Hunter

Epilogue

Hunter, bloodied and savage, was the last to crest the summit, his Bowie the only weapon he retained as he emerged upon the sloped red rock. He was greeted by innumerable black choppers, soldiers, United States Marshals, some unidentifiable civilians, probably CIA, and two army medical helicopters.

An angry debate seemed to be raging between the leader of the Marshals Service and the army. And then there was Dr. Hamilton — he had obviously somehow survived the obliteration of the installation — standing beside a major.

Hunter ignored them all as he knelt beside Bobbi Jo, brushing back a lock of blond hair from her eyes.

Sitting tiredly on a white gurney, she was a mass of cuts and bruises and claw wounds. Her head was bowed in extreme fatigue while the medics gently dressed the furrows raked across her face and chest. As they started an IV, she spoke softly to Hunter: "Don't let them take you in. You'll…disappear."

Kneeling to meet her low gaze, Hunter smiled. "Hey, don't worry about me. You just get some rest. I'll see you at the hospital." He winked. "You still got some R and R to spend with me, remember?"

She laughed faintly as they laid her back on the gurney. In a moment they had her in the first medical helicopter, which began a cautious lift from the smooth, flat summit. Vaguely, Hunter wondered that so many choppers could be crowded into so small an area. Then he gave it no more thought as he walked stoically forward to find Chaney beside a tall, gaunt figure he was calling "Skull."

Hunter heard Chaney speaking quickly, alert and logical despite the distraction of his wounds. "Skull, listen, he's lying. It was all a He. All of it. And I've got all the proof we need. About two miles beneath us in that cavern. Trust me, boss. I'm right on this one."

"Never doubted you for a second, Chaney," the man replied, staring hard at Hamilton. "Doctor," he continued, "I believe you have a lot to answer for. And I'm gonna be asking the questions."

Tension, already high, spiraled.

The military behind Hamilton seemed strangely uncertain, but they were obviously instructed to back up the doctor. And the U.S. Marshals behind Skull seemed ready, to a man, to defy them. When an army official, Hunter guessed a major, instructed Skull that Chaney and Hunter were under arrest, Skull laughed out loud.

"They're under arrest, Major," he retorted, leaning into it, "when I say they're under arrest and not a moment sooner. Your jurisdiction under Posse Comitatus has been withdrawn and I, notwithstanding the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, am now in charge of this situation." He looked at Hamilton. "You, Doctor, are hereby placed in federal custody for concealing vital information from the United States Marshals Service, for murder, for conspiracy to commit murder, for obstruction of justice, for the violation of civil liberties, and for the violation of federal law prohibiting experimentation in biological weaponry. And if that's not enough, I'll think up some more in a few minutes."

Chaney, too tired to laugh, shook his head.

Then Hunter stepped into it, shouldering his way between Skull and Chaney to engage Hamilton's enraged glare. The physician appeared unhinged, and seemed not to recognize his brutal, bleeding countenance for a moment. Then, pointing a trembling hand: "It was this man!" he shouted. "This…this animal! He is the one who destroyed my facility!"

"And your life," Hunter nodded coldly. "Nothing left but the truth, Hamilton. And, just so you know, Luther is dead. He's lying two miles beneath your feet with his head cut off."

Skull nodded curtly to the marshals behind him and a team began rappelling over the edge of the cliff, headed down to the cave. Hunter knew they would retrieve all the evidence, the bodies of his compatriots, and what was left of Luther. He didn't know if any of it would ever see daylight, but it would be enough to put away the guilty for a long time.

Grimacing in pain, Chaney added, "You picked the wrong man for the job, Hamilton. That's why Hunter was so damned unimportant, wasn't it? He was the wild card. The rest of them, they were soldiers. You knew they didn't stand a chance against Luther. But you weren't sure how Hunter would react. What he would do. That's what scared you from the first, but you couldn't figure a way out of it 'cause you had to put on a good show. Well, I'm glad to see he disappointed you." Chaney turned in beside Hunter as they walked away and then called back: "See you at the arraignment, Doc."

As they walked to the second medical chopper, Skull began giving terse instructions for documentation of the scene and preservation of the beast's body. Hunter glanced back to see Hamilton, arrogant and despising to the last, being led away in cuffs. Although both of them were so wounded they could barely walk, now that the abysmal pain of a dozen serious injuries was emerging from beneath the stress, the sight brought a smile to Hunter's face as he spoke quietly. "You gonna be all right with the way this burned down?"

"Oh, yeah, no problems," Chaney said, obvious pain making his voice chipped and brittle. "How about you?"

"I'll be fine, I think. I just want to get to the hospital and check on Bobbi Jo. She was hurt pretty bad."

"Yeah, but she'll be fine, Hunter. She's strong. Got a strong spirit, too." He spoke slower. "I'm sorry about Ghost. And about the professor. He was… a good man."

Moving another step, Hunter was silent. Then he stopped and slowly turned, staring back at the cliff. The marshal's team had already descended, and he was briefly immobile. After a moment he shook his head.

"Killing it don't seem like enough," he whispered.

Chaney, still holding his broken shoulder, let the moment last. "Come on, Hunter," he said finally. "You're hurt. I'm hurt. The rest are dead and that thing is dead. It's over. Now it's up to you and that body of yours to make sure something good comes out of this. Skull and I'll clean up the rest of the mess."

Frowning, Hunter paused, then began walking beside Chaney up the hill, toward the descending sun.

"So much for immortality," he said.