Read Grizzly for Free Online Page B

silhouetted against the cloud-speckled sky.
    "That shack's kept many a camper dry," Kelly said.
    Peering at it through her telephoto lens, Allison said, "Well it looks like it could use a little help. What happened? Did somebody drive a bulldozer through it?"
    Kelly parked the jeep and started up toward the cabin. Tom and Allison followed. Allison kept clicking away.
    Kelly said, "You're right. A whole wall's been knocked in. Tom, what the hell's been going on up here?"
    "I came by last week," Tom said. "It was all right then."
    Kelly didn't wait for the others to catch up. He pulled open the door and went inside.
    The darkness within made him stop for a second, until his eyes could begin to adjust. He looked right out the ruined wall into the forest, where the gloom of twilight was turning the hillside into a dank cavern.
    The floor creaked under his feet, and the cabin trembled as he moved toward the shattered boards.
    Something fell from the rafters. It draped over his shoulder and then slipped off. As it did, a mutilated hand scraped his cheek, coveting his face with fresh blood.
    Kelly leaped back. He did not exactly scream, but the cry he gave was filled with rage and disgust.
    He backed away from the thing on the floor, out the open door, and almost fell off the porch. Tom grabbed him.
    Allison did scream. "You're hurt!"
    Kelly rubbed a gob of blood off his face. "No," he choked. "Not me. Tom, get on the horn. We need some
    rangers up here right now. With flashlights and guns."
    Tom stared at him. "Guns?"
    "You heard me. Move!"
    High up near the timber line, in a sheltered cave, the beast slept.

CHAPTER FOUR
    Three husky rangers had hauled a small Honda gasoline-powered generator up the hill, and when it sputtered into action, bright lights glared across the R-Four campsite.
    All of the rangers except Kelly were armed. Some had hand guns, but most carried heavy hunting rifles.
    Into a walkie-talkie, Kelly said, "How about it, Tom? Do you read me?"
    "Roger," came Tom Cooper's response.
    "How far down are you?"
    "We've worked our way up maybe a quarter of a mile from the cabin."
    "What do you see?"
    "Not much. The girl's tracks; she came down the mountain like a bat out of hell. But nothing else."
    "No bear tracks?"
    "Bear? Hell, I thought we were looking for puma or—"
    "Negative," said Kelly. "Keep a sharp eye, Tom. I'm afraid we've got ourselves a rogue bear."
    "Ten-four," said Tom. "I'm clear."
    Kelly switched off the radio and looked around. The camp ground, illuminated by the harsh spotlights, had an unreal look to it. The lights did not penetrate into the trees, so the white birch trunks kicked back an effect of vertical bars, while the green spruces vanished into the darkness.
    The blood, splashed over the tent and all the camping gear, was dark and seemed to be everywhere.
    Allison moved quietly in the flood-lighted area, snapping pictures. Several of the rangers spoke to her, but she was so intent on her work that she made no response.
    Something made a noise in the darkness, and a ranger threw his rifle up to his shoulder. Kelly almost leaped across the distance between them and knocked the muzzle down.
    "Hold it!" he yelled. "Make sure you know what you're shooting at."
    A ranger came out of the woods, sweating with the effort of his climb.
    The first ranger lowered his rifle. "Jesus!" he whispered. "Thanks, Kelly."
    "Let's not get trigger-happy," said Kelly. "How about it, Larry. Did you see anything.
    "Exactly one hoot-owl," said the sweat-stained ranger. "Scared the crap out of me."
    "No tracks?"
    "Just the girl's."
    "How far back are Tom and the others?"
    "Five, ten minutes. They're spreading out. But it's darker than a witch's well in there, Kell. We might do better in the morning."
    "There were two girls," Kelly said. "We know where one is. The other might be out there hurt."
    "The way this place is ripped up?" said the ranger with the rifle. "Kelly, there's more blood right here than I thought any one