Bigfoot Hunters

by Rick Gualtieri

  “No offense, lady, but now might not be the best time to check Twitter. Come on, Derek needs this stuff.”

  “One sec,” she said, pressing keys. “Once upon a time, people actually used these things to make phone calls, you know.” There was a pause, then she slammed it angrily onto the countertop. “No goddamned signal!”

  Francis shrugged. “What did you expect? These things were smart enough to knock out the power. Who knows what else they did?”

  “Are you for real?”

  “Hell yeah. Squatches make chimps look like they belong on the short bus.”

  She stalked over to him and pointed the flashlight in his face. “Just who the hell are you people anyway? How do you know about these things?”

  He gently pushed the light aside. “Let me guess, you don’t watch the Adventure Channel, do you?”

  “What?”

  “Never mind,” he replied, pushing open the door and stepping back out into the night.

  * * *

  “Are you sure you know where you’re going?”

  “Like the back of my hand,” Kurt replied smugly. “This trail will let us out right behind the bar. Used to come this way all the time when I got me my first fake ID.” He stopped and sniffed the air. “Ol’ Ben must have the barbecue pit cranked up.”

  “I don’t think so,” Chuck replied, pushing through the dense foliage. He’d noticed the flickering glow ahead of them as Kurt spoke.

  He was proven right a few moments later when they stepped from the brush and the heat hit them. The structure standing before them, across a small open area, was rapidly being consumed by flames.

  “What the fuck?” Kurt muttered, stopping in his tracks.

  Chuck was able to take in the scene with a more detached eye. As far as he could tell, the bar was doomed. Thankfully, a good-sized back lot separated it from the tree line, although that might not mean much if the wind changed. Unfortunately, only narrow alleyways stood between it and the buildings on either side. Unless something was done to put it out, there was a decent chance the entire town – hell, maybe even the whole damned forest – would burn to the ground before the night was through.

  He was considering possible worst case scenarios when he stopped in mid-thought, a sinking sensation hitting his already sore gut. “Listen.”

  “I don’t hear anything,” Kurt replied irritably. “I haven’t heard a goddamned thing since those shots were fired.”

  “Exactly! There’s no sirens, no hollering, nothing. Wouldn’t someone have noticed this place burning down?”

  “It’s the only bar in town.” Worry began to work its way into his voice. “Something like that catches fire and people typically come running.”

  “That’s not all.”

  Kurt turned to look at him. “Well, are you gonna spill it, or do I have to play Twenty Questions?”

  “The lights. I didn’t notice before because I was busy following your ass through the woods.”

  “Seems pretty darn bright here.”

  “That’s just the fire. Take a look around. There’s nothing else. The rest of this place is dark.”

  “...and quiet as a tomb,” Kurt added.

  “Poor choice of words, I’m thinking.”

  “Oh, come on! You don’t think one ape did all of this, do you?”

  “No I don’t. Not one ape.”

  “Power probably just spiked,” Kurt said. “Shorted everything out and caused that fire, too.”

  “Do you really believe that?”

  Silence followed. It was all the answer that Chuck needed. “Neither do I.”

  “Do you think your friends got it?”

  “I hope so,” he answered.

  As if to refute him, another screaming bellow pierced the night, this one coming from further in the town.

  “That sounds like a big negative to me,” Kurt said, before turning back toward the trees.

  “Where are you going now? My friends are this way.”

  “Son, your friends are dead,” he replied evenly, beginning to walk away. “As far as I can tell, the whole goddamn town is. No way am I waltzing in there. Change of plans.”

  “Oh, and what would that be?”

  “Grace and Byron Clemons,” Kurt said over his shoulder. “I don’t normally have much use for them, but they do a lot of hunting. I’d bet my Aunt Sarah’s right tit that they have guns. Plenty of them, too. I say we cut back to the edge of town, then make our way there.”

  “And how the hell long will that take?”

  “In the dark ... I’d say about an hour.”

  “Shit on that. You don’t know my friends. They’re probably holed up with enough ammo to blow a hole in the moon. Not to mention they know what they’re up against.”

  “Man, you know what? You sound crazier than a shithouse rat. You can follow me if you want, but you’re on your own if you decide to go and get yourself killed. No way am I walking out there and sounding the dinner bell for that thing.”

  With that, he continued walking away – barely making any noise as he went. Even Chuck had to admit the man was good, for a stupid redneck anyway. On the other hand, he reminded himself, he wasn’t exactly chopped liver either. He felt another twinge from his stomach. Well, some of me might be.

  He began to move left, parallel to the burning building and the street beyond it. He wasn’t about to leave his team. However, he also had no intention of being caught with his back against the fire should that squatch – or squatches, he silently reminded himself – be lurking close by.

  Within a few seconds he, too, disappeared back into the night.

  * * *

  Putting all of his weight against the crowbar, Derek finally felt some give. It had been hard work in the dark – he’d insisted on flashlights off so as to not attract undue attention. With a final squeal of metal – a very loud squeal, he thought – one of the back doors of the van was finally forced open. Hopefully, it would be enough. Things had fallen deathly silent in the small town of Bonanza Creek. The only other sounds were the growls and screams that pierced the night every so often. To him, it sounded as if every squatch in the area had gone crazy.

  While Francis and Kate had gone off to get the tools, Mitchell had communicated his findings to Derek from inside. It was not good news. A rabid dog or raccoon was a bad enough scenario. The average sasquatch, though, was nearly eight feet tall and over seven hundred pounds. Some were considerably larger. Just one of them going nuts would make Cujo seem like a pleasant Sunday afternoon in comparison. A whole clan of them ... well, that was the stuff of nightmares.

  Unfortunately, that nightmare was now a reality. Judging by the differing pitch and positions of the cries that sounded across the area, Derek estimated there had to be at least four more of them running around, maybe more. His team had walked into a worst-case scenario with their flies down. God knew how many people were dead because they had been unprepared.

  His thoughts turned to Chuck. There had been no sign of him since the shit had hit the fan. For that matter, outside of Rob, he had no idea what had befallen the rest of the kids they had rescued earlier.

  Enough of that, Derek commanded himself. He needed to stow the blame for now. It wasn’t going to solve their problems. As soon as Mitchell and Rob were free, it would be time to go on the offensive. These creatures had been running around unchecked for long enough. It was time for him to take the name of his show to heart.

  A hand reached out from the van interrupting his thoughts. Francis stood guard while Derek and Kate reached in to help Rob out.

  “Can you make it?”

  Rob’s head and shoulders began to emerge from the wreck. “Yeah, I think so. Glad I skipped dinner.”

  Little by little, with their help, he shimmied from the small opening. At last, he made it out. Derek helped him to his feet. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I think so. Just glad to be out of that accordion.�
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  “Great,” Derek replied. “Now stand back so we can get Mitch out. Oh, and don’t wander off, kid.”

  Mitchell wasn’t a big man, but he was larger than Rob and had been trapped further in. He attempted to scoot toward the exit but found he was wedged pretty tight. Even with the others’ help, there wasn’t much progress to be had.

  “Shit!” Derek exclaimed. “We’re gonna have to pry the other door, Frank.”

  “I’m on it,” the big man replied.

  “Can you both keep a look out?” Derek asked the other two.

  “I’ll try,” Kate replied nervously.

  “Just don’t shoot us by mistake.”

  “Like I said, I’ll try.”

  “I guess that’ll have to be good enough.” He sighed and turned back to the task at hand.

  * * *

  Rob initially had no intention of wandering off, but then his eyes turned toward the nearby bed and breakfast. He’d been so caught up in the terror of his own ordeal that he had forgotten about his friends.

  Squinting, he noticed the damage at the front of the building. Is that Paula’s room? Yes, it was the same room she’d rented – the one where she’d cheated on him, the place he and Mitchell had spied on. He felt a momentary stab of anger at the entire thing. For now, though, he tried to push it away. He was pissed at her and pretty sure that it was over between them, but that didn’t mean he wanted to see her hurt. Hell, he didn’t want to see any of them hurt – Phil, the asshole who’d seduced his girlfriend, included.

  Although, he mused, perhaps seduced was too strong of a word for it. Hadn’t she sounded like she was enjoying it ... quite a bit, actually? Rob tried to push that thought away, too. There would be plenty of time for confrontation later on, he hoped.

  While Derek and Francis hammered away at the stuck door, with Kate performing some semblance of guard duty, he found himself wandering closer to the entrance of the small B&B. He wasn’t even really aware he was doing so. It was like his legs had a mind of their own.

  The structure was dark. A small voice in the back of his mind noted that everything was dark. The building in front of him was the only thing he was focused on, though.

  He found himself standing just a few feet in front of the entrance, not quite daring to get any closer. “Paula,” he whispered, barely loud enough to hear, certainly not loud enough to get the attention of anyone inside. Even so, a few seconds later he heard a sound, as if something had shifted in the building. “Paula? Is that you?” he whispered. Again, he heard movement as if in response. Feeling illogically hopeful, he took a step closer.

  There came a screech of metal against metal from behind him. Rob turned and watched as the other door of the van was finally pried open. It was a fatal distraction. He didn’t notice the hulking figure looming in the second story window right above his head.

  * * *

  “Gotcha!” exclaimed Derek, finally pulling Mitchell from the wreckage. While Francis helped the medic to his feet, he turned to the others. “Good job, Kate, Rob ... Rob?” His tone changed as he noticed that the kid wasn’t standing with Kate. Her eyes widened at the realization he had slipped away without her notice.

  Derek looked over her shoulder and saw him about thirty feet down the road. “Hey, kid!” he called – and that was when he saw it.

  The creature was little more than a shadow of movement at first. Then it flung itself with reckless abandon through the open window, shattering the frame as its bulk pushed through. Rob had just enough time to look up before eight-hundred pounds of angry monster descended upon him.

  Derek knew it was over instantly for the boy. He heard the sickening crunch of bone as the squatch landed squarely on top of Rob in a fury of clawing and slashing.

  Kate started screaming, the shotgun in her hands forgotten. She was standing directly between Derek and the beast. They both watched as the bigfoot began to rend the misshapen lump of flesh that had been the eager college student.

  Without any further hesitation, Derek shoved her to the side and raised his rifle. He pulled the trigger, but the shot went wide, impacting the masonry of the building.

  The creature heard the shot and lifted its head toward the group, screaming its defiance at them. Derek used the opportunity to chamber another round. He aimed the rifle, centering the scope directly in the middle of its body just as it began to charge.

  It was able to take three steps, enough to bring it frighteningly closer to the group, before Derek pulled the trigger. A gaping maw opened up in its chest. Blood and bone flew in all directions as the high-powered bullet tore straight through it. A second later, another hole, nearly as large, was blown open in its stomach. Derek turned his head to see that Francis had brought his own gun to bear on the sasquatch.

  That was all it took for the creature. They had loaded up on heavy bore ammunition, powerful enough to put down an elephant. The beast landed in the street with a satisfying thud and stayed down.

  The echo from the shots faded, but Kate’s screams continued. Derek paid her no mind, though, as he walked over to where Rob lay. He bent down in the dim hope that there might still be a chance, but it was a futile gesture. There was still some movement from his body, but Derek could tell it was just the final sporadic twitching of his nerves as they shut down. “Sorry, kid. You didn’t deserve this,” he quietly said.

  Hearing footsteps behind him, he stood and turned. It was Mitchell. He was limping slightly and holding a bandage to his head, but otherwise seemed okay. Behind him, Francis was tending to Kate, whose screams had quieted to a pathetic whimpering.

  Derek held up a hand and gave a brief shake of his head. The other man stopped, realization dawning on his face.

  “Goddammit!” Mitchell yelled. “This is my fault. I should have listened to you earlier, Derek.”

  “You had no way of knowing,” Derek replied in a consoling tone. “And none of us could have known that the entire clan was so far gone.”

  “That doesn’t mean much to that kid, his friends, or probably a whole lot of other people in this town. Who knows how many are dead because we didn’t stop this sooner?”

  “Then let’s make it right and stop it now.”

  For a long moment, they looked at each other, then finally Mitchell nodded.

  Together, they turned back toward the others.

  “Want me to give her something to quiet her down?” asked Mitchell.

  “Don’t bother. Between the shots and the screaming, every squatch in this town is gonna know where we are. Saves us the trouble of finding them. And when they get here, we’re going to want every available hand holding a gun.”

  Chapter 30

  “I’m going to be perfectly frank with you girls. I need to know, have you been taking drugs?”

  Danni’s eyes widened at the question as the older man continued tending to the fireplace. He had thrown a few logs on and was now busy positioning them in the flame with a poker.

  Allison started to laugh, though.

  “I say something funny, little lady?” Richard Barrows asked. He had been surprised as all hell when they had come rushing into his house like the devil was on their tails. All at once, they’d started squawking like a bunch of frightened hens.

  At first, he’d been suspicious that he had caught them in the middle of a break-in. However, he had to admit that they didn’t quite fit his image of hardened criminals. Then he had caught snippets of their story. It was hard to follow, the way they were carrying on, but it seemed they were pretty well spooked.

  He had finally held up his hands and told them to pipe down. Leading them to the living room, he’d commanded them to sit. He then attempted to light a few old oil lamps he kept around, but that seemed to agitate them more. So instead, he got a fire going. It provided enough light to see, but not enough to set them off.

  At last, he had asked them to explain what was going on – slowly and one at a time – but it hadn�
��t sounded any saner to him than when they were chattering away. Once they’d finished, Richard had considered maybe holding onto the fireplace poker just in case. They didn’t look all that threatening. Hell, if he had been a few years younger, he might have admitted they looked quite the opposite. Still, he had read stories in the news about how people on PCP sometimes had crazy strength. If these two kids were high as a kite, he had no intention of being their victim.

  “Sorry, sir,” Allison replied, still giggling. “It’s just that I almost wish we had been.”

  “What she means is,” Danni interrupted, “what’s going on out there would be a lot easier to explain if it was just some drug trip. But it’s not. People are dead. My brother and friends are still out there. And those things...” She shuddered before she could finish the sentence. Now that she and Allison had a moment to collect their thoughts, the adrenalin was starting to fade, and the unpleasant reality was hitting home.

  “Yeah. Bigfoot you said, didn’t ya?” Richard replied. “Sure it wasn’t some joker in a gorilla suit?”

  “You don’t believe us, do you?”

  “Now, I’m not exactly saying that. All I’m saying is that I’ve lived here most of my adult life – spent my fair share of time walking through the woods. I’ve seen deer, bear, even seen a few mountain lions here and there. However, I’ve never seen anything like what you’re talking about. I’d have remembered it.”

  “Listen, mister,” Allison said, “you’re preaching to the choir. My parents have been dragging me out camping since before I could walk. On any other day, I’d be sitting there with you, thinking the same thing. Hell, the first time I saw that bigfoot movie ... you know the famous one, I forget what it’s called.”

  “The Patterson-Gimlin tape?” he offered. When she raised her eyebrows, he added, “Just because I never seen one doesn’t mean I don’t watch TV.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, that one. My first thought was that it was the fakest looking thing I’d ever seen.”

  “Guess you were wrong on that one,” Danni commented.

  “Tell me about it,” Allison said to her. Then, turning back to the older man, “All I know is that I’ve had to throw everything I thought I knew out the window today. First out there in the woods...”