He turned on Rat Tail, who had regained his feet and was charging at Bones. Rat Tail lowered his head and tried a tackle, but he wasn’t strong enough to bring the larger man down. Bones flung him to the ground, jumped onto his back, and caught him in a chokehold. Rat Tail struggled and clawed at Bones’ forearm, which was locked around his neck in a Python grip, but his efforts were futile and he soon went limp. Bones let the man fall to the ground.
“He’s not dead is he?” Carly asked.
Bones shook his head. “Just unconscious.” He strode over to the still idling truck, took the keys from the ignition, and pitched them into the river. He then searched the glove compartment and found a 38 revolver. He emptied the cylinder, tossed the bullets into the water, and put the weapon back where he’d found it.
“Come on,” he said to the others. “Let’s get out of here before these idiots wake up. If I have to deal with them again I might bruise my knuckles.”
Dave chuckled. “That was crazy. You took them out in, like, thirty seconds.”
“It only took that long because I decided to choke the dude out.” He looked down at Dave. “It’s not like the movies. A real fight is short and nasty and somebody almost always gets hurt. That’s why you should try to stay out of them if at all possible.” He turned and walked back out into the river.
“Where are you going?” Slater asked. “They destroyed the prints.”
“Were going to do this old-school. Something left those prints and I’m going to track it down.”
Chapter 6
Bones was an experienced tracker and he was able to follow the signs left by the passage of whatever had passed this way with little trouble. The ground was thick with undergrowth, but here and there he spotted a partial footprint, broken branch, or a twig or leaf pressed down into the soft earth. The first couple of times he spotted something, Slater had him point it out and explain it for the benefit of the camera, but after that they moved on as quickly as they could.
The path they followed, if it could be called that, plunged deep into the swampy forest, occasionally bending back in the direction of the river, but generally following a southeasterly course. Bones lost the trail a couple of times and was forced to double back again, but always managed to find it. The farther they went, the quieter their surroundings grew. It was hard to believe they were only a handful of miles from a decent-sized city.
Spirits were high during the first hour or so of their trek. The crew was duly impressed by his tracking skills and never voiced any concerns that he might be steering them on the wrong course. By the second hour, though, their enthusiasm began to wane.
“Is it dangerous here?” Dave asked. “I mean, aside from crazy rednecks?”
“It can be if you’re not careful. While we’re in the woods, you’re not likely to run into anything. I guess there’s an outside chance we could stumble across a black bear, but the odds of one of them messing with us are pretty slim. They just want to be left alone. If we do see one, just follow my lead and it’ll be cool.”
“You said ‘while we’re in the woods.’ What about when we get to the swamp?” Dave smiled as he spoke, but Bones could hear a tremble in his voice.
“Snakes and gators, but just keep your eyes open and you should be fine. And try to stay out of the water. I don’t want to have to pull you out of quicksand.”
“I hear there are giant pythons in the swamp,” Carly said. “People buy them as pets and set them free when they grow too big.”
Bones donned his most patient smile. “Tell you what. You guys take a break from worrying and stay close to me. It’ll be fine.”
“How far are we going to go?” Carly asked, glancing back the way they’d come.
“Until we find something, I guess,” Bones said. “Or until the boss tells us it’s time to knock off for the day.”
“It’s still early,” Slater said. “Plenty of daylight left.”
Carly didn’t seem pleased. “Are you sure we’ll be able to find our way back?”
“I’m sure I can get us back. All I have to do is follow the tracks you three have trampled into the ground. Seriously, it’s like an elephant walk back there.”
“What if we get separated from you?” Dave chimed in, unabashed by Bones’ commentary on his woodcraft.
“Don’t.” Bones turned away and resumed his trek, but Dave wasn’t satisfied.
“No, really. What do we do if we get lost?”
Bones stopped and counted to three before replying. “Seriously? The kind of show you do and you’ve never spent any time out in the woods?”
“Not in such a small group, and not with a guide who can follow invisible trails through the middle of nowhere. Besides, this place is… ”
“… creepy,” Carly finished.
Bones shrugged out of his backpack, took out a bottle of water, and took a long drink, buying time for his annoyance to subside. “All right. Listen carefully. If one of you wanders off, head east until you hit the river and then turn right. Follow it until you get back to the park. It’s really that simple.” He supposed he should explain to them how to determine which way was east. “To know which direction is east, you just… ”
“It’s cool,” Dave said. “Our cell phones have compass apps.” His countenance suddenly brightened. “Wait a minute!” He took out his phone and tapped it a few times. “I’ve got a signal. That means I can use GPS to get back. Looks like there was nothing to worry about.”
Bones pressed his lips tightly together until he could speak without cursing. “That’s just… awesome.” Not trusting himself to say more, he turned on his heel and plunged forward, double-time.
Bones continued to follow the signs left by whatever had passed this way. The occasional partial print kept his spirits up. These were no shoe or boot prints. They were tracks left by large, bare feet. He was finally beginning to consider the possibility that the skunk ape was, in fact, a reality and not a mere legend. Of course, he was predisposed to wish that such things were true, but that didn’t change what he saw as he moved through the forest. Tracks were immune to personal bias.
“Do you think we might actually find something?” Carly’s tone indicated she wasn’t exactly thrilled by the possibility.
“I hope so,” Bones said, keeping his eyes on the ground in front of him.
“What if we come across an actual skunk ape?” Dave asked.
“No offense, but as clumsy as you white people are out here in the woods, any woodland creature worth its salt is going to hear you coming a mile away and clear the hell out of the area until we’re gone.”
“Somebody’s snippy today,” Slater said.
“Sorry. I get that way when I concentrate. It hurts my brain to think too hard.” He grinned at his three companions, hoping to break the ice a little.
“We’ll try to be quiet, won’t we, guys?” Slater glared at her crew, who nodded in unison.
Bones knew it wouldn’t do much good. None of them were practiced at woodcraft, but at least they were making an effort. He supposed he might as well give them some pointers.
“A few things to keep in mind. First of all, don’t step on anything that will make noise, like twigs, dry leaves, or loose stones. Try to step where I step.”
“Because we’re all seven feet tall.” Slater gave him a wink.
“Just do your best. Also, try not to brush against anything. That makes unnecessary noise. Ideally, the only thing you’ll touch out here is soft earth with the balls of your feet. And try not to talk so much. Got it?”