Prologue

"The wood fire skipped and danced about my nose but I could see no visible source. Since the muffled beep I had become aware of how still the night was. The rain had driven the wildlife deep undercover and apart from the squelch and gurgle of my stride, the gentle splatter of rain and mud and my short sharp breathes that steamed inches from my face, there was an eerie emptiness beyond. I suddenly felt extremely lonely and it was just as this wave of melancholy washed over me that I heard it...