The Yeti: A Novel
Page 24
“We all realize you’ve been through this terrible ordeal,” another reporter said, his accent clearly British. “But could you please elaborate for us, tell us precisely what transpired over the past seven days that led you from Base Camp on the south side of Mount Everest to Base Camp on the north side here in Tibet?”
That had been the plan. To tell all. To share with the late Dustin Blaisdell the credit for the most provocative scientific discovery of the new century. After all, Zack had in the pocket of his climbing suit an eighty-five-year-old Kodak Vestpocket camera that, assuming the film had survived intact, held the answer to two of history’s greatest mysteries: whether George Mallory was the first man to set foot on the peak of Mount Everest, and conclusive evidence of the existence of a crypto-species commonly known as the yeti.
All Zack had to do was pull the camera from his climbing suit and he’d been an instant celebrity, not only for surviving this tragedy, but for revealing to the world that Gigantopithecus, the giant primate closely aligned to the human lineage, was not, in fact, extinct, but was extant. A missing link, found at last.
All Zack would have to do is open his mouth and say the words, because he had also in his pockets tufts of fur, a kata containing the yeti’s blood and thus his DNA. And, of course, he could lead the world directly to the beast’s lair, either on the north side of Everest, where the yeti presumably lived during climbing seasons, or at Kala Pattar where it resided the remainder of the year.
Zack Hitchens would become one of the most formidable names in science.
And, of course, there was that ten million dollar reward offered by Harvey Carmichael back in the States. That would make for one hell of a research grant.
“Come now, mate,” the reporter prodded. “You quite clearly have something more to tell us.”
Zack stared into the line of cameras and tried to find his voice.
* * *
In Tiverton, Rhode Island, wrapped in an old maroon robe, Marvin Combs reclined in his arm chair and turned on the television, tuned into CNN.
Instantly he pushed himself forward.
“Holy shit,” he said upon seeing Zack’s emaciated face. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
Zack Hitchens looked as though he had been in a Third World prison, beaten and starved for weeks or months on end. But he was alive. The son of bitch had somehow survived.
“Why do you climb, Dr. Hitchens?” one of the reporters asked.
Zack slowly bowed his head. “Perspective,” he said, his voice barely audible. “We each carry on our lives knowing we’ll one day die but never truly believing it.” He motioned with his bearded chin toward the mountain. “But once you’re up high, you finally believe it. You realize it’s a certainty. And if you make it back down alive, chances are you’ll never view life - yours or any other’s - in the same way again.”
Marvin felt the tears welling in his eyes.
“Holy shit,” he said again, holding his head in his hands. “Zack, you did it. Goddamn it, kid. You’re alive.”
* * *
Another reporter stepped forward, this one a woman, petite and pretty, clearly Swiss. “You have obviously experienced an incredible journey, Dr. Hitchens. Would you at least tell the people of the world, your family and friends back home, what’s next? What’s on the slate for you, Professor?”
The question took Zack utterly by surprise and a confused look washed over his face. For a moment he seemed to have no concept of time, no ability to distinguish the past from the present. Certainly no foresight into the future.
The Swiss reporter tilted her head and tried to help him along. “Well, Dr. Hitchens, let’s put it this way. When will you be returning to Rhode Island?”
“Rhode Island?” The words sounded foreign to Zack. As foreign as Kathmandu had sounded years ago when Nadia first mentioned it to him. “I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head. “But definitely not yet.”
Before anyone else could speak, the Swiss reporter stepped forward with another question. “Is it true, Dr. Hitchens,” she said slowly, “that what caused most of the carnage on the mountain wasn’t the weather at all?”
The other reporters were fast becoming frustrated, and a few of them stepped forward, blocking the Swiss reporter from view. There at Base Camp, among the cameras and microphones, everyone started talking at once.
Zack held up his left hand and the reporters quieted down. “Please,” he said, grinning as best he could. “One question at a time. And raise your hands.”
The Swiss reporter’s right arm reached for the sky first.
Zack pointed to her. “Go ahead.”
She stepped forward again, indignant toward her colleagues. “Dr. Hitchens, some sources have suggested that you and one of your colleagues, a Dr. Dustin Blaisdell, came to Nepal not with a primary goal to climb Everest, but actually to search for a new animal species. Would you please confirm or deny?”
Zack narrowed his tired eyes. “That’s not why I came to the Himalayas.”
“But over the course of your expedition, you did discover something in the mountains of the Himalayas, did you not, Doctor?”
Zack thought about the beast, badly injured, maybe dying on the mountain at twenty-plus thousand feet. Thought about what the beast had lost. A mate. A son. Wondered what it would do next should it survive. Flashed again on whether it was the last of its kind.
Zack’s words to Marvin months ago rang in his head. I just want to be left alone to grieve.
“Well, then, Dr. Hitchens,” the Swiss reporter said, breaking the silence, “do I need to be more specific?” She lifted her head and eyed Zack with an unwavering gaze. “The hidden species you are said to have discovered is known in the West as the abominable snowman. It is known more commonly elsewhere as the yeti.”
Ten million dollars, Zack thought. Fame. The name Dr. Zachary Hitchens living on forever. Being held in the highest regard by other scientists in the field of evolution. Control over the initial research done on the Yeti, it’s DNA...
Zack’s mind suddenly drifted back to his conversation with the Abbot.
“Can you keep a secret?” the head lama at Tengboche Monastery had asked.
“Yes,” Zack had assured him. “I can.”
The Abbot smiled widely. “Good.”
“The yeti?” Zack said, finally looking back into the reporter’s eyes. For the first time, Zack began wondering what else was out there.
“Yes,” the reporter said slowly. “The yeti.”
He gazed skyward at the North Face of Everest and swallowed down hard. Looked back at the firing squad and stared into the nearest camera.
“Well then?”
“There is no yeti,” Zack said.
THE END
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If you enjoyed The Yeti, check out these other kindle ebooks:
QUAKE by Jack Douglas
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About the Authors
Jack Douglas is the author of Quake.
Rick Chesler holds a Bachelor of Science in marine biology and can often be found diving, boating or traveling to research his next thriller idea. A former contractor for the U.S. Dept. of Commerce and the State of Hawaii, he currently lives in South Florida with his family, at the edge of the Bermuda Triangle. Visit him online at twitter.com/rickchesler, facebook.com/rickchesler, or rickchesler.com.
STANDALONE NOVELS:
The Yeti (co-authored)
Landing Party
Sawfish
Luna
Hotel Megalodon
Blood Harbor
SERIES:
JURASSIC DEAD (co-authored):
Jurassic Dead
Jurassic Dead 2: Z-Volution
Jurassic Dead 3: Ctrl-Z
OUTCAST Ops:
Game of Drones (co-authored)
The Poseidon Initiative
African Firestorm (co-authored)
Red Ice (co-authored)
TARA SHORES THRILLERS
Wired Kingdom
kiDNApped
Solar Island
DANE MADDOCK ORIGINS (co-authored)
Splashdown
Electra
Amber
Treasure of the Dead
OGMIOS TEAM ORIGINS (co-authored)
Lucifer’s Machine