Hominid (13 page)

CHAPTER 36

A
s Tess hiked along the trail, she noted that more leaves had begun to turn. Before she knew it, cooler weather would move in. She loved fall out here; there was simply nothing better.

She hadn’t looked at the hair sample yet. She told herself it was because she hadn’t had the time to dedicate to it. But really, she was worried about the ramifications of that action. And she needed to be prepared.
It’s the same reason I haven’t told anyone that I’ve actually had contact with bigfoot,
she assured herself
.

Tess shook off her thoughts when she reached the camp.
As soon as I have time, I’ll inspect the hair and then decide on my next step.

She sat at her table, a printout of her latest paper in front of her. She was working on a cluster analysis to predict how many groups of bigfoot there were in the United States. It looked like there were over a dozen. Bigfoot sightings had been reported in every state except for Hawaii. In fact, it seemed like practically every state had its own name for bigfoot. There was the skunk ape down in Florida, the booger in Texas, and the momo in Missouri, along with a slew of others.
Why is it easier for skeptics to believe that thousands of people are either lying or delusional than it is to believe that bigfoot is real?

She glanced at her watch and realized her friend was running a little late. A feeling of disappointment spread through her.
Maybe he’s not coming today.

She looked up with a frown. Cold weather would move in in another couple of months. What would happen to Charlie then? There were some who believed bigfoot hibernated, which would mean she wouldn’t see Charlie for months. The idea saddened her. She looked forward to his visits. The idea of not having him around… It wasn’t a good feeling.

She pictured Charlie’s thick hair. But was hibernation even necessary with their coats? She knew researchers had found a gene, EPAS1, that improved people’s ability to adapt to extreme cold. The gene was found in the Tibetan people who lived at high altitudes with forty percent less oxygen. Most humans would become deathly ill in that environment due to the overproduction of red blood cells causing the blood to thicken.

At first, the researchers thought they had found evidence of how modern man’s genetics had adapted to the environment in which they found themselves. But what they discovered instead was that the gene was actually a gift from an earlier hominid:
Homo denisova
.

Did bigfoot have the same adaptation? Was it possible they were related to
Homo denisova
and
Gigantopithecus
? A link between the two?

Tess stood. She really needed to get her head back on her paper; she had a deadline approaching, and she wasn’t sure about the coding of one of the variables for the analysis. But she couldn’t come up with a better approach, and she’d found that sometimes walking helped her clear her head and get back on track.

Grabbing her pack and her rifle, Tess took off, heading north. She was worried about missing Charlie, but there had been prior occasions when he’d arrived at the camp before her, and he had actually waited for her there. There was no reason to think he wouldn’t do the same today.

Tall Douglas firs towered over her, and a few smaller incense cedars with their drooping branches crowded the trail. A flying squirrel leapt from one tree to the next farther down the path. She turned toward the lake, and fifteen minutes later had reached its bank. The day had heated up a little. She shed her sweatshirt and tied it around her waist. She smiled as she looked over the water. What was it about water that made people feel alive?

She enjoyed the peaceful scene, but she knew she should get back. If Charlie did show up, she didn’t want to make him wait too long. Although it was unlikely he would show up at this point. He’d never been this late before.

But Tess doubled her pace just in case. A few minutes later, she was back at the camp. To her disappointment, it was still empty. Placing her pack on the table, she pulled out some water and took a swig.

She suddenly had the feeling of being watched. Slowly, she put down the water and picked up her rifle. She didn’t see anyone, but the feeling didn’t lessen—she was sure someone or something was out there. And she was just as sure that it wasn’t Charlie.

Movement pulled her attention to the right, and Charlie stepped into the clearing.

Surprised, Tess lowered her gun. “Hey. I didn’t think you were going to make it today.”

Charlie just watched her. And Tess still felt like there were other eyes on her. “Is everything all right?” she asked.

Of course he didn’t answer. Tess weighed her options. She still felt like something was watching her. Charlie
could
take care of anything that came into camp, but
would
he? Would defending Tess be a priority for him?

She placed her rifle on the table. It was time for trust. She grabbed the bag of food she’d prepared last night. She placed the food on the end of the log like she always did, then returned the bag to the table.

When she turned back, Charlie was still standing in the same spot. Tess frowned. “What’s wrong? I thought you liked apples.”

He watched her for a few seconds, then disappeared back into the woods. Tess stared at the spot where he had been with a frown. What had that been all about?

She still felt eyes on her, but soon the feeling began to fade. She shrugged, wondering what had been wrong with Charlie.

Just as she was planning to pack his food back up, he stepped back into the camp.

And he wasn’t alone.

CHAPTER 37

T
ess took an involuntary step back. But then she forced herself to relax, or at least pretend to relax, as she took in the sight of Charlie and his guest. The second bigfoot was smaller, only about eight feet tall, and slightly more narrow.

Because in this situation smaller means almost three feet taller than me and double my width.

At a glance Tess realized the second bigfoot was a female—her hair-covered breasts gave her away. Recovering, Tess stepped forward with a smile. She spoke quietly, trying to keep her tone even and friendly, and she gestured to the food. “I see you’ve brought a friend. Help yourselves.”

Charlie went over and picked up an apple. He tossed it to his companion, who caught it easily. Then he took a seat on the log and began eating the other one. But the female bigfoot did not take a seat and did not start eating. She stayed perfectly still, her eyes on Tess. Tess could feel the distrust—not that she could blame her.

Tess worked on keeping her expression neutral and her feelings calm. She had a feeling they picked up on behavioral signals, so Tess strove for peaceful. But there was nothing she could do about her pounding heart.

The female bigfoot sniffed the apple, then took a tentative bite. But even as she chewed, her eyes never left Tess. In another few bites she’d finished it and gestured for more.

Tess glanced at Charlie, but he didn’t seem inclined to share. Tess dug into her stash and pulled out three more apples. Keeping them in front of her, she placed them on the far side of the log, away from Charlie. She backed away and gestured from the female bigfoot to the food. “Go ahead. They’re for you.”

The female bigfoot seemed to be considering the offer. Finally she made her way to the food. She took a seat on the opposite end of the log from Charlie and began to eat.

Never in her life had Tess wanted to take a picture more. She had not one, but two bigfoot contentedly eating while sitting on a log less than ten feet from her.

Still, Tess knew better than to even try. She knew Charlie cared about this other bigfoot, and she had no doubt that if she did anything that could be construed as threatening, well… it would not go well for her.

Tess pulled her chair away from the table—and more importantly, her rifle—and took a seat, sketchpad in hand.

The female paused and looked to Charlie, but his lack of concern seemed to reassure her. She resumed her snacking. Tess began to sketch them, part of her reeling at the incredible scene in front of her.

For a few minutes, the three of them sat there—each busy with their own activity. And Tess felt at peace. As if somehow, her sketching two snacking bigfoot was something she did every day.

She started by outlining the two of them. The female was a little slimmer than the male, but not by much. Honestly, without the breasts, Tess would have been hard pressed to tell them apart. The female’s eyes were just as deep-set, her neck just as nonexistent, her torso just as barrel-shaped. Her hair was darker without any signs of gray, leading Tess to conclude she was younger.

Tess didn’t think the female was Charlie’s mate, but she couldn’t be sure about that. His actions to her seemed more paternal. Was she his daughter?

Tess was beginning to sketch the female’s face when a screech tore through the air.

CHAPTER 38

T
ess’s head jerked up and her heart began to pound. The screech sounded again. Tess’s eyes flew to Charlie, who looked unconcerned. The female, though, got to her feet quickly and disappeared into the forest.

And then all was silent.

Tess’s head whipped around looking for the source of the noise, but she could see nothing that would account for it. It had sounded like a growl and a whistle combined. And she knew she had never heard that sound before. Even when Charlie had screamed that time with the camera, it had sounded nothing like this.

Charlie polished off the last of his food and rubbed his hands on his hair. And then he picked up a stick and twirled it in his fingers. Nothing about his posture or demeanor suggested fear. In fact, he seemed to be in a good mood. Tess frowned over that apparent contradiction.

“So, is she part of your family?” Tess asked. She didn’t know why, but she always felt the need to speak her questions out loud even though she knew he couldn’t respond.

Charlie glanced over at her, then looked back to where the female had disappeared. He made a sharp bark. Tess reared back. She had never heard
that
sound before either. Another bark, higher pitched, sounded back at him.

And Tess realized what she was hearing. It was
language
. Tess’s knees felt weak.
They have a language.
It might be rudimentary, but it was there.
And
—
oh my God—I might be able to communicate with them.

In her wildest dreams, she had never expected this. There were some researchers who were beginning to understand that some animals may have languages—dolphins, whales. But never an animal so close to humans. It opened up a whole new aspect of their existence.

Charlie watched the woods, then turned back to his stick. The female appeared back in the clearing. A smaller figure hid behind her.

A juvenile.

The small bigfoot peeked out before ducking back behind her mother. But that one small peek was enough. Tess caught the bright eyes. She saw the face that was smoother than either of the adults’ and a lighter brown color. In fact, the juvenile was almost an auburn color, not like the extremely dark brown of the other two.

The juvenile bigfoot was only about four and a half feet tall. The hair on his shoulders and head stood straight up.
Piloerection
, Tess realized with concern. Piloerection, the raising of the hair, was a common occurrence in animals when they were behaving either highly aggressively or when they were socially excited.

Let’s hope this is the highly excited display
. Because even though the youngest bigfoot was shorter than Tess, he was clearly much stronger. His arms were incredibly muscular, as were his legs. And like the other two, he was already wider than Tess.
Yup, definitely hoping he’s just excited.

The older female grunted at Tess. Tess stared at her for minute, then realized what she was asking for. Food.

Oh, no.
She had already exhausted her fruit supply. She could go get something from the food bag she’d loaded up earlier, but she didn’t want to leave, for fear they might not still be here when she got back.

But she did have her emergency stash. The stash she suspected would survive a nuclear winter. Tess went into her lean-to and pulled out her bear-resistant cooler. Keeping all her movements unhurried, she opened it and took out the box of Twinkies. She kept the stash up here not so much for real emergencies—even though she
was
convinced they’d survive a nuclear winter—but because sometimes she just needed a little sugar.

She grabbed a couple of Twinkies. All three bigfoot heads watched her intently as the wrapper crinkled.

“It’s just the packaging,” Tess said. She kept her voice calm as she unwrapped the Twinkies and shoved the plastic in her pocket. Then she placed both Twinkies on the log, at the opposite end from where Charlie sat.

Charlie immediately picked up a Twinkie. He sniffed it, took a tentative bite—and then downed it in one gulp. Tess laughed. Who knew Charlie would like Twinkies?

Charlie grunted at the juvenile, who stepped away from his mother, keeping his gaze on Tess. And Tess realized then that she had made a mistake—the juvenile was not a he, but a she.

Charlie held the other Twinkie out to her. She stepped over and took it cautiously. She, too, sniffed it, then licked it, then took a tentative bite. Her brow furrowed and she took a bigger bite. Her eyes grew large, and she tossed the rest in her mouth.

Tess let out a laugh, and the two adult bigfoot made a sound that Tess could swear was a laugh as well. The juvenile looked toward Tess. Tess didn’t need language to know what the child wanted.

Tess grinned. “Don’t worry, I’ve got more.”