Chapter 1 - prologue

Her dog's barking woke her. Startled, she climbed out of bed thinking it must be another raccoon in the trash bins. Where is Chris when you need him, she thought as she pulled a robe on and went downstairs.

Surprised, Emily found her dog Murphy barking at the basement door rather than the front. What is it, she asked him and opened the basement door. Murphy bolted past her and down the stairs into the darkness of the basement. She herd a loud snarl and a second later Murphy ran back up the stairs. He was shaking, out of character for a bulldog. "What is it, what is wrong.?", she asked? One of those damn raccoons must have gotten into the basement. She looked Murphy over but saw no injuries on him. "It's not like you to run from a raccoon". She turned on the light and walked down the stairs. As soon as she stepped onto the basement floor, the fattest fox she had ever seen stood growling at her. Behind the fox there was a 50 pound sack of sugar ripped open. The fox growled at her again and then turned back to the sugar inhaling it. She looked up and saw the broken casement window. "Go, get out of here", she yelled. The fox ignored her as it gobbled up the sugar from the sack. Emily picked up a broom and tried to shoo the fox away. "Go!", she yelled again. The fox turned and bit her on the leg . She winced in pain and the room started spinning. She passed out so fast that she didn't even feel herself hit the floor.

The sunlight woke her. She was on her bed and disoriented, wondering if she had dreamed it all. Her eyes focused and she saw Chris and Dr. Andrew standing in her room. "What are you doing here?", she asked.

"I heard Murphy barking and came to see what was wrong. I found you on the floor in the basement.", Chris replied.

"Did you see the fox?", she asked.

"No, but I will fix the window today."

"What about the sugar. The fox had ripped it open. I can't believe you didn't see the fox, it was so fat."

Chris looked puzzled. He asked Dr. Andrew, "Have you ever seen a fat fox?".

"No, I didn't even know they ever got fat.", he replied.

"The sugar was gone.", Chris said.

"A 50 pound sack of sugar?", Emily exclaimed.

"Yeah, I guess it drug it out. Are you sure it was a fox?", Chris asked.

"Yes, I know what a fox looks like.", Emily rolled her eyes.

"Well, you need to take it easy a couple of days. There is no rabies on the island, so that isn't a concern. But, you may have suffered a concussion from your fall." He turned to Chris, "Keep an eye on her. A concussion is not a minor thing."