The Peacekeepers. Books 1 - 3.

by Ricky Sides

  A week later the girl had shyly approached both men and thanked them. A demonstrative child, she had shyly hugged first Jim and then Pete. Both men could feel her involuntary reaction as she stiffened when they patted her on the back, and they hated Reggie for what he’d done to the child. Jim was surprised when Pete’s eyes filled with tears as he patted the girl on the back. “You are more than welcome, sweetheart,” Pete had responded and then he had added, “I just hope you understand that not all men are as evil as Reggie. There are many good men in the world and there are a few men who are just as good as Reggie was evil.”

  Now as Maggie was preparing to leave with Pete and the others, Lisa surprised them all when she ran and hugged Maggie who’d squatted to embrace her and then she stood politely in front of Pete waiting to hug him. When Pete squatted down to be eye to eye with the girl she wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered something in his ear. Pete stroked the back of her head to comfort her and said, “Don’t you worry, sweetheart. Nothing will happen to Maggie while she’s with me.”

  Maggie looked at Pete in surprise and then she smiled at Lisa and said, “We’ll be fine, dear. We should be back in an hour or less.”

  The people of the city were curious about the ship and a small crowd had gathered. When the two couples emerged one young man turned to another and said, “You see? I told you they weren’t aliens.” The peacekeepers were becoming accustomed to such greetings and no longer paid them much heed.

  Tim explained their presence, which had an unexpected and profound affect on the people in the small group. Many became visibly nervous at the mere mention of the deaths. One of the young men present said, “Yes, something is stalking our city by night. Some say it’s a werewolf. Others say it is a pack of wild dogs. Still others say it is the work of an outlaw band. Well Mr., I’ll tell you what I know. I’ve seen one of the bodies, and no man did that to the man I saw. If you really want to know more about this, you should go see our town mortician. He has the body of the latest victim in his place now.”

  They got directions to the funeral home and left without bothering to do any trading. Maggie needed to see the body, preferably before the embalming process.

  The mortician was a cranky old fellow who seemed at first likely to refuse to permit the peacekeepers to investigate the death, but Maggie knew how to charm such men and worked wonders in changing the man’s opinion of the whole investigation. Soon she had a report for Jim.

  “The man was killed by something with incredibly strong jaws that it used to bite the throat crushing the larynx. It also had claws as sharp as scalpels that furrowed long and deep, trench-like wounds, in the body along the lower extremities. The upper body received mainly puncture wounds, but there were also a few of the trench-like wounds present there as well. The upper body trench-like wounds were shorter in length than the lower extremity wounds.”

  “That sounds like a big cat attack to me,” Jim stated.

  Nodding her head, Maggie said, “That’s what I thought as well. Patricia is checking the database to see if she can locate similar photographs relating to cat attacks. She’s also checking on bear attacks,” Maggie added.

  “Considering our experience last night, that seems reasonable,” Jim stated. Then he asked, “Were the wounds on this victim consistent with the wounds of the others?”

  “Yes, and no,” Maggie said and then she explained, “The bite radius isn’t quite a match in all of the deaths and the claw wounds are also not quite a match. The majority of the victims experienced the slightly smaller wounds.”

  “How many victims have there been?” asked Jim who was pleased to be able to get something besides rumor since the source of this information was the town mortician.

  “There have been fourteen known victims,” Maggie stated. She added, “But there have also been several disappearances that might be attributable to the attacks, though the missing people haven’t been located.”

  “Several?” Jim asked.

  “I’m sorry, I should have clarified that. There have been three reports of people going missing,” Maggie said with a frown.

  “All right, we need to determine where these victims were found, and we need to know if they share anything in common that could cause them to be targeted,” Jim stated in a businesslike manner.

  “Have you been reading those detective novels again, brother?” Tim asked good-naturedly.

  Jim said, “That’s not as odd as it sounds. Say for example, all of the victims had been working slaughtering livestock and handling the meat. Then it would be reasonable to assume that a predator might have been attracted to the scent of fresh meat that would have permeated their clothing.”

  “Good point,” Tim said. “All right, I’ll see what I can find out regarding the precise locations and commonalities.”

  “Good. Take Patricia with you if she wants to go. Leave as soon as she’s finished with her computer referencing, but take two strike team members with you for the extra security. We know of fourteen people killed. Let’s not take any unnecessary risks,” Jim said with a serious expression on his face.

  “Agreed,” said Tim, who would never take Patricia’s safety lightly.

  “Pete, I’d like you and Maggie to investigate the scene of the latest killing. Her medical expertise may shed some light on the case. Take a security team with you just in case whatever is killing people is still in that area,” Jim said.

  “All right, I’ll take Bill and two of the strike team members. Sergeant Wilcox should remain aboard to safeguard the ship. You’ll be undermanned as is, and he is the most experienced team member unassigned at the moment.”

  “You just be back before dark, buddy. Right now it seems the night belongs to the predators here,” Jim reminded his mentor.

  “Then they are about to meet a deadlier predator,” Pete said, exuding confidence.

  Chapter 15

  Tim and Patricia immediately found one connection or commonality between the victims. All were male. Finding the second commonality took longer, but by late afternoon, they’d learned that all fourteen men had been the outdoor type. Most were avid hunters who supplemented their families’ food with the meat they procured from hunting, and in a few cases, trapping. However, a couple had been runners who liked to run in the late afternoon hours.

  Tim decided to try the local tavern in an effort to glen some information from lips lubricated by the best-known mouth lubricant in the world. Good old booze. Like most taverns and bars still operating in the cities across America, a family ran this tavern. The family was now serving liquor that they made themselves. The barter system was heavily utilized and items that the owners of the tavern did not need, they traded in the farmers market for items of interest to them.

  Tim and Patricia learned a great deal from the friends of one of the hunters who’d been slain. In that case, a hunter had spoken to friends and admitted that something had spooked him one night while he was walking out of the woods after a daylong unfruitful hunt. He swore that something had stalked him and that he’d heard leaves rustling behind him as he’d walked out of the woods, but every time he stopped to listen, the rustling stopped as if whatever was trailing him had also paused. Still, he was an avid hunter and after avoiding the woods for a few days, that irresistible call of the wild drew him back to the woods. He’d kissed his wife and promised to return with fresh meat as he left that last morning. He failed to come home that night and the next morning a search party of his friends found him where he’d been killed just fifty yards from the safety of his truck.

  Producing a map, Tim had one of the men indicate on the map where the body had been found. The man also pointed out several locations where other hunters had been found. Some of the others gathered near added points where the runners had been found. “Hey!” one of the men exclaimed as a pattern began to emerge. “They all seem fairly close to one another don’t they?”

  “Close? No they were miles apart,” observed another man.
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  “Well they aren’t on the map,” the first man observed and then he said, “Hey that’s out near the area where that circus came to town just before the world went to hell last year.”

  “Shut up, Bobby, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” one of the men voiced in a menacing way.

  Looking suddenly nervous, the man named Bobby said, “I didn’t mean anything, Fred.”

  “I know you didn’t. You just never know when to keep your mouth shut,” Fred said in anger.

  “What’s wrong with mentioning a circus?” Tim asked bluntly but none of the men in the group would respond to the question. “Guys, we came a long way to try to help your community. We can’t help you if you hold back critical information,” he said puzzled at their sudden reticence.

  Tim heard chairs scraping on the floor behind him and turned to see what was going on. Several patrons of the tavern had stood up and were facing the peacekeepers. One of the men took a step forward and one of the security team members moved to stand in front of Patricia. Not liking what he was seeing, the tavern keeper strode between the two groups and said in a loud voice, “That will be enough gentlemen. You know my rules. If you start a fight in my place, I will ban you immediately. No exceptions.”

  “Well we don’t need outsiders coming here and stirring up trouble,” the man who’d taken a step toward the peacekeepers said belligerently.

  “Stirring up trouble? Sir, we’re here to help your community,” Patricia said calmly.

  “Clem, you need to sit down and enjoy your drink or call it a day if you’ve had enough,” the tavern owner insisted.

  Clem reluctantly returned to his table and sat down, but not before casting a warning glance at the men who’d been talking with the peacekeepers. The tavern owner now turned his attention to the peacekeepers and said, “I’m sorry, but this is a place of business and you are disturbing my customers. Since you aren’t drinking, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to leave.”

  Tim turned to the men who’d helped them with information, until one of them had apparently said too much, and thanked them all. Turning on his heels, he moved smoothly to the door and held it open for his wife to exit. The two security men stood waiting, refusing to leave until he’d exited the building, so Tim followed his wife into the brighter light of the late afternoon sky. The two men joined them moments later.

  They had just exited the tavern when Lacey’s voice reached them all ordering them to report their location. Patricia did so at once and Lacey replied, “Good, return to the ship on the double. Pete’s party was attacked and we are leaving to go to their aid in a minute.”

  All four peacekeepers broke into an all out run. They rounded a corner and sprinted for the ship. As they ran toward the ship, they saw the door open and two armed guards emerged motioning for them to hurry. The two guards stood aside as they bolted through the door and then the guards entered and sealed the door.

  “Brace yourselves as best you can. We’re leaving in moments,” Jim said as he manipulated the controls and lifted the Peacekeeper. “Strike team, get your rifles and plenty of ammunition. Be careful. I’m not accustomed to piloting the craft,” he warned.

  “Need me to fly us?” Tim asked.

  “No time. Maggie desperately needs medical supplies or we may lose a member of the team,” Jim replied and then he said, “Lacey is getting the supplies together. She may need help.”

  “I’m on it,” said Tim and he bolted down the corridor toward the infirmary.

  “Maggie is asking us to please hurry,” Patricia reported in concern.

  “ETA two minutes to the clearing where we left them earlier,” Jim responded.

  ***

  Earlier in the day, Pete and Maggie had surveyed the area where the latest victim had been found, but they found little in the way of evidence. As they examined the area, Bill Young and two security men formed a pyramid of security with Bill at the northernmost point and the two remaining security men at the southeast and southwest positions. The security men tried to stay within twenty-five yards of each other.

  Several times, Pete felt as if someone was watching them, so he sent a message to Bill advising him of that feeling and the need to keep a careful watch. Bill passed that message on to the rest of the security detail who, in the absence of Sergeant Wilcox, were under his command.

  Maggie noted that the men attending the sad duty of recovering the victim’s body had hopelessly compromised any evidence that might have been here. She suggested that they try to locate the victim’s footprints on the small game trail and backtrack his path for a bit in the hopes of uncovering more evidence that would not have been compromised by the presence of a large group of people. Pete readily agreed, but warned the guards to be alert for danger.

  Thirty minutes into the backtracking, Pete called a halt and ordered the guards to pull in to a fifteen-yard perimeter. “Something’s out there,” he said confidently. “I feel it stalking us.”

  They proceeded for another ten minutes in the backtracking, and then once more Pete called a halt. “Look at that tree,” he said pointing to a tree nearby that had considerable evidence of clawing on its bark. “Something is marking its territory. Bears do that but then so do cats. Well, at least I know house cats will scratch trees in that manner,” he said admitting that he wasn’t certain that big cats also had that behavior trait.

  “I think we’ve seen enough to know that we should have a proper hunting party here in this area. Let’s head back out. There’s no way the Peacekeeper can retrieve us here with this overhead canopy,” Pete said and ordered the guards to move back toward the clearing from which they had entered the forest.

  The security detail retained their formation as the party headed back for the clearing. Bill was taking up the rear position and he was constantly scanning the surrounding vegetation for any sign of a threat. Yet when the attack came, twenty minutes into the trip back to the clearing, he had no warning when something big slammed into him from behind. He twisted his body as he fell shouting a warning to the others even as his finger reflexively depressed the trigger and he fired an ineffective shot that went careening off through the forest. Then the big cat was on him, trying to reach his throat with its powerful jaws. Bill jammed his left forearm into the jaws of the cat and tried his best to get the rifle into a position to fire and then he felt the pain in his thighs.

  Pete spun at the sound of Bill’s shout and tried to bring his rifle to bear on the cat but there was no way to make a shot safely. Shouting for the security team to hold their fire he dropped his rifle, drew his dragon dagger, and charged the cat that was mauling Bill. Straddling the struggling forms Pete slipped his left hand under the big cat’s head and grasped it as best he could under the lower jaw and then he snatched the head up causing the big cat to release Bill’s forearm in surprise. Pete’s dagger flashed in and cut the cat’s throat. He then stabbed the big cat in the side trying to reach the heart but his knowledge of the anatomy of the cat wasn’t perfect and he missed that vital organ.

  Now the cat, though mortally wounded, turned its furious attention to Pete. Pete backed off several steps, dropping his dagger as he did so, and drawing his pistol. The enraged cat leapt toward Pete with a furious roar. Pete fired two rounds into the beast’s head, and the security team opened fire as well. The cat fell to the ground at Pete’s feet almost but not quite dead. Its forepaws slashed at Pete’s legs, but he darted back out of range, firing another two rounds into the cat’s head.

  Maggie was working frantically on Bill. “Help me guys!” she said and Pete moved away from the cat to assist her. Bill’s legs and forearm had taken serious damage. “We need two, no, three tourniquets,” Maggie said in a professional tone of voice. Give me your belts men,” she ordered without looking up. Pete, put pressure here and here,” she said as he handed her his belt. She placed his hands where she wanted pressure maintained on Bill’s legs and Pete leaned his body weight into the task at hand.

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sp; The two security men handed her their belts and she hastily formed emergency tourniquets and then she cut away the pant legs above the wounds asking Pete to finish cutting away the cloth while she injected Bill with a morphine ampoule to control the pain. She sent a message to the Peacekeeper informing them that one of the team was in a life-threatening situation and asked for assistance.

  Looking up at the two security men, Pete ordered, “Look sharp men, this may not be the only cat out here.” The men moved a few steps away facing the forest. Their eyes constantly roved over the surrounding vegetation, seeking any sign of another attacker. Their rifles were held at the ready.

  Bill’s eyes sought out Pete’s and he asked, “It’s bad isn’t it?”

  “Bad enough, Bill, but Maggie can pull you through. You just hang in there,” Pete said with more confidence than he felt at that moment.

  Bill sighed and closed his eyes. Fearing the worst, Pete said, “Damn it, Bill, don’t you quit on me!”

  “It will take more than a kitty to do me in, Pete,” Bill said trying to smile but a grimace of pain stifled that expression.

  Casting a glance at the huge tiger lying nearby, Pete thought that the cat was more than a kitty. A lot more.

  ***

  Jim landed the Peacekeeper in the clearing where they’d left Pete and his party earlier in the day. Sergeant Wilcox and his strike force team had the supplies that Maggie needed as well as the stretcher they’d need to recover Bill. There was no way to get the Peacekeeper closer to the distressed team because of the forest canopy. The strike team would have to deliver the supplies and affect a rescue.