“Sorry, I?—”
“Shh.” He holds up a hand, voice barely a whisper. “Look.”
I peer around his shoulder. The cave entrance is maybe thirty yards ahead, a dark gash in the rocky outcropping. The footprints lead right up to it and disappear into the shadows.
“We need to check if anything’s inside,” Ace murmurs.
I nod, even though he can’t see me, my heart pounding so hard I feel it in my throat. This is it. This is actually happening.
We move forward together, feet crunching softly in the snow. The cave mouth grows larger, darker. I can see now that it’s bigger than I first thought, tall enough to walk into upright. Wide enough for something massive.
Ace stops about ten feet from the entrance. “Stay behind me,” he whispers.
I don’t argue.
He clicks on his flashlight, the beam cutting into the darkness. I do the same, my hands shaking so badly the light wobbles.
“Hello?” Ace calls out. His voice echoes off the stone. “Anyone home?”
Silence.
We wait. Thirty seconds. A minute. Nothing moves in the dark.
“I’m going in,” Ace says. “Stay close.”
We step into the cave together, flashlight beams sweeping across the walls. It’s shallow, maybe twenty feet deep, with a packed dirt floor. No sign of anything living here. No bones, no scat, no nests. Just empty rock.
“It’s clear,” Ace says, relaxing slightly. “But those prints lead right here. It was definitely using this space.”
“Which means it might come back.” My pulse jumps.
“Yeah.” Ace turns, surveying the entrance. “Actually, this is perfect. We set up camp here. We’ve got shelter from the wind, and it’s relatively warm in here. The stone walls must trap the heat.” He walks a little farther back. “With a fire near the entrance, this’ll be comfortable.” He looks over at me, and I can see the excitement in his eyes now, matching my own. “And if it does come back…”
“We’ll be right here to see it.”
“Exactly.” He’s already shrugging off his pack. “Let’s get the tent up. It’s getting dark fast, and we should start a fire before we lose the light completely.”
I drop my pack too, adrenaline buzzing through me. There’s a chance, a real chance, that I could actually see a yeti. That I could capture irrefutable proof.
I’m sure I won’t sleep a wink tonight.
2
“How big do you think a yeti’s cock is?”
I nearly choke on my trail mix. Ace is sitting across the fire from me, legs stretched out, those blue eyes watching me over the flames.
“What?”
“I mean, proportionally.” He pokes at the fire with a stick. “If they’re eight, nine feet tall, and built like that, their equipment must be…”
“I don’t know.” My face burns, and it’s not from the flames. “I’ve never really thought about yeti anatomy that way.”
“Come on. You’ve studied these things for years.” He grins, and I realize he’s messing with me. “You’re telling me you’ve never wondered?”
“I focus on behavior patterns and habitat ranges, not their reproductive organs.”
“Reproductive organs. Nice. Very scientific.” He laughs, a warm, rich sound that echoes off the cave walls. “You’re not afraid to say cock, are you?”
