章 7: Chapter 7: A-Hunting We Will Go
Ripley's POV
Ninety miles wasn't much of a drive, really. A little over an hour and a half, and Ripley was pulling into the parking lot of the welcome center to the state park.
Rangers were dashing in and out of the building, heading to what Ripley could only assume was their office.
She went in to speak to the lady at the front desk.
"Good afternoon," Ripley greeted her.
The woman watched two rangers rush out of the door, talking into walkie-talkies. She flicked her eyes over to Ripley.
"How can I help you?" the portly woman asked.
"I just need to check into my cabin," Ripley replied.
The woman checked the information on her computer screen, then pulled out a set of keys. She gave Ripley directions to the cabin, still watching rangers and a handful of sheriff's deputies mill about.
Ripley thanked the woman and got back in her truck, following the winding road back to her cabin.
On her way, she passed a fleet of cop cars, lights all flashing. A coroner's van was parked right at the edge of the tree line.
Ripley took note of it and carried on, trying not to draw attention to herself as she studied the scene.
The little A-frame cabin was cute. It had a homey vibe, and Ripley was thankful she picked this one, far from the other cabins.
She checked her phone. Only two texts from Cory, one bidding her a good morning, and the other telling her to let him know when she got to the park. She responded to him, letting him know she'd made it, and that she missed him.
Come to think of it, maybe it was sweet that he kept tabs on her like that. He just cared, that was all. She didn't have any experience with real relationships, maybe this was just the way of them.
She didn't bother unpacking her bag, she'd only be here a night or two.
Instead, she laced up her old hiking boots and set out towards were she had seen the coroner's van.
She stuck to the road at first. There was a gravel trail that ran next to the winding asphalt. It was dripping a cold, drizzly rain, and she wanted to get things taken care of as quickly as possible.
Mid-autumn let the leaves a patchwork of orange and yellow and red. It was a beautiful walk, even if it was a bit chilly. Slick, wet, brown leaves squished under her feet as she marched on.
Deputies and rangers were no longer in a hurry. Most of the police lights had been turned off. The coroner's assistant was slamming the doors shut on the back of the van.
Ripley dipped into the trees. Here, she could be just a hiker, not a woman on a mission.
No one needed to know she had three different guns stowed in her back pack.
"Jep, tell Gray that the Sheriff wants the bones when you're done," a deputy called to the coroner's assistant.
"Yeah? I heard he likes souvenirs," the assistant, Jep apparently, teased.
"I don't think anyone wants chewed up bones as a souvenir," the first retorted.
Ripley slammed into the chest of someone tall and strong.
"Oh, sorry!" she squeaked.
"It's alright. Can I help you find something, ma'am?" He was a park ranger. He had rich dark skin that reminded Ripley of freshly churned earth.
"Yeah," Ripley muttered, feigning nervousness. "I was just looking for the trailhead."
"I'm afraid this trail is closed. Could I interest you in something similar. We have a couple of trails about a half mile up the road that take you down to the waterfall, much prettier in my opinion," the man offered. His smile was blindingly white.
Ripley couldn't help but admire the man, he was handsome and kind. She instantly liked him.
"That sounds nice," she replied. "Point me in that direction."
"I can walk you up there. I need to head back that direction anyway." The man started trudging up the hill.
Ripley followed alongside him.
"Do you have bear spray or something in that backpack?" he asked suddenly.
"Hmm. I think so." Ripley pretended to ponder. Did a .45 and forty rounds of ammunition count as bear repellant?
"We always like to advise people to protect themselves. You never know what's out there. All kinds of wildlife. And, it's getting dark. You might want to get some dinner and go to bed, try hiking in the morning."
"It's still several hours until sundown, though," Ripley answered.
"Between you and me, I'd probably get out of here for a while," the man admitted.
"How come?" Ripley asked, eyes wide. She wondered if she could nominate herself for an Oscar. This was a beautiful performance.
"I'm not supposed to say," he told her. "But, I guess my job involves keeping park guests safe." He seemed more like he was debating with himself than anything else. "We've had a couple of...disappearances over the past month or so. Somebody stumbled across some remains today. We're having them looked out to see if it's any of our recent victims."
"Oh, goodness. You think it's a bear?"
"No! I don't believe it for a second." He clapped a hand over his mouth. "I mean, we're looking -into it."
Ripley giggled. This ranger had such a charm.
"Now, you don't go telling anyone I said any of that." He drew up, stopping in the middle of the road.
"I swear on my life," she promised. Ripley held up three fingers. "Scout's honor."
"I don't think that's the right salute." The ranger laughed.
"You know, I never was a scout of any kind. I guess I can't say." Ripley flashed him a smile. "I think I've changed my mind. I think you're right, I'd rather try again in the morning."
"Smart girl. Do you want me to escort you back to your cabin?"
Ripley nodded fiercely. "Yes please. My name is Cara, by the way," she told him, holding out a hand.
He took it and shook it firmly. "Carter," he told her.
Ripley grinned up at him. He towered over her.
"So, between friends, do you have any theories on what it might be, if not a bear?" Ripley asked him.
"My best guess is a mountain lion, but I don't really think it's an animal at all." Carter frowned.
Ripley furrowed her brow. "You think it's a monster?"
"Well, now, I don't know if I'd go that far." Carter held up a hand. "I think it's somebody out of their mind. They went back there and got lost and now they're feral. You know, they say some of these woods have the wild people. Maybe one just got too close to where the regular people are."
Ripley nodded thoughtfully. She had heard of the wild folk. People who refused to leave when the government bought up thousands of acres to turn to state parks. The story was that they lived out where the trails didn't go, just became their own community. They lived the old way, no electricity, no running water, just getting by on what they could hunt and gather themselves.
If Father Kieran hadn't told her about the wendigo, she'd be half inclined to believe Carter. Really, he wasn't that far off the mark to begin with. Wendigos were originally human, driven to lose their humanity through hunger and greed. They fed upon human flesh, all the way down to sucking the marrow from their broken bones. Nasty creatures.
"Have you ever seen one? A wild person, I mean?" Ripley asked.
"No, I don't think I have. I've seen some pretty wild looking people, though," he joked.
Ripley smiled again. As they passed the spot where all the cars had been parked earlier, the last deputy was clearing away. Perfect.
"I bet there's all kinds of kinds when it comes to visiting state parks," Ripley conceded.
"You don't know the half of it." Carter launched into a story about a family who nearly started a wildfire while trying to roast cattails over a fire. They had claimed they saw another family doing it and thought it looked delicious, but the other family just had regular hot dogs.
It almost seemed too soon when they arrived at Ripley's cabin. She was going to miss this new friend she had made.
"I'll be at the ranger station if you need anything, Cara," he told her.
"Thank you so much," Ripley replied. She felt bad lying to the man, he seemed so genuine.
She gave him a warm hug goodbye and watched as he headed back down the road to the ranger station.
All that was left to do was wait for the sun to go down.
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