by Alex Archer
Stalking was hard work.
Five yards and Annja could hear sounds like something was eating. The telltale noises of smacking lips reached her ears clearly. Whatever was in there was definitely eating.
What if it was a bear?
It was possible, of course. And with Annja's recent luck it would probably turn out to be the only grizzly in the area. Probably with a taste for human flesh, too. She frowned. Don't think that way.
She took a deep breath to still her pounding heart. David, Jenny and Joey seemed so far away, even though they were perhaps sixty feet behind her.
I've got to do this, she thought. If I don't, then I'll never get my own questions answered about the existence of the creature.
Annja plunged into the woods.
The sounds ahead of her stopped. The creature wasn't eating anymore.
Annja heard a soft whiff of air. And then she felt something pierce her skin just below her heart. She looked down and then brushed her hand down the front of her shirt.
She came away holding a tranquilizer dart.
Since when does the Sasquatch use tranquilizer darts? she wondered as she slipped into unconsciousness.
Chapter 27
Annja groaned as she became aware of the painful throbbing in her head. She tasted something in her mouth, something faintly sweet, and wondered just what drug had been used to take her down.
"Ugh."
She opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a cave of some sort, but exactly where she had no idea. She could hear the steady drip-drip-drip of water falling from the cavern ceiling to the floor below. Combined with the ache in her head, the dripping water seemed to echo her pain.
The area where the dart had struck her felt a little tender, but the wound was nothing too serious. I've probably got a nice welt there, she thought. It wasn't the first time she'd been struck with a drugged dart. It probably wouldn't be the last, either. Annja almost grinned at the thought of how ridiculous that sounded.
Her hands were bound tightly behind her and movement was difficult. But at least the ropes flexed some when she moved her hands. She'd been in handcuffs before and that was far worse.
The ambient light in the cave seemed to be coming from somewhere else. She wondered if there was a way to get to the outside and, if so, was sunlight somehow penetrating the cavern? She couldn't be sure, but it felt as if she'd been out for the better part of several hours. That would make it coming up close to dawn.
From behind her, she heard something shift and Annja tensed, expecting the worst. Instead, when she turned around, she saw Joey and Jenny. They were tied up, as well. Jenny was trying to sit up, but was clearly not used to being bound.
"Are you all right?" Annja asked.
Jenny nodded as she finally succeeded in righting herself. "I think so, aside from one hell of a bruised ego."
"David?" Annja asked.
Jenny nodded. "The bastard conned me, Annja. And he did such a great job on me that I was distracted and I never even noticed he was setting us up."
Annja shrugged. "I got conned, too. It happens."
"What happened to you? We saw you go into the bushes and then it sounded as if you'd fallen."
"As soon as I stepped in, someone shot me with a dart. I didn't see a damn thing," Annja said.
Jenny smirked. "I did. Don't worry, you didn't miss much. It was just a guy dressed in some kind of special suit I've seen soldiers wearing before. It covered him from head to foot in strips of burlap and stuff like that."
"He wore a gillie suit?"
Jenny nodded. "That's what they call it. Thanks. Yeah, he was in one of those. He came walking out, raised his gun and shot Joey first. Then he nailed me. As I went down, I heard David telling him what a great shot it was. Jerk."
Annja frowned. "I wonder exactly who David is working with. And why the hell has he fabricated the entire existence of big foot?"
"I thought we were calling it Sasquatch," Joey said, opening his eyes for the first time."
"You okay?" Annja asked him.
Joey nodded. "Yeah. My stomach hurts a lot, though."
Annja grinned. "Did you get shot in the stomach?"
"Yeah."
"It's the localized pain from the dart hitting you. Sort of feels like you got punched real hard."
"Yeah."
Annja smiled. "It wears off in time. The important thing is you're okay and back with us."
Joey flexed his hands. "Whoever tied these ropes did a good job. There doesn't seem to be any give to them."
"Agreed," Annja said. "Which leaves us with the questions that have been plaguing us for the past day or so. Namely, what the devil is going on around here?"
"Well, Dave hasn't succeeded in luring the Sasquatch to his backyard, that's for sure," Joey said. "He did, however, succeed in suckering us something silly. Speaking for myself, as a fourteen-year-old, I'm not happy. But you guys are grown-ups. You should be ashamed."
Jenny smirked. "Thanks a lot."
Annja looked around the cave. "Joey, you recognize any of this? Does it look familiar at all?"
"Not really. The woods are filled with caverns like this. Miles of unexplored tunnels crisscross the area. I don't know if anyone has really ever explored them, to be honest."
"Not you?"
Joey shook his head. "I was just mastering the outside world. I wasn't even that curious about the tunnels."
"Maybe this is where the Sasquatch lives," Jenny said.
Annja sighed. "I doubt that. Last I remember reading about the Sasquatch, it doesn't wear a gillie suit, shoot tranquilizer darts or tie people up in secret underground caves."
"This is all the sheriff's doing," Joey said. "And, boy, am I going to enjoy having some words with him."
"But what's the purpose of all this?" Annja asked. "Why bother getting us out here? He could have simply ignored us and done whatever he was planning on doing by himself. What does he need us for?"
"That would be the magic question," Jenny said. "But clearly it's not for anything romantic."
"Safe bet," Annja said. She glanced at Joey. "Any ideas there, Einstein?"
Joey shook his head. "All I know is Dave has been a decent guy since I've known him. That's not all that long and all, but he's always been cool with me. This is completely out of left field. I don't get it."
"None of us do," Annja said. "So let's hear some theories."
"You think this is connected with Simpson and Baker?" Jenny asked.
Annja shrugged. "Could be, I guess." She knew she'd have trouble summoning the sword with her hands bound behind her. Instead, she started looking around for a sharp rock to cut the ropes on. They couldn't just sit there, waiting for someone to come and hurt them. They had to get out and quick.
"Either Simpson or Baker could easily have a gillie suit and tranquilizer darts. That's not out of their ballpark."
"So if they're working together, then to what end? To capture the Sasquatch? David didn't strike me as all that supportive of their mission," Annja said.
"Well, that was before he lured us out to his house and had his friend shoot us with those darts," Jenny replied.
"Good point."
Annja spotted an outcropping of jagged granite ten feet away. "We need to get these ropes off."
Joey squirmed his way over to Jenny and sat up, using her back for support. "So if Dave is with those two Feds, then that would mean one of them shot us even though we weren't doing anything illegal. That doesn't strike me as being kosher."
Annja smiled. "None of this is kosher, pal. This is the big wide world of evil people." She got herself situated and starting moving up and down, rubbing the small space between her hands against the rocks. She felt the sharp edges bite in her flesh.
"Damn, cut myself."
Jenny looked at her. "You okay?"
"Fine." Annja kept the friction on. She couldn't afford to give in to the pain. David and his buddies might be on their way to finish them off. "Ho
w long has David been the sheriff around here?"
Joey shrugged. "I don't know, maybe three years or so."
"Where did he come from before that? Does anyone know?"
"I'm the wrong guy to ask, to be honest. I've had my nose in the woods too much to know what his background is. All I know is he came, wooed everyone and got the job."
"What are you thinking, Annja?" Jenny asked.
"I don't know. Maybe he was sent here for some purpose that we don't know about. Maybe this isn't the first time he's done this." She kept the pressure on and felt some of the rope start to give a little bit.
"Well, whoever he is, he can't get away with it," Joey said. "Someone has to find out and make him pay."
"Like who?" Jenny asked. "State Police are more than an hour away. Who would come out here in time to rescue us?"
"She's right," Annja said. "If we're going to stop David and whatever it is he's up to, we're on our own. Unless there's anyone else we can find to help us."
Jenny frowned. "Who are you thinking of?"
"Sheila."
"From the hotel? I thought she was a nutcase."
Annja felt another bit of rope start to give way. "I thought so, too. But she was the one who warned me about David. That's got to count for something, don't you think?"
"I guess, but how are we going to get to her? I don't have a cell phone on me and I doubt it would work underground, anyway," Jenny said.
One of the ropes fell free and Annja gritted her teeth, working on shredding the remaining ropes. "Just let me finish this and we'll work that out. If we can find some way out of here and get back to town, then we'll be all set."
Joey watched her. "Once we're out of here, I'll need a minute or two to look around and get my bearings. Once I do, I can get you back to town as fast as you can run."
"What happens if I run faster than you?"
Joey shook his head. "No one runs faster than me."
Jenny started. "Did you hear that?"
Annja stopped moving. Her ears strained to make out whatever it was that Jenny thought she'd heard. "I don't hear anything."
"I could have sworn I heard something."
Annja went back to grinding the ropes. "Keep your ears open. If you think someone's coming, tell me. We'll need the element of surprise if they do come in here to check on us."
Joey looked around them. "You know, there's something vaguely familiar about this place."
"You've been here before?"
He frowned. "No, not really. Just something seems really familiar. I just can't place it."
"Well, hurry up," Jenny said. "I thought I just heard something again."
"What did it sound like?" Annja asked.
"Almost like a snore. But really constant." Jenny frowned. "I can't explain it properly."
"A snore?" Annja grinned. "Great. That helps a lot."
"Well, you try listening, then."
"I'd gladly switch places," Annja said. "But I'm a bit busy right now."
Joey tried to get to his feet. "That's not a snore she heard."
"What do you mean?" Annja asked.
Joey struggled to rise, but bumped his head on the low ceiling and sank back down. "Damn."
"You okay?"
Annja kept rubbing the ropes against the rocks. "Joey, what the hell are you talking about?"
"Jenny's right. In a way. Except it's not a snore she's hearing."
"Well, there's a relief," Jenny said. "It'd be just our luck to get trapped in a cave with a sleeping Sasquatch."
"Jenny! Be quiet," Annja said. She looked at Joey. "Will you just hurry up and explain yourself?"
"The snore she heard? It's water."
"Water?"
"There's a huge river that runs through the back part of the forest. It's really swollen this time of year."
"Rapids?"
"Yeah, but it's worse than that. The dam fifty miles away releases some of the water every few months and it adds to the volume. A lot."
"But shouldn't that just concern the river? How is it going to affect us?" Annja broke through another set of ropes. One more set and she'd be able to get them out of the cave.
"The river runs underground, as well. That roar Jenny heard is the oncoming water. If we stay in this cave, it will smash us against the rocks and we'll drown or be cut to pieces."
Annja glanced at the cavern opening—now she heard the roar.
It was getting louder.
Chapter 28
"We've got to get out of here," Annja said. The roar was growing louder every second.
Jenny looked at her. "Annja?"
"Give me a second."
"We don't have a second," Joey said. "That water's going to be here any moment, and if we're not free we'll die."
Annja broke through the final binding holding her hands together. She took a breath and said a silent prayer. She closed her eyes. The sword hung in her mind's eye, and she reached out her hands and grabbed it.
"Wow," Jenny said, as the sword appeared from nowhere.
Annja opened her eyes and saw she was holding the sword. She stepped behind Jenny and cut her ropes loose.
Jenny rubbed her wrists. "Thanks."
Joey turned around. Annja cut his ropes and then released the sword to the otherwhere. Joey jumped up and hit his head again, then fell over.
"Help me, Jenny!" Annja grabbed Joey and pulled him upright.
The roar in the cavern grew louder. Joey's body started to shake.
He gulped in air and steadied himself. "We've got to hurry."
Annja looked around. "If there's light in here, we ought to be able to get out—that way, right?"
"Depends on the light source. It could just be a narrow slice in the rock that we can't get through. We've got to find a way out that we can all fit through," Joey said.
"I'm not much of a swimmer," Jenny said. "All these years I've been meaning to take lessons, but I guess I just never got around to it."
Annja held on to her. "You're about to change all that. Try to hold your breath for as long as you can. Joey and I will help you navigate through. Just keep your eyes open so you can see what we're doing, okay?"
"Okay." Jenny looked at her. "Annja, I'm really sorry for the things I said to you. I didn't mean any of it. I was just really upset at myself."
"Forget it," Annja said. "Let's just concentrate on getting out of here alive. Then we can take care of our dear pal David."
"It's coming," Joey said, shouting now above the deafening roar.
Annja could see bits of water splashing the interior of the cavern and then a huge wall of white foamy water rushed right at them.
"Get into the pocket over there!" She pointed at a small depression in the rocks. It would shield them from the initial onslaught and save them from being pummeled against the rocks.
Joey got in first and then Jenny and Annja rounded themselves into the depression. A large outcropping of rock momentarily shielded them from the water. Annja hoped it wouldn't break off and slice their heads off.
The water tore into the cavern. "Hold on!"
And then it was upon them. Annja felt the blast of cold water hit her and struggled to take a deep breath as the cavern filled from ground to ceiling with water in seconds. Anyone not lucky enough to survive the initial blast would have drowned almost instantly.
The pressure of the water washing over them subsided and the entire cavern was underwater. She glanced at Jenny who looked absolutely terrified.
Joey disengaged from them and swam off under the water, looking for a way out. He waved Annja over to where he saw light filtering in through the frigid water. Annja motioned for Jenny to stay put and then swam to Joey.
He pointed and, in the distance, Annja could see an opening. Bright sunlight cut through the water like some kind of brilliant column. But it was several hundred yards away. Could they make it? Could Jenny?
She looked back and saw Jenny staring at her. Annja knew if the lack of air didn't k
ill them first, then the freezing water would.
She worked her way back to Jenny and pointed the direction they would be swimming. Jenny nodded and Annja locked her hands in Jenny's. Here we go, she thought.