could not feel comfortable about it. As time went on he did not think a lot about her but when he did she still intrigued him.
The weather was now quite warm. All the trees were in leaf; there was new greenery everywhere. Adder had his favourite spots for basking and one of these was a piece of sloping ground, not a great distance from the stream. It was well screened by fronds of bracken. The bed of last year’s brown dead fern fronds underneath him made the ground warm and, among the new fast-growing greenshoots, Adder delighted to indulge himself, particularly after eating. He had thought this place was his and his entirely. But one day, after swallowing a vole and feeling very sleepy, he had slid into the spot, only to find another occupant. This did not please him and he said grumpily, ‘How long have you been coming here?’ He was talking to the she-viper.
She stared at him in the snake’s usual unblinking way. But her tongue tested Adder for smell. ‘Oh – the scarred one,’ was her response. ‘But no,’ she added. ‘Am I mistaken? Or have the wounds healed?’
‘Of course they’ve healed; they were only scratches,’ Adder hissed. ‘And you haven’t answered my question.’
‘Coming here? Not very long. I found this spot by chance.’
‘Did you though? Well, I might tell you that I’ve been sunning myself here without interference from another for as long as –’
‘I’m not going to interfere with your habits,’ she interrupted. ‘There’s plenty of room for both of us.’
‘I like solitude,’ Adder asserted. (As soon as he had said it he wondered why he had.) ‘And I have a prior claim.’
‘You make yourself understood,’ the female replied drily. ‘I take the hint. There’s plenty of room in the Park.’ She uncoiled herself and began to slide away. Before she disappeared she said, ‘You may like to know, Solitude-lover, that this isn’t necessarily the safest of places for you.’
Adder checked her departure. ‘How do you mean?’ he lisped.
‘I mean that, in view of your previous tussle, you possibly wouldn’t want to risk another one.’
‘Are you referring to the Cat?’
‘Indeed I am,’ she answered. ‘I know for a fact that itsometimes uses a large
Meanwhile the Warden had come to the realization that the ruse of penning the deer was not going to work. The hunter was too clever to come near and there was no benefit to the deer themselves, who were becomingfretful and difficult to feed. So the barricades came down and the nightly vigils were ended. The deer ran free again and exulted in the feeling. The Warden was reduced to tramping over the Reserve again in daylight hours. He was becoming convinced that the threat was over. Fox and his associates knew better.
‘It’s beaten us again,’ he complained to Vixen. ‘How does it manage it?’
‘It’s a superior creature,’ she answered. ‘Superior in cunning, superior in hunting, superior in every way. Husky’s name for the Beast was “Stealth”, and stealth is the essence of the animal. It has a sort of stealth that we cannot begin to understand.’
‘And with all of us – every animal around – out looking for it! The humans are beaten too. Where does it go?’
With the deer herd available again as an unlimited food source, the Cat had no need to return to the place of its last kill. So the motley collection of birds and animals who had that corner under special scrutiny had no reward for their pains. However, at last a sort of clue did emerge from an unexpected source.
Adder had not encountered the surprising she-viper again. After their first meeting he had not felt that he had given a very good account of himself and he wished he could put that right. He felt she had somehow got the better of him and he could not feel comfortable about it. As time went on he did not think a lot about her but when he did she still intrigued him.
The weather was now quite warm. All the trees were in leaf; there was new greenery everywhere. Adder had his favourite spots for basking and one of these was a piece of sloping ground, not a great distance from the stream. It was well screened by fronds of bracken. The bed of last year’s brown dead fern fronds underneath him made the ground warm and, among the new fast-growing greenshoots, Adder delighted to indulge himself, particularly after eating. He had thought this place was his and his entirely. But one day, after swallowing a vole and feeling very sleepy, he had slid into the spot, only to find another occupant. This did not please him and he said grumpily, ‘How long have you been coming here?’ He was talking to the she-viper.
She stared at him in the snake’s usual unblinking way. But her tongue tested Adder for smell. ‘Oh – the scarred one,’ was her response. ‘But no,’ she added. ‘Am I mistaken? Or have the wounds healed?’
‘Of course they’ve healed; they were only scratches,’ Adder hissed. ‘And you haven’t answered my question.’
‘Coming here? Not very long. I found this spot by chance.’
‘Did you though? Well, I might tell you that I’ve been sunning myself here without interference from another for as long as –’
‘I’m not going to interfere with your habits,’ she interrupted. ‘There’s plenty of room for both of us.’
‘I like solitude,’ Adder asserted. (As soon as he had said it he wondered why he had.) ‘And I have a prior claim.’
‘You make yourself understood,’ the female replied drily. ‘I take the hint. There’s plenty of room in the Park.’ She uncoiled herself and began to slide away. Before she disappeared she said, ‘You may like to know, Solitude-lover, that this isn’t necessarily the safest of places for you.’
Adder checked her departure. ‘How do you mean?’ he lisped.
‘I mean that, in view of your previous tussle, you possibly wouldn’t want to risk another one.’
‘Are you referring to the Cat?’
‘Indeed I am,’ she answered. ‘I know for a fact that itsometimes uses a large
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