The Search

Editor's note:

I am sorry this took so long. Some people discipline themselves to write everyday. Others play world of warcraft. Also, due to approval issues, I had to water this version down. I still hope you enjoy the read, but I apologize if Patty comes across a bit...toothless.

I thought I'd be able to write the story in two parts, but it looks like it'll be three. This story was a lot of firsts for me. First-person writing, first lesbian fiction, first sci-fi mystery, and first story I hope to post a completed work of. I hope you enjoy, although I do appreciate criticism. Thanks for reading.

Part 2

To be honest, I had only been mildly convinced that this search for Sasquatch was legit. Sure, I saw the video, but my brain still did its best to misremember details until all aspects of its legitimacy could be explained away. The creature wasn't THAT much bigger than a man, therefore it could have just been a dude in a suit. Big Jake hadn't been tossed THAT far, therefore the attack could have been staged. The roar sounded kind of fake, etc. But, now? I didn't feel like I was at the top of the food chain anymore. My instinct was to stay low, still, and quiet while hoping that the monster wouldn't notice me, but it was like Patty could read my mind.

"That thing already knows we're here, baby girl. We've gotta move!" Patty said ushering me quickly across the camp clearing. She stopped just short of my cabin and called out her last instructions. "Get inside and tell everyone to stay low. There could be gunfire."

I was happy to obey her for once. I charged inside letting the door slam behind me, which pretty much woke everyone up.

Terry nearly leapt out of his sleeping bag. "What the...?!"

"Everybody, stay down!" I said as I got to the floor next to Yasmin.

"What's going on?" Yasmin asked as she started to lift her head.

"It's here," I answered as I brought her back down to the cabin floor.

Everyone could hear raised voices from afar as Patty roused all of the hunters and armed herself. Suddenly, the camp grounds were lit up by floodlights from the roof of the RV, and the sound of heavy boots came trampling.

Yasmin rolled to face me. "What do you mean? You saw it?!"

I didn't answer. I wanted to look outside, but feared what Patty had warned me about. Sure enough, a gunshot rang out. It wasn't in our direction, but it happened close enough to stay any curiosity. The voices of the others became more distant, which let us know they were on the chase. Pretty soon, there was silence.

"Danny," Yasmin snapped her fingers. "You saw it?" she repeated.

"Y...no. We..."

"Did you see something, or didn't you?" Gus asked impatiently from his terrified supine position.

"We knew something was there. There were footprints and this smell just outside the bathroom, so we just made a run for it."

Bart had his chin to the floor and both hands over his head. Still, I managed to make out his inquiry. "We?"

"Me and Patty."

"And you're sure it wasn't a bear or something?" Terry inquired.

I threw my hands up. "Fine, Terry. It was a bear. Go outside and say hello. Don't worry. It's JUST a bear," I answered snidely.

Terry didn't move. Instead, he looked at Yasmin.

Gus slowly uncurled himself. "So, what happens now? We just sit here and wait?"

"Not much else we can do." Terry answered. "Even if we had guns, I'm not interested in running off into the forest to chase a bear or...whatever else."

There was a distant echo of gunfire.

"Guys," Bart started. "I know this is wrong, but...we could get the hell out of here."

I shot him a look. "What?"

"Yea, yea we saw the video, but we're still technically being kidnapped! Let's grab a truck and go!"

"We can't just leave. That thing could have friends. Plus, I don't know how to hot wire a vehicle. Do you?"

Yasmin didn't see it that way. "They left in a hurry. Maybe they left the keys. You don't even want to look?"

Terry was up now, unafraid of the consequences of it. "What were you doing with Patty anyway?"

I tilted my head. "Obviously we had to be fucking." Each word was dripping with so much sarcasm that I made the truth sound like a lie. Technically, it was a lie. I hadn't consented to anything, but why compound bad news with more bad news? I let him feel dumb for a few seconds. Then, I gestured for him to continue. "Anything else?"

He held his hands up. "Okay, okay. Sorry. You just don't seem all that eager to leave is all."

"This is not some democracy where everyone has to agree. If you guys want to test your luck out there, go right ahead. I just know what I saw and smelled and heard, and Yas and I aren't going anywhere until we know the coast is clear."

"Actually, Danny," she said as she joined Terry by the door. "I'm with them."

"Yas," I started as patiently as I could. "That is..." STUPID. "...a mistake."

She gave me a pleading look. "So what if Sasquatches or Sasquatchi or whatever the plural is are real? These people aren't exactly going about it in the sanest way. Congratulations to them on making the discovery of a lifetime. I'm happy to sit it out."

I ran a hand over my face. "That thing could be out there."

"To be honest," Yasmin sighed, "I'd rather take my chances. I just want to go home."

"That settles it then," Terry waved. "Good luck, Daneela."

I sat there with my arms crossed as I stared at her. Her eyes may not have been unkind, but she had clearly made up her mind. It was hard to hide the fact that my heart was breaking. Especially when the cabin door closed behind her. I never would have left her. Even if our opinions were reversed, I would have stayed. How was civilization worth returning to without one other?

Terry lead the way while Yasmin, Gus, and Bart followed. Outside, they walked onto a scene where it appeared everyone had fled. All the lights were on, but nobody was home. Ammo containers were left empty and discarded on the ground and footprints were scattered all around only to converge and head off in a single direction where they disappeared into the thick woods. Had they been strangers walking onto this scene, it would have been a true Dyatlov's Passage situation square in the middle of the Rockies. With no obvious reason to use subtly or finesse, Terry strode confidently into the hunters' cabin where he promptly came face to face with the barrel of a shotgun and a very tired, large, old man laying on the floor.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Big Jake asked. He was obviously expecting a Sasquatch, but the sight of Terry and the others hadn't made him lower his weapon.

"How are we supposed to fight that thing off if it comes back? You've got the gun. Hence, we are here," I said as I pushed past the others casually. In their haste, they'd forgotten that Big Jake was in no condition to go chasing anything and would obviously be left behind. Even I had forgotten until the very last second. They hadn't noticed that I followed, but it didn't take long for them to go along with that story.

"Unless you plan on lifting the ban on us using weapons, I guess you're stuck with us for the rest of the night," Terry said as naturally as he could.

"Ain't happening if I can help it. Although," he pointed to me, "you can make yourself useful, and help me up. The rest of you, stay put."

I was an odd choice seeing as how there were bigger, stronger people around. "Where are we going?" I asked as I threw one of his arms over my shoulder.

"To the RV."

"What if it comes back?" Yasmin asked apprehensively.

Jake chuckled. "That thing took one look at Patty and got the hell outta dodge. Don't know why it tried its luck in the first place, but I doubt it'll be coming back."

"Oh yea? Why carry a gun then?"

"This ain't for the beast." He glanced back at everyone one suspiciously. "Y'all sit tight now."

With no other choice, the others took seats wherever they could. I couldn't help but notice Terry taking Yasmin's side, and it really made me wish I hadn't been picked. Once outside, Big Jake directed me to bring him to the only beacon of light.

"I ain't stupid, you know," he began as he leaned less on me and more on his rifle. "I know you and the others were trying to leave. Probably looking for these, right?" He slipped a few fingers into his front pocket and out popped a pair of keys with rental tags attached.

"They were. I wasn't." Confirming my suspicions, there was no point in lying to someone with a nose for bullshit.

"Think I overdid it runnin' around on my own earlier." He sighed as he groaned to take a seat and rest just outside of the RV side door. He may have been tired, but his gun was still ready to take aim should I try anything. "Maybe Patty was right about letting you all roam free."

I stood over him. "It's true we're not crazy about being here, but I'm not going anywhere. Not yet."

"And why should I believe that?"

"Because Yasmin and I," I swallowed, " we need to work out a few things. I'm afraid of what might happen to us if we go back to civilization before we talk more than I'm afraid of what might happen to us out here." I shook my head. "I'm keeping her here. If that means keeping the others here as well, I'll do that, too. I love her too damn much to take the chance."

There was a long pause as I watched him weigh the decision to say something more. "I thought it best to stay in the cabin. If I had to shoot something -- or someone -- I don't want my shit gettin' messed up. But, when Patty called for us, I did come straight here, leg be damned." Again, a long pause followed. "I checked the video feeds. The squatch was skulking around the far side of the camp. I'm not sure what it was looking for, but the other thing I saw was...you and Patty leaving the bathroom together. It was..."

"Weird?" I scoffed and folded my arms. My nipples still ached from the encounter. "Yea. It was weird."

"I'll talk to her again."

"No!" I said in mild panic. "No. Talking to her in the first place just made her angry."

For the first time that night, he'd taken his hands off of the gun to rub them together. "I want to trust you. I really do. But, I'll be honest. These conflicting stories are making it really difficult."

I narrowed my eyes. "What conflicting stories?"

In the blink of an eye, his gun was up and aimed. Not at me, thankfully, but towards the woods. A faint rustling became more and more pronounced as a large being emerged. I would have been so happy to see him blow a hole right in Patty's chest, but he was seasoned enough to identify the target first before pulling any triggers.

"Why the hell haven't you been responding, old man?!" She shouted while holding up a radio.

He held his up. "I ain't heard nothing from nobody!"

Her stride slowed as she heard his explanation. "That's impossible. We scouted..!...the other campsite." She sighed at the realization. "Well...that might explain why we haven't heard anything from the other team."

That's right. There had been more of them. Judging by the worry on Big Jake's face, there probably had been little to no communication up til now. I may have been mistaken, but his expression seemed to morph into that of one who was having second thoughts. I suppose it was one thing to just be a little short on food and quite another to not know if five other people were dead or alive.

Patty wasn't about to let Big Jake make any drastic decisions. She smiled broadly and and exclaimed, "we got the fucker this time, though."

It was as if Big Jake hadn't just heard that five of his friends were missing. He cheered and attempted to stand up on his own through the pain. "Finally, some good goddamn news."

"Got what?" I asked.

"Our tracker dart didn't miss this time. If tracking isn't completely fucked, too, I can narrow down..." He fell back into a sitting position. "Help me up, will ya?"

Patty extended a hand out and pulled the massive man up with one arm while I grabbed his makeshift walking stick from the fire pit area. Once equipped, he headed inside his RV where the tools he needed to help find his prey were. I attempted to follow, but was grabbed just as the door closed in my face.

"You okay, sweetheart?" Patty asked. The concern in her voice was a huge contrast to the grip she had on my upper arm.

"...Fine," I said attempting to snatch my arm away.

Patty wouldn't have it. We were, after all, standing in a very convenient location alone and on the side of the RV that wasn't viewable from the cabins -- the perfect place to flip that switch.

"That was a close call. I think it'd be best if you slept with me from now on."

"That's a hard pass."

"Staying separated isn't safe."

"What don't you get?" I said still pulling. "I'd rather I run into one of those things in the forest than you. You terrify me."

"Stop fighting me, and I'll treat you right. It's as simple as that." She let go and, predictably, I fell backwards on my ass.

I glared up. "Do you seriously buy your own bullshit? You know what you're doing is wrong. That's why you hide it. That's why you only pull this shit when we're alone. If Yas were here, you'd..."

"You're talking to me about bullshit? You seem to think you're in a relationship with someone else right now when anyone with eyes can see it's over. I'm just helping you accept it."

"That is none of your goddamn business. We are very much in love and just going through something. You don't get to disrupt that."

"You asked me what I don't get. I don't get how someone who is so much in love could cum so hard on top of someone who terrifies her."

And there it was; the massive, six-headed elephant in the room. I got up to walk away. "I am not going to stand here and explain biology to you."

"Fine. You don't answer to that," she grabbed me again, "and I don't answer to you."

I spun around before her grip was tight enough on me to be fully secure. "No, you'll answer to the police." Even when she was completely docile she was still terrifying. Like before, at any wrong word or move, she could snap, and I'd get another taste of my own blood in my mouth. Still, I wasn't about to let myself be added to the humiliating statistic of women who were too afraid to speak out against their attacker. I squared my shoulders and faced her. "That's right, 'Mama'. Enjoy yourself for now. I'm going to have the last laugh when this is all over. When we get to civilization, Yas will be well out of your reach. She may not know everything you did to me, but she knows you're a real nasty bitch. Since Big Jake knows, too, it won't just be my word against yours." In a brief moment of overconfidence, I chuckled. "Did you think I was going to take all of this to my grave? I can't wait until you cross paths with a bigger and badder bitch in prison. I. Can't. Wait."

"God, you're cute when you're pissed."

It's like it all went in one ear and out the other. I stood my ground even though I was a little less sure of myself. "Did you not hear me?"

"I did, princess. I'm going to go get your sleeping bag," she stopped as she was turning, "unless you wanna share mine."

I surprised myself when I reached out to, I don't know, attack her? There was no way I'd share the same space as her at night. I was even more surprised when snatched me right out of my charge. With her back to the RV, my back to her, my arms held in place, and a hand over my mouth, I struggled against her with next to no success. She was so much larger than me that my feet weren't even touching the ground.

"I told you what Big Jake said to me when he asked me to knock it off with you. I didn't tell you what I told him." She shook me violently to get me to give up the struggle. It worked. She nearly gave me whiplash. "I told him that in no way was I forcing myself on you. In fact, I...I knew you were using me." She faked a bit of sadness in her voice as she said that. "Things were shaky between you and Miss Green. They had been for some months," she sighed, "and a girl like you has needs. I wasn't exactly subtle about my attraction to you, so I was a convenient release. But, now, you want to work things out, and that means getting rid of me. I have to admit I'd grown attached. I wasn't about to just pretend there hadn't been anything between us. So, saying something was your way of fixing an inconvenient problem."

"You piece of shit!" It came out muffled behind her hand, but it was no less understood.

"All you have to do is ask Yasmin, Big Jake," Patty recalled her words to him. "Why wouldn't she reach out to her own girlfriend unless she knew what she was doing was wrong?"

"Mother fucker." As my mind raced to figure away around her web of lies, my body fell limp. I'd been backed into a corner.

"That's it, baby girl. Relax." She kissed up and down my neck as I just stood there. Her hands were under my shirt cupping my breasts and pulling at my nipples as the cold, night air around them turned to morning air. My nose wrinkled when she took long, deep inhales and left trails of saliva all over the skin around my ears and shoulders. I winced when I felt teeth against my jugular and intense sucking. She removed her lips with a smack and slid her cheek next to mine. "Fuck," she breathed desperately while holding me close. "If only we had more time." It seemed to take a great deal of effort to finally remove her hands. "Tonight, though. Yes, tonight for sure. Fuck it. We'll share sleeping bags."

The minute she relaxed her grip on me -- the minute she let her guard down -- I was gone. She did not pursue me as I raced back to the cabins. I felt like throwing up.

** ** **

It was now late morning. Hal and Woody had long since returned and, alone with Big Jake and Patty, hardly ever left the RV. Bart, Terry, Yas, and Gus were up and eager to be outside just stretch their legs. There wasn't exactly much to do since the jury was still deciding the next move but, as it was morning, the view at this new cliff side campsite was breathtaking on a warm, summer morning. Deciding to make the most of it, the guys broke out a football. This was still a vacation of sorts after all.

Me? I wanted to be alone. My confidence was shattered and, after being handled so inappropriately once again, I just felt disgusting.

"Still hiding out in here?" Yas said peeking her head in from the front door. While it did startle me, I was happy to see her face. "Wanna talk?" She let herself in and, for once, volunteered to sit next to me instead of the other way around. She let out a long breath. "This sucks."

"Next time, you pick the vacation spot then," I joked back with a weak smile.

She did not see the humor in it. "I don't think there's going to be a next time."

"Yea." My smile faded a little. "I never want to leave home again." I rested my head on her shoulder. "I just want to stay in bed with you forever."

Yas's voice became very small. "That's not what I meant."

I knew exactly what she meant, and I wasn't going to hear it. Playing it off, I continued to smile. "Then, I'll choose better next time. Disney World? Nothing bad ever happens there."

"I fucked Terry." She cut me off.

I shot up from right where I sat. "What?"

She stared at me as if what she'd said was in any way normal or acceptable. But she repeated herself with the same, flat inflection. "Just now. I fucked him behind the other cabin. It wasn't planned. It just happened."

The words she spoke faded into white noise as I felt myself double over. I let out a small scream before covering my head and rocking back and forth for a moment in a crouched position. I needed thirty seconds to process this. She just sat there and waited. Then, after wiping at my face and taking a deep breath, I sat and took her by the hands.

"It...it's okay," I said weakly.

Her eyebrows furrowed. "It's okay?"