Species Unknown by Dan Carlson

Author:Dan Carlson [Carlson, Dan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-11-05T22:00:00+00:00

Twenty-two

“You’re certain?” Dr. Smythe addressed the older of the two men standing before him in the conference room.

“Absolutely,” the older man replied.

“Well that does complicate things, doesn’t it old friend? Oh dear. Where are my manners?” Smythe turned to the younger of the two men and extended his right hand saying, “I am Dr. Jonathan Smythe. You must be Simon Standing Elk. Welcome to The Watch base of operations we call Sanctum.”

“Thank you doctor,” Simon replied. “I’ve seen this place before. The island I mean.”

“Ah, yes. I was told you may be one of the gifted. Please sit down. Share with me what you’ve seen in your visions. And spare no detail, however small or insignificant it may seem.”

Smythe gestured to the nearest chairs at the end of the U-shaped conference room table and the three men were seated. Simon then recounted the vision he’d had just before he and the shaman fled the lodge.

He spoke of the flash of light, the complex of buildings on a tropical island and deep blackness. The recounting included faces of people frozen in terror, gory remains of two elk, the Yakwawi turning to look at him and the flash of a flaming sword.

At the mention of the sword, Dr. Smythe rose suddenly. He looked shaken but quickly composed himself. “We have fruit, coffee, tea and pastries over here,” he said walking to the nearest refreshment table to pour a cup of tea. Simon noticed a slight tremble in his hands. “Please come help yourselves. Simon, I ask that you think carefully. Is there any element of your vision you may have left out?”

Simon thought for a moment. “A man and a woman. Both white. The man was tall with sandy hair. The woman a very pretty blonde.”

The shaman listened as he munched on a glazed donut. Smythe nodded, his expression tense. “What else?” Smythe leaned forward putting his cup on the table.

“The woman. Her hands were bloody,” said Simon staring toward the wall at nothing in particular as he searched his memory. “And the ring finger of the man’s left hand was missing. No scar, no blood, just not there.”

“What were this man and woman doing?” asked the shaman.

“I only saw them for a moment,” answered Simon. “In a garden, walking together.”

Smythe reached for a tablet on the table and poked at it a few times with his finger. A zoomed-in picture of Jake and Julie walking together in a hallway appeared on the screen. “Are these the people you saw?” asked Smythe.

Simon took the tablet handed to him and looked at it carefully. Recognition flashed across his face. “It is them. Who are they? The woman looks familiar. Did she walk by me into the hall earlier?”

“Dr. Jake Sanders is a world-renown scientist specializing in the study of predators. And the woman is a deputy from Crook County in Wyoming named Julie Reed,” answered Smythe.

Now it was Simon’s turn to show unease. “Julie Reed? From near Sundance in Wyoming?”

“Yes,” answered Smythe. “Do you know her?”

“We’ve met.

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