Read Online Rogue (Book 2) (The Omega Group) by Andrea Domanski - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Andrea Domanski
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yet.”
“Of course not. Try the Navajo Taco. It’s a local
specialty.”
Once their orders were placed, Han got down to business.
“So, Ranger Christner, you’ve had some weird things going on around here?”
“Kell.”
“I’m sorry?” Han was perplexed.
“You can call me Kell. It’s my name. And, yes, we’ve had
some strange things happening here. But I have a question for you before we get
into all this. Why are you here?”
Han and Jackie exchanged a confused look. “We’re here to
find out what’s been going on. You did ask for help, didn’t you?”
“Of course I did, but no one ever took me seriously. I’ve
been filing reports for months now, but nothing ever comes of them. Then you
guys show up. So, I’ll ask again. Why are you here?”
Jackie, who was much better at handling this sort of thing
than Han, took over. “Because someone took your reports seriously, Kell.
And they sent us to investigate.”
“So, you’re like Mulder and Scully?”
Although Jackie looked confused, Han let loose a loud laugh. If she only knew how close to the truth that was. “Yep, that’s us. X-Files all the way. What have you got for us?”
For a moment, Kell looked as though she was trying to decide
whether she was about to be made the butt of a joke, then tossed her file
folder across the table. “Everything’s in there. It all started about four
months ago. A small group of hikers didn’t show up at their campground for
dinner so their friends called us. We found them wandering Point Imperial Trail
around midnight. Not all that unusual in and of itself. What was weird was
their story. They had no memory of the day at all. None of them. We brought
them to the clinic and had them checked out, but, physically, they were fine.
They just lost about nine hours of their lives.”
Han interrupted. “Where is this Point Imperial Trail?”
“It’s on the east side of the canyon, before you get to the
Navajo reservation.”
“Is that near where the Yavapai are staying?”
A puzzled look crossed her face. “Someone’s done their
homework. The Yavapai are settled a little further south, but yeah. It’s pretty
close.”
“All right, what else have you got?”
“There have been two other instances of lost hikers showing
up hours later with no memories. And, before you ask, there doesn’t seem to be
any pattern as to where they show up.”
“What about the auras?” Jackie asked.
“That’s a little more difficult to pinpoint. We’ve only had
two reports of auras, but they weren’t documented with photos. Both were called
in about five months ago. The second call came from a couple of tourists
staying at the Desert View campground. They saw what they called a golden glow
coming from the far end of Kaibob National Forest.
Han interrupted. “You said that was the second call. What
about the first?”
“That one came from a pay phone here but was mostly ignored.
The guy was obviously drunk and wouldn’t leave his name. Kept saying that
aliens were landing.”
“But the camper’s call would have corroborated his story.”
“Yeah, if they’d called it in right away. Cell service out
here is spotty at best so they waited until their vacation was over and they
were back in town before they made their report. It was almost a week later, so
no one put the two calls together.”
“Until?” Han knew there was more to the story.
Kell smiled. “Until a fight broke out in the parking lot of
this place last month. A group of locals were accosted by some drunk. He
accused them of being—wait for it—inhabited by aliens. The authorities were
called, the drunk was brought in, and his statement was taken. His story was so
crazy that it was a frequent topic of conversation for all the law enforcement
officers involved. That’s how it came to my attention.”
“Have you interviewed him yet?”
“Nope. He had no I.D. on him and gave a fake name when he
was put in the drunk tank, so I haven’t
“Of course not. Try the Navajo Taco. It’s a local
specialty.”
Once their orders were placed, Han got down to business.
“So, Ranger Christner, you’ve had some weird things going on around here?”
“Kell.”
“I’m sorry?” Han was perplexed.
“You can call me Kell. It’s my name. And, yes, we’ve had
some strange things happening here. But I have a question for you before we get
into all this. Why are you here?”
Han and Jackie exchanged a confused look. “We’re here to
find out what’s been going on. You did ask for help, didn’t you?”
“Of course I did, but no one ever took me seriously. I’ve
been filing reports for months now, but nothing ever comes of them. Then you
guys show up. So, I’ll ask again. Why are you here?”
Jackie, who was much better at handling this sort of thing
than Han, took over. “Because someone took your reports seriously, Kell.
And they sent us to investigate.”
“So, you’re like Mulder and Scully?”
Although Jackie looked confused, Han let loose a loud laugh. If she only knew how close to the truth that was. “Yep, that’s us. X-Files all the way. What have you got for us?”
For a moment, Kell looked as though she was trying to decide
whether she was about to be made the butt of a joke, then tossed her file
folder across the table. “Everything’s in there. It all started about four
months ago. A small group of hikers didn’t show up at their campground for
dinner so their friends called us. We found them wandering Point Imperial Trail
around midnight. Not all that unusual in and of itself. What was weird was
their story. They had no memory of the day at all. None of them. We brought
them to the clinic and had them checked out, but, physically, they were fine.
They just lost about nine hours of their lives.”
Han interrupted. “Where is this Point Imperial Trail?”
“It’s on the east side of the canyon, before you get to the
Navajo reservation.”
“Is that near where the Yavapai are staying?”
A puzzled look crossed her face. “Someone’s done their
homework. The Yavapai are settled a little further south, but yeah. It’s pretty
close.”
“All right, what else have you got?”
“There have been two other instances of lost hikers showing
up hours later with no memories. And, before you ask, there doesn’t seem to be
any pattern as to where they show up.”
“What about the auras?” Jackie asked.
“That’s a little more difficult to pinpoint. We’ve only had
two reports of auras, but they weren’t documented with photos. Both were called
in about five months ago. The second call came from a couple of tourists
staying at the Desert View campground. They saw what they called a golden glow
coming from the far end of Kaibob National Forest.
Han interrupted. “You said that was the second call. What
about the first?”
“That one came from a pay phone here but was mostly ignored.
The guy was obviously drunk and wouldn’t leave his name. Kept saying that
aliens were landing.”
“But the camper’s call would have corroborated his story.”
“Yeah, if they’d called it in right away. Cell service out
here is spotty at best so they waited until their vacation was over and they
were back in town before they made their report. It was almost a week later, so
no one put the two calls together.”
“Until?” Han knew there was more to the story.
Kell smiled. “Until a fight broke out in the parking lot of
this place last month. A group of locals were accosted by some drunk. He
accused them of being—wait for it—inhabited by aliens. The authorities were
called, the drunk was brought in, and his statement was taken. His story was so
crazy that it was a frequent topic of conversation for all the law enforcement
officers involved. That’s how it came to my attention.”
“Have you interviewed him yet?”
“Nope. He had no I.D. on him and gave a fake name when he
was put in the drunk tank, so I haven’t
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