Her failure had been in the most important element of the crime: saving the wonderful bear.
Back in Mississippi, she prayed to various gods known to have a soft spot for animals and felt a fool and a hypocrite for doing so. She was surly to her field rangers, avoided her boyfriend and was unmerciful to speeders.
On her fourth day back she received a Federal Express package from Joan. Anna had been praying to the wrong gods. Help had come in the form of Glacier's former superintendent, now serving in Yosemite. The park service is a small town. Glacier's old superintendent was friends with the superintendent of Canyonlands. Outside the park, near Moab, Utah, lived a man who trained most of the large and dangerous animals Hollywood used in its movies. He would take Balthazar. That was the good news. The great news was that he would take Geoffrey Micou as well, as an apprentice.
"Hallelujah! "Anna said.
The package had come to the ranger station in Port Gibson, where she was stationed. Unable to wait, she'd ripped it open in the outer office and read it standing in the middle of the floor. Randy Thigpen, one of her field rangers with whom having a lady Yankee boss did not sit well, was at his desk. "What'd you get?" he demanded.
"The bear's going to be okay." Randy knew the story and Anna didn't elaborate.
"Whoop-ti-doo," he said.
Anna's good cheer was undaunted. "And I got a present." A small package wrapped in gold foil and marked "A souvenir of your trip. Love, Joan" had been stuffed into the bottom of the cardboard envelope. With childish impatience Anna tore it open. Inside was a glass vial filled with brown liquid and moss-like matter. "Balthazar" and the date were penned on the sticker pasted to the side.
"What is it?" Thigpen asked.
"Shit," Anna said happily.
"I guess just everybody loves you," Thigpen growled.
Joan had sent her a scat sample. After all, what were friends for?
ALSO BY NEVADA BARR
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