Discovered

by Chant, Daniel Marc

  “That doesn’t surprise me,” Devon said. “You might have been joking about Nessie coming out and devouring anyone who gets too close but it looks like she might be doing just that. At least to the special forces guys.”

  “I hate it when I’m right,” McIntyre said. “So what do we do? I can’t exactly come out and say there’s a giant dinosaur killing everyone around the loch and McCallum didn’t actually kill it. There’d be a bloody riot.”

  “Keep it quiet for now?” Devon suggested with a shrug. “I’m not great with cover-ups, I deal with facts and truths. For now though I think we need to keep the dinosaur aspect quiet. The media’s leaving us alone for now, it’d be nice to keep it that way.”

  “McCallum’s got to pay for this, lass,” McIntyre said firmly. “He’s brought this all on us.”

  “I know and he will,” Devon said firmly. “I’ll deal with him. He’s got to be sweating as it is, all of his special forces mercenaries running off like this, not to mention even more deaths. I’m building a case against him. I’ll see if I can get him to say anything incriminating.”

  “He isn’t avoiding you?” he asked. “I’ve tried to call him several times and I’ve even sent people to his office and home. All to no answer.”

  “He’s avoiding me all right,” Devon said. “But he wants me on side. I’ll just have to bite the bullet and pander to his ego a bit first I think. He should at least talk to me for this.”

  “Just be careful Devon,” he said. “You’re a nice lassie and a lot of us round here have grown quite fond of you. Hell, we’ve seen more of Arthur in these last few weeks than we have in the last few years alone. And he’s smiling!”

  Devon laughed.

  “I’ll be careful,” she said. “I’m fond of you lot too. And I know how to take care of myself, don’t you worry.”

  “I don’t doubt it for a second,” McIntyre said with a smile.

  He finally started the engine and they drove back to the town.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  “The results say it’s plesiosaur,” Danny said with a shake of her head. “I can’t believe it. Analysis puts it at between three and six months old. Archie did some of his fancy reconstruction stuff and came up with an estimate of its current size and probable growth rate.”

  “That’s great Danny,” Devon said. “Really great. But it doesn’t get us any closer to bringing McCallum down. We can show all the data and prove it was just a baby that they killed but he’ll just bring out lawyers to make himself look good and they’ll argue that we’re only showing half the science or something.”

  Danny sighed. Devon watched her for a moment as she spun in her chair, thinking, before she turned back to the results that Danny had sent over. They’d been having their conversation over the computers for the last hour or so and it was beginning to wear.

  “Look, there’s nothing we can do unless we get McCallum to catch himself in a lie,” Devon said firmly. “There’s no point going over and over this anymore, we’re just going in circles. I’m just going to have to play nice and speak to him tomorrow. He’s already booked an appointment with me.”

  “Those camp attacks have him spooked?” Danny asked.

  “Yeah,” Devon said. “Wouldn’t they spook you? According to the gossip half of the men McCallum have hired are missing after running away in the night. And it’s not just the camps that have been attacked that are losing people. A lot of the guys are getting out now, before they get killed or hurt in the middle of the night.”

  “So he’s got you looking at the bodies again?” Danny said. “Just like last time. Think he’ll actually listen to you though?”

  “Unlikely,” Devon said. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “But he might. He’s losing the men he’s hired and word’s spreading that Nessie might not be as dead as he claimed. He’s going to want to save face as quickly as he can I think. Chief McIntyre told his men to let slip that I’d seen the bodies, to make sure that word got to McCallum, or at least that’s what Jeff’s told me. It can’t be coincidence that those rumours got out and I finally get an appointment.”

  “He’s kind of transparent when you think about it,” Danny said. “Not exactly the business genius you’d expect from his reputation.”

  “Well my reputation is for disproving monsters,” Devon pointed out. “Here I am trying to prove the Loch Ness Monster exists and protect her from being revealed to the world.”

  “Kind of goes against the grain a bit,” Danny said. “You sure you want to keep this all quiet?”

  “Yes!” Devon said, quickly and firmly. “I’ve seen this place, I know the people. I saw what happened the last time the media were here and she’s already lost one set of babies. I don’t want to bring that down on this place again.”

  Danny thought for a moment and nodded. They talked for a little longer about random things, double checked information and eventually hung up. Devon looked through the notes that Danny had sent her, all of the files and documents. Her eyes hurt from staring at the screen. She needed to print them off. And she knew just the woman to ask.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  McCallum found Devon the next day in the small lounge no one really went into at the hotel. She was tucked into a corner near a window, looking out over the loch from the comfort of a wing backed chair. The table in front of her was covered in sheets of paper and the odd empty tea cup. She had a notebook on her lap and a pen in her hand as well as another in her hair. Her mouth moved as she read the words on the papers aloud but with no sound and scribbled down notes on the pages of her notebook. McCallum cleared his throat and she jumped.

  “Mr. McCallum,” she said, unfolding herself from her chair and reaching out a hand. “So sorry, I got a bit wrapped up in my research.”

  “Still looking into Nessie I see?” he said, nodding at the paper work. He took a seat opposite where Devon had been sitting. “I told everyone Nessie was dead.”

  “With all due respect James,” Devon said, “we both know that’s not true. I know you only killed her babies and you know that she’s been attacking the camps where your mercenaries are staying. We might not see eye to eye but right now, at this moment, we want the same thing. We want Nessie to go back to being a quiet peaceful creature that rarely gets seen.…albeit for different reasons.”

  “You’re still sure that she’s real?” McCallum said. “Even after everything that’s happened?”

  “I’m even more sure that she’s real,” Devon said confidently. “I’ve seen the proof for myself and so have your men. That’s why they’re all disappearing, isn’t it?”

  McCallum’s jaw clenched and the knuckles of his fingers went white as he clutched at the arm of the chair. He took a deep breath and tried to plaster a smile on to his face. It looked more like a grimace.

  “How did you hear about that?” he asked through clenched teeth.

  “This is a small town Mr. McCallum,” Devon said, leaning forwards in her chair. “People talk and stories travel fast. But we need to stop those stories before they get out in to the wider world. Don’t we?”

  “Yes,” McCallum snapped. “Yes we do. But right now I’m more interested in the bodies of my men, specifically what you’ve seen when you’ve examined them.”

  “Heard about that did you?” Devon said with a smirk.

  “Small town, juicy gossip,” McCallum said, throwing her own words back at her. “Just tell me what you know.”

  “This time it was definitely an animal attack,” Devon said confidently. “The bodies were crushed together, rolled on and trampled by something heavy. Injuries and bruising suggests that they were knocked over and brought to the ground first, before anything else. Then they were trampled.”

  “How can you be sure it was an animal that did this?” he asked.

  “Tracks,” she said. “This time there were tracks, leading in and out of the water and there were no tracks or marks left by a vehicle that could have done that to people. And I’ve seen th
at method of attack before, in Africa by a bull hippopotamus. Whatever attacked them tracked their scent through the water and used the cover of darkness to get out of the water and attack them.”

  “How could it see?” McCallum asked. “As far as I heard it was pitch black the nights of the attacks.”

  “The clue is in the eyes,” Devon said. She pulled out a collection of shots of eyes and laid it in front of him. “Marine animals tend to have eyes that suit their environment. In this case it would have large pupils for seeing in the dark waters of the loch. Given the scarcity of sightings I’d wager that she spends a lot of her time down there, in the deeps. She may possibly even have a cave that leads to an air pocket where she rests. It would explain why she’s never seen on the surface.”

  “That’s our next step then,” McCallum said firmly. “We are going to sort this out. We’re going to find where this monster is living and get rid of her finally. I will not have any more of those mercenaries running out on me. And I will not be branded a liar.”

  “Of course,” Devon said calmly. “I think we have the right equipment here already, I’ll just need a few hours to check through everything and set it all up.”

  “You’re co-operating this time?” McCallum asked.

  “Of course,” Devon said. “We both want to find Nessie and to be honest you were right. She was becoming a danger to everyone. She’s killed too many people and it’s time to stop her. Going to her home is actually the smartest thing to do when hunting a creature, I’m not surprised at all that you knew that.”

  “It is?” McCallum asked, frowning. Then he straightened up. “Of course it is. Go to their home, flush them out or just kill them there. Best way to get rid of dangerous pests. Like with rats.”

  “Exactly,” Devon said. “But I’m a little worried that we might not have all of the right equipment. Should I give you a list of anything else we’ll need when I find it?”

  “Of course,” McCallum said. “I’ll certainly be able to get it for you.”

  “I thought so,” Devon said with a warm smile. She stood and began to gather her things. “Would you like me to call you once I have everything ready or would a text be more convenient? I would hate to interrupt something important.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” McCallum said, standing up as well. “This is very important right now and I’ve cleared my schedule. Just send me a message with the equipment you might need and then call me when we’re all ready to go out on the loch.”

  “Of course,” she said with a nod.

  McCallum looked at her, smiled and turned away. He walked out of the lounge without looking back. As soon as he was out of sight Helen stepped out from behind a curtain near the doorway, cup of tea in hand and a smile on her face.

  “You’re wasted monster hunting lassie,” she said, walking over. “I have never seen anything like that.”

  “Momma did say I should have been an actress,” Devon said, flicking her hair over her shoulder. “But the call of animals was too strong and I couldn’t resist!”

  “I was a little worried you’d gone too far,” Helen said. “Did you actually bat your eyes at him or did it just sound that way?”

  Devon grinned.

  “I did… not,” she said. “But at least I’ve got what I need. Hopefully this will be what we’re hoping for. I’ll find Nessie, McCallum will try and kill her, we’ll record it all and stop him and you’ll all get left alone.”

  “And if it doesn’t work?” Helen asked.

  “Then we spend an entire day and night floating around on the loch,” Devon said with a shrug. “If she stays hidden that might be even better. Then we’ll be able to keep her existence a secret and everyone will put the stories of the special forces guys down as PTSD or a marketing scam by McCallum.”

  “Now I know why you wanted Arthur on the boat,” Helen said. “At least you’ll have one friendly face on board.”

  “That and he’s a sneaky bastard,” Devon said with a grin, “I swear, half the time you don’t even realise he’s there until he says something.”

  Arthur and Devon waited at the dock. Arthur looked out over the still, calm water. Devon had her back to the water and her eyes were locked on the approach road, scanning it for signs of someone coming.

  “I don’t like it,” he muttered, “I really don’t like this, girl.”

  “I know,” Devon said, glancing at him quickly. “I’m not a big fan of this either but the faster we get this done with, the sooner Nessie gets left alone to mourn.”

  “He needs to pay,” Arthur said. She could practically feel him vibrating with anger. “He needs to pay for what he’s done.”

  “He will, don’t you worry,” Devon said. She spotted something and stood up straighter. “Here they come. Put on your happy face Arthur.”

  Arthur grumbled but he turned around anyway to face the oncoming car. He didn’t look happy but then again Devon had rarely seen him smile except for when he had talked about Nessie. The car pulled to a stop and only four people climbed out. Three of them were special forces and the final one was McCallum.

  “Dr. Childs!” he cried out. “Glad to hear we’re good to go.”

  “Is this all the men you’re bringing?” Devon asked, an eyebrow raised. “I thought you’d bring more.”

  “I was going to…” McCallum said, walking towards them, “But I decided against them. Is this the way to the boat? Everything’s set up, yes?”

  He didn’t wait for an answer. He walked straight past Devon and Arthur and down the jetty towards the only boat that was bobbing at the dock. The others had all been cleared out for the failed stake out that had ended in death and no one had brought them back. The special forces men followed after McCallum.

  “What’s the betting all of his other men are gone?” Devon whispered.

  “I’m not even going to take that bet,” Arthur said firmly. “Momma didn’t raise a fool. Now let’s get aboard before that idiot breaks something or sinks my damn boat.”

  Arthur stomped down the jetty and to his boat, muttering under his breath the entire way. Devon followed behind, smiling and shaking her head at him. She paused at the plank leading to his boat and looked out over the water. She shivered. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She scanned the water. There was something out there, watching her. She was sure of it.

  “Come on Doc,” McCallum said, startling her. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

  He disappeared below decks as quickly as he had appeared, leaving Devon by herself again. She spared one last glance out over the water, looked back towards the town and then climbed on board Arthur’s boat.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Out in the middle of the loch McCallum and Devon were sat in front of the sonar monitor, staring at the display. The special forces men were sat at the back of the boat, fiddling with weapons Devon hadn’t even seen them bring onboard as well as checking their diving gear. Arthur was at the helm, eyes fixed on the water and saying nothing as usual. They’d been sailing back and forth for what felt like days. Really it was only hours but being around McCallum made time stretch for Devon. He had constantly talked away about nothing and everything that didn’t interest her and also spent a good portion of the time droning on about the increase in sales since his press conference. All the time the sonar readings had been quietly pinging away with each pass around and no unusual readings had popped up. McCallum had launched into a tirade about planning permissions and protesters when Devon finally got up and walked away. He still kept talking to himself, even while she went and stood beside Arthur.

  “Do you think the soldier guys would notice if we threw him overboard?” she murmured to Arthur.

  “Probably not,” he said. “But Nessie might eat him and I don’t want to do that to her. He’d just make her sick.”

  “True…” she said quietly. “I just wish -”

  “Doctor Childs!” McCallum shouted, cutting her off. “Come quick! We’ve got
something.”

  Devon rushed over and looked at the monitor. There was definitely something there. She leaned in closer.

  “Looks like a cave entrance,” she murmured. She shouted to Arthur, “can you circle back around for a few minutes?! I think we might be on to something.”

  “Boys, get ready to go,” McCallum ordered.

  “What?!” Devon said even as the special forces men began to put on their diving gear. “You can’t send them in there. You don’t even know what’s down there.”

  “I’m paying them, I can send them wherever I like,” McCallum said. “I want this creature found and destroyed.”

  Devon took a step back. There had been so much hatred and venom in McCallum’s voice. His face had been twisted with rage and turned red. It wasn’t a good look for him and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. One of the special forces soldiers brushed past Devon and fiddled with another monitor, one she hadn’t even noticed until that point. Suddenly it was on, screen bright and filled with three separate images. All were of the boat from different angles.

  “We’re not going to be caught unawares this time,” McCallum said firmly. “We’re going to see that bitch coming.”

  “You got cameras,” Devon said.

  McCallum glared at her and turned his attention back to the screen. Devon watched him for a few minutes, watched his hired soldiers preparing themselves and then turned and went back to Arthur.

  “I don’t like this,” she murmured. “I don’t like this at all.”

  “Me neither,” Arthur said. “Something’s going on. Those men are packing some serious fire power.”

  Devon looked over at them. They were already preparing to dive into the water. She spotted several guns on their waist belts, ones that were specifically designed to fire underwater. Her stomach began to churn in time with the rocking of the boat. She wanted to say something, wanted to stop them. But she was frozen, locked in place and she could only watch as the men dropped over the side of the boat and into the dark waters of the loch. The splash seemed to release her and she rushed over to the monitor, eyes scanning the feed outs from the cameras in the water.