Cold Cat Mountain: The Peak (Cold Cat Mountain Trilogy Book 1)

by Kimberly Goss-Kearney

  Confused, Deputy Barnes pulled out of the hospital parking lot with his lights on, turning onto the small two-lane highway until he reached the dirt road that lead them back up to Cold Cat Peak.

  His radio crackled to life as Dusty reported in, announcing the creature was trapped between him and a cliff off the face of Cold Cat.

  Gordon’s voice took over.

  “Dusty, be careful not to trap it. Give it a way of escape or it will take you down with it, or worse, rush you. How close are you too it currently?”

  The radio issued static and went silent.

  Breathing heavily Blaze reached for the deputy’s radio. “This is Blaze Christian. Do not look the creature in the eyes. Repeat, do not look it in the eyes, over?”

  A moment of silence and Dusty responded. “Copy that. Moving back to give it some room. It’s pacing back and forth. Could use some help up here.”

  Above them the search and rescue helicopter swooped in low over their rig, spotlighting the road briefly before it ascended up the peak stretched out before them.

  Gordon confirmed he was within vicinity of the creature, with both Pat and John. Suddenly the radio came to life again.

  Walker’s voice filled the airway.

  “Sheriff Walker here. The thing attacked my four-wheeler back down the mountain. I’m almost to you Dusty. Hold it in place if you can.”

  Dusty responded. “Roger that.” At a dead run Gordon, Pat and John raced up the back side of the mountain. Their animals were slick with sweat as they rounded the last part of the forest clearing, merging with Roy, Andrea and their daughters at the same time. All at once the helicopter moved in. Gordon glanced up to see Dillon hanging part way out, his rifle trained on the pacing creature below.

  “Fall back! I repeat, fall back- you’re too close-“ Roy’s order was cut off when the creature stopped pacing and turned to face the encroaching vehicles and horses. Fully facing its opponents it threw its head back and screamed.

  The group fell back, frozen. Norma keyed her mic. “Where is Shelby?”

  Wyatt swore under his breath and swung the spotlight to the right and left of the hulking beast pacing the drop off. She was nowhere to be seen.

  Gordon looked up at the helicopter, yelling into his mic.

  “Dillon, do you have a clear shot?” Dillon gave his grandfather below a brief thumbs up and they waited, all of them collectively. The tension mounted and the beast threw back its head, screaming again into the night, its arms thrown wide. The intensity of the scream caused the horses to rear their heads, pulling at the reigns in order to back away. Gordon froze, his jaw locked in an angry fear he’d never before felt. The creature stopped pacing and turned toward his grandson. Dusty, on the ground, took aim. Before Gordon could yell out the creature advanced toward Dusty, moving at a speed not before seen. A shot rang out as the creature rushed forward, its muscles bulging beneath the hair lining its skin. The bullet took the creature in the upper right shoulder. Norma lowered the helicopter for Dillon to take a second shot. Looking up at the copter the creature reached for Dusty, who fired at it from his back. As the beast lunged at him Dusty turned his head to the right, expecting the impact of the huge creature to kill him as it arced through the air.

  Suddenly, the beast was thrown to the right as Gordon's gelding charged forward from the dark, colliding into the beast. Storm reared on his hind feet, striking at the creature repeatedly as Dusty rolled to safety, retreating back to stand in awe with Roy, John and Pat. Roy’s three daughters and his wife stood on the foot stands of their four-wheeler's, rifles aimed at the creature.

  As the beast fought back, striking out at Storm, gnashing its teeth, it pulled Storm off balance. Gordon rolled to safety as the gelding fell, but he lunged forward as the creature prepared to strike a death blow to his mount. Between the creature and his horse Gordon stood and took aim with his Peacemaker. A yell from the trees caught his attention and Sheriff Walker shined a spotlight into the creature’s eyes, advancing on it until he could smell its foul breath. Walker fired at close range, as did Gordon, until the creature started to sag, and fell heavily to its knees. In the chaos Gordon moved his horse back. Walker moved behind the beast, taking aim at its head. Its hairy frame was matted with blood from wounds it had incurred earlier. Slowly, moaning in its final death throws, the creature fell forward, arms extended. In the silence of the moment no one moved.

  Deputy Barnes pulled up into the small clearing and Matilda lunged from the car, running to close in the distance between herself and the creature. As she fell and slid through the dirt on her knees, she reached for it, pausing when a howl resounded through the cold night air from the trees behind them.

  Blaze shivered and stepped back toward the safety of the SUV. The wind picked up as Matilda knelt beside the dead creature, looking toward the trees. Another howl fell upon them, and another, and from below the peak, several more.

  Turning back she looked to Blaze helplessly. “There’s more than one…”

  Blaze called to Matilda, who was focused on the dark swaying trees. Unmoving. One hand on the creature.

  “Matilda! We have to go!”

  With a lost look Matilda shook her head. “I can’t.”

  Roy ran forward and grabbed her from the ground, forcing her onto the back of his wife’s four-wheeler. “GO!” Andrea and her daughters took off at a break neck pace through the forest with Roy behind them. Howls and screams filtered through the trees from all sides, raising the hair on the back of their necks. The helicopter continued to hover over the descending Search and Rescue units, lighting their way down the mountain.

  Walker slid into the Deputy’s rig, watching as the four-wheeler's moved down the mountain in the dark before them. Turning he looked into Blaze’s eyes.

  “Are you alright?” He grabbed her hand, pulling her forward to him.

  Nodding, Blaze rested her head a moment on his shoulder.

  “No more pain tonight?”

  Blaze shook her head earnestly. The beast was satisfied as the inhumane screams followed them down the mountain. “I’m always looking for the monster. Not even just in horror. I want them in everything. Just give me the monsters. Logical conclusions don’t satisfy. Monsters satisfy, absolutely.” ― Victor LaValle

  ~Thirty-two~

  As Randall’s Land Cruiser rolled through town he watched the chaos unfold around him. Feeling truly distressed for the first time in his career, he knew money wouldn’t settle this kind of response to the monster on the mountain. The town’s people wanted their home back, at all costs. As his vehicle rolled past the new barricade of four by fours he knew he was correct in assuming Gene Hollen was at the helm. He waved with one hand, holding an AK47 in the other as Randall rolled past. His wife, who Randall recognized from the news clip, was standing next to her husband holding a weapon that looked menacing enough, though Randall didn’t know what it was.

  At the local post office Randall’s driver pulled up to a stop. A large sleek Escalade was parked off in the shadows and Randall stepped out, raising his hands over his head in mock surrender.

  Ren stepped out of the Escalade laughing. His southern drawl belied his tension as he advanced toward Randall.

  “What the hell you dong Richie? Trying to cause the entire state of Montana to riot?”

  Agent Auwlt stepped out, joining Ren, dressed in black, smiling silently.

  Randall smirked. “Evidently we need the clean-up crew.” Ren smiled broadly and pointed at Randall, while looking at Agent Ault. “You hear that? He’s got the entire Summit breathing down his neck and he’s still trying to wax superior. Lord have mercy but you’re a dumb ass.”

  Randall cocked his head. “I’d be careful to address me with respect Agent Auwlt.” Ren nodded his head thoughtfully, rubbing the side of his nose with his thumb. “You know, you’re absolutely right. You don’t need the monster squad on this. Take care.” Turning away Ren opened the door to the black Escalade. “Agent Auwlt, shall we?”


  Quiet as ever, Agent Auwlt slid into the Escalade, trying to conceal a sarcastic smile playing at her lips. She wondered if Randall Sterling was as adept at the game of poker as Ren was.

  She turned to secure her seat belt and Randall tapped ferociously at Ren’s driver side window. Grinning broadly again Ren pressed the automatic window lever. The tinted window slid down silently. “What can I do for ya?”

  Randall shook his head in disgust. “You can do your job. Get this town and this situation under control. Everything’s unraveling and I don’t have the time to tend it on my own. I have a flight to Tai Won in exactly twelve hours.”

  Agent Auwlt uncharacteristically leaned forward and frowned. Showing emotion wasn’t her way, and she shook her head.

  “Then it would seem that you and your Summit members shouldn’t have endeavored to keep monsters a secret. Who ever thought that was a good idea?”

  Randall screwed his face up in frustration, pointing at Agent Auwlt. “Now listen here-“

  Ren grabbed onto Randall’s index finger, bending it backward until Randall squealed, leaning in against the Escalade. “Please have a care about how you address our lovely Agent Auwlt here. She was never a part of deciding to blanket the public from Sasquatch. Luckily for you though she is gifted in the art of pursuing, sedating and relocating.”

  Randall jerked his finger free of Ren’s grasp.

  “The public cannot handle the truth.”

  Ren leaned his head back, taking a swig from his water bottle before replacing the lid.

  “You mean the publics easier to control when they aren’t sure what’s out there?”

  A loud crash resonated from the main street where the barricade had been erected. Shouts followed, as did people with lanterns. Ren raised his eye brows.

  “Well, that looks messy.”

  Randall swore and turned back to them. “Just handle it. The regular rate.” Cindy laughed, a deep throaty chuckle. As she did, Ren rubbed his goatee and considered the chaos unfolding on the main street of Stryker.

  “Let me understand. You have been trying to hide Sasquatch? And now, not only has it been discovered, but there are several more you didn’t know about roaming that peak? No, Randall. The going rate is not going to be sufficient. Triple rate or we exit this town and don’t look back.”

  Randall entered his banking code, glaring.

  “This mess better be cleared up when I return.”

  Ren simply smiled and gunned the engine, driving away into the night. Randall stood watching the large black SUV turn away from town, and the debacle that was unfolding. Back in his own Land Cruiser he contacted his least favorite Summit member, YoHan; an eclectic art collector who had shed his full name years ago, pretending to be hip and aware of the latest trends. He and his family controlled the stock markets as well as the economic climates within the U.S. Currently they were trying to recoup their losses from 2009, however, they had their eyes on the future and knew full well that some of the information hidden from the public would certainly affect their bottom line. They needed the public to continue quietly living their lives, enjoying a two day weekend, and feeling they lived in freedom. YoHan and the rest of the Summit knew what the ramifications of a public who learned en masse about Sasquatch would be. It would inevitably lead to uncontrolled discoveries of cryptids in other areas. Areas closed off to a public who blindly obeyed laws of the land, for the most part.

  YoHan answered on the third ring. “You better be telling me this is under control. I’m so freaking pissed right now.”

  Randall rolled his eyes. He had no respect for the Summit leader. YoHan could hear it in Randall’s voice but chose to ignore it.

  “Both Agents Auwlt are planning the containment as we speak. There will not be evidence, which is a small mercy. The Search and Rescue crew had to vacate the kill zone when they realized they weren’t alone. No body recovery.”

  YoHan laughed in almost feminine cadence. “What about the folks who saw “it” on the peak?” Randall rubbed his brow line, hating YoHan for asking all the difficult questions at such a late hour, wishing he was high again. It always made the conversation simpler with YoHan.

  “We cannot do anything about those who saw the creature. They will remain emotionally invested in the process. But when the Agents remove and relocate the beasts there won’t be any evidence to support their claims. We had to do the same thing back in the sixties, before you were born, in California.”

  YoHan yawned into the phone, rudely and abruptly announcing his fatigue and boredom with the issue. “Then get those boots on the ground and do it again. I need sleep.”

  When YoHan ended the call Randall sat quietly in the dark, listening to the activity in Stryker. For a reason he couldn’t put his finger on the situation at hand felt more sinister, as though relocation wouldn’t be the succinct answer it had been in the past. In his own estimation he knew the creatures were evolving. He had no idea they had progressed to the point of the cunning intellect they’d been displaying. The human race was shifting against a delicate balance of discovery and survival. He was also disturbed the creatures were multiplying. They’d had some in the lab they’d tested, but at the time it had seemed they were only capable of reproducing within a very small window during each year. Before the incident with Edith the Iron Mountains had been the perfect relocation site. The town was small, there were no tourists, and any locals that did venture up too high never returned. It was ideal really. Like so many other locations where people went missing the line of doubt existed in the minds of the general public based upon the notion that hunting, hiking and trapping were dangerous pastimes which came with risks. The creature’s ability to hide made the logic fall easily into place. That, and the fact that the Sasquatch tended to leave behind only difficult to plaster prints. They were predators and knew how to remain elusive. The singular problem of their discovery remained in black and white. If a Sasquatch were discovered the public, not the sheep they used to be, would demand to know what else was being kept from them. It would be anarchy. Randall moaned, pressing his fingers to his temples. Matilda Bough really was a pain in the ass. And her assistant was working her way up in the ranks as well. Shining the spotlight on him and men from his chopper crews had thwarted the careful pans he’d made to draw the Sasquatch to the motley little crew and have them vanish, quietly and without a trace.

  He snapped at his driver to go, and leaned his head back, closing his eyes as they passed through Stryker. He didn’t want to see the town’s citizens whipping themselves up into a frenzy.

  He wanted to be in a first class seat sipping bubbly as he flew to Asia.

  “...our monsters walk the dark pathways of secret motives...” ― John Geddes

  ~Thirty-three~

  Blaze nudged Matilda, who was leaning against the window of the deputy’s car, her forehead resting against the cold glass, staring at nothing.

  “You alright?” Blaze leaned closer. “What are you looking at?”

  Matilda shook her head and leaned back against the seat as Deputy Barnes parked near the barricade erected by the local populace.

  “I’m fine, it’s probably nothing.” Sheriff Walker opened the back door, helping both Blaze and Matilda out. The main street of Stryker resembled a third world war zone. Men jogged up to cars belonging to the press, instructing them to turn around. Arguments erupted. Sheriff Walker moved toward Gene and his wife, Chrissy.

  “Wanna fill me in on what’s going on here?”

  Gene handed a weapon to Chrissy, leaning back against the Chevy he’d parked. “With all due respect Sheriff, we’re done. We’re taking our town back. We all know full well somethings up there taking people, but we’re sick of living in a town that turns into a vortex of chaos every couple of years.”

  Walker turned in a slow circle, hands on his hips. Raising his eyebrows he nodded toward the line of press vehicles. Several of the drivers were leaning out their windows shouting about their rights.
The town’s folk weren’t budging.

  Trying to hide a grin Walker rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m pretty sure what you’re doing is illegal. I like your style, but it’s not legal.” Gene considered Walkers statement. They’d been friends since childhood and Gene knew Walker had a job to do, although he also knew it was time to push back.

  “How about an agreement then?”

  Walker inclined his head. “I’m listening.”

  ~*~

  Blaze tried to register all the commotion on the main street of Stryker. Sirens cried out from the air as individuals moved with purpose, armed and alert. Norma landed the helicopter, but shoved past volunteers calling out for Shelby. Several people volunteered to return to the mountain to assist in finding Norma’s granddaughter. Hurriedly Norma radioed Roy, requesting assistance.

  A second search party was assembled as Norma searched the crowd for Gordon. Because the Café was closed, and Chrissy was standing guard in front of her business with a modified weapon that looked futuristic, she and Matilda opted to join the rest of the A Search and Rescue personnel in the large hanger at the end of town. Matilda appeared to still be in some sort of shock over the events at hand, and occasionally wondered away from Blaze, veering toward the trees. People were running, walking, riding bikes and driving through the small town. The hangar shone like a beacon in the night, the interior well-lit as they approached. Blaze took Matilda’s arm, hoping there would be a doctor or EMT in the vicinity. Matilda hadn’t spoken a word since they’d left the mountain.

  Blaze waved at Gordon and his friends who were standing just outside the hanger holding the reigns to their horses. Gordon offered a wave back, handing his reigns to John. Dusty ventured over as well, noting Matilda’s pale coloring and disconnected advance toward the Search and Rescue base.