"Excuse me?" David said, not really trying to hide his annoyance. The man just smiled back with a wide grin. He was peering from under a white, wide-brimmed hat that made David want to swat the priggish little weirdo off the far end of the log.
"I thought so," the man said. "You’re not a believer, are you?"
"I’m here with a friend." David said, crossing his arms and outstretched legs and trying to imply that the conversation was over. He was holding out hope that the man would go away and commune with the other storytellers gathered around the fire, but he suspected it was no use. This guy seemed to be the leechy type.
"Oh, yes!" he said. "You’re Miss London’s friend." The man bit a long shred of wood from one end of his snake stick and rolled it in his mouth like a cigar. "I’m quite impressed by her work, I must say." He spoke from the free side of his mouth and couldn’t have sounded more obnoxious if he’d tried. "And her story. Quite traumatizing, I would say, encountering the beast at such a young age as she did. She lost her horse, as I recall."
"Uh huh," David said, trying to sound as indifferent to the man as possible.
"Do you not believe her?"
This guy was really starting to piss him off, and David wanted desperately to punch his face. Was this guy really planning to defend Laura to him? He seemed like a creepy loser with no life; just the type he’d expect to find in a group like this. But then again, he had to remember that Laura was famous, and lots of people liked to claim her as an acquaintance. He glanced around until he locked eyes on Laura, who looked back at him from the far side of the campfire, seeming to sense his stare. As she gazed back at him, he did a quick eye roll to signal his disdain for his current company, but she didn’t giggle back as he’d expected. Instead, she turned white and flashed a look of quick panic. She jumped to her feet and headed his way, as the man beside him droned on about how proud he was of Laura. It seemed like it took hours for her to make her way across the camp to get to his defense, and the old man went on and on.
"So you two have met?" Laura blurted once she reached them. She seemed out of breath, and David could sense her anxiety. "David, I told you about Dr. Whythe, remember?" She was nearly frantic. "On the plane?" Her eyes were drilling holes in David’s face. "From Ipswich?"
Jesus Christ, he thought. He should have known. "I’m honored," David lied. He tried his best to sound genuine for Laura’s sake. "I didn’t realize I was speaking with the professor, himself."
"No need to bullshit me, young man," the man said behind that broad, annoying grin. "You think I’m crazy as hell, don’t you?"
In the fire glow, Laura’s face suddenly resembled Munch’s The Scream. "David!" she gasped in a distinct accusatory tone. "What have you said to him?"
"I don’t, and I didn’t," David said to both of them, glancing back and forth. "I mean, I’m not here to judge."
He wasn’t even convincing himself.
"Really?" the old man said, still sucking on his imaginary cigar. "Then what, exactly, are you here to do?"
The bastard. He just sat there grinning across the awkward silence he’d just created. He was trying to force David to admit his true objective, right in front of Laura. Clearly, she knew he was skeptical about her beliefs, but he’d never come out and told Laura outright that his true mission was to actually disprove what she—and everyone else attending this crazy bonfire party—so fervently believed. But it seemed the old man could sense it.
"Observe," David answered. He regretted the word as soon as it came from his mouth.
"Really?" The old man was feigning confusion. "But, if you’re not a believer, then what, or whom, exactly, do you hope to observe?" He glanced at Laura and back at David. The implication was evident.
David longed for the days back in the old neighborhood when he could punch a guy in the nose without much of a consequence. He'd punched a bully once back at school, and everyone cheered him for it. Why couldn't grownups be more like kids? Why couldn't they punch people who really deserved it? At the moment, this old bastard was really pissing him off. The old codger knew exactly what he was doing, implying that David was only along to charm his way into Laura’s sleeping bag. Of course, it was true. He certainly wanted to get to that point, eventually. And Laura wasn’t stupid; she had to know he was interested in her in a physical way, but they had an understanding. They planned to take things a day at a time and enjoy each other’s company for now. But now, because of this jerk, Laura looked like she wanted to cry. David knew he couldn’t win if he went up against her hero, even though he really wanted to send him ass over elbows down the nearest cliff. He took a deep breath.
"Listen. I am a man of science, just like you. I’m sure there was a time when you felt pretty much the same way I do. I’m trying to keep an open mind, but I need to see things for myself before I form any theories, alright? That’s all."
"Well, that is interesting," the man said. "You see, when I came here, I fully intended to provide our friend Laura with some very special information." He turned to smile at her like a grandfather would a granddaughter, a smile with a long, adoring pause. "Information about a very active location where I’d like someone to go and research. You see, I’m not able to rough it in the wilderness like I used to. But I am a little concerned, now."
"Concerned about what?" Laura sounded excited and desperate at the same time. She glanced at David like he was a flea she was about to flick and sat on the log next to her hero. The bastard grabbed her hand.
"I’m sure it’s obvious, my dear. This is serious business, as you know."
Laura looked up at David. "Can you excuse us? Just give us a few minutes, please?"
David clamped his lips together briefly before mustering an "Of course." He turned to leave the two of them alone to discuss just how disposable he was, and determine whether he was worthy of a good Sasquatch secret. Of all the ridiculous things he’d done for sex, this had to be the topper. At least he’d have a good, albeit short, story to tell the others if he was kicked out of the club on the first night. Jerry would never let him live this down. At this point, there was only one thing that could salve his broken ego, and that was a burning glob of sugary marshmallow. He headed for the fire pit area and snooped around for a marshmallow bag and a good stick, and found both with ease. He settled into a chair next to a lumberjack-looking guy, full beard and all.
"So where are we?" David asked.
"Whatcha mean?" the guy answered, looking perplexed.
"Well, I got off a plane in Atlanta and then sat on a bus for a while, that’s all I know," David laughed. "Where is this place?"
"We’re in a town called Winder," the man chuckled back. "Actually, a state park right outside. This is our main meeting place. We gather here every year, then we agree on assignments and go off to research in different places. You new?"
"Indeed," David said. "I’m a newbie." The guy squinted back in suspicion. David decided he wasn’t very good at hiding his sarcasm. He also decided to try to control himself better this time, partly because he could see Laura and the old professor across the fire, engaged in animated discussion, and he felt his time here was short. "So what got you interested in this field?"
The man squirmed a bit in his chair. "Got the shit scared out of me once."
"Really?"
"Really. What about you?" This man was not exactly a talker. David was determined to pull a story out of him, though.
"To be honest, I’m curious," David said. "I’d like to hear what happened, if you don’t mind. What happened? I mean, you look like an outdoorsy dude. What scared you?" He really was a bit curious. Plus, he needed to have some kind of story to tell afterward. This might be his only chance.
"Name’s Kenny." The man held out a hand for David to shake. David was reminded that he was in the South, where it’s uncouth to go diving into conversations without a proper introduction. It was a charming trait.
"David. Good to meet you."
"Well, be careful what you
ask for, David," the man said. He stared at the crackling fire for a few seconds before resuming. "I was out huntin’ with my dad a few years back, like we’d done for ten years in the exact same spot." Kenny removed his hat briefly to scratch his curly blond locks with a bent pinky finger. "I was sitting there in a deer stand and my dad was about a mile away in his. I thought I heard somebody walkin’ up behind me, so I turned around all ticked off, since we had a huntin’ lease there and there shouldn’t be anybody stomping around. And there it was. I like 'ta died, right then and there."
David waited for the man to continue, but he just stared into the fire. "What did you see?"
"It was a monster," Kenny said, his voice more quiet than before. "It was nothing other than a monster. If you see one, you’ll know what I mean."
"Can you describe it?" David was enthralled. What could make this man so certain that he'd seen some creature instead of a bear, or a man in a ghillie suit? From his brief look into this phenomenon, he'd realized that this common hunting get-up was behind most so-called encounters.
Kenny put his head back and closed his eyes. "I hate to picture it, to be honest," he said. "Still gives me the willies." He continued after a quiet pause. "He looked kind of human, but he was twice as tall as any man, and he had shoulders about four feet wide. You really can't picture that until you see it in real life. It's like lookin' at the biggest bull you've ever seen, all muscle, covered with a little hair and standing upright. That's how massive they are. His waist was small, but he was like a giant body builder on steroids. His eyes was mean looking, like he was mad as hell and ready to kill me. His face was very expressive, just like a man's."
"How are you sure it wasn't a man?" David asked. It still sounded like a man in a ghillie suit.
"Well, I was sitting in a chair in a tree stand ten foot off the ground. The thing was looking me right in the eyes."
"Wow!" David said. He doubted the veracity of the man's claim, since that would have put a creature at around twelve feet in height. "So, what happened next? I mean, you saw it and then what did you do?"
"Well, I pissed myself."
David burst out a laugh and then tried to shut it down immediately, when he saw the look on Kenny’s face. "I’m sorry," David said. "I just wasn’t expecting that."
"It’s alright," Kenny said. "I wasn’t expecting that, neither. But that’s what happens when you look face to face with a monster. I'm tellin' you what, I was sittin’ there with a loaded gun by my side, but when that thing came walking up, it never even crossed my mind to use it. I just froze there and pissed all over myself and the creature just snorted up at the air a while. I reckon he was smelling me. He looked at me mean and grunted, and then he just walked away like he had all the time in the world. It took me a long time to go back out into the woods. I’m telling ya, be careful what you go lookin’ for."
"But if it shook you up so much, why would you go out looking for one again?" David needed to understand what this guy was about. Like Laura, the man seemed to believe what he was saying. He actually seemed to be on the verge of tears when he gazed into the fire. And what person would admit to soiling himself in such a matter-of-fact way for giggles?
"Well," Kenny said in a slow drawl. "If you look into the face of something that isn’t supposed to exist, you doubt your sanity for a long time. Then you start to try to figure out, one way or another, whether you’re crazy or not crazy. You get kind of hooked."
"So, now you’re trying to see one again, to prove you’re not insane?"
"Nope. Already did that. I've had three sightings, now. Now I’m just hooked."
Before David could respond, he realized that Laura was standing next to his chair. The timing sucked. He actually wanted to press Kenny for more details: what color it was, what kind of facial features—that sort of thing. The guy seemed so genuine, but David couldn't exactly brush off Laura at the moment.
"We need to talk for a minute," Laura said as she patted his shoulder. "Excuse us," she said to Kenny.
Laura pulled him by the hand until they were well out of earshot of the others who were scattered around the site. "I need you to listen," she said. "Don’t talk."
David nodded in agreement.
"David, I really like you. I’d love to get to know you better."
This was it, he thought. He was really getting jilted on the first night of his adventure.
"Don’t do this, Laura."
"You promised you wouldn’t talk! Now, listen to me." She lifted a stern, threatening finger in front of his face. "This is my work. This is my life’s passion. You are not going to fuck this up for me, so you have two choices. This man is sending me out to an incredible place. It’s crazy with activity, he says. So here’s the deal: you can go back home, and maybe we meet up at some other point, I don’t know."
"Seriously?"
"Hush! I said two choices. We have lots of fun together. I don't know, we just click. So here it is: you can swear on everything that is holy that you will not interfere with my work, and you will support me while we’re out there. Just support me and keep an open mind. Can you handle that?"
"Well, of course." He felt a little stunned, actually. He’d fully expected to be sent packing. "But what about him?" David pointed his thumb at the professor. "I figured he’d insist I leave."
"Not exactly," she said. "He actually wants you to go."
"To keep an eye on you out there. I get it."
"Well, yes. That, plus he says you’ll poop your pants and cry like a baby when you have your first sighting. He kind of likes that idea."
11
Field Research
Josh inched his car toward the ornate iron gate of Skylar Ranch—affectionally known as the famous alien ranch in some circles—and rolled down his window when he was within arm's reach of the call box. There were no instructions or markings on the metal device; only a small red button below what appeared to be a speaker. He pushed the button and hoped for a response. After several seconds, there was a crackle to indicate that somebody was paying attention on the other end. As he waited, he noticed a small camera perched on top of a tall post just inside the gate.
"Who is it?" a gruff voice finally rumbled from the box.
"Josh White. We spoke on the phone a few days ago?"
"The man from the college?" the voice answered. Josh wasn't at all surprised by the apparent scrutiny. His internet research revealed that the place was quite popular with thrill seekers and teenaged pranksters, and the rancher was menaced by daily visits from curious tourists and paranormal researchers hoping to get a look inside the place.
"Yes, sir. That's me," Josh said. He waved his hand in the direction of the camera. After a few more seconds, he saw the metal gates vibrating and then moving slowly open and outward to reveal a long, dirt driveway. The path ahead of him stretched so far that Josh wondered if there was actually a house on the other end. As he slowly rolled the car through the gate, he could see a wide open landscape of yellow-brown grass punctuated by occasional trees and shrubs. In the background, rolling hills made an uneven skyline. The hills seemed to form a half circle in the faraway distance, cradling the valley and its contents. Josh rolled forward over the dirt drive until the burnt orange roof of a single story dwelling rose from the land and revealed bricks and windows beneath it. As the trees stretched further into the distance on the left, a large field appeared. It was bordered by a wire fence and occupied by several clusters of grazing cattle. Josh recognized the landscape; he had seen it before, along with several million other people around the world. It was the same field that had appeared in the video that had brought this ranch onto the worldwide stage and prompted a mix of panic, hysteria, and cries of fraud.
Josh wasn't sure what he'd find when he first started the search into the UFO phenomenon. In fact, he'd been shocked to discover the long list of credible scientists who'd spoken out in support of the topic of extraterrestrial life. But there was a distinct difference between believin
g in the possibility of life existing elsewhere in the universe, and believing that these life forms were creepy, bug-eyed beings who visited earth and kidnapped human beings for experimentation, and slaughtered unsuspecting cows.
As he approached the house, Josh could see a bearded man standing by the front door with his arms crossed in front of him and a very no-nonsense look on his face. Josh pulled to the end of the drive and walked over to the man, who appeared to be Mr. Skylar, himself.
"Professor White?" the rancher said as he held out a hand.
"Call me Josh, please. Nice to meet you." Josh squeezed the man's calloused hand and noticed a tight grip. Whatever else this man might be, he was no stranger to hard physical labor.
"Chester Skylar," the man said, referring to his own name. "Folks call me Chet. I hope you remembered your camping gear." It was a not so subtle way of informing Josh that the house, itself, was off limits. He had received permission to spend time investigating the activity of the place for free, but he had not received anything resembling a warm and fuzzy embrace. While select visitors were allowed on the site, the rancher had made it clear that he'd had his fill of strangers coming onto his property to experience the strange happenings, only to follow up with insulting reports intending to debunk the video. "All I ever wanted was real answers," he'd said to Josh. "You're welcome to come in and investigate all you want, as long as you report the truth after you leave here."
It was an easy deal for Josh to accept, although he felt a twinge of guilt, knowing he was only here, in truth, to determine what sort of chicanery or psychosis was at play.
"I'll show you the place," Skylar said as he gestured toward a golf cart. "Grab your things and I'll take you back. It's right back there near the fence line. There's a place for a fire pit, and there's a washroom of sorts in the big barn nearby. You can stay as many nights as you like, but I reckon you'll be wantin' to leave after a night or two."
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