Bear

After Agent Petitt leaves, Sam vents about her rudeness, but Elena merely shrugs. She asks why Petitt came, and Sam confesses that she made the appointment, hoping that Petitt would explain how to get rid of the bear. This angers Elena, who is certain that the bear poses no threat to their safety, asserting that the bear isn’t dangerous but “magical” (115).

Elena explains that she looks forward to seeing the bear and has begun to watch for it. She sometimes gets a ride to work but usually walks, eager for another glimpse of the bear. She explains to Sam how heavy life has become with the stress of work, bills, and their mother’s care. The bear, Elena insists, is something special that makes her feel alive.

Sam returns home early one afternoon to find Danny repairing the damage to the house. He insists that Elena asked him to do so, but Sam is doubtful. She texts Elena at work to ask her, even though Sam knows that she’ll be unable to answer. Danny talks about the bear, explaining that he heard about the Arthur sisters’ sightings of it from another local who works next door to the sheriff’s station. Danny echoes what both the sheriff and Petitt have insisted: that the bear will move on and that it’s merely migrating to Vancouver.

Sam and Ben have sex in secret more frequently. She’s content in her certainty that Ben wants nothing more from her and that, ultimately, he’ll leave like other men have. She tells Elena a little about Ben and tries to find small moments of joy in her day. Sam pictures Elena’s joy in watching for the bear and feels peaceful.

One day, nearly three weeks after Sam and Elena’s sightings of the bear, Ben tells her that it appeared in the news again, having killed several lambs. He insists that Sam and Elena are lucky that the bear didn’t harm them.

Sam scours the internet for more sightings of the bear but finds none. News of the dead lambs spreads, and the whole town is gossiping about the bear, eager (Sam suspects) to be part of the magic that Elena described.

One day, Sam is able to work an extra shift, which will pay time-and-a-half. Driving home, tired, she focuses on the island’s beauty. As she nears home, she sees Elena, standing with her back to the road, and knows that she saw the bear again.

Elena climbs into the car and, when Sam angrily asks about the bear, replies teasingly. In frustration, Sam hits and then attacks Elena, striking until Elena bites Sam’s hand to get her to stop. When Sam calms down, they talk. Elena explains that she has seen the bear several times and that the bear always approaches her, not the other way around. Sometimes Elena offers it food, and the bear takes it. Sam’s anger rises, but Elena insists that the bear means her no harm and is somehow special.

Sam calmly listens, and though she doesn’t fully understand, she knows that Elena must somehow be correct: The bear has chosen their family for something special. Later that night, Elena offers to introduce Sam to the bear.

Sam picks Elena up from work and drives toward home. At a particular spot, they stop and exit the car. Elena calls to the bear, and Sam follows. Suddenly, the bear is there with them in the woods. Sam thought that upon being face-to-face with the bear, she would experience the magic that Elena described, but she feels only fear. It’s akin to the fear she felt before their mother’s boyfriend beat her but worse. Elena talks casually to the bear and then bids it goodbye. Sam, terrified, insists that they go home.

That night, Sam can’t eat dinner, sick with fear about the bear. She retreats to her bedroom but can’t focus on anything. She searches the internet for news stories about humans living peacefully with wild animals and then emails Agent Petitt, asking for advice on how to keep themselves safe from the bear. Petitt suggests that Sam purchase bear spray.

She imagines the life she wants to have when they sell the house, picturing her, Elena, and their mother driving along the coast, none of them having to work. She wills Elena to find thrill and meaning in something in life other than the bear.

The next day, Sam’s shift begins in the afternoon, so she sits with her mother while she has breakfast. Her mother asks how Sam is doing, whether Sam is dating anyone, and if she might raise her future children in their house. Sam doesn’t want to think about the future that her mother imagines for her, still worried about Elena. The bear reminds her of her mother’s abusive boyfriend, and she recalls that her grandfather abused her grandmother too. She wonders why the women in her family willingly accept pain in exchange for small amounts of pleasure.

The following day, Ben is waiting for Sam when she finishes her shift. He asks her to dinner, but she refuses, explaining that she has an errand to run. He tags along, despite her attempts to brush him off, and she finally explains that she’s in search of bear spray. As they look for it in sporting goods stores, Sam grows increasingly angry at Ben, thinking about his family’s wealth and how he doesn’t truly need the deckhand job. When they find a shop that can order bear spray, Sam asks Ben if she can borrow the money, and when he hesitates, she walks away.

Back at her car, he tries to get her to confide in him, and she finally broaches the subject of his job, insisting that he’s taking away an opportunity from others who need it more. He’s defensive but continues to plead with her to spend some time with him. Angry, she insists that she must go home.

That night, their mother is agitated, complaining of dizziness and chest pain. Sam eventually calms her, but the next day, Elena sends Sam a text while she’s at work saying that their mother is having another bad day. When Sam returns, she tends to her but is interrupted by Agent Petitt appearing unannounced.

Petitt gives Sam some bear spray and asks whether Sam or Elena have had any more sightings of the bear. Sam lies and tries to get rid of Petitt quickly. At six o’clock that evening, she heads out for a walk to meet Elena as she returns from work. When Sam spots Elena, she waves. However, the bear is following Elena. Elena calls out to Sam, telling her not to worry, but Sam removes the cap from the bear spray and presses the nozzle.