Rewriting for Power

1. Kopchak heard it was foolish to challenge lions with eye contact. They are more inclined to chase after you. That's all he knew about them for being a retired seventh-grade science teacher. The lion watched Kopchak and Red as they trotted lightly to the barn. Kopchak looked back and saw the lion was still on the other side of the pseudo barrier. The animal kept its stare.

2. The five of them were urgently redeployed to the southern end of the property. They used the truck to elevate themselves above their prey. They engaged with animals seventy to a hundred yards away two shots at a time until they went down. A male African lion managed to run between some junk cars after the first shot. Dozens and dozens of old cars and RVs and tractors mixed with scattered weeds gave the hidden lion a second chance at survival. Kanavel's strategy was to aim for the head, then move on to the body. "I was sick, shooting these animals, because they didn't ask to be there," he says. "And, you know, I'm a cat person."

3. The 911 operator asked for her first name. Mrs. Kopchak was known as Dolly for 84 years. She responded with "Dolores" instead. That's how it was written on her birth certificate.

Her son remained trapped in the barn looking out the north window. The menagerie grew.