The Goodbye Girl (40 page)

Bree squatted down for a closer look, Charlotte and Alfred immediately following her example, their avid gazes on her.

Dan, after one eye roll at Nick, squatted down opposite Bree.

Scowling down at the prints, Ted stood behind Alfred with his hands on his hips.  “Sure don’t look human.”

“Unless the poor bastard has three big toes only,”
Dan said.

“
This no laughing matter, constable,” Charlotte admonished him.  “This is a serious investigation.”

Nick’s gaze wandered to
David.  He looked serious, his gaze switching from the group to the footprints and back.

“The prints come from the water,” Dan said.  “Lead up into the bushes and disappear, then come back to the water.”

They all stood and walked to the edge of the creek bank.  Nick wandered over to check out the prints.  Yep, they did appear at the edge.  Slowly, they all followed the prints to the bushes.

Nick could see where several broken branches were, the grass pressed down,
before the prints turned and went back to the water’s edge.

“Well, it’s just some prints.”  Dan scratched the back of his head.

“Aren’t you going to do something?” Charlotte demanded.  “Take photos?  Evidence?”

“Of
what?  A three-toed emu wearing boots?”

Nick gave a snort of
laughter.

Dan grinned at him.

Alfred grabbed the camera hanging around his neck and started taking shots.  “I’ll record the evidence, Charlotte.  It can be the first in our gallery of Unexplained Whicha Happenings.”

Hands in pockets, Nick looked at Bree.  She was
standing at the edge of the creek, hands on ample hips, lush lips pursed as she thought.

Turning
, she looked at Dan.  “I think these are fake.”

Alfred stopped
photographing.  “What?”

“Anyone could have come here in a boat, put on some fake boots or something and made these
prints.”

“
”How can you wear boots like this?” Charlotte asked.  “Who in God’s creation could fit boots like this, except for the greys?”

Dan looked startled, but Bree simply replied, “The greys have never been reported as having three toes.”

It took all Nick had not to laugh as Dan looked disbelievingly from Bree to Charlotte.

“Maybe it wasn’t a grey,
” David interjected.  “Maybe it was something else.”

“Maybe this is just shit,” Ted stated.  “A waste of time.  I got work to do, I can’t mess around with this shit.  You got no explanation, Bree, I’m outta here.”

“But Dad-” David began.

Ted glared at him.

“These are
prints
.”

“Yeah, and that’s all they are.  Come on.”

“Besides,” Bree said, “these prints don’t seem t go anywhere.  Do they, Nick?”

Every eye turned to him.

“Yeah, do they, Nick?” Dan echoed, and with another roll of his eyes, he started to hunt around the bushes where the marks disappeared.

Nick obligingly helped Dan.  It wasn’t hard to find footprints or evidence of someone passing through, but it was clear that the footprints turned back and returned to the water.

“Another thing,” Bree was saying, “what one earth was an alien doing coming out of the water, going partially into the bush and coming right back?”

“Maybe he forgot his keys,” Ted retorted.

Beside Nick, Dan sniggered, then obviously remembering who Nick was with he glanced at him.  “Sorry.”

“H
ey, don’t stop on my account.  I have my serious doubts about all this.”

Dan glanced back at the group by the edge of the creek before asking in a low voice, “No offence to Bree, she’s a nice sheila, but seriously?  Aliens?”

“She has her beliefs.”

“What about you?”

“I’m someone who needs solid evidence.”

“So you don’t believe in UFOs? 
That’s a relief.”

“I believe there are unidentified flying objects, but as
for being aliens?  That remains to be seen.”

“Yeah.”  Dan shoved his cap back on his head, adjusted the peak.  “Well, this doesn’t tell us shit except that whatever the hell made these prints went back into the water.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that.”

Dan arched one eyebrow.  “How so?”

Nick parted some bushes.  “Someone else went through here right where the footprints turned around.”

Bree appeared at his elbow.  “You found something?”

Nick pointed to the partially trodden down grass.  “Whoever went here tried to cover up their tracks, but it’s pretty evident someone-”

“Or something,” Alfred interrupted.

“-came through here,” Nick continued.

“The alien?”  David stood at
Charlotte’s elbow, his face alight with eagerness.

“I think this
is it, boy.”  She practically quivered with excitement.  “This is the
discovery
.”

“And we’re here for it.”  Beaming, Alfred patted his camera.

Ted shook his head in disgust.

Leaning down towards Bree, Nick said quietly, “I’ll tell you another thing.  Whoever did this, it wasn’t David.”

Bree glanced to where Alfred, Charlotte and David were talking avidly.  “I think you might be right.  I had my doubts at first, but he’s too excited.”

Dan, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but overhear.  “So what or who made these tracks?”

“I think we should find out.”  Nick waited.

“Let’s go.”  Dan walked into the bush in the direction of the prints.

Nick followed, Bree and the others behind him.  The tracks of someone passing through were obvious only to trained eyes.  Whoever had come this way had been good at covering their tracks, or trying to, but Dan was obviously a skilled tracker, and Nick had experience in it, so though it wasn’t easy it definitely wasn’t undoable.

After about ten minutes they smelled a whiff of smoke, a few minutes later hushed voices and a low laugh.

Those voices and laugh definitely sounded human.

A cry of pain suddenly filled the air, swearing peppering it liberally.

Dan and Nick broke into a jog, careful to watch their step while moving fast.  They broke into a small clearing, the sight meet their eyes confirming Nick’s suspicion.

Looking at the two teenagers, one standing there with a cigarette lighter in his hand, the other sitting and clutching his hand while swearing a blue streak, there was no doubting the culprits were not of the alien variety
.

The boys looked up at Nick and Dan, the one sitting bolting to his feet.

“Braden, Ken.” Dan pointed at them.  “Don’t bother trying to run.”

Bree entered the clearing, her gaze going to the boys.  “Ah, the plot thins
out.”

David
came up behind her, the others on his heels.  He looked at the boys.  “Ken?  Braden?  What are you doing here?”

“I can guess.”  Dan crossed to where a pair of boots was lying beside the boy holding his hand to his chest.  “Mind if I check these out, Ken?”

Ken, whom Nick recognised as David’s friend, gave an audible gulp.  “We found them here.  They were just here.”

“Uh huh.”  Dan
tipped the boots upside down.  “Unusual tread pattern.  These soles have three appendages stuck to them which just, coincidentally, matches the three-toed footprints we found near the creek bank.  Not to mention the mud on them.”

“Don’t know anything about it,” Ken replied.

“Sure you don’t.”

Ted glared at the boy.  “Idiot.”

Ken had the good grace to blush and glance away.

Moving
forward, Nick took Ken’s hand to hold it up.  “Burn on your hand.  Looks painful, which means it’s not too deep.  You’re lucky.”

“Tried to light a
cigarette,” he mumbled.

Nick looked to where Braden stood with the cigarette lighter in his hand.  “What’d you use, a flame thrower?”

“No,”  Braden replied defiantly.

Nick’s gaze dropped to the small can sitting not far
away, right next to a – well, how interesting.  “Making burn marks, boys?”

Braden swallowed, squared his jaw.  “No.”

Dan surveyed the clearing.  “A burn mark here.”  He strode across to another round mark.  “And here.”

“
If you look to where Braden is standing,” Bree said, “he’s about to try making another burn mark.”

Braden glared at her, only to catch Nick’s steady gaze and look away.  “No.”

“You say no a lot.”  Charlotte caught them all by surprise when she strode across to grab his hand, lifting it to her nose to sniff.  “Petrol.”

David
looked at Ken.  “What is this?”

Embarrassed
, Ken muttered, “Just a joke, man.  Chill.”

“A joke?”

“They were trying to replicate the burn marks of a tripod,” Bree explained.  “The legs of a spaceship or shuttle or whatever,” she added for the benefit of Dan.

He
looked hard at the offenders.  “This true?”

“Look, it was just a joke.”  Braden gave a huff.  “Nothing wrong with a joke, right?”

“Why would you do a thing like that?” David demanded.

“Hey, you played a joke,”
Braden shot back.  “It’s not your sole territory.”

“Before we get into the accusing game,” Dan interrupted, “
explain this to me.  Now.”

Braden closed his mouth mutinously, but Ken
, cradling the hand that Nick had released, mumbled, “We made the fake boots, made the footprints.  Came up in a row boat a couple of hours ago, got out, walked towards the bush and then walked back to the boat and left.  Made a few anonymous calls, then we decided to do a little more, try to make it more authentic.”

Braden glared at him.

Ignoring him, Ken looked at David.  “We read that burn marks are often found near spaceship sightings.  We thought it’d be fun to make it look like something had landed.”

“You didn’t tell me,”
David accused.  “Why didn’t you tell me? Why’d you just let me believe a lie?”

Uncomfortable
, Ken looked away.  “Sorry.”

“You’re supposed to be my friend.”

“I said I’m sorry.”

Anger glinted in David’s eyes, his jaw clenching.

Surprisingly, it was his father who laid a hand on his shoulder.  “Dumb arses, son.  Dumb arses.”

“H
ey-” Braden began indignantly.

“Any fool can see that you used petrol and a
lighter to make these so-called alien spaceship burn marks shit.  You had to use petrol because the rain made the grass too wet.  Goddamn, you’re a country boy.  You know what happens if a fire takes hold of the bush, and using petrol?  You’re bloody lucky you didn’t set your dumb arses on fire.”

“I’m not-”

“Wait until your Dad hears about this little stunt.  He’ll rip your ears off.”  Ted glowered.  “Dumb arse.”

David glared at his friends.  “Dumb
arses.
”

Nick looked at father and son
standing side by side.  Looked like the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.  Right that second, David looked like a younger version of Ted.

“Always going to get the scoffers,”
Charlotte announced.

Dan looked disbelievingly at her.  “Surely you don’t mean-”

“Those who don’t understand will pull pranks to release their fears of extraterrestrials,” Alfred announced.  “This isn’t an end to it. We know what’s out there, and we won’t stop looking.”  He pointed to his camera.  “One day we’ll get evidence, real evidence, and then we’ll see who’s laughing.”

“God give me strength.”  Dan shook his head before jerking his thumb in the direction they’d just come from.  “Everyone back
to their vehicles. Braden and Ken, you both come with me so we can check Ken’s burns at the hospital before we go back to the station and call your parents.”

Ken went even paler and though Braden strutted
behind him, Nick could see the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes.  Oh yeah, the boys knew they were in for it once their parents found out what they’d been up to, and good job.  They were old enough to know the dangers of fire in the bush, regardless of the season.

As
David walked past them, Bree caught his arm.  “Hey.”

He looked at her.  “I’m a fool.”

“No, man.  Listen, if you believe in things others don’t you will be the butt of jokes at times, but you have to be man enough to stand up for what you believe in.  Grow a thick skin.  Basically, toughen up, princess, or the clowns will get to you.”