Chapter 18
The legs were the most intact part of what was left of the body. The calves appeared to be muscular. They were well-tanned and covered with coarse, dark hair—a man’s legs. The inner thigh of the left leg was torn open, jagged chunks of bright red muscle clung to something white deep inside. Bone, it had to be bone. There were taut, whitish-gray cords stretched across the opening—tendons probably. Or ligaments. The right leg was almost completely torn from the body, attached only by some more of those whitish-gray cords. A circular bone was sticking out of the chunk of meat—I guess it is meat now—that was left of the man’s upper right leg.
The abdomen was open, revealing lumps of different colored organs and tissues inside. A purplish-brown, smooth piece—probably the liver. Tendrils of light pink cords—gotta be intestines. Jessica could even make out linked white pieces of something cylindrical in the depths of the bloody mess—and that’s the spinal column.
The right arm had numerous puncture wounds, especially around the hand. And the left arm was tucked underneath the torso in such a way that it was almost certainly dislocated, only muscle and tissue holding it together.
Jessica looked up at the canyon walls. Did he fall? Could a fall have done this? And that's why the boulder was there too? Because it came down with him? She looked back at the body. No, not a fall. A fall couldn’t do that to someone’s face . . . not even a fall from an airplane.
The face was gone. Just . . . gone. Jessica could see the man’s teeth; they stood out in stark contrast to the deep red tissue that was left of his face. The lips were no longer there, and the pale, pink gums were clearly visible. The eyes stared straight up, protruding from the skull and no longer concealed by eyelids. The skull was almost completely scalped, only a few chunks of gray hair remaining at the nape of the neck.
Jessica never felt in her entire life like giving up more than she did at that moment. The phone waking her in the night, lying in the dark and knowing before she even answered it that her mother was going to tell her that her father was dead. Driving to the hospital in the dark. That cold kiss. Standing at his grave as the dirt got shoveled in, wondering how it could possibly be sunny on such a horrible day. All of that felt distant, hazy. Standing on the trail with a stretch of bright red gore in front of her, all Jessica wanted to do was sit down, curl into a ball, and wait for it all to be over.
A grotesque smell filled the air, causing Jessica to gag. She remembered learning in school that the olfactory system was closely linked to memory, and that a certain smell could cause someone to recall a specific moment from their past. She never really gave it much thought—none really. But when that rotting, putrid, slightly sweet stench invaded her nostrils she immediately remembered. She remembered that smell, fleeting though it was, drifting out of the canyon on the breeze that one day. She remembered that smell when she was at the zoo with her daddy once, much milder but still lingering near the enclosure. It was the smell of a predator—of a carnivore. The smell of its breath, rotting meat still clinging to its elongated canines. It was the smell of dead animals—of decay on the side of the road. Only this time it wasn’t a gentle whiff on the breeze. It wasn’t fleeting. This time the smell was strong—overpowering even. And it was coming off the breath of something that still had rotting meat in its teeth. Something that was dangerously too close. An animal did this . . . and it’s still here.
Every sense of giving up evaporated when that smell took over. The urge to lie down was gone. The stench was almost sticky in the air, the odor a rabbit might smell as the jaws of a coyote wrapped around its throat. The smell of a predator—only this time she was the prey instead of the rabbit. It’s watching me. Right now. It’s been watching me this whole time.
Jessica stumbled over the remains of the body, gritting her teeth against a new wave of pain, and began to run.
Chapter 19
She had been running nearly fifteen seconds when she heard a branch break—if the frantic limping she was doing could even be called running. Jessica stepped forward with her mangled left foot, then lurched her entire body forward with her right. Left, then right. Left, then right. The pain was intense, but the fear was stronger. She could taste the fear now—a metallic bitterness that seemed to be rising from her throat.
Before stumbling upon the boulder, and the grisly scene that lay beyond, Jessica had made it a mile of her return trip. That meant she still had half a mile to go until she was out of the canyon. And she wasn’t going very fast.
To her surprise, the pain began to fade, adrenaline tampering it down to give her a fighting chance. Not fighting—running. A running chance. There was no way in hell she was going to fight whatever did that to that man.
The rotting stench followed her down the length of the canyon, keeping pace with her. Maybe it’s just getting carried by the wind. Whatever it is, it's far away and I’m just downwind of it. It’s actually really far away and sleeping somewhere.
Her wishful thinking was shattered when she heard the branch break. And that sharp crack of wood was not far away at all. It was mind-numbingly close. Forty or fifty yards away at the most. Another branch broke seconds later, alarmingly closer than the first. Jessica didn’t dare turn around.
A low growl emanated from somewhere inside the canyon. It echoed on the canyon walls and Jessica could feel it inside of her chest. Or maybe what she felt in her chest was her heart threatening to stop. Her breath came in sharp, jagged gasps and she felt like she was running on a piece of gnarled wood dipped in cement. Left, then right. Left, then right. Then: left right left right left right. The limp lessened as the adrenaline coursed through her. Fuck the ankle. They can cut off the foot later if I ever get out of here. I do NOT want to end up like that guy. Left right left right left right. Bear? Mountain lion? Bear? Mountain lion? Bear? Mountain lion?
Jessica ran. This might be the last run of her short life, so she better make it count. Push it. A little harder. A little further. A little faster. Be stronger. Be better. Don’t die. Don’t die don’t die don’t die. Her face felt wet. She didn’t know when exactly, but she had begun to cry.
She could hear it now, somewhere behind her on the trail. Branches snapped, bushes rustled, and even worse, there were feet running on the trail. Not human feet—that’s for damn sure. They thudded with the weight of whatever it was, and the scratching noises on the dirt could be mistaken for nothing other than its claws. Jessica envisioned monstrously long claws, kicking up soil as the thing galloped forward.
She could hear its breathing now—could hear snarling and grunting somewhere behind her. The sounds were getting closer. At first it seemed to be toying with her, a snapped branch here, a bush rustle there. Now it was running, and to Jessica’s dismay, gaining on her. She wound her way along the trail, forever grateful that she knew each bend and every turn so well. As long as the fucking thing didn’t put another rock in the road, she thought. Somehow she knew that the boulder she tripped on was put there for her—that it was done on purpose. It injured her and now it was playing with her. Idly chasing her, knowing it would catch her eventually, just wanting to tire her out first. Goddamn cat and mouse bullshit.
And was it whimpering? No wait, that’s me, she thought. Jessica had started to make an anxious, whining noise each time she exhaled. Daddy, I don’t want to die. Please—God please—I don’t want to die out here . . . in here. Exhaustion was starting to set in, she was pushing with everything she had yet she could tell she was losing speed. She could see the mouth of the canyon now, but there was still so much desert beyond that. She was going to die. Just like that man did. At least die in the sunshine. Get out of the canyon. At least don’t die in the shadows—not in the dark.
The thing seemed to be done playing games, it began running forward with purpose. Everything seemed to be happening as if underwater—a slow-motion scene from hell. She could hear her breath, its breath, claws scraping on the soil, blood thudding in her ears. She could feel sweat dripping
down the center of her back, tears on her face, the wind from the canyon pushing her forward. Daylight loomed ahead. She was less than a hundred yards from the canyon’s mouth.
Please Daddy, just help me get out of this canyon.
She hadn’t looked back since the chase began, hadn’t dared even a glance in fear she would trip over something and become an all-you-could-eat buffet. Jessica knew if she turned she would be able to see it. It was close enough now, closing the distance between them. The sweet stink of its breath was nauseating, and Jessica thought she could even feel the warmth coming off of it. It was probably only thirty feet away—make that twenty. Jessica cringed, waiting for the impact of claws and teeth on her bare skin. It must be about to spring at her, ready to jump up with its muscular legs and launch itself onto her back, pinning her face down in the dirt. Then it will tear her open just like that man.
Jessica’s skin kissed sunlight. She burst forth from the canyon in one final surge of strength and willpower. She felt the warmth on her skin, the sun caressing the gooseflesh covering her bare shoulders. And then she was flying. The final surge of energy that launched her out of the canyon also caused her to stumble on the uneven terrain. With such momentum going, she ended up flying through the air almost comically. She smashed into the ground on her right side and tumbled once—twice—make that three times—before coming to a stop on the warm, hardened caliche. She whirled onto her back, prepared to fight with the last glimmer of strength she had left.
Only it wasn’t there. Not on top of her, or even next to her. Jessica jerked her head toward the canyon. She saw her pursuer, thirty feet back, standing in the shadows just shy of the sunlight. When she launched herself into the sun she had managed to tumble thirty feet from the canyon’s mouth. It stood there, snarling, its features obscured by the heavy shadow of the canyon’s walls. She only saw it for an instant before it disappeared completely into the shadows.
What she saw was in no animal book she had ever looked through. It never graced the pages of National Geographic and it was never featured on the Discovery Channel. It was large, bigger than a mountain lion but smaller than a bear. But not much smaller. She could see elongated canines protruding from its withdrawn lips as it snarled at her, but most of its facial features were lost in the shadows. Long, sickle-shaped claws jutted out from its sizable paws. And it was hairless, or at least almost hairless. Its skin was a dark gray, or was that just because it was in the shadows? And its spine protruded from its muscular back much further than any animal she had seen before. And then it was gone, abandoning the chase right when she was sprawled helplessly on the ground. Had it been toying with her all along? Or had something stopped it?
Jessica let out a gut-wrenching sob, staggered to her feet, and kept going.
Chapter 20
Push yourself. A little harder. A little further. A little faster. Past the dry creek bed with river stones that had seen much more sun than they had ever seen water. Passed the saguaro that looked like a man caressing a woman. Past the century plant with its stalk listing to the side.
Jessica saw a walking pole lying in the dirt not far from the entrance to the canyon. She stumbled over to it and picked it up. Was it here when I ran by this morning? The pole was partially concealed by a couple of shrubs; she could easily have missed it if she wasn’t paying attention. Hell, she didn’t even notice the stupid boulder in the middle of the damn trail. She leaned on the walking pole, grateful for its support.
The going was slow, each step agonizingly painful. The adrenaline that had carried her through the canyon, helping her run on her badly damaged ankle, was dwindling. The pain increased with each step, and each time she put weight on her left leg her ankle made a mushy, shifting sensation that she did not care for. She didn’t dare look at it.
What she did do was look behind her, obsessively so. Whatever caused it to stop might be gone, or maybe it just decided to resume the chase. It wanted to let her think she had escaped, and then it would slink up behind her, creeping past the prickly pear and aloe verde, to finally sink its teeth into her exposed neck. Killing her is not nearly as fun if she knows it’s coming.
The heat of the day was already stifling and she could make out the tops of white cumulus clouds on the horizon. It was going to storm later today, and bad. She needed to tell the authorities what happened, they needed to find the man before all the evidence got washed away. What evidence? It’s not like he got killed by Jack the Ripper, she thought. Although there was a lot of ripping involved. She shuddered. She just needed to get the hell out of here. To her phone, and to the safety of her car.
Jessica passed the crested saguaro. Three miles to go. She desperately wished she would see Cameron coming over the rise of Wasp Hill. He would run to her, see what state she was in, and link his arm under her shoulder. He would help her walk out of here; drive her to the nearest hospital. He would call the authorities and she could go to sleep. They would fix her ankle. And everything would be alright. She kept pushing away the thought that she might have already seen Cameron this morning. Was this one of his walking poles? She couldn’t be sure.
The trail tilted upward into an incline. Wasp Hill. Ascending the hill was more grating on her ankle than she expected—if that was possible. It mushed and squished with each step.
Jessica also noticed she was bleeding from various locations. During her sunshine somersaults she had gotten scraped up pretty good by the unforgiving desert floor. She had cuts and abrasions covering her arms, and there was a rather unsightly gash on her right shoulder where she must have landed on a rock. The blood from the cut oozed sluggishly down her dirt-smeared arm. A fine layer of dust covered her entire body, darker streaks standing out where sweat had dripped down. Oh Daddy, your Jess is such a mess.
She limped her way over Wasp Hill, looking over her shoulder for any signs of the canyon creature. Nothing. The temperature ticked up steadily as the day worked its way toward noon. For the first time since before the boulder she thought to look at her QuikFit. It was 10:02 a.m. This will make for an impressive activity log for today, she thought. Then: Wait a minute. They could use it. The authorities. They will be able to see where I fell on the trail so they will know where the body is located.
She started walking forward with a new purpose. The police needed to know, and she could help. She could direct them to the exact location of the nightmarish scene, and they could possibly make it before the rain came. Maybe even capture it—or kill it—before nightfall. She hobbled along and didn’t even bother to deter to the other side of the path as she passed the jumping chollas. I would rather hug a cholla than ever go through anything like this ever again.
The chollas meant she was only a mile away from the parking lot. Jessica could feel her fear starting to creep in again. She was suddenly convinced it was following her all along, keeping off the trail and waiting until she was almost safe before bursting out in front of her, teeth bared and claws extended. And then where would she run? Back toward the canyon? Her heart rate increased and she began hyperventilating, on the verge of a panic attack. Come on, Jess. You are literally almost there. See there? That’s asphalt. That’s the parking lot. Just a little further.
She pressed on. The lot was coming into view, and for one terrifying moment she thought her car would be gone. All this to be stranded in a parking lot surrounded by desert and mega mansions. But her car was there, sitting alone in the parking lot in her usual parking space.
A short, silent prayer went through her head as her right foot stepped up onto the asphalt. No more trail. No more canyon. No more monster. As the word monster went through her head she quickly looked over her shoulder again, almost falling in the process. Still nothing. The empty trail stretched out into the desert. She could hear a very distant rumbling. These storms are going to start early today. I better get a move on.
Jessica arrived at her car, feeling a wash of panic followed by immediate relief when she discovered her car key was still in
her pocket. She opened the door, thought about tossing the hiking pole to the ground, then decided to put it in her backseat instead. She groaned as she lowered herself into the car, taking care to bring her left leg inside without bumping her foot. She shut the door, locked it, then looked up at the trailhead. It was empty. The slightly tilted post stood alone, its map glimmering in the morning sunshine.
Chapter 21
“But you have to go now!” Jessica demanded, her voice shrill and sounding nothing like herself. She sat upright in her hospital bed, her knuckles white from her grip on the bed rails.
“Ma’am, Search and Rescue is already in route. My department is on standby pending what Search and Rescue discovers,” Officer Taylor Kilburn said. He was a tall man, with a broad, muscular chest and a crew cut of sandy-blond hair.
The frazzled blonde girl, her ankle wrapped in a giant swath of bandages, was making him nervous. Her story had been unwavering and highly detailed—unbelievable as it was. But it was over now, and he wanted to get the hell out of there. Hospitals made him uncomfortable—they smelled like piss and disinfectant and there were always all these sick people all over the place. But instead of getting the hell out of Dodge, he was stuck behind some cheap teal curtain with a dirt-covered crazy chick insisting that they get their asses up to Wasp Canyon to find a mutilated body and a monster creature. Kilburn’s head hurt, and this chick’s yelling was not helping.
Wasp Canyon Page 8
