Tweety & the Monkey Man: A New Templars Novella (Monster Hunter Mom Book 1) by J.D. Blackrose

Author:J.D. Blackrose [Blackrose, J.D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Falstaff Books
Published: 2017-10-09T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Zoo staff fanned out to grab all the tranquilizer darts they could. Some wouldn’t be much use on a gorilla since they were meant for reptiles, and the avian drugs came in tiny doses, so they weren’t going to be effective. The only ones that could do what we needed were the large mammal ones, and it turns out, not as much of that stuff is kept on hand as you would think.

“Can we get some human tranquilizers from the local hospitals?” I asked. “We’ve got University Hospitals, the Cleveland Clinic, Metro…they all have anesthesia. Is there anything we can put in a dart?” Captain Morgan gave a sharp nod and dispatched a deputy to call the hospitals.

While we waited, I scoped out the park, looking with a new eye. High ground, hiding spots, vantage points, places where sharp shooters who could fire off tranquilizer darts without risking themselves? I wandered down the deck walk, examining every nook and cranny, every climbable tree, and searched for the best angles and line of sight. I focused on this task, absorbed by the plan I was sketching in my mind, when a screech made my skin crawl. I knew that sound, and if there was one thing for sure, I didn’t have time for this.

I spied a broken bench, probably cracked apart during the melee earlier. I picked up a strong piece of the seat, approximately bat length, swung it over my shoulder, and followed the sound, relying on Alupo’s injury and the mischievous vervets to slow him down.

I found the phoenix considering the lorikeet cage, blowing huge snorts of air as it got increasingly frustrated by not being able to reach the pretty birds who pressed their beaks to the glass to stare at him.

“Hey, phoenix. Are you a bad phoenix or a good one? Are you the same one I met in the playground?” I held the “bat” in front of me so he could see it. “I can’t keep bashing your head in, so maybe we could come to an agree…”

I bolted down the path encircling the Australian Adventure section of the zoo as the giant bird came running at me, emu style, shrieking a battle cry. I now had no doubt this was the same one. This bird had murder in his eyes. His tail feathers were still a brilliant display, and now his wings were out, making him look like a Boeing airliner. The bronze armor clinked as he ran.

I was tired, covered in thick, toxic gunk, and worried about the were-gorilla. My legs were heavy, and filth got up my nose, making it difficult to breathe. I blew hard and hacked gray-black chunks that fell to the ground with a worrisome clunk.

I couldn’t care about black lung disease now, I told myself and took a shortcut through the Australian Adventure exhibit, which wasn’t heavily gated, and bolted through the marsupials.

“Sorry! Sorry! Didn’t mean to disturb you.” Kangaroos bounded in every direction. The phoenix hopped the fence, rudely ignoring the door, and chased me again.

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