Primitive: A Bones Bonebrake Adventure

Chapter 11

Slater appeared poleaxed. After a few seconds of stunned silence, she found her voice.

“Who is we?”

“Me and my boy.” Logan pointed at Jack. “But before we go any further I have to ask that you don’t show my face or give my name. Don’t show my house, either. I want that in writing.”

Slater sighed. “Fair enough. I’ll even change your voice. Hold on a minute.” She dug a few papers out of her backpack and she and Logan took a few minutes to complete them. When all was ready, Logan led them to the outbuilding behind the trailer.

“This is where we keep our stuff.” He unlocked a metal gun cabinet and took out a pair of false feet. They were made of some sort of rubber, and were intricately detailed. All the lines and creases one would expect to see in an actual foot were carefully rendered. The big toe was angled downward so it would bite deeper into the earth than would the other toes. Velcro straps extended from the rubber on either side. Presumably the wearer could strap them to whatever shoes he had on.

Bones took one and looked it over. It was about the size of the other prints they’d seen. It certainly could have been the source.

“What about weight distribution?” Slater asked. “If someone with an average sized foot wears this, the weight will be too close to the center.”

“It’s got a metal frame inside. It distributes the weight but still has a little flexibility.”

“Where’d you get it?” Slater asked.

“I had it made, but that’s all I’ll say. I don’t want to bring anyone else into this”

Slater nodded. “But why go to all this trouble? What did you hope to gain?”

Logan smiled sheepishly. “I could tell you it was about publicity for the town, or to keep a favorite legend alive, but it wouldn’t be true. The fact is, I did it because I thought it was funny. It started out as a way of messing with campers. Rattle the bushes, leave a couple of tracks, and get out of there.” He chuckled. “I got bored with it, but then I started hearing about a fellow named Gambles who was taking the skunk ape thing way too seriously, so I decided to mess with him too.”

“We met him,” Slater said. “He’ll be disappointed when he hears.”

“Don’t bet on it. He’s one of them true believers. If he doesn’t want to hear it, it’ll just bounce right off of him.” Logan looked down and scuffed the dirt with his booted toe. “Anyway, I started feeling bad about that, but then Jack got curious, so I let him do it sometimes.”

“What about the strong smell?” Carly chimed in.

“Bobcat urine, fox urine, whatever the store’s got in stock.”

“You can buy that stuff?” Dave asked.

“People use it to keep pests away,” Bones said. He handed the false foot to Slater, turned, and took a few steps back to the shed door where he leaned against the frame and gazed out at the late afternoon sun. Jack was approaching, walking gingerly and grimacing. Apparently his grandmother had put the switch to use. The sight of the boy sparked something in his mind.

“So, which one of you attacked us today?”

“It must have been the boy.” Logan spat on the ground. “I’m sorry about that. I’m sure he wasn’t trying to hurt you; he just has bad aim with that sling of his.”

“A slingshot couldn’t throw a stone as large as the ones that were hurled at us, much less achieve the velocity,” Slater said. “Those things were really flying. It’s no exaggeration to say we could have been killed.”

“Not a slingshot. A sling. You know, like David and Goliath. They’re easy to make.”

“I don’t see how Jack could have done it,” Bone said, turning back to face Logan. “This place is a long way from where we ran into him. How could he have come here, gotten what he needed, and then gotten back in time to attack us?”

“It’s not a long way if you know where you’re going.” Jack had arrived at the shed. “I knew I’d left some prints in the swamp, so I sent you that way and then ran home to get my stuff. I figured I’d track you down and mess with you a little. I flung a few rocks at you and then took the long way home. You were following my trail which is why it took you so long.”

“We did take a lunch break while you made the casting of the footprint,” Bones said to Slater.

“But still… ” Slater began.

Bones shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. We’ve solved the mystery. I’m sorry it’s not what you hoped it would be but at least you have your answer.”

“I’ll give you all a ride back to your car,” Logan said.

“That won’t be necessary.” Slater bit off each word. “We can find our way back.”

“Please. I’ve done you wrong. At least let me do this one little thing for you.” He grinned at Bones. “I also won’t make an issue of the incident that happened at the river.” He waited for Bones to fill the silence, but Bones knew that trick and held his tongue. “Two boys said a great big Indian jumped them and stole their truck keys. Had to pay a locksmith to cut a new set.”

“It serves them right,” Carly said.

Logan laughed. “I’m sure it does. Them two are no good. I’ve been dealing with them for years. Now, how about that ride?”