“Well, enough of that.” Alexander passed a water bottle to Sarah. “What’s next on our list of things to see?”
Sarah looked at the time on her phone. “Next is Braxton’s. I’ve got to get to work.”
“How about it?” Ellie asked Alexander. “Up for some frozen yogurt?”
Alexander patted his stomach. “I’ve always got room for more.”
They made their way to their vehicles in the parking lot. Alexander rode with Ellie, who pointed out her old high school on the way to the store.
Sarah was already in uniform by the time they arrived. “What’ll you have?”
Alexander appraised his options. “Coconut. What about you, Ellie?”
“I’ve got this.” Sarah reached for the scooper. “One brownie batter coming up.”
“Brownie batter?” Alexander’s brow furrowed.
Ellie thought he looked upset. “Is something the matter?”
He recovered quickly. “Nothing. You just…reminded me of someone I used to know.” He slid over to the cash register and tapped his feet to the store music. “I love this song.”
“Eighties music? Are you serious?” Sarah rolled her eyes. “We wouldn’t keep it on if the boss didn’t force us to.”
Alexander laid his money on the counter. “The eighties were the best! Am I right, Ellie?”
“You’re an old soul, aren’t you?”
“More than you know.” He handed her the cup of frozen yogurt. “My treat.”
“A bribe that I gratefully accept. Yes, the eighties were a boon to the world of music.”
“What do you think, boy?” Alexander asked Boomer, letting the dog sniff his yogurt.
Sarah wrinkled her nose. “Gross. He’ll lick that if you’re not careful.”
Alexander shrugged. “You know dogs have cleaner mouths than humans, right?”
“I wouldn’t kiss that mouth.”
Alexander winked at Ellie. “I happen to think I’m very kissable.”
After finishing their frozen yogurt, Ellie and Alexander said goodbye to Sarah and left the store. They chatted in the parking lot for several minutes and then went on a scenic drive through Hazard. It didn’t take Ellie long to show him most of the small town. She pointed out her church, and they discussed their mutual love of movies when they drove by the theater. Finally, they returned to the park.
“Thanks again for showing me around,” Alexander said.
“You’re welcome.” Ellie asked if he wanted her to drop him off next to his car, but he told her he would rather walk back to it later.
“I enjoyed meeting your friend.”
“Thanks. I think she liked you too.”
“You’re a special girl, Ellie. I know we haven’t known each other very long. There’s something about you that I can’t quite put my finger on. I guess I’m trying to say I like you.”
“I like you too, Alexander.” A buzz from her phone interrupted the moment.
Will you be home for dinner? It was her mother.
Ellie sighed. “Well, I suppose that’s enough fun for one day. I should probably be getting home.”
“Me too.” Alexander studied her. “Can I see you again?”
“Of course.” Ellie felt herself grinning as she watched him go. This is going to be a great summer.
She did not know how wrong she was.
Chapter Five
Shadows moved like wraiths under the full moon’s light. Silence reigned just outside of town. Miles of farmland covered by cornfields and pastures sat undisturbed, waiting.
A monstrous form moved among the trees with inhuman speed before stopping at the forest’s edge. It lingered just outside the moonlight and panted quietly in the darkness. A mass of fur, teeth, and claws breathed the night air into its lungs, and its ears perked up. It was close now.
Surging into the field, the massive creature drew nearer to its prey with each step. Tall grasses concealed its terrifying frame, as did dark clouds covering the sky.
Drool slid down the beast’s sharp fangs. The smell was overpowering to the creature’s enhanced senses. Soon its hunger would be satiated. Slowing its movements, the beast made its way to a weather-beaten barn. The smell of the barn was stale; whatever animals were inside had been moved elsewhere.
Then the creature spotted a herd of cattle a few hundred yards away. They were fat and lazy, entirely unprepared for the feast about to occur. The beast advanced stealthily and prepared to strike.
The cows woke him.
Jack Taylor sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes. What time was it?
He checked his alarm clock. “Two in the morning.” His voice sounded groggy, and not without cause. He didn’t have to be up for another four hours.
He was just about to slide under the covers again when he heard a strange howl. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end as a cry of agony shattered the night’s peace.
This time he wasn’t tempted to return to sleep. Jake climbed out of bed and pulled on his trousers. His flannel shirt lay nearby. A few years ago, he wouldn’t have dared leave his clothes on the floor—Martha would have had a fit. After she left, it hadn’t taken him long to fall back into his bachelor habits.
He glanced back at his bed, where only one side was unmade. He still slept as if she was beside him. Although the thought of her no longer evoked great pain, he still felt a pang of sadness at having lost custody of his son. When Martha left, she took Bobby with her. Looking back, Jack should have known he was asking for trouble. Martha’s tastes were extravagant even when they were dating. In the end, she told him she couldn’t stand being married to someone with no ambition.
Jack loved the land more than ever now, because it was all he had left. The idea that some coyote had come calling for a meal didn’t sit well with him. He slid into his boots and grabbed the twenty-two-caliber rifle on his way outside. The screen door screeched closed behind him.
I can’t believe I’m out here at this hour. Frigid night air rendered his breath visible. Luckily, the full moon would give him an advantage in spotting any animal bothering his herd.
He couldn’t believe his misfortune. He’d had Doctor Sullivan put down one of his best bulls a week ago. Now this.
The economy didn’t help matters. Although the price of beef was up, fewer people were willing to pay more money—and Jack currently lacked the funds to replenish his herd. Like his father had once told him, life wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that Martha left him, and it wasn’t fair that he was outside in the cold at two in the morning.
God, how he missed his father. Rifle in hand, Jack thought about his old man as he opened the metal gate outside the farmhouse. It was his father who instructed him how to use a gun, showed him how to farm the land and taught him how to be a man. His father would have known exactly how to handle a coyote.
He no longer had his father, though, and he would have to deal with this himself. Jack walked over the packed dirt path on his way to the barn. Maybe putting a predator in the ground would make him feel better.
The cool air swelled around him like a mist. Jack saw clearly enough through the thin patch of fog. Moving as quietly as he could, he looked out in the herd’s direction.
Something was wrong. He could tell right away. A pool of blood shimmered in the moonlight, highlighting a trail that led straight to a dead cow. Whatever killed it was still there, feeding on it. Jack heard the gruesome sound of the predator hungrily devouring its prey.
Even in the moonlight, it was difficult to see the creature hidden behind the cow’s remains. Pointing his gun in the air, Jack stole closer. When he approached, dry leaves crunched loudly underneath his boots.
A pair of ears perked up from behind the dead cow. Before he could react, the creature rose into full view. It was no coyote—or any kind of animal he had ever seen. It was a monster.
Standing on two legs, the beast towered almost seven feet in height. Thick black fur covered its entire body. Blood dripped from the monst
er’s claws and fangs. For a moment, it didn’t move. It simply stared into him, watching Jack with yellow eyes. Jack felt himself shaking, waiting for it to attack. The creature smelled his fear and snarled, as if to warn him against trying anything foolish.
Jack regained his courage, took aim, and pulled the trigger. The bullet tore into the monster’s flank but failed to so much as knock the monster back. Jack watched the bullet wound sizzle as it healed and closed. Roaring with anger, the beast pounced and came crashing down in front of him. One swing of its massive arm sent his rifle flying. A second strike flung him onto his back, and the force carried him downhill. Jack gathered momentum on his way down and crashed into the bushes below.
His right arm made a snapping sound when he landed on it. It took everything Jack had to keep from lapsing into unconsciousness. From the pain in his arm, it was badly broken. If his legs were injured, he was done for.
He heard his heart pounding and prayed the monster couldn’t hear it too. Mustering the courage to peer above the bushes, he searched the area for a trace of his pursuer. Where had it gone?
Just as he was about to leave the safety of the bushes, he saw a shadow move near a tree a few feet away. The creature was hiding, waiting for him to come out. Jack thought about staying put and playing dead, but he heard the monster sniffing the air for his scent.
The beast was coming closer. Grabbing hold of a rock, Jack threw it as far away from his position as he could. The creature’s ears perked up again, and it raced on all fours in the rock’s direction. Jack stumbled from his hiding place and prayed his diversion had bought him enough time to get away. Then he saw the monster, howling with rage at having been deceived, turn around. Jack dove behind a tree and hoped it hadn’t seen him.
The night was quiet once more. Jack waited anxiously, his heart still racing.
Glowing eyes leapt out of darkness. The creature cornered him against the tree.
“Please,” Jack whimpered, cowering in place. “Don’t kill me.”
The monster lashed out, brandishing its claws inches from his face. A sickening sound filled the night air as the claws sank into solid mass.
Sometime later, Jack opened his eyes. He hadn’t moved from the tree.
I must have passed out. Sore from where the monster hit him, Jack rubbed the back of his head. Aside from his arm, he was unharmed. The beast hadn’t even scratched him.
Then his eyes wandered up the tree beside his face. Claws had ripped into the tree and penetrated deep into the bark.
Jack sat there in shock until the first rays of sunlight trickled into the forest.
Chapter Six
The front door was ajar when Matt arrived. An outer screen door obstructed a more complete view of the interior.
“Mr. Taylor?” Matt tapped the mesh with his flashlight. “Mr. Taylor? Your cows are all over the road. One seems to have found its way into Marlene Harris’s garden.”
Matt didn’t bother asking a third time. He opened the screen door and stepped inside. All the lights were off. His gut told him something was wrong when he first answered the call. Maybe it was on account of all the strange incidents that had been occurring lately, or maybe it was his own intuition, but his suspicions were validated when Jack Taylor didn’t answer his phone.
Matt walked through the kitchen, the thud of his boots echoing across the wooden floor. Taylor’s a bit of a slob. A pile of unwashed dishes lingered in the sink. A blaring sound emanated from a room in the back. Matt walked toward the door and threw it open. An alarm was ringing loudly in the empty bedroom. Matt shut off the alarm and frowned.
He returned outside the house, reached for his phone and dialed the vet’s number. “Doctor Sullivan? I’m at Jack Taylor’s place. Some of his cows have gotten out and made their way down to the road.”
“Really? I could give you a hand rounding them up if you’d like.”
“Thanks. I’d really appreciate it.” Matt walked past a white propane tank on his way to the barn and noticed the gate had been left open.
“OK. I’ll be right over.”
Morning dew coated his boots. A few remaining cows plodding lazily about paid him little attention.
So few are still here. What set them off? It didn’t seem like Taylor had been gone long.
Matt spotted something black behind a hay bale. When he approached for a closer inspection, his eyes widened in surprise. A pool of blood had formed underneath a dead cow, which had been ripped to shreds.
“What could have done this?” Doc, you really need to get over here.
Ellie usually enjoyed helping her father with his work. Of course, on normal days her father didn’t deal with eviscerated livestock. She took a step back and brushed a fly away from her face. They were everywhere.
Her father pushed himself off his knees and pried his gaze away from the cow. “I guess that solves the mystery of what’s been happening to the disappearing cows. Something took quite a few bites out of this poor girl.”
“Dad, the cow’s been almost completely torn apart. What kind of animal could have done that?”
“Something big. What do you think, Deputy? Sound like our predator?”
Matt shook his head. “I’m not sure. The other animals that went missing were from farms on the other side of town. That’s a lot of ground to cover.”
“Maybe it’s passing through Hazard.” Ellie glanced at Boomer. She couldn’t imagine how terrible it would be to have a pet attacked. Her father had treated injured animals before. The horrified looks on their owners’ faces were forever imprinted on her memory, but this was something worse—and savage.
“Not likely, with all the complaints we’ve been receiving,” Matt said. “Whatever it is appears to have settled in. I thought old Mrs. Wells was crazy, but maybe it really is a bear.”
Ellie’s father bit his lip. “It would have to be something enormous to do this kind of damage. Look here. The spine has been completely severed.”
“Gross.” Ellie wrinkled her nose.
Her father removed his gloves and scratched his chin with a thoughtful expression. “It is odd. We’ve had a few animals turn up missing recently, but this is the first one we’ve actually found.”
“The woods can conceal a lot.”
While Matt continued speaking with her father, Ellie turned her attention to Boomer. She bent down to pet him, but he looked on blankly. Just when she started to think he was getting better, he was acting strangely again. He hadn’t even tried sniffing at any cows.
“I’ve been on the phone with Jack’s ex-wife. She doesn’t live in the area anymore. He was out here all by himself. His truck is still in the driveway.”
At least we got the cows out of the road. They had herded the cattle back through the gate before her father inspected the eviscerated cow. Suddenly, Ellie noticed a human footprint by the woods.
“Look at this.”
“Good eyes, Ellie.” Matt nodded in approval. “Looks fresh. Jack must have come out this way. Maybe he was looking for whatever did this.”
Ellie hadn’t considered that Jack Taylor might have pursued the predator into the woods. The possibility was unsettling. Anything that could do that much damage to a cow could surely do the same to Jack.
“There’s another track over here.” Her father pointed farther into the woods. “And another. We’re lucky the earth is soft and moist.”
“Where do you think he went?” Ellie asked.
Matt shrugged. “He could still be here somewhere, hurt. If we spread out, maybe we can find him. Just stay close enough for us to hear each other. If Taylor did succeed in wounding the predator, it might be nearby as well. Even injured, it could be dangerous.”
As they fanned out, Ellie watched the others out of the corner of her eyes. Eventually she lost sight of them between the trees but could still hear the crunching of leaves underfoot.
“Have you seen anything yet?” she called to her father. No reply came.
Ellie w
ondered what type of creature could have completely destroyed the cow they’d discovered. The thought made her jumpy. She hadn’t forgotten about the figure she saw during her camping trip. Although she had probably imagined it, searching the woods for a missing farmer reminded her of the feeling of being watched.
The farther she went, the cooler the air seemed to grow. At last it dawned on her that she could no longer hear Matt or her father.
They told me to stay close. Why hadn’t she listened? Her boots coated with sticky mud, Ellie trudged down the forest path. After finding her footing, she made her way across the creek using large rocks as steppingstones.
Boomer followed with his head down, as if encountering a familiar scent.
“Dad?” Ellie called out, again to no answer.
There was a splash in the water, and something moved in the bushes. Boomer bared his fangs at the bushes while Ellie stood rooted to the spot.
It was Matt. “There you are. Your father was worried about getting separated, but now it looks like he’s the one who’s off on his own.” He reached down to pet Boomer. “Don’t worry, fella, it’s just me.” The Lab snapped at his hand, and Matt withdrew his arm quickly before the jaws snapped shut. “Wow. He was much friendlier the last time I saw him.”
“Sorry. Boomer hasn’t been himself recently.” Ellie noticed Matt now carried a weapon. “What’s that?”
“Taylor’s rifle, most likely. I discovered it close to where we first entered the woods. My guess is he was hunting whatever animal attacked his cows. How he lost his gun I don’t know.” He noted a second, partially intact set of footprints a few yards away.
“Is your job always like this?”
Matt laughed. “Hardly. Most days there’s hardly anything to do.”
Ellie studied him carefully. “And when it’s not?”
“I try to think of other things to distract myself. For instance, your dad told me you’re headed to college soon.”
Ellie chuckled. He must have realized she was feeling nervous. “Yeah. It’s just a matter of where at this point.”
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