Chapter Twenty-Five
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
When they reached the barn Billy took care of the horses while Doug hugged Katy for long, endless seconds, then walked her to the house. As she settled into a chair he told her to catch her breath while he made some hot chocolate. Still panting from the run, Butch sat at her side.
“You were such a good boy,” she mumbled, reaching down and stroking him. “Honestly, Doug, you should have seen him. When I told him to run back to the ranch and get help he didn’t want to leave me. I had to tell him twice before he’d go.”
“Why didn’t you text or call?”
“Mindy. She was having a fit. There was no way I could get my phone out and I was too scared to jump off.”
“Ah, of course,” he muttered, reaching into the refrigerator to pull out the carton of heavy cream. “By the way, I told Billy to join us. I think he should hear what happened. I hope that’s okay.”
“Absolutely, and I agree. He should know. Everyone should.”
“That’s probably him,” Doug added as there was a gentle knock on the door. “Come on in, Billy.”
“Hi, how are you feelin’, Katy?” he asked as he stepped inside.
“Okay, I guess. Sit down. Doug’s making hot chocolate.”
“I love that stuff. I swear I could drink it by the gallon.”
“I’m addin’ a splash of whisky to calm our nerves,” Doug said, “but Katy, you don’t have to wait. Tell us what happened…if you’re feelin’ up to it.”
“Yes, I’m okay now.”
“Dammit…is that a car? Billy, can you check?”
“It’s Sheriff Cooper,” Billy replied, staring out the window.
“Damn. Talk about timin’ Just like you showin’ up when you did. We must have an angel on our shoulders, but I have to keep stirrin’ this. Step out on the porch and invite him in.”
* * *
Joining Katy and Billy at the table, the sheriff rejected the offer of hot chocolate but was grateful for a cup of coffee.
“I don’t know why you’re here but your timing is amazing,” Katy began. “I would have called you if you hadn’t shown up. I just saw something in the woods that scared me to death. But why don’t you go first.”
“Sure. There’s a fella stayin’ at the Moonshine Campground named Craig Bradley and I’m tellin” everyone to keep an eye out, he’s disappeared.”
“Disappeared?” Katy repeated. “Oh, my gosh.”
“Yep. He’s a famous surfer. Here’s his picture,” the sheriff continued, showing them an image on an iPad. “My deputies are out lettin’ everyone know in case they see him, but I wanted to come here personally. Apparently he and his lady friend were at the bar last night while you two were there and I wanted to ask if you remember anything that stood out. Did they argue? Did you see either of them acting strangely? Anything at all might be helpful.”
“Uh, Sheriff, you’re probably aware the woman he was with is Beth Green, Doctor Jim Green’s wife…the vet.” Doug said solemnly.
“I sure do, but how the heck do you know?”
“I recognized her last night. It seemed odd,” Doug replied, trying to decide if he should tell the sheriff the whole, sordid story.
“When I spoke with her she was extremely upset,” the sheriff continued. “The poor woman barely made any sense. I assume she was havin’ an affair with him, but how the blazes they met is a mystery in itself. I’ve left a message for Dr. Green, but back to my question. Besides them bein’ an unlikely pair, did you notice anything?”
“I know where Craig Bradley went,” Katy interjected quickly, not wanting Doug to spill the beans about what happened until Jim had the chance to speak with the sheriff himself. “I even have a video.”
“You do?” Doug asked, staring at her in surprise.
“Yes, sorry, I haven’t had a chance to tell you about that. I don’t even know why I took it. I just thought it might be useful. I guess my instinct was right,” she exclaimed, lifting out her phone. “Here.”
“Huh…he’s headin’ into the woods where that Bigfoot was sighted,” the sheriff remarked, watching the footage.
“Sheriff, before we go any further…I don’t think that man is Craig Bradley,” Doug declared. “When I saw him at the bar and I found out who he was supposed to be, we checked him out online. He looks almost identical, but his physique is different. If you study the photographs of Craig Bradley you can see how wide his shoulders are, and he’s extremely muscled. The guy I saw at the bar callin’ himself Craig Bradley doesn’t have the same physique.”
“Damn!” the sheriff exclaimed. “If he’s not Craig Bradley, who the heck is he? This gets more complicated every time I turn around.”
“You have no idea,” Katy muttered under her breath.
“What’s that?” the sheriff asked, darting his head around to look at her.
“The reason I was going to call you is because I think I just saw the Bigfoot,” she answered hastily.
“What? Where?”
“Up Smoky Hill behind Lone Pine Ranch. I was riding on the path that runs along the base of the woods and suddenly Butch started barking and my usually bombproof mare spooked. She never spooks. I looked up and I saw this tall, dark figure running through the trees. But it was really hard to make out any details because of all the shadows. Mindy was beside herself and Butch was going crazy. I was afraid he’d run up after it so I told him to go back to the ranch for help. I was trying to get Mindy to calm down, but I was terrified too.”
“When was this?”
“Just now. I got back right before you drove up.”
“When Billy and I saw Butch racin’ towards us and he was alone we knew something was wrong,” Doug exclaimed. “I texted her and she texted me back, thank the Lord.”
“Yes, Mindy finally started to settle and I could get my phone out.”
“Which direction was this figure headed?” the sheriff asked, a dark frown crossing his brow.
“It was all over the place. Going up and down, back and forth. That’s what was so scary. The last I saw it was heading north past the ranches.”
“This sure is a mystery, but try not to worry. I’ll get some men up in that area right away. If you see or hear anything let me know right away.”
“We will, thanks Sheriff,” Doug said, jerking his head at Billy, prodding him to walk the lawman to his car.
“So, what do we do now?” Katy asked, staring at Doug as they left.
“We have to speak with Jim. He has to tell Sheriff Cooper what’s happened, but it needs to be in person, and we should be with him.”