Cryptid Kingdom (Cryptid Zoo Book 6)

by Gerry Griffiths

  “I don’t think so.”

  Wilde turned and saw a man in a ruined suit walk into the hangar. A woman, equally disheveled, stepped in as well and stood at the man’s side.

  “Who are you?” Wilde demanded.

  “FBI Special Agents Mack Hunter and Anna Rivers. Carter Wilde and Dr. Joel McCabe, you are under arrest,” Mack said.

  “Sorry, agent but you don’t have jurisdiction here,” Wilde said. “In fact, you might say you just walked into a shit storm.” Wilde turned and waved his arm.

  The four Cryptos appeared and pointed their submachine guns at the two FBI agents.

  “I suggest if you have firearms,” Wilde said, “take them out slowly, and put them on the ground.”

  “Can’t do that,” Mack said but didn’t make any attempt to draw his gun.

  “The game’s up,” Anna said. “Tell your boys to drop their weapons.”

  Wilde let out a boisterous laugh and the two doctors joined in.

  Don’t these fools see they’re clearly outgunned?

  “Take their guns,” Wilde said. “We’ll drop their bodies over the Pacific.”

  “I hardly think that will be necessary,” a woman’s voice said.

  Wilde turned and saw an Asian woman entering the hangar. “Jesus, and who the hell are you?” Two of the Cryptos trained their weapons on the new arrival.

  “My name is Li Jing Lee with Interpol.”

  “Come on lady. If you’re here to arrest me, forget it. There are no extradition laws in Hangshong Providence. If anyone should know that, it should be you.”

  “Yes, you are right, Mr. Wilde,” Li Jing said. “But you see, this particular airfield is not in Hangshong Providence. Therefore, you are no longer protected.” And with that, Li Jing blew a whistle.

  Fifty Interpol police officers stormed the hangar, each wearing a bulletproof vest and tactical gear, and brandishing a compact automatic rifle. Seeing that they were obviously outnumbered, the Cryptos dropped their weapons without a fight.

  Mack took out his handcuffs and walked up to Carter Wilde. “Hands behind your back.”

  “On what charges?” Wilde said skeptically.

  “Oh, let’s see,” Mack said. “Smuggling, gunrunning, aiding and abetting a known criminal, kidnapping, stolen goods, attempted murder...”

  “Attempted murder?”

  “Yeah, we just got the call. Henry Chang is pressing charges.”

  “That’s a lie. I never tried to kill him. I even told my man...”

  “Told your man what?” Mack said.

  “Never mind. You’re wasting your time,” Wilde said as Mack cinched on the bracelets. “My lawyers will have me out within the hour.”

  “We’ll see about that,” Anna said. She stepped over to Dr. McCabe and saw his arm was in a sling. “Give me your good hand.”

  The doctor extended his hand. Anna clamped the handcuff on his wrist, pulled his arm around, and secured the other end to the back of McCabe’s belt. “There, that should hold you.” She looked over at Li Jing. “Your turn.”

  Interpol Agent Lee walked over to Dr. Zhang. “Dr. Haun Zhang you are under arrest for the murder of Rong Tran and the murders of five of your students from University.”

  “This is absurd. You will never—”

  “Save it for the magistrate,” Li Jing said, cutting him off. She turned to the police officers closest to her and said, “Take them away.”

  While Wilde, McCabe, and Zhang were being escorted out of the hangar, Mack and Anna hung back to speak with Li Jing.

  “What do you think?” Anna asked the Interpol agent.

  “I cannot say for Wilde and McCabe,” Li Jing said, “but Dr. Zhang will be going to prison for a very long time.”

  “I don’t know about you two, but I could really use a drink,” Anna said.

  “How about Hangshong mango margaritas?” Li Jing said. “My treat.”

  50

  NOAH’S ARK

  Lucas Finder was surprised Luan Chang wanted him to assist her in the rescue effort at the remote airfield, especially after his boss had abandoned Luan’s father and left him for dead. Maybe things would have been different if Henry Chang had actually died, but he hadn’t. Chang was being treated at a temporary military medical shelter, one of hundreds being set up in the province to treat the tens of thousands injured from the earthquake.

  Gas generators powered the spotlights positioned within the interior and the outside of the hangar. A platoon of soldiers guarded the area cordoned off with endless ribbons of yellow crime scene barrier tape.

  As there was no location to transport the planeload of animals that had not been affected by the earthquake, makeshift containments and habitats were being erected by the animal keepers along the inside perimeter of the warehouse-sized hangar, all directed by Song Li and Lyle Mason. Those creatures small enough were kept in their cages.

  A cacophony of animal cries echoed in the cavernous building.

  Finder stood next to Luan and watched the workers offloading the cages from the cargo plane. In some cases, there were two of the same creatures in a single cage. “This is quite the menagerie,” Finder said.

  And it was.

  Dr. Zhang had managed to clone his creations and Luan’s as well.

  “Or should I say Noah’s Ark.” Finder glanced around at the different cages and saw a pair of white Fuzhu fawns, some one-eyed Huan kittens, a pair of Lutoulang donkey-headed wolf foal-cubs, four opposing one-armed Yibimin monkeys (in separate cages), a birdcage with Qizhong owl chicks, duos of blue downy-feathered raptors, two Xing-Xing infants, and many more oddities, including two fledgling Xiangliu nine-headed dragons.

  “So you had no idea what Dr. Zhang was up to?” Finder said.

  “No! I can not believe he could do this right under my nose,” Luan said.

  And under such a beautiful nose, Finder thought to himself. “As well as your father’s. Don’t feel bad. I imagine Zhang had quite a bit of help from my boss.”

  Luan looked at Finder. “Don’t you mean...your ex-boss?”

  “Yes, of course. First chance I get, I’ll make it official. Believe me, I’ve been wanting to part ways with Carter Wilde for a very long time.”

  “I hope you will stay,” Luan said.

  “What would I do?”

  “Were you not the construction manager for Wilde Enterprises?”

  “Yes, before I became Chief Operating Officer.”

  “You could help rebuild our city,” Luan said.

  “Is that the only reason you want me to stay?”

  “Well, no,” Luan said with a smile.

  “What about these creatures?” Finder asked. “What will happen to them?”

  “They will remain here where they will be safe for now,” Luan said.

  “And Cryptid Kingdom?” Finder asked.

  “Perhaps, when the time is right,” Luan paused for a moment to reflect then gazed out at the cages staged along the hangar wall, “we will try again.”

  51

  WELCOME HOME

  While Jack and Nora had been away, their close friend Miguel Walla had finished retrofitting their barn into a DIY workspace for Jack and ample living quarters for Lennie. Miguel had subdivided the lower floor in equal sized sections.

  Jack’s with a workbench and cabinets to hold his tools, an open area large enough to park half a dozen vehicles if need be.

  Lennie’s room a sprawling stall with straw strewn on the dirt floor and hamper-sized wicker baskets that Nora could keep stocked with fruit and other edibles whenever Lennie chose not to forage in the woods.

  There was also the hayloft on the upper floor with a view of the trees through the window once used for hoisting in bales of hay. The vaulted space designated to be Nora’s office.

  But now the barn had a different purpose: a place of celebration.

  Friends from around the rural town of Rocklin Falls were in attendance.

  Sheriff Abe Stone and his wife, Clar
e, brought freshly baked bread; Myrtle Cooper, tubs of her county fair award-winning goat cheese processed from Clare’s dairy goats; Maria Walla, Miguel’s wife, hand-made tamales and refried beans enough to feed a small army.

  Jack stood in front of the barbeque pit a few yards from the barn entrance and was in charge of grilling hamburgers and steaks; Miguel tasked with keeping the ice chests filled with beer and soft drinks; Nora’s job to bake a cake.

  Sophia, Miguel and Maria’s 9-year-old daughter, was having fun, throwing a stick for the family’s black Labrador, Rosie to retrieve.

  Rounder, the Stone’s Pyreneans that shepherded Clare’s flock of goats, chose to lie under a shade tree and watch the girl and her dog play. The smell of grilled meat wafted in the air. Rounder lifted his head and salivated, thick drool dripping from his jowls.

  “Need a hand there?” Miguel asked, joining Jack and giving his friend a bottle of beer.

  “Thanks,” Jack said, accepting the beer and taking a swig. “No, I think I got it covered. I have to say, Nora and I are quite impressed. The barn looks great.”

  “It’s the least I could do after what you and Nora went through.”

  Jack heard a car engine and saw a blue Honda Civic pull up and park with the other guests’ vehicles. Gabe and Caroline got out and walked up the driveway.

  “Hi everyone,” Gabe said.

  “Hey, you made it,” Jack said and looked at his friend. “Miguel, you remember Gabe?”

  “Sure do,” Miguel said and shook Gabe’s hand. “Cryptid Zoo. You were with your family.”

  “That’s right,” Gabe replied. He glanced at Caroline. “This is my girlfriend, Caroline Rollins.”

  “Caroline is Senator Jonathan Rollin’s daughter,” Jack told Miguel. “The senator was the one that secured a transport plane from the Air force so we could all fly back with Lennie.”

  “Good to have connections in high places,” Miguel said.

  “You got that right.” Jack turned and looked at the wide banner stretched across the rafters just inside the barn: WELCOME HOME LENNIE

  “You think he even knows why we’re all here?” Miguel asked.

  “I doubt it,” Jack replied, flipping over a succulent strip of London broil. “It’s the thought I guess.”

  “Where is the brute, by the way?”

  “He’s around somewhere.” Jack glanced in the barn at the three long picnic tables covered with checkered tablecloths and party decorations, formed into a T-shape so everyone could see each other seated on the benches.

  The screen door banged open against the rear of the house. Nora came down the steps slowly, trying her best not to drop the cake on a large plate.

  “Let me help you with that,” Miguel called out. He put his beer bottle down and rushed over to Nora. He reached out and took the cake.

  “Thank you, Miguel,” Nora said.

  “No problem,” he smiled. Miguel walked the cake over to Jack.

  Jack studied Nora’s cake; knowing baking was not one of her strong suits. The icing needed to be smoothed out and the shape of the cake was more of an oblong than a rectangle. Nora had spelled out WE LOVE YOU LENNIE in squiggly letters with three different colored icings, and drawn—as though she might have done it with her eyes closed—a childlike caricature of a Yeren’s face with M&M eyes and a chocolate sprinkles grin.

  Nora smiled at Gabe and Caroline. “I’m so glad you were able to come.” She gave them both a warm hug. “Please, help yourself to something in the cooler.”

  “Thanks,” Gabe said. He grabbed a couple soft drinks and gave Caroline a can.

  “What do you think?” Nora said, referring to her cake. She reached into the cooler for a pony of wine.

  “Looks...tasty,” Jack replied.

  “I worked hard on that.”

  “I bet you did.”

  “I’ll go put it on the table,” Miguel said. Gabe and Caroline followed him into the barn. Miguel came out a few seconds later.

  “I was telling Miguel how impressed we are with the work he did on the barn,” Jack said to Nora.

  “Yes, thank you so much, Miguel,” Nora said. “It really does look beautiful.”

  “I’m glad you like it,” Miguel said. “You know if you ever—”

  Someone yelled—maybe Clare, maybe Myrtle—“Oh God, look what he’s done,” and then everyone inside the barn broke out laughing.

  “What the heck?” Jack said. He rushed into the barn, Miguel and Nora right on his heels.

  “Looks like someone likes cake,” Abe said, laughing along with the others.

  “Lennie!” Nora shouted when she saw the cake was no longer on the plate.

  The twelve-foot tall Yeren couldn’t disguise his guilty look, even behind a face covered with frosting and fudge filling.

  Jack, Miguel, and Nora joined in the merriment.

  “Leave it to Lennie to crash his own party,” Jack said.

  The End

  Read on for a free sample of The Cryptid Files

  Or find more great Cryptid books at www.severedpress.com

  TO THE READER

  I hope you enjoyed CRYPTID KINGDOM. To the best of my knowledge Hangshong Province in China is a figment of my imagination and does not really exist. When I wrote Cryptid Zoo, I hadn’t planned that it would become a series; and here we are—Cryptid Kingdom (Cryptid Zoo Book 6). If you liked the series, you can learn more about these characters in CRYPTID ISLAND, the exciting prequel to CRYPTID ZOO and its sequel CRYPTID COUNTRY followed by CRYPTID CIRCUS, CRYPTID NATION and of course this installment CRYPTID KINGDOM and coming out soon by Severed Press CRYPTID FRONTIER.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I would like to thank Gary Lucas, Romana Baotic, Nichola Meaburn, and the wonderful people working with Severed Press that helped with this book. It’s truly amazing how folks who live in the most incredible places in the world can truly enrich our lives. A special thanks to my wonderful daughter and faithful beta reader, Genene Griffiths Ortiz, for her enthusiasm and making this so much fun. And of course, I would like to thank you, the reader, for taking the time to share these bizarre and incredible journeys with me.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Gerry Griffiths lives in San Jose, California, with his wife and their five rescue dogs and a cat. He is a Horror Writers Association member and has over thirty published short stories in various anthologies and magazines, along with a collection entitled Creatures and his latest novel In Case of Carnage: A Paranormal Crime Novel. He is also the author of Silurid, The Beasts of Stoneclad Mountain, Death Crawlers, Deep in the Jungle, The Next World, Battleground Earth, Down From Beast Mountain, Terror Mountain, Cryptid Zoo, Cryptid Country, Cryptid Island, Cryptid Circus, Cryptid Nation and Cryptid Kingdom.

  Prologue

  Jessica had looked forward to this weekend for a long time, so she was getting pretty annoyed that Brian was making it so miserable. With all the work she’d been putting into college, she didn’t have a lot of time to herself, and what time she did have usually went into doing things that Brian wanted to do, things like bar crawls and keggers. Jessica wasn’t at all interested in those sorts of things, but Brian was the first real boyfriend she’d ever had. She’d been too shy and introverted in high school to attract anyone’s attention, so the fact that someone like Brian was with her now made her want to do anything at all to keep him by her side.

  Now though, after a day out camping and hiking in the wilderness, she wasn’t sure how much she wanted to do with him anymore. He was a city guy to his core, but he’d seemed interested in going out into the forest and mountains with her. Soon after they’d started hiking though he’d gone straight into complaining about his feet. Now, on day two, it was obvious to her that he hadn’t bothered to prep for the trip at all and had instead expected that all they’d be doing the entire time was getting naked with each other in a tent. Not that she would have complained about that, but they could do that anywhere. Out here there were other things to do, things sh
e couldn’t do most of the time, like fish and hike and just enjoy nature.

  “Nature sucks,” Brian mumbled from behind her on the trail. It was approximately the ninth time today he’d said it, or at least the ninth time Jessica had heard it. Honestly he might have said it a lot more when she couldn’t hear, but her hearing it seemed to be the point. “Why can’t you be into something less likely to get me blisters on my feet? Something like sewing.”

  “You constantly mock people who sew,” Jessica said. “And the blisters wouldn’t be there if you’d followed my advice and broken in your boots before the trip.”

  “I thought we were going to be knocking boots, not keeping them on,” he muttered. Right there, in that moment, Jessica realized their relationship was going to end as soon as they got home. They were definitely not right for each other anymore, if they ever had been in the first place. Jessica knew that there was a spot up ahead on the trail where they could easily loop back around and start heading back early, and although it sucked that her time out here was going to be cut short, it was probably for the best. If she tried to keep this going for the whole weekend, it would only be more miserable for both of them.

  “It looks like there’s a spot up ahead where we can rest if you want,” Jessica said. She thought about adding in what she was thinking, about turning around and ending the trip early, but she thought it would be better if they had a breather first, just in case she was tempted to just blurt out that she wanted to end other things as well. That would best wait until they weren’t in the middle of nowhere.

  Brian looked around at the clearing she pointed out as though he expected a comfy chair to magically pop out of the ground, and when one didn’t, he scowled at a fallen tree. “What, am I supposed to sit on that?”

  “Or you can keep standing,” Jessica said. “It’s fine by me.” She took a seat closer to the broken end of the tree and did her best to ignore him as he sat next to her and pulled off his boots. Idly inspecting the splintered portion of the tree, she realized the break was still fresh. The tree had been old and large enough that they could both sit on the trunk comfortably, so it wasn’t something that should have been able to easily break unless it was diseased or dead, but the wood inside looked healthy.