Author: DragonLady
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Not even camping is simple for Adrian Monk.
Disclaimer: The only things I own are my truck and the stuff in my room.
Chapter 1
"Are you sure this is the right way?"
"Adrian, I don't need a map!" Adrian smoothed the crinkled paper in front of him as Sharona turned down a gravel road. "I don't see this road, are you certain this is the right way?" Growling, Sharona pulled the map from Adrian's hands. "Hey, hey, you're crumpling it, it's all crumpled!"
"Adrian, if you don't knock it off I'm gonna crash into a tree. Then we'll all have to live out here. And this is very far away from stores that sell wipes!" The impending threat toned down Adrian's fretting, though didn't stop it completely. "Here, here's one of Benjy's car games. Why don't you play with this for awhile?" Adrian took the small toy in disgust. "Sharona, I'm not a child, I don't need to be patronized." As he spoke, he fiddled with the game, and was soon engrossed... for about fifteen seconds. "Boy, how do they expect kids to learn with such simple toys?" Sharona bit her lip to prevent herself from responding. "Oh look, there's our sign, the campground is just ahead." Thank God, she thought to herself.
The drive to the campsite only took about five minutes. With Adrian in the car, however, it felt more like five hours. "Watch out for the trees! Ah, stop, stop, you're too close to the water!"
"Adrian, the water is twenty feet away!" Adrian clasped his hands. "Well, what if the lake floods? Maybe we should just go." Sharona tore the keys from the ignition. "I have a better idea. How about you sleep in the car?" As soon as the vehicle came to a stop, Benjy leaped from the car towards the lake. "Hey, put on your sun block!" Yelled his mother as she exited after him. Adrian squeezed his eyes shut as he carefully opened his door. "Is it safe?" Sharona glanced at him, breathed in and out a few times, then shrugged. "Seems ok to me." Adrian cocked his head sarcastically. "Ha, ha, ha." Several feet away, Benjy was stripping down to his swimming trunks. Adrian folded his arms as he watched the boy. "Do you think you should let him swim? I mean, there could be, you know, sea lampreys or something." Sharona began unpacking the car. "I let him swim in the ocean with sharks." She ignored Adrian's fretting as she finished unloading the vehicle. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to help." Adrian's apparent selective hearing made her breathe out heavily. Grabbing her tent, she dragged it to a likely spot and began setting up. Once Adrian determined Benjy wouldn't drown, he grabbed his own tent and began searching for a place to set up. Ten minutes later, after pulling the last cord tight, Sharona turned to see how Adrian was coming along. He was standing in the center of the clearing, familiar doomed perplex ion on his face. Sharona crossed her arms as Adrian's tortured gaze met hers. "It's so... lumpy!"
"Adrian, it's supposed to be lumpy, it's dirt." Adrian shuddered. "Are you sure there isn't a cabin we could rent?" Sighing, Sharona walked over and took Adrian's tent from his hands. "Here, what's wrong with this spot?"
"There's a root, sticking up, and rocks." Sharona walked over a few feet. "Well, what about here? This looks pretty flat." Adrian's face twisted. "It's right under a tree. The branches will scratch on the tent and keep me awake." Sensing the beginning of a familiar headache, Sharona reached up and tore the lowest branches from the tree. "There. Now they can't scratch on your tent." Adrian shrugged. "It's not very clean."
Two hours later, by force, Sharona had Adrian's tent set up. By this time, the sun had begun to set. Emerging from her tent, Sharona breathed in the fresh air, then coughed. "God, what is that?" Adrian turned, a can in his hand. "You smell it too?" He proceeded to spray more of the contents of the can into the air. Adrian, what are you doing?"
"Huh?"
"I don't believe it, you're spraying air freshener outside?" Adrian's nose wrinkled. "I think it helps." Sharona covered her head as she sank into a camp chair. "Oh God."
A few moments later, a shivering Benjy ran up from the lake. "Hey mom, is there anything to eat?" Sharona looked up. "Hey, why don't you dry off and get into some warm clothes, your lips are turning blue." Benjy ducked into their tent. "Can we roast hot dogs?"
"Sure." Adrian glanced up. "H-hot dogs?" For one, brief moment, Sharona considered extending Adrian's torture. However, the sight of almost-tears broke down her resolve. "Don't worry Adrian, I brought along your own meals. They're in the cooler." Adrian's relief would have been comical if he wasn't so serious. Then his brow furrowed. "How are we going to heat it up?
Morning came early, about 4 am. Sharona groaned as she actually heard knocking on her tent pole. "Oh, you gotta be kidding." She murmured under her breath. The knocking began again. Groaning, she rolled out of her sleeping bag, careful not to wake Benjy, and pulled a blanket around her shoulders as she exited the tent. As she expected, Adrian was waiting for her. "Oh good, you're awake." Sharona's brows lowered. "What do you need Adrian?" He shrugged slowly, his lips tightening. "I, uh, I think I heard a noise." Sharona shivered slightly in the cold air. "You heard something. What did you hear?" Adrian turned his head, his face screwing up as he tried to recall the exact tone of the noise. "It was sort of an Ahhrr, whooh, whooh sound." Sharona covered her face with her hand. "Adrian, it was probably a loon." He shook his head. "No, they make more of a whuh, huh, huh, huh kind of sound. This was definitely an Ahhrr, whooh, whooh." This was getting nowhere. "Where did the sound come from?" Adrian pointed. "Back behind those trees." Sharona crossed her arms. "What, you want me to go look?"
"If you wouldn't mind." Sharona sighed. "Adrian..." A twig snapped, and Adrian held up his hand. "Stop, did you hear that?" Sharona hugged the blanket more tightly around her. "Adrian, I'm going to bed." Adrian's hand came up and hovered near her shoulder. "But, but what if it's a bear, or, or a..."
"A bear? Adrian, come on, there isn't a bear within six hundred miles." Another twig snapped, and Sharona suddenly felt her own twinge of nervousness. "Adrian, uh, God I must be nuts. Do you, uh, want to sleep with us tonight?"
Benjy twisted as he came awake. Why did he feel so confined? He glanced over to see his mother's face about a foot from his. His brow furrowed. Rolling over, he caught sight of another form. Adrian was sleeping on the other side of him, his brand new sleeping bag zipped up to his chin. Still groggy, Benjy just shook his head and drifted back to sleep.
Chapter 2
Adrian blinked awake. His eyes traveled slowly around the tent, examining the tightness of the nylon as it bent around aluminum poles. He swallowed dryly. He missed his bed, he missed his room, he missed... being indoors. He wriggled slightly on his airbed. He hated the thing, he felt as though he were sliding off. He was sliding off. The slick outside of his sleeping bag moved languidly down the side of the bed, depositing him on the ground in a gentle 'shump'. Adrian found himself on his side, his shoulders and torso on the ground, with his legs and feet angled up on the bed. Worse, his arms were pinned to his sides by the tightly zipped sleeping bag. Carefully, trying not to be loud, Adrian shifted his shoulders, trying to loosen the bag. No good. He jerked again, a little harder this time. He was still trapped. Fighting down panic, he twisted back and forth, feeling sweat bead his forehead as the cloth refused to give. He barely registered the feel of the tent shaking. Something alighted on his face.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!" Sharona jerked awake, suppressing a scream with iron will. "Mom!"
"Benjy, what?" She squinted in the darkness. A click sounded, and the inside of the tent was suddenly bathed in light and jumping shadows. The light turned, and focused on the figure on the floor. Adrian was lying in a twisted pile on the floor. His face was dead pale, and his eyes had that glazed look of panic. Sharona pulled herself out of her bed, shivering as her bare feet encountered the floor of the tent. While Benjy kept the light focused, Sharona knelt by Adrian's side. "Hey, hey, you ok?" She grabbed the zipper of the sleeping bag and loosened it from his neck. Adrian, still breathing heavily, rolled his gaze to her face. "Is it, is it gone?" Sharona's brow furrowed. "What?" Adrian moved his freed hands in a fluttering motion. "The, the bug, is the bug, gone?" Sharona breathed out. "Adrian, all this because of a bug?"
"No not all this because of a bug! My zipper was stuck, and I was on the floor." Benjy glanced at his mom. She just shook her head as she helped Adrian back onto his airbed. "I think that retailers should be obligated to post warnings about the dangers of sleeping bags and airbeds."
"Adrian, most people don't buff their airbeds before using them." She really didn't expect him to answer. He didn't. Once Adrian was situated, Sharona shifted all the beds a little closer together in hopes of preventing another accident. Then, yawning largely, she slipped back into her own bed. Just as her eyes were closing, a small voice rose in the cold air. "Sharona, could I bother you for a glass of water?"
Dawn brought mosquitoes, lots of them. Sharona pulled the rim of her sleeping bag tightly over her head in an effort to hide from the hungry beasts. The sudden roar of noise caused her to jerk free of her bed. "Adrian, Adrian what are you doing?" She yelled over the noise. The sound switched off, and a fully dressed Adrian turned to face her. In his hand was a small, personal vacuum cleaner. He opened his mouth to speak, and Sharona held up her hand. "I don't wanna know. Just let me get dressed and get out of the way before you start waxing the ground."
After breakfast, and at Adrian's insistence, Sharona drove the three of them into town to get a paper and a few more 'necessities'. The only place to purchase supplies turned out to be run down little shop at the corner of an intersection. Only one other car was in the dirt parking lot; a faded green sedan with a couple of rust spots and a bumper sticker proclaiming "Keep honking, I'm reloading". Sharona only glanced at the vehicle before going inside. "Benjy, choose some candy bars while I get the milk." Benjy eagerly went to the dilapidated candy aisle while Sharona walked to the back of the store where the cold cases were. She wasn't entirely surprised to see a slimmer case near the dairy products labeled simply 'bait'. Its shelves were better stocked than most of the rest of the store. Behind her, Adrian poked among the shelves in search of cleaning products. He was having very little success. "Wow! Hey mom, check out the gas station across the street!" Sharona turned, a half-gallon of milk in her hand. "Benjy, stay here. Adrian, I don't think they sell disinfectant here." Benjy pulled at her sleeve. "Mom, you gotta see what they have across the street!" Sharona grabbed a loaf of bread. "Uh huh. You find some candy bars?" Adrian kept looking around the store while she paid for their purchases. "I wonder where the other shopper is?" Sharona looked at him. "What makes you think there's another shopper?"
"The car out front. Someone had to have driven it here." Sharona shrugged. "Maybe he's in the bathroom, or maybe the car belongs to the owner." Adrian shook his head. "No, it has out of state license plates." Benjy grabbed her arm for attention again. "Mom!"
"What Benjy, what do you need." He gave her a look. "The gas station, come on, it's really cool!" Sighing, Sharona grabbed her bag. "Alright, fine, before you blow a gasket." She and Adrian followed him across the street to the run-down station. Several faded signs in the windows advertised cigarettes, beer, and windshield wiper fluid. At the side of the building were several rusty cages. Inside the cages were an assortment of animals. Two foxes yipped nervously from one of the smaller cages, while, in another cage, a large horned owl blinked slowly. Further back, slightly in the shade of a large pine, sat the biggest cage. Inside it was a bear, a very big bear. As they approached, it rolled on its side and regarded them through its small eyes. "That'll be three bucks." They jumped at the harsh voice behind them. Sharona turned to see a thin, sallow faced man behind them. He was wiping his filthy hands on the sides of his equally filthy jeans. Flicking aside his butt, he spoke again. "I said, that'll be three bucks." Sharona crossed her arms. "Three bucks for what." He grinned, and Sharona noted with distaste his yellowed teeth. "Three bucks for visiting my zoo. It's a buck a customer, and I count three o' ya'll checkin out my wares, so it's three bucks." Sharona's eyes narrowed, and Adrian shifted uncomfortably. "You want us to pay you three bucks to look at these miserable animals? How about I call animal control instead?" The man's grin remained, but his eyes grew dark. "Wouldn't do any good, all my permits are in place, and the animals are all healthy. So I suggest you pay me my money before I have the three of you arrested for trespassing." Adrian twitched his shoulders. "If you want people to pay for your zoo, you might consider building a better enclosure for your animals. You know, so that people can choose to pay in order to see the animals, rather than be coerced into paying for the visit after the fact." The man grinned again. "Damn, you sound like my ex-wife's lawyer." His grin vanished. "I hated that son of a bitch." Sighing heavily, Sharona dug in her purse. "Fine, here's your money. Adrian, Benjy, let's get out of here before my groceries go bad." The man smiled and nodded at them as they went by. "Nice doing business with you folks."
Back at the campsite, Sharona put away their few purchases, then dropped into a camp chair. Benjy immediately darted to the lake. Adrian remained at the camp. He began removing the small sticks from the packed dirt surrounding the fire pit. "Adrian, hey, just relax will ya? This is a vacation, just sit. Put up your feet ok?" Seeming almost unwilling, Adrian laid the sticks aside, neatly, and cautiously folded himself into the other camp chair. He sat stiffly for a few moments, then, as the minutes passed, he slowly started to loosen up. His expression began to slack as the calmness around him took over. Smiling, he turned to Sharona. "You know, this isn't so bad." Sharona smiled back, folding her arms. "See, I told ya you'd have fun."
That's when they heard the scream.
Chapter 3
Adrian was out of the chair before the echoes of the scream had faded from the crisp air. The sound seemed to have originated from the lake. "Benjy! Oh God!" Sharona followed closely behind Adrian as they ran to the lake. Benjy appeared before them, hair dripping with lake water. "Mom, I heard a scream, what happened!" Sharona leaned down and ran her hands over his hair. "That's what we're trying to find out honey." Adrian only paused a moment to ascertain that Benjy was fine, then continued on to where the small group of campers were gathering. As he eased up to the group, a few people broke away from the crowd with hands over their faces. Those that remained looked pale and sick.
"Dear God!"
"You know who it is?"
"...ever saw such a thing..."
"...horrible..."
Adrian pushed around two wobbly campers and looked down. Floating at the edge of the water was the mangled remains of what used to be a human.
After taking their statements, the officer started back to his car, stuffing his pen in his pocket as he walked. Adrian jogged up next to him. "Officer..."
"Dodge. And you are?"
"Adrian Monk." Officer Dodge didn't offer his hand, Adrian was grateful. "Well, what can I do for you Mr. Monk?" By this time they had reached the patrol car. Dodge leaned against the door while he spoke. Adrian clasped his hands. "I was wondering, do, do you know what might have killed that man?" Dodge removed his sunglasses. "How do you know that was a man?" Adrian shrugged. "The ring on his left hand was the design made for male hands, and there was a tattoo on his shoulder that said "Antonia"." Dodge smiled. "Very astute, you sound like a detective." Monk looked down for a moment. "I was a detective..." Dodge shot him a look. "Long story, look, I was wondering, could you tell what happened to that man, what killed him?" Dodge sighed, replacing his sunglasses. "Could have been a lot of things; propeller from a boat, fall off a cliff... but if you ask me, I'd say the most likely scenario was a bear attack." Adrian's complexion paled. "A bear? There're bears here?" The officer opened his car door. "Look, Monk? I wouldn't be too concerned. Just don't leave and food items or garbage out where a bear could smell em'. They have a really good sense of smell." Adrian crossed his arms while the officer closed his door. "Thanks, you've been a great help."
Sharona didn't say anything as she rapidly packed up their things. "Aren't you even interested in how he died?" Sharona glared at her boss. "All I'm interested in is how quickly we can get out of here." Adrian ran a hand through his hair. "Look, Sharona, you said yourself, there aren't any bears for six hundred miles, so how did he get mauled?" She threw her hands in the air. "I don't know, maybe a family moved here from Yellowstone! All I know, is I don't wanna be next on the menu!" Turning her back, she resumed packing. Frustrated, Adrian walked from the tent. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. Spinning on his heel, he returned inside. "What if it wasn't a wild bear?"
Josh Erickson crossed his arms and stared back at the people before him. "You're joking right?" Officer Dodge shook his head. "No joke Josh. And I'm inclined to listen to these folks. Now, do you let us see the bear, or do I call animal control myself?" Josh hitched up his jeans. "Fine, fine. But this ain't free. I want compensation for my time." Dodge lowered his glasses. "The only compensation you get is not being hauled to jail for obstruction."
Outside, the sky had turned overcast. Adrian, Dodge, and Josh approached the cage while Sharona hung back. After securing the bear, Josh stepped away to allow Dodge and Adrian to make a visual inspection. He sauntered back to stand next to Sharona. "Quite the vacation spot huh?" Sharona swiveled her eyes at him, then looked back to the activity near the cage. "I mean, first the car accident, then this bear attack." Sharona looked at him again. "What car accident?" Josh smiled. "You hadn't heard? Wow. Well this guy came flying through here bout two weeks ago in this black sedan. He took a corner too fast down by the lake, and in he went. Sank it, right to the bottom. Never found his body. Cops pulled the car out, but didn't find anything inside other than a soggy pack of cigarettes and a pair of sunglasses." Sharona rubbed her arms. "Look, this is fascinating, but it looks like they need my help." Walking away quickly, she joined Adrian by the bear cage. "So?" Dodge shook his head. "It's not the culprit. This bear is about a hundred years old, and is missing all but one tooth. It couldn't kill a hummingbird much less a human." Adrian shook his head. "Something's not right." Sharona sighed. "Listen, Adrian, I know you hate to leave a mystery behind. But this isn't our business. Besides, there isn't a mystery, the guy was probably killed by a boat propeller like Officer Dodge suggested earlier." Dodge crossed his arms. "We really won't know either way until the coroner has a chance to examine the body. Until then, every thing we might suspect is just a guess."
"Come on Adrian, let's go find that cabin you wanted." Dodge lifted his head. "There's a nice cabin rental place about five miles down the road. Lady in charge is named Angie. You mention I sent you and she might discount your stay." Sharona smiled. "Thank you, we'll check it out. Come on Adrian."
"Just give me a second, I'll be right there." Sharona rubbed her brow and walked back to the car. Adrian hugged his arms and continued to stare at the bear. Behind him, Josh Erickson cleared his throat. "You folks about done here? I got a business to run, and customers who actually pay to do what ya'll are doing." At Josh's insistence, Adrian and Officer Dodge allowed themselves to be hustled from the lot.
Later that day, while Sharona was driving them to the cabin, Adrian suddenly straightened in his seat. "What, what, Adrian?" He turned to face her, his expression intense. "The bear." She flicked her gaze back and forth from the road to Adrian's face. "What about the bear?"
"It wasn't the same bear."
"What!"
"The bear in the cage wasn't the same bear that we saw the day before. The other bear had a piece missing from its left ear. The bear we saw today did not." Sharona pulled the car over to the side of the road so she could face Adrian fully. "What are you saying, that the bear we saw today is a, what, a backup?" Her face tightened. "So where's the other bear?"
Chapter 4
Josh Erickson tossed the empty Coke bottle in the back of his cab as he rumbled down the road. Just ahead was his pal, Ernie's, tattered shack. A cloud of dust lifted around his truck as he ground to a halt near the slanted building that housed his friend. "Ern, hey Ern, you home?" A thunder of barks responded to his hail. Walking around the shack, Josh smiled at the kennel full of hounds that leaped against the chain link fence. "Hey boys, how ya doin', hey guys!" He patted the fence as he passed. Just ahead, was another set of kennels. Exiting the closest kennel was a stooped old man. "Josh, I wasn't expecting you this soon!" Josh clapped his friend on the back. "Ah, was a slow day. Thought I'd drop in and check on my bruin. How's his paw?" Ernie grabbed a bag of feed as he trudged toward a further kennel. "Well, the abscess is still there, but looks like it's beginning to heal. I'd leave him here for another week." Dropping the feed on the ground near the kennel, Ernie fished around for his keys. "You never told me how he'd wounded himself in the first place." Josh rubbed the back of his neck while Ernie located his key and opened the kennel. "Uh, there was a loose wire on his cage at the station, I think he scratched himself on it."
"Oh, maybe I should take a look..." Josh smiled, holding up his hand. "No, no it's all right, I took care of it." Josh stood back while Ernie entered the kennel and strode slowly towards the large bear at the other end. No matter how many times he watched the old man do it, he could never get used to the idea of sharing space with such dangerous creatures. The bears, for their part, regarded Ernie as a member of their family. For as long as Josh had known Ernie, the bears had never laid a paw on him. "Now then, now then. How are we today old man?" Asked Ernie as he patted the 300-pound black bear on its broad head. The bear just turned its head like a dog so that Ernie could scratch its ears. "That's a good fellow!" After a few minutes, Ernie deposited the animal's food in its trough, and backed slowly from the cage. Once the door was locked again, he turned to Josh. "So, you want to see your animal I suppose?" Josh smiled. "Naw, not today. I trust you Ern." Ernie nodded, then glanced up at Josh. "You eat yet? I got a coupla steaks I could fry up."
"Sounds great, but I'm meeting someone this afternoon. How bout some other time?" The two walked together to the front of Ernie's shack, where they parted company. "See you tomorrow?" Josh tipped his hand. "See you tomorrow old man."
As Josh walked back to his car, Ernie turned to watch him, a look of concentration on his face. When the car disappeared over the crest of the hill, Ernie went inside.
The man drummed his fingers on the wood tabletop. In the background, a few people chatted amiably among themselves. The waitress remained on the peripheral, wary of the man's sharp tone and nervous manner. Five minutes later, Josh Erickson entered the restaurant. The waitress approached them both once Josh was seated. The station owner ordered a bowl of chili and a coffee, the nervous man ordered nothing and impatiently waved the waitress away. When they were alone, the man spoke. "Well, what's going down? Did you get it?" Josh sipped his water. "Not yet."
"Not yet!" Customers turned, and the man lowered his voice to a harsh whisper. "Damn it Erickson! You swore to me you'd have it by this weekend!" Josh folded his hands. "There's been a... snag, in those plans. I didn't want to risk another mistake like what happened before."
"Look, I had no idea Jacobs was an agent! I was assured by my people that he was trustworthy!" Josh clenched his fist. "I don't care about your 'people'. All I know is that I have a dead FBI agent on my hands, and a suspicious cop and nosy vacationer poking into my business." The man rubbed his hands on his pants. "I'm not sure what you expect me to do about that..."
"Nothing, I plan to deal with it myself. What I want you to do is return to your boss and tell him I'll have his stuff by tomorrow." The man glanced around the restaurant nervously while the waitress brought Josh his meal. When she vanished once more, the man leaned in closely. "I need some assurances that you'll follow through on your end." Josh grinned as he shook Tabasco sauce into his chili. "Listen, when this is over, there'll be two or three more bodies in the lake, and six million to split up between us. Now why don't you think on that while I finish my lunch?"
Adrian methodically stripped the bed and folded the sheets and pillowcases while Sharona spoke to Angie Peterson, the owner of a neat row of cabins Officer Dodge had mentioned. Despite Dodge's assurances, Angie turned out to be a bit of a tightwad, and wasn't willing to discount the cabins one bit. However, the price wasn't too bad, so Sharona willingly wrote out a check for two nights. "Here you go." She said as she passed over the paper. "Thanks sweetie, could I see your i.d.?" Adrian ignored their interaction as he began dusting the short dresser and end table in his room. Faintly, he could hear Benjy outside as he played with Mrs. Peterson's black lab, Pepsi. In spite of his own aversion to touching animals, he smiled at the laughter he heard in the boy's voice. That last few days had been tense for Benjy, and it was good to hear him relaxing again. Adrian disposed of his filthy wipe and retrieved another to finish cleaning as Sharona entered his room. "Not bad huh?" She admired as she looked around the room. Adrian shrugged. "The mattress is a little hard, and the floor has a slight slope to it, you notice it more by the window." Sharona gave him a look. "Adrian... no, I'm not gonna say anything. Listen, I'm taking Benjy into town for some lunch. You hungry, or would you rather stay here and dust?"
At the restaurant, Adrian methodically began polishing the silverware while the waitress took their orders and retreated to the kitchen. Adrian's eyes casually followed her retreat, than narrowed as they fell on a pair of men at another table. "Sharona, do you see who's at the other table? No, don't turn!" Sharona raised her hand in exasperation. "Adrian, how am I supposed to see them if I don't turn!"
"Just turn your eyes, carefully." Sharona folded her arms, then intentionally bumped a fork onto the floor with her elbow. As she bent to retrieve it, she looked back at the men. "Hey, it's that station owner." She said as she straightened. "His name is Josh Erickson. I wonder who that man is with him?" Sharona shrugged. "Probably just a friend." Monk huffed in disbelief. "I wouldn't think a guy like Josh has a lot of friends. I wonder why the other guy isn't eating?"
"He probably isn't hungry."
"Then why come to a restaurant? No, there's something else going on other than a casual lunch." Sharona glared at her boss. "No. No way Adrian!"
"Look, I'd love to, but it might look a little strange." Sharona growled. "You owe me, So big!" Adrian nodded distractedly. "Add it to my tab. Look, could you hurry?" Breathing out heavily, Sharona stood and walked towards the other table. Just beyond the table was a short hallway that led to the ladies room. Sharona passed the two men, then hugged the wall just around the corner, easing her ear as close to the men as she could without being seen.
Josh sipped at his coffee, only a small amount of chili remained in his bowl. He was thinking about ordering pie. "Look, Erickson, this may not seem important to you, but I have a very limited amount of time to collect what you owe my employer. If I don't have it back to him by noon tomorrow, we'll be the bodies floating in the lake." Josh mopped up the last of his chili with his bread. "Hey, cool down. I told you, I have it covered. Dodge is driving up to visit his sister tonight. Once he's gone, I'll go in, retrieve the stuff, and get back to you." The other man rubbed his arms. "You sure it's still where you left it?" Josh smiled. "Small town remember? They didn't find anything when they searched the car, I'd know." The other man leaned in closely, grabbing Josh's wrist as his hand closed around his mug. "You had better be right about that, for both our sakes."
Sharona slid away from the corner, her eyes rising to meet Adrian's across the room. Waiting a few moments more, she straightened her blouse and strode out from behind the wall, forcing herself to walk slowly back to the table, and never noticing the double gaze that watched her retreat.
Chapter 5
"How much do you think she heard?"
Josh frowned. "Enough. Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
Sharona tapped Adrian's arm as she returned to their table. "Come on, we have to talk."
Seated in Sharona's car, Adrian listened while Sharona relayed what she'd overheard. "That's interesting." Said Adrian softly. Sharona nodded. "We should warn Officer Dodge." Benjy sat up in the back seat. "It's too late, Officer Dodge left already." Sharona turned in her seat. "How do you know that?"
"I heard Mrs. Peterson talking to someone from another cabin. She said that Officer Dodge had to leave early and wouldn't be back for two days." Sharona folded her arms. "Well he had to leave somebody in charge, let's find out who it is and warm em'." Adrian glanced up as the door to the restaurant opened. The unidentified man they'd been watching strode out. A few moments later, Josh Erickson followed. Neither of them acknowledged each other as they went to their separate cars. Once they disappeared, Sharona started up her station wagon. "We better get going if we plan on warning anyone."
Officer Bill Ross leaned back after hearing the story from the pretty blonde woman and the nervous man next to her. As stories went, this one was a humdinger. "So, you're saying Mr. Erickson and a 'mystery man' are plotting some sort of evil and I should stop them, right?" Adrian shrugged. "Basically... yes." Ross nodded. "Uh huh." Sharona exhaled in annoyance. "Look, I didn't get a chance to hear the whole conversation, but Erickson did say he was gonna search a car, and that there were gonna be more bodies. Now I don't know how you cops do things out here in the woods, but in the city, when someone plans a murder, they're usually thrown in jail." Irritated, as well as amused by Sharona's speech, Ross dropped his feet to the floor. "I'm sorry, Miss...?"
"Fleming."
"Fleming, yes. Listen, I've been left with a lot of work. But believe me, as soon as I get finished up here, I'll check out your story. You folks enjoy the rest of your vacation now alright?" As he spoke, he gently herded them from the office. Sharona fumed silently as she was pushed along. Adrian said nothing, only turned his body to avoid being touched. Back in the car, Sharona draped her elbows on the steering wheel and leaned her head on her arms. "Now what?" Adrian's brows pulled together. "Erickson said he was going to search a car that had already been searched by the police. A car that would likely be in an impound lot. I suggest we go stake it out." Benjy leaned forward eagerly. "Cool, can I come with?"
Both Adrian and Sharona turned as one. "No!"
"Adrian, move your elbow, I can't see!" Sharona swatted at Adrian's cuff as he scrubbed at the windshield. "Well if you'd clean your car..."
"My car is clean!"
"There's dirt all over, look at my wipe!" Sharona grabbed the wipe from Adrian's hand and tossed it out the window. "I don't see a thing." Adrian reached for the door handle. "Hey, you're littering!"
"Adrian!" Sharona grabbed his sleeve, pointing out the window. "Look, I see someone!" Adrian stopped pulling and looked where she pointed. It was hard to see in the dark, but he could just make out the form of someone scaling the fence that surrounded the parking lot. There were only three vehicles in the lot; a police cruiser, a tow truck, and the car that had been pulled from the lake. Sharona lifted her binoculars for a closer look. No doubt about it, it was Erickson. "Is it him?" Sharona nodded. "You want the binoculars?" Adrian eyed them, then shook his head. Outside, Erickson leaned in close to the car, did something with the lock, then entered the vehicle. "We have to see what he's doing!" Adrian glanced at Sharona. His lips parted, and he was just about to speak when there was a tap at the window. Both of them jumped simultaneously. They turned to see Officer Ross looking in on them through Sharona's window. Sharona rolled the glass down and raised her brows. "Is there a reason you folks are camped out by the impound lot?" Sharona crossed her arms. "Didn't we tell you why this afternoon? Maybe you were too busy killing flies to pay attention." Ross smiled slightly. At her side, Adrian suddenly stiffened, his eyes growing large. "Sharona, Sharona, I think maybe, perhaps we should let Officer Ross deal with this."
"Adrian, what are you talking about! This guy couldn't find his butt with both hands!" Monk grew insistent. "I Think, we should Drive away now, and let the Officer take care of this." As he spoke, he gestured with his head. Meanwhile, Ross was opening Sharona's door. "Could I ask you to step out of the vehicle please?" Adrian grabbed Sharona's arm. "No, don't!" Ross pulled his gun. "I said, step out of the vehicle. Come on now, let's not make this messy." Swallowing, Sharona and Adrian exited the car, hands raised. Behind them, they could hear footsteps approaching. Adrian stiffened as an arm draped across his shoulders. "Hey, is this a private party or can anyone join?" He didn't need to look to know that Josh Erickson had just arrived. Ross tipped his gun. "How do you want to do this?" Erickson walked around to face Adrian and Sharona. A slow smile spread across his face. "Personally, I like sticking with tradition."
Sharona pulled at the ropes binding her wrists. It was no good, the scratchy fibers wouldn't give. At her side, Adrian also struggled with his bindings to no avail. "How did you know that Ross was in on it?" She gasped as she pulled at the ropes again. Adrian grunted as he tipped over. "I wondered... why Erickson needed... Dodge... *gasp*... out of the picture, but not Ross." Wriggling, he managed to get upright again. Breathing out, he began. "It started with the car wreak. There was no body recovered from the accident, but later, a bear attack victim washes up on shore. How does a guy survive crashing into the lake, only to wind up getting mauled by a bear?" Sharona shrugged as she continued fighting the ropes. While Adrian spoke, her mind created images to fit the story he wove. "Josh Erickson does an upfront business as a gas station owner. He owns some animals to attract a little out of town business, but nothing too spectacular. It provided a good cover for his other business, as a drug dealer." Adrian slid himself against the wall, then started again. "When we went back to see Josh's little zoo for the second time, he told you about the car accident." Sharona nodded. "Yeah, he said all they found in the car was a pack of cigarettes and a pair of sunglasses." Adrian turned slightly. "But how did he know what the police found... unless someone told him? I think Ross was the officer in charge of searching the vehicle. If Dodge had searched it, he would have found the drugs. Ross and Erickson later arranged to recover the drugs as soon as Dodge left town." Sharona paused her struggles to look at Adrian. "What about the dead guy?"
"I'm guessing he tried to blow the whistle on the whole thing, got taken out for his troubles." There was a sound then, a dry creaking. A shaft of light fell across them, blindingly bright after the darkness. A shape filled the doorway, only the voice giving away the person. "You like your accommodations? I admit, it isn't as cozy as the cabin you were staying in, but then, you won't have to worry about that soon now anyhow will ya?"
"Josh Erickson. You blew it, didn't you Josh. As soon as the coroner identifies the body, your little business will have to close down. Who was it Josh, FBI? They're on to you. It's just a matter of time." Josh chuckled. "Really. This is a small town Mr. Monk. Men are bought for a song. There will be no identification. The body was that of a vagrant, the remains will be buried, and no one will think anything of it." Erickson's gaze fell on Sharona. "I'm truly sorry you had to get mixed up in this. Oh well, that's life I guess." Turning, he walked out the door. As the sound of a lock shot home, a light above them snapped on, revealing their surroundings. They were in a cage. A small window in the door slid open, and Josh's sallow complexion looked in on them. "I'd like you to meet Jerry, he's gonna be you're new bunkmate. Oh, and I should warn you, he gets a little testy when he hasn't been fed." A door on the opposite side of the room started to slide up. Under the edge, they could see a pair of furred paws. A claw raked under the door, and a long snout pushed through the crack, snuffing deeply. Saliva dripped to the concrete from cone shaped teeth. "Oh God!"
"Enjoy your stay!" The little window slid shut with a squeak. Sharona slid closer to Adrian. "Here, turn your back to me, maybe we can untie each other!" Adrian turned, jumping a little to get his back to her. "What makes you think this will work?" Sharona felt around with her hands, inadvertently pinching Adrian in the process. "Ouch, watch it will you!"
"Sorry. Look, they do this all the time on TV!" Adrian frantically felt around for her bindings. "Hurry, the door is lifting!"
"I can see that Adrian!" As the door slid higher, more of the animal behind it was revealed. The dark countenance of a black bear was exposed. Rumbling deep in its chest, the creature clawed at the door, urging it upward. In seconds, there would be enough room for the bear to get though. Sharona bit down on a scream and squeezed her eyes shut. The bear roared, then suddenly stopped, turning at something behind it. The door stopped, then slowly lowered back to the floor. Exhaling in relief, Adrian and Sharona glanced up as the main door swung open. And older man stood there, sweat beading his brow. "Well, you gonna sit there all day or you wanna get out of here?"
Chapter 6
Ernie sawed through the ropes with an old pocketknife. Behind the cage door, the angry bear thudded its heavy paws, but couldn't penetrate the solid steel. "Thank you so much for helping us. Who are you, how'd you know we were here?" Ernie straightened stiffly, holding his back as he moved to the door. "I'm a friend, was a friend, of Josh Erickson. He uses my bears for his station." Sharona and Adrian stood, following the old man out of the room. "I was already starting to get suspicious of Josh, I thought he was doing something to my bears. I followed him here and saw him throw you in here with Jerry."
Adrian checked around a corner nervously. "We're very grateful for your help. If you wouldn't mind, could you call this number and ask for a Captain Stottlemeyer, and tell him it's urgent? Tell him Adrian Monk and Sharona Fleming need his help." Ernie took the card Adrian handed him. "Well where are you gonna be?" Sharona also looked at Adrian with a question in her eyes. Adrian pushed open the door. "I think it's time we paid another visit to the police station."
Josh hefted the bag in his hand, gauging its weight. Smiling, he passed it over to the man seated across from him. "Pure as the driven snow." The other man didn't smile. Instead, he passed the bag to an assistant while keeping his eyes trained on Josh. "We'll be the judge of that." There was terse silence as the assistant took a sample of the white powder and sifted it into a test tube with a liquid medium. After a few seconds, he nodded, satisfied with the results. At this point, the other man finally smiled. "Well, looks as though I don't have to kill you after all." Tipping two fingers, he signaled his assistant, who brought forward a large briefcase. "One hundred thousand, as agreed upon." Josh reached for the case, then suddenly felt a hand grip his wrist. It was Ross. "What the hell do you think you're doing!" Ross smiled. "As I see it, I caught you in the middle of a drug deal. Two of the suspects escaped, but I managed to corner you." Josh's face twisted in anger. "You son of a bitch!" Ross continued, pulling his gun. "Unfortunately, you resisted, and I was forced to defend myself." With that, he fired. The bullet caught Josh in the abdomen, causing him to drop the briefcase. The case burst open upon hitting the ground, scattering bills everywhere. The two other men at the meeting merely stepped back from the commotion, unaffected by the changes taking place around them. As Josh fell, he grabbed for Ross's hand, missing by inches. Before he could cry out, Ross fired again, striking Josh in the chest. Josh's body went limp. Brushing hair from his eyes, Ross looked at the two men that remained. "Sorry bout' that." Bending, he retrieved the case and began gathering the scattered bills. "You gentlemen lay low for awhile. I'll let you know when it's safe to resume business."
As the men nodded and exited, Ross finished scraping up the last of the bills.
Outside, Adrian crouched next to Sharona. When the gunshots went off, she jumped, biting off a cry. "Oh God..." Adrian shivered in the chill air. "Sounds like there's been a change of management." Sharona turned to him. "What do you mean?" Adrian nodded to the building. "That gunshot was made by a police issue revolver. I'm guessing Ross got greedy." A few moments later, two men emerged from the building. "Josh's contacts. No doubt on their way back home." Sharona nodded. "With the drugs. Now what?" Adrian shrugged, opening his mouth to speak. A voice on a bullhorn stopped him. "This is the police, throw down your weapons and raise your hands over your heads, do it, now!" The two men paused, then bolted. "Stop!" A scattering of gunshots rang out, hitting nothing. Adrian and Sharona ducked. "How did Stottlemeyer get here so fast!" Adrian shook his head. "That isn't Stottlemeyer, it's Officer Dodge!" Sharona stared at him. "What?"
Officer Dodge raised the bullhorn to his lips once more. "Ross, come outta there, hands on your head! Move it!" For a moment, the only sound was the cries of other officers in pursuit of the fleeing drug dealers. Then, cautiously, the door to the police station swung open. Ross stepped out, hands on his head. "Dodge, thank God! They got the jump on me! I managed to get Josh, but the other two escaped..." Dodge leveled his revolver. "Save it Ross, I know everything! You two officers, take this man into custody!" Two nearby officers holstered their revolvers and took hold of Ross's arms, cuffing his wrists behind his back. Another officer relieved Ross of his weapons. Adrian and Sharona approached the group of officers, keeping their hands in the open. Dodge caught sight of them and jogged up to them. "Hey, you ok? Ernie told me what happened!" Sharona nodded. "We're fine. How did you..." Dodge smiled, looking back at the scene behind him. Adrian spoke first. "You planned this, didn't you." Dodge nodded. "I was suspicious of Ross for a long time, but had nothing to pin on him. That's when Ernie approached me. He was having some problems with Josh, problems with the bears."
Adrian clasped his hands. "You suspected that Josh was behind the murder of that man found in the lake." Dodge nodded. "He was an FBI agent named Peyton Ritter. Josh caught on to him, had him killed, then fed to one of his bears. I wasn't sure where Ross fit in, until the coroner recovered a bullet from the remains. It matched Ross's revolver." At that moment, the other officers returned with the two drug dealers in tow. Adrian folded his arms. "So you came up with the story about visiting your sister, in order to flush out Ross." Dodge nodded. "Ernie kept in contact with me. When Josh and Ross grabbed you two, he gave the signal. We were here before Josh was."
At that moment, Ernie arrived, his expression unreadable. He walked up to Officer Dodge, who shook his hand. "Ernie, I want to thank you for your help. I'm indebted to you." Ernie shrugged. "It was nothing, I just wanted to make sure that the right thing was done." Adrian looked down a moment, then up again at Ernie's face. Slowly, he held out his hand. Ernie shook it. Adrian smiled softly. "We could use more like you."
Hours later, Sharona had the car packed and her two charges loaded. As she slid into the driver's seat and buckled in, she glanced at Adrian. "How you doin' boss?" Adrian looked over at her, his expression gentle. "I'm good, I'm great." Sharona smiled as she started the car. "Did you talk to Stottlemeyer?" Adrian nodded. "He said to tell you that he may have a job for us when we get back." Sharona raised her brows. "That- that's good! What sort of job?" Adrian shrugged. "Something about getting a cat out of a tree..." Sharona turned to glare at Adrian. "Funny, he's funny this guy. Was he this funny when you guys were partners?" Adrian's face scrunched in concentration. "Hmmm, no, he seemed more interested in stakeouts than stand-ups as I recall." Sharona laughed as they drove down the dirt road. "Well, tell him not to quit his day job."
In the back seat, Benjy suddenly sat forward. "Hey! There's a sign for a water park, can we stop?" Sharona glanced at Adrian, who returned her look. As one, they turned to Benjy.
"No!"
Benjy smiled as he sat back in his seat. It was good to be going home.
-End