Suspending Reality (35 page)

The red blurb disappeared from Sarah’s monitor. She held her breath, her head whipping from left to the right, ears and eyes straining to take in any tiny noise she could make out. Moonlight flooded through the trees, and a cool breeze blew across her face. Crickets sang, and mosquitoes buzzed. She held down the lever on her radio. “I’m not seeing anything. Whatever it is, it’s gone now.”
Is my mind playing tricks on me? No way. The thermal definitely picked up something. A bear? Possibly, and if it was, I probably spooked it off.
She spun in a slow circle, extending the thermal image camera; suddenly, there was a snap of another twig.

Strong arms gripped her from behind. She screamed, flailing wildly, sending her camera flying into the woodlands.

“Calm down,” a voice said, laughing. “It’s only me. Might want to warn your team that I set off some tripwires on the way here.”

“YOU!? Those growling sounds weren’t funny, you idiot! And look…you made me drop an expensive piece of equipment. Hard to believe you’re a professional, Frank.” Sarah took a slow, deep breath to calm her nerves.

He slipped off his leather jacket. “Oh, come on. I even bought a proper Indiana Jones fedora for the occasion.”

Her cheeks grew hot as she stared at the safari shirt stretching across his broad shoulders and strong chest, his sleeves rolled up at the elbow. Khaki-colored pants finished his adventurer ensemble. His brown hair hung in shaggy waves from underneath his hat. He looked really hot, but there was no way she was going to admit it. If he’d had a bullwhip, she would have wanted to strangle him with it. “You hate hats.”

“What? No I don’t. Now we match—his and hers Indy hats.” The flames leapt greedily at the logs, reflecting in his hazel eyes as he scanned her up and down with a crooked smile. “Did anybody ever tell you how sexy you look in camouflage? And boy, you have the part of big-game hunter nailed.”

“I’m not here to hunt any game and certainly not to kill anything. I just want to prove its existence.” Sarah let out a long sigh. “This is
my
expedition anyway, so what’re you doing here?” She reached down and picked up her equipment.

“I’m on assignment. Nobody wanted to write this article, but I jumped on it.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. “One of the perks of the job is seeing you.”

“Even if you got lost trying to find me in this forest?”

“I could more easily get lost in those big brown eyes of yours.”

She flung his arm off. “You scared the crap out of me!”

“Hey, you’re lucky I didn’t show up in an ape suit.”

“You know I have a tranquilizer gun, right?”

He glanced down at her waist. “Yeah, and I love the holster. It’s so Old West.”

Sarah met his gaze. “I’d aim straight for your—”

“Cute butt?” he finished, grinning.

She shook her head. “Not quite what I had in mind.”

“Don’t you dare say heart, ‘cause you’ve already shattered mine.”

“I’m sorry, Frank.”

“Why don’t you answer my phone calls or e-mails?”

She huffed. “Don’t you have some ridiculous ghost story or urban legend you could be out debunking? Shouldn’t you be killing off the Tooth Fairy for little kids or something?”

“Why do you waste your time playing head researcher in
Planet of the Apes
?”

Glaring, she picked up the radio. “Guys, false alarm! It’s only Frank Hedford.”

Adam’s voice crackled in the speaker. “Huh? That guy from the
Daily News
?”

She glared at Frank as she spoke into the walkie-talkie. “Yeah, that’s our animal. I’ll get rid of him. Everyone back to your positions.”

“So you caught the smaller, smellier version of Bigfoot, huh?” he asked over the radio.

“Yeah, I suppose I did. We’ll be in tomorrow’s headlines—‘Bigfoot: A No Show’.”

She recognized Steven’s voice when he said, “Throw that guy out on his big furry—”

Sarah turned off the radio.

Frank smiled. “Man, it feels good to be loved. Must be that article I wrote about those guys mistaking an elk for a Sasquatch. You know, I bet they could still get their story published. The supermarket tabloids would jump on a juicy tidbit like that.”

Sarah’s cheeks burned with anger. “Listen, we had two reliable eyewitnesses on that case, and—”

“And a blurry picture that didn’t add up to squat.”

“Why is it so hard to believe that a reclusive primate that hasn’t yet been documented and studied could be out there? Are you really so shallow that you can only believe in things you’ve seen with your own eyes?”

He groaned. “Sarah, it’s a myth. You know what that is, right? Bigfoot stories have scared Boy Scouts around campfires for decades. Oh, and speaking of campfires, I’m assuming this is base camp.” He tossed his backpack next to a few logs.

“You’re not invited to this slumber party,” Sarah said.

His eyes widened. “What? No stargazing and snuggling?”

She pointed away from her camp. “You can take your sleeping bag and tent somewhere else. How did you find me and my team anyway?”

He smirked. “Your organization tried to keep this location top secret, but I’m a journalist, doll, an
investigative
reporter. Took Lois Lane a while to figure out the correlation between Clark Kent and Superman, but I’m a hundred times sharper than her.”

“Fine. So spill it. How did you find us?”

Frank peeked up at the night sky that was dotted with millions of sparkling stars. “Well, for starters, I went back and read all the newspaper reports. Isn’t this the place where your sister disappeared when she was fifteen? What was that, about ten years ago? Sabrino Cave? I knew you’d hold the expedition here because you think these alleged creatures had something to do with your sister’s disappearance. When I saw your Jeep in that caravan of vehicles over there, I knew my hunch had panned out.”

He stretched his legs and made himself comfortable on the naked ground. She sensed he wasn’t going anywhere, so she decided to join the party and dropped down next to him.

“This is a great place for an investigation. Bluff Creek is where Patterson took his famous Bigfoot video.”

“Is that what you told your team?” He snorted. “You can’t fool me. Why didn’t you elaborate on the
real
reason you picked this location? This has Liz written all over it.”

She tried to fight the quiver in her voice. “Look, I don’t care how ‘investigative’ of a reporter you think you are, mister, but my sister’s off limits. You got that? You print one word about her, and I’ll sue the living—”

His tone softened. “Now, now. Calm down. I’m sorry. Clearly, I was out of line.”

“It’s fine,” she muttered. “Just get out of here, okay?”

“You sure about that? What, are you still sore we didn’t work out?”

“Work out? Hmm.”

“You know it really hurt that you didn’t invite me to your twenty-fourth birthday party last week. Yeah, I saw the pics on Facebook before you unfriended me.”

Sarah shrugged.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I forgive you. I have to admit, I saw fireworks the second I laid eyes on you. It was so adorable how your face lit up like a Christmas tree.”

She slapped his arm. “I’m afraid you mistook that reaction. It was fright.”

He smiled at her as he snaked his arms around her. “More like awe.”

Oh, he has some nerve, this one.
“Listen, I don’t need you breathing down my neck, okay? This isn’t a joke. I take my research very seriously,” Sarah said, breaking herself free from his smothering embrace. She sat down by the fire and scanned all eight cameras. “If you don’t mind, I have work to do.”

He kicked off his leather boots and grinned. “Mind if I kick back for a while? I had to hike miles and miles through the forest to find you.”

She shot him a glare. “There are some twenty-five to thirty other researchers and scientists you can bother. Take your pick of them or go out there and try your dumb luck in the woods, but just leave me alone.”

He winked. “Yeah, but those other campers aren’t as cute as you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh brother. What are you up to anyway? Dreaming up articles on how to discredit my work even more?”

“I only give my honest, professional opinion. I thought that’s what you loved about me. Anyway, listen, Sarah; let’s not dwell on the past. We’ve both made mistakes. I should’ve taken your research more seriously.”

Her eyes stayed focused on the screen, and she saw a mysterious shadow flit across it. “Whoa! Did you see that? Something just moved on Camera 2!” She leaned in, not believing what she was seeing. “Right there, left of the boulders. See it?”
Maybe this is the real deal. Hunters claimed to see this beast only yesterday, right here in this vicinity.

“Where?” Frank asked.

She pointed to the left side of the monitor. “Look! It’s right there.” Her voice grew in intensity. “Something just moved on Camera 3. There…right over there. Do you see it?”

“Yes, but need I remind you that we’re in the middle of the wilderness? In case you might have forgotten, plenty of squirrels, rabbits, bears, and deer live out here.”

Sarah turned the knob to give more clarity to the screen. “This is me ignoring you.”

“You know, I think you’d be more into me if I stunk, had long hair, and gave off pheromones like a gorilla.”

“Who said you don’t?” She picked up the radio, her voice urgent. “Base camp to Adam. I got a shadow on the south side of the forest, Camera 3. I need Team 7 to check it out pronto. Over.”

“Roger that. What was that creepy howl?”

The radio crackled. “Amy to base camp.”

“Go ahead,” Sarah said.

“Bait’s gone by Cameras 1 and 2.”

“Any other teams experiencing anything unusual?” questioned Sarah into the radio.

“Team 6, by the river. Nothing unusual to report here.”

Static crackled. “Team 3 reporting. We heard some rustling in the bushes. It stopped, but something’s definitely out there. Could just be local wildlife, but we’re not sure.”

Another voice crackled over the walkie-talkie. “Team 9 reporting. We got some rock- and log-throwing, but it’s too dark to make anything out. Thermal’s not picking up anything.”

“Got a visual?” Sarah asked into the mouthpiece, ignoring her uninvited guest who didn’t believe it was anything more than a bear.

“No. We’re moving forward.”

She wasn’t comfortable with their plan. For a moment, she hesitated, considering other options, even though she knew there were none. “Okay. Get a visual, but stay safe.”

“This is Team 4. FLIR’s lighting up like fire,” Beth said. “We got a huge biped crawling low in the brush. Get over here NOW!”

“I’m on my way.” Sarah’s heart pounded as she put on a pair of night-vision goggles and began adjusting the straps. They weren’t as helpful as actual daylight, but even with that fluorescent green hue, they sure beat tripping. Everything sharpened into focus as she blinked, her view illuminated in neon from the high-tech gadget. She grabbed her 35mm, the FLIR, and clipped her radio on her belt. Without another look at Frank, she darted through the giant trees, swatting away at the brush and ferns as she went.

“Wait! I’m coming!” Frank yelled.

Sarah rolled her eyes and didn’t even bother looking back at him. She raced through the trees and thickets of brush, trying not to slip on the wet leaves. Finally, she made her way into a clearing and ran in the direction of Sabrino Cave.

Out of the darkness, a voice called out her name, and a beam of light shone in her direction. “Sarah? Is that you?” Adam called out.

“Yeah.”

Adam waved a flashlight around. “Is that…why is Frank still here? I thought you got rid of that joker.”

Frank took a step forward, but Sarah jerked his arm. “Listen, buddy, we don’t have time for any nonsense. Capisce?”

“But
he
started it,” he whined, pointing at Adam.

“What are you, like five?” She then shot a glance at Adam. “Look, just don’t start your crap, okay? I didn’t invite him, but he’s here, and we don’t have time for any drama.”

“Fine,” Adam said.

“Where’re the others?” she asked between breaths.

“Rob, Beth, and the camera dude, uh, Steven, are around here somewhere,” Adam said glancing around.

Just then, a figure burst through the towering ferns. “I’m so glad you’re here! Oh, man, you should’ve seen it,” Beth shouted. “I swear I almost pissed my pants.”

“No way! You
saw
it? With your own eyes?” Sarah met her gaze, gasping for air, her mind unable to comprehend just yet. “Where?”

“Over there!” Beth pointed behind her. “It took off to the north, and we chased it into the cave.”

A cold shudder ran down Sarah’s spine as she realized someone had actually
seen
the object of her obsession.
We’re so close! We can’t afford any mistakes now.
“This is Sarah calling all members.” She cleared her throat before she continued into her radio, her voice gaining urgency with every word. “Be on alert. We’ve got a visual on something huge walking around. We believe the creature is hiding in Sabrino Cave. Keep your eyes and ears open, people. Proceed with extreme caution.”