CHAPTER 104

"You seem to think you know Leeds pretty well."

Bigfoot sighed, then sucked down the contents of the can in just a few seconds. He smashed it into a thin disc and set it down on the roof, then opened another. "I do. Wish I didn't."

Abella waited for him to continue. Bigfoot slammed two more beers and then finally slowed his pace on the fourth.

"He and I were friends," he finally told her, his glistening eyes on the forest. "At least, I thought we were."

"How could you be friends with someone like that?"

He grimaced. "When we first met, we fought something fierce. I thought something evil had invaded the forests, that was kind of my thing for a few centuries. I had a much larger range then, and heard rumors of some bat-winged bastard causing trouble for the new locals. Didn't care much for them, but the tribes in the area were seeing it, too."

"So what happened?" she asked.

"Loneliness. Over the decades, my forests were chopped down, my tribes decimated. The white man was hungry to shoot anything it didn't understand with those guns of theirs. I once watched them shoot a herd of buffalo in cold blood, then leave the remains behind." He shuddered, then sucked down another can. "I actually came across him one night by accident. Little bastard was sittin' in the forest trying to read a book. If you can believe it, he was fuckin' crying to himself. I had already had a bad day and thought it was odd to see him so vulnerable, so I made one of the biggest mistakes in my life.

"I talked to him. Turned out that he and I had quite a bit in common. Our beginnings couldn't have been any more different, but we shared that thread of loneliness. My kind had been disappearing over the years, and it was nice to speak with someone that was like me. Just another cryptid."

"I understand the loneliness all too well." She dipped her head in reverence. "Do not fault yourself for giving in."

"Well, I do. You see, we became thick and thin for a while. Leeds has never had a family, not one that loved him anyway. His body was traded to a dark entity, a demon, and he is forced to live out his days in that taxidermic shitfest he calls a body. It's also why you can't kill him--his body is made mostly of shadows and magic. You can hurt him, you can make him go away, but he cannot be put in the ground."

Abella thought immediately of Lily. "Does that mean the demon is still around somewhere?"

Bigfoot nodded. "Somewhere out there is a demon wearing Leeds' skinsuit, and probably being a ripe cunt about it, too. We spent over a century trying to find any clues that would help him. Thought maybe if we caught the demon, we could force them to change back. Never made any headway. Think it fucked Leeds up pretty bad, to be honest. His family didn't want him, nobody wants him. He can read minds, too. Knows what people think of him. Drives him absolutely nuts."

"So if you are friends, then why is he here trying to kill us?"

The sasquatch sighed. "Honestly, I don't know. He's always had these ambitions that never really pan out, but I think that maybe he's here for revenge. You see, when we parted ways, it was under pretty severe terms. Late eighteen-hundreds, the two of us got into it over humans. He had started killing them for sport, and I didn't take kindly to this. For one, it brought the men in white coats. Never been much of a fan. But two...he wasn't targeting humans that mattered. He was going after women and children, former slaves, people that nobody would miss. His intent sounded noble, but his reality was as monstrous as he is."

"I understand this. My kind, we were often faced with fighting to survive or fleeing for our lives. It was not an easy choice to make."

Bigfoot rubbed his nose, then drew a finger across his eye. Dark stains had formed on his fur in the corners of his face. "We are peaceful. Or we used to be. Back before this land was colonized, I used to run wild with the deer, or wrestle bears for fun. The tribes, I looked out for those who revered me and avoided those who despised me. I was a danger to nobody, happy to be left on my own.

"But now? I can't even go anywhere without being afraid of being spotted. I didn't use to care, but those assholes always find out, and they always come for me."

"The Order?"

"Do you know why they're called that?" Bigfoot shifted so that he could see her better. "Because they want to help, to keep the peace. They are doing what I have been doing for centuries, only I got forced into early retirement. Chupacabra tried to wander up here one time, and I chased that little shit back down to the southern border. It was never personal, it was about maintaining a balance. But that was before the balance included humans!"

He picked up a can and crushed it in his massive hands. It exploded, showering him with beer. "Now they show up with their wands and their swords! And they boss everyone around under the guise of maintaining peace between humans and cryptids? Well, what about me? What about my peace? Forced to live out here in hiding, just because people want to take selfies with me? And don't get me wrong, I loved living here, but my nieces? There's an entire world out there for them, but nobody is ever going to offer it to them!"

Abella winced. Bigfoot's voice was now loud enough that it hurt her ears. Down below, she saw Velvet open the door of the cabin and look around.

"Everything okay? Is Uncle Foot up there with you?" she asked.

"Shit, fuck..." Bigfoot laid flat on his back and slid further down the roof. His left arm snagged on a shingle, causing one arm to hang comically above his body.

Abella looked down at Velvet. "How is Mike feeling?" she asked.

"Still the same. Yuki thinks he's turned a corner, but..." Velvet shrugged, seemingly unaware that Abella had changed the subject. "I wish I knew if he was going to be okay."