by Nick Cook
The scent of pine needles filled my nose and small flies buzzed in the woodland’s languid heat. Every so often the rattle of a woodpecker drumming on a tree echoed through the woods. There was a sense of stillness but also anticipation, or maybe that was just me projecting my own mood on to the forest.
We were following the GPS marker for the Buck Ridge Campground on my Sky Wire phone, which Lucy had helpfully placed on it. The X101 had landed at the end of a small creek, and Ruby had left the craft fully stealthed. With the chameleon mode running you could only see a slight refraction in the air. I just hoped a bird didn’t decide to perch on the basically invisible aircraft and blow its cover.
Voices drifted between the trees from the top of the ridge ahead of us.
I glanced at the map and raised a fist in the air to halt the group, as trained by Niki. ‘The campsite is up there. That whole area is crawling with people, according to Lucy’s thermal cameras as we came into land.’
‘The question is whether they’re military, and in cahoots with the Overseers, or UFO hunters,’ Jack said.
‘To play it safe, let me scout ahead and find out?’ Ruby asked. ‘I’ll radio back if there’s anything to be worried about.’
‘Good idea – go ahead and we’ll follow.’ I appreciated the fact that for once she’d asked rather than just told me what she was doing.
Ruby nodded, adjusted the straps on her rucksack and jogged away up the slope on the balls of her feet, almost completely silent.
We started forward again. I peered at every shadow under the pine trees in case in there was a set of alien eyes watching us. But what if we did find the Grey? We hadn’t really discussed what we’d do. Was an ignore the rest of humanity, we come in peace speech really going to cut it with an intelligent being that would probably be scared witless?
Men’s voices came from somewhere in the woods just ahead, much closer than before. I held up a fist signal, and everyone stopped behind me.
‘I have eyes on two hunters closing in on your position,’ Ruby said through my earbud.
‘Understood,’ I replied.
‘It might be worth finding out if they know anything about the sighting of the alien or even the crashed Tic Tac,’ Mike said.
‘We’ve certainly got nothing to lose,’ I said as the voices grew steadily louder.
A moment later the two men appeared, traipsing through the woods down a slope almost directly towards us, rifles slung over their backs and both wearing baseball caps. Their body language said they were exhausted – heads down, shoulders hunched forward.
‘Just so you know, I have eyes on them if they decide to get fresh with those hunting rifles,’ Ruby said over the Sky Wire link.
‘Good to know,’ I replied. I stepped forward and raised my hand in greeting. ‘Hi there, how’s it going?’ I said in my best attempt at a neutral American accent.
The eyes of the heavily built guy snapped towards me. He had a bushy beard big enough to rival Jack’s false one. The skinny guy narrowed his eyes on us with a calculating look, as if measuring us up.
I lowered my hand close to my holster beneath my shirt. But when neither of the two guys went for their rifles, I let my hand fall away.
There was a long, uncomfortable pause before the guy with the impressive beard made a throat-clearing gurgle and spat something green on the ground. ‘Yeah, we’re good.’ His brow wrinkled. ‘Don’t suppose you’ve seen it?’
‘Seen what?’ Mike asked with wide-eyed innocence and with something almost resembling a Brooklyn accent.
The men exchanged glances and chuckled. ‘Yeah, right, buddy. As though you’re not up here for the bounty.’
Now this was new information. ‘Bounty?’ I asked, stepping towards them.
‘Oh, come on, why act all so innocent?’
‘No really, what bounty?’ Jack asked.
‘But you’re looking for that damned varmint too, right? You’re just another one of those nutter UFO teams that have been crawling all over these woods?’
‘If you mean are we interested in finding out anything about the alien, or even a downed UFO, then, yeah, that’s exactly why we’re here,’ I replied. ‘But we really don’t know about any bounty.’
The guy with the bushy beard shrugged at his partner. ‘Well, for your information, miss, some stranger has put up a ten-million-dollar reward for catching that alien critter, alive or dead. And the latter suits us just mighty fine.’
The thin guy nodded. ‘The damned thing has it come coming, the little bastard. There’ve been three more cattle mutilations in the last twenty-four hours.’
The bearded guy nodded. ‘Yeah, when we find it I’ll use my rifle barrel on it as an anal probe.’
The two of them cackled.
I bristled, ready to square up to the guy and tell him exactly what I thought of his attitude towards a sentient being, but I felt a hand on my arm.
Jack subtly shook his head at me before turning towards the two hunters. ‘Don’t blame you. But I’m guessing you haven’t seen it yet?’
‘No, we’ve been searching all night for it, but not a thing. Here’s a tip for you all. If you’re headed up to the campground, I wouldn’t bother. The whole place is already packed out with the RVs of UFO nutters like yourselves – and not one of them has seen a thing either. Reckon that Jerry has sent us all on a wild goose chase so he catch it himself.’
‘Jerry?’ Mike asked.
‘He’s the guy who snapped the photo,’ the thin man said.
‘You think he’s been holding back?’ Mike asked.
‘Wouldn’t you if there were ten million bucks sitting on the table that you could keep for yourself?’ the thin guy said.
‘Good point,’ I replied. ‘So where can we find this Jerry?’ I asked.
‘Down at Lake View, at Jerry’s Smokey BBQ Shack. He owns the place. Worth going for the ribs alone – the best this side of Mississippi. Or are you UFO types all vegans?’ The thin guy gave us a yellow-stained toothy grin.
‘No, I love a good rack of short ribs,’ Jack said. ‘And thanks for the tip-off about the campsite.’
‘Any time. If you do happen to see the critter, we’d be more than happy to split the bounty with you for a solid lead.’ The thin guy took out a bit of paper, scribbled his phone number down and handed it to me. ‘Call me if you’ve see anything…or if you fancy a drink.’ The guy almost licked his lips at me.
I fought the urge to be sick in my mouth. ‘Thanks, we will.’
‘Then good luck with your alien hunting, miss,’ the bearded guy said. With a tip of their baseball caps the two of them walked off down the slope.
Jack whispered to me as we watched them depart. ‘I think your luck’s in there, Lauren.’
I shuddered as I screwed up the piece of paper and tossed it away. ‘Not in a million years – no make that a billion. Anyway, I don’t know what you all think, but suddenly I’m in desperate need of a BBQ.’
Chapter Thirteen
I’d called Ruby back and we’d decided to return to the X101 for our electric Zero motorbikes, since the shack was a way off and our stomachs were rumbling audibly. We parked them up outside and headed towards Jerry’s Smokey BBQ Shack. The bustling restaurant was already pulling me in by the nose thanks to the smell of cooking meat wafting from a vent on the side of the building. It was obviously doing great business – going by the number of cars and SUVs crowded into its car park and even along the approach road.
No one paid us much attention as we entered the packed-out restaurant. Three waitresses glided around the room with pots of fresh coffee. An order of burgers and racks of ribs came past us, instantly reminding me just how hungry I was. The energy bars I’d managed to eat before we’d taken off on our clandestine mission seemed like a lifetime ago now.
Right then a group of four guys with hunting rifles slung over their shoulders vacated a table.
A smiling blonde waitress wearing bright red lipstick gestured towards it.
‘Grab yourselves a seat. I’ll be with you in a second.’
Mike’s gaze scanned the restaurant. ‘Well, this place is way more popular than you would expect from its TripAdvisor rating.’
‘You’re seriously telling me you checked out its online reviews?’ Jack asked.
‘As a vegetarian, I needed to check there was something on the menu I could actually eat.’
‘And is there?’ I asked.
‘The usual barbecued sweetcorn and salad, plus some hickory smoked wedges I’ve got my eyes on.’
‘I wonder about your priorities sometimes,’ Jack said, shaking his head.
Ruby’s gaze skated over the menu before fixing me with a hard stare. ‘Guys, I hate to ask an obvious question, but do we really have time to eat? The clock is running – somewhere out there is a little alien dude needing us to get to it first.’
Once again I bristled as she questioned my judgement. ‘Look, there’s no point us blindly hunting through those woods if we have a chance of picking up some information here that could help to narrow the search area. That’s especially true when the owner happens is the guy who sighted this alien in the first place. And if we get fed the same time, hey, I see that as an added bonus.’
Ruby just shook her head as she returned her attention to the menu.
A short while later the blonde waitress appeared at our table. ‘Welcome to Jerry’s Smokey BBQ Shack. I’m Olivia, your server for today. Are you ready for me to take your order?’
‘Sure thing,’ I replied in the American accent I’d was warming to.
But Olivia barely registered me, her attention squarely on Jack. ‘Sir?’
Jack looked up from the menu, registering Olivia’s presence for the first time. ‘A full rack of dry ribs for me, plus a side of the cheese nachos. And just keep the coffee coming.’
‘I like a man with a good appetite,’ Olivia said, her eyes lingering on Jack’s longer than was professionally polite, then she turned to the rest of us. She took Mike’s order and then mine before getting to Ruby. ‘And you, mam?’
‘Just a glass of tap water,’ Ruby replied without catching my eye, judging me without even a look.
‘Is there anything else I can get you?’ Olivia asked.
‘Actually, we were wondering if the owner was around,’ I said. ‘We’d just like to have a quick word with Jerry about the alien he saw.’
‘Oh, you and every other person in here. But Jerry’s hardly here at the moment. He might pretend to everyone that he isn’t, but he’s been off searching for that alien along with everyone else.’
The slight clouding in her expression told me she was holding something back.
But Olivia’s lipstick smile had already glided back into place. ‘Anyway, I’m afraid it will be a good thirty minutes before your orders arrive. As you can see, we’re a bit rushed off our feet – another reason Jerry why should be here and not off having a grand old time out in those woods.’
‘So all of these people are looking for the alien too?’ Mike asked as he gazed around at the clientele.
‘Absolutely. We’d be less than half this busy during the week normally. But as Jerry says, this is good business. That and all the publicity.’
‘Publicity?’ I asked.
‘Well, like your good selves, folk have been coming from all over to talk to him. Jerry has turned into something of a local celebrity.’ Olivia pointed to a newspaper article pinned to a wall.
It was the front page of a local paper, the Lake Crest Gazette, showing a smiling photograph of man probably in his sixties. He was holding up the blurry image we’d seen plastered all over the internet. Local Man Spots Alien, the headline declared.
‘That’s Jerry then?’ Ruby asked.
‘The great man himself,’ Olivia replied, raising her eyebrows a fraction. ‘He’s been lapping up all the attention. And with every new mutilated cow the press races to our door for a fresh comment from Jerry, as if he’s some sort of goddamn alien expert now. If you pardon my language.’
‘So you don’t think he is then?’ Mike asked.
‘How can he be? He’s just an ordinary guy who was in the right place at the right time. He’s grabbed his five minutes of fame with both hands and isn’t about to let go for anyone. Anyway, will you look at me gossiping to you when there’s a room full of people to feed? I’ll be back in a moment with a pot of coffee.’
‘That would be much appreciated, mam,’ Jack said, flashing his widest knee-weakening smile.
Olivia coiled her fingers through her hair. ‘Coming right up, sir,’ she said with a flirtatious smile.
‘You and the ladies,’ Mike said once she’d gone, shaking his head at Jack.
Jack tucked his chin in. ‘Hey, what do you mean?’
‘If you don’t know, I’m not going to spell it out.’
Ruby traded a frown with me, but Mike had a point. I’d seen Jack around plenty of women at Eden. Some of them had been even less subtle than Olivia at how much they were attracted to him. It was partly his lack of ego that attracted me to him too.
An old guy sitting at the next table turned his chair towards us. ‘I hope you don’t mind, but I overheard what you were saying to Olivia. So you’re after this Grey too?’
‘Yes, we are,’ I replied. ‘And you?’
‘Yep, guilty as charged. But then a ten-million-dollar reward is hard to ignore.’
‘About that – any idea who has put up the money?’ I asked.
‘All I know is that three strangers turned up in here flashing a case full of cash to Jerry, telling him a bounty was up for grabs. There are posters up everywhere around town too, although Jerry refused to let them put up any on his walls. It’s almost as if the guy wants to keep that money to himself.’ The old man’s eyebrows arched over his eyes.
I thought about what the hunters we’d run into had said and nodded. ‘It’s a lot of money. No wonder he’s out looking too around the campsite.’
The old man scowled at me.
‘Sorry, did I say something wrong?’
‘No, it’s just that’s the part that doesn’t stack up. You see, based on what Jerry’s been telling everyone, we’ve all been pouring all over the campsite. And not a single person has seen a glimpse of the alien around there. No tracks, just a whole lot of nothing.’
Ruby peered at the guy. ‘What are you getting at?’
‘Just that ten million dollars is an awful lot of money, if you catch my drift.’ He tapped the side of his nose and turned away to face his companion.
Mike sat back in his chair. ‘Sounds as if everyone has their suspicions about Jerry,’ he said in a hushed tone.
‘So what are we talking about here – that he deliberately sent everyone off on a wild goose chase so he could keep the real location to himself?’ Jack whispered.
‘I can think of ten million reasons why he might do that,’ I replied.
Ruby chewed her gum and nodded. ‘Also, throw in the fact there hasn’t been a lot of military swarming around, which suggests the crashed UFO isn’t near here.’
‘But let’s not forget this Jerry guy may have simply pulled this stunt to generate a whole load of publicity for his business,’ Jack said. ‘What would be better than Lake Crest’s very own Roswell event?’
‘And what about the people turning up with a case full of cash?’ Ruby asked.
‘Could be part of his cover story.’
I sucked my cheeks in. ‘That doesn’t add up based on what Olivia just said. He wouldn’t bother to go off hunting for it too if it is all just make-believe.’
‘Fair point, but where does that leave us?’ Mike asked.
‘With a lot of questions,’ I replied.
My earbud buzzed. ‘I don’t want to interrupt, but I was just listening into your conversation,’ Lucy said. ‘I took it upon myself to do a bit of snooping, using your Sky Wire to hack into the Wi-Fi system in here through to a computer linked to it.’
‘And I’m guessing
you found something?’ I asked.
‘Oh, I most certainly did. Footage from the security camera here. Take your Sky Wire out and I’ll play it for you now.’
I grabbed my phone and laid it on the table for the others to see. A video started to play – a view of the restaurant we were sitting in, but with hardly any people inside. I glanced over my shoulder and spotted the small security camera over the bar that must have taken the footage. I returned my attention to the Sky Wire. The time stamp showed the video had been recorded two days previously.
‘I don’t see any significance?’ Ruby said.
‘You will – keep watching,’ Lucy replied through our earbuds.
On the footage, three burly guys entered the restaurant, all wearing black combat fatigues. But it was the one wearing sunglasses at the front who immediately caught my attention.
‘That’s Colonel Alvarez,’ Mike whispered.
I nodded as we watched the colonel take a seat at a table. Meanwhile, the two heavies with him stood guard at the door. A moment later a man that I recognised as Jerry from his photo on the newspaper front page appeared and joined the colonel at a table.
‘OK, the mere fact that Alvarez bothered to come here in person has just given this Jerry guy’s story a lot more credibility,’ I said.
‘Exactly,’ Lucy’s voice said into our earbuds. ‘And this next bit is the clincher.’
Alvarez beckoned to one of his men. He carried a silver briefcase over to the table and opened it, presenting it Jerry. It was filled with neatly stacked piles of hundred-dollar bills.
‘So that confirms the reward is real and this isn’t just an elaborate hoax,’ I said.