The Secrets of Bailey

Prologue

Anthropologist Dr. Jacob Taylor was in his office at the University of Kentucky, wrapping up the last of his paperwork before the winter break began. He was happy with how his class had performed during the semester. All the students had done well, which was a nice change from having a few goof-offs who were only in the class for the credits, not to learn.

A knock on his open office door pulled him away from his work. He looked up to see his friend Robert Norris standing in his doorway. The man was grinning, which gave Dr. Taylor a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. The only time Robert wore that smirk was when he wanted something.

“Jake, just the man I need to see,” Robert said as he invited himself into the office and dropped into the chair across from Jake's desk.

“Bobby,” Jake sighed as he tossed his pen on the desk. “Whatever wild goose chase you want me to go on with you, I am not interested.”

“Even if there was a reported Bigfoot attack two hours southwest of here?”

Jake shook his head, “Not even then.”

Bobby pulled a roll of papers out of the inside breast pocket of his coat and tossed them on the desk in front of his friend. “What about if there are medical records of the survivor?”

“Medical records?” Jake asked.

Jake picked up the wad of papers and unrolled them. As he read them, he was shocked. A male hiker had been injured in some manner involving blunt force trauma with multiple broken bones, lacerations, and contusions. The man had to be hospitalized for over two weeks and would need considerable additional treatments as he recovered.

“As impressive as these injuries are, what makes you think this is from a Bigfoot attack?” Jake questioned.

Bobby grinned at his friend and pulled another group of papers from his pocket. This time, he handed them to Jake.

“This is the report from the sheriff’s department that responded to the scene. If you notice, it comes complete with mention of gigantic handprints and footprints in the area around the victim.”

Jake rolled his eyes and began to read the police report. The deputy was exceedingly clear about what he had witnessed at the scene. The hiker had been rambling nearly incoherently about being attacked by a giant hairy man. The deputy did see numerous immense hand and barefoot prints—far larger than any human prints he had ever seen. Jake looked at the included photographs and could easily confirm they fit with the deputy and victim statements.

“I will admit, this case does have far more evidence than most of the ones you bring me,” Jake said as he studied his friend. “What else do you have?”

“What else?” Bobby asked. “I bring you all this, and you have the nerve to ask for more?”

“Yes,” Jake told him flatly. “You have the reputation of hunting for things that cannot be proven to exist. I have a reputation for having a Ph.D. in anthropology and numerous published fact-based papers, along with my job as a college professor and my fieldwork. Did you forget you are sitting in my office on campus?”

“Of course, I didn’t forget. Jake, this area is a hotspot of activity. There are dozens of reports over the years of sightings, of calls and screams, of livestock being killed or going missing. All I am asking for is that you use your skills and go out for a couple of days and see what you can find,” Bobby pleaded with him.

“Alright…if,” Jake began before being cut off.

“Yes!” Bobby yelled as he pumped his fist before regaining his composure.

“IF… I decide to do this, I will do it my way,” Jake stressed. “You will NOT be there. You will NOT post anything on social media. You will NOT butt in and interfere in any way, shape, or form. I will do this as a camping and hiking excursion during the winter break, and if I find something, I do, and if I don’t, I don’t. Is that clear?”

“Crystal! I promise you won’t regret this!” Bobby said as he jumped up and ran for the door. “Thank you! Thank you!” he yelled as he ran down the hall.

Jake laughed as he shook his head. He had no plans for the winter break, but this was not something he had ever thought about doing during that time. Jake read over the reports Bobby had given him once more. He needed to speak with the sheriff, the victim, and a local nurse practitioner listed in the report, Kaitlin Bailey. The report had come from a tiny town named Bailey. Jake briefly wondered if the names meant something or if it was merely a coincidence. He dismissed it as he went to work planning out the impromptu trip.

-

Kaitlin Bailey stormed into the only restaurant in Bailey, Kentucky, holding a copy of the local newspaper in her hand. She glared at everyone in the room until she located her intended target. She stomped to a table in the corner and slammed the newspaper onto the table in front of the sheriff, nearly knocking over his coffee cup.

“How dare you give an interview about this kind of thing, Buddy Mullins?!” Kaitlin demanded.

“Well, good morning to you too, Kaitie,” Buddy drawled as he picked up his coffee cup and took a sip.

“Answer me, Buddy. Why would you give out that kind of information? You know we are going to have this place crawling with wanna-be monster hunters. We will have to do more rescues and treat more injuries than we can handle, all because of this stupid interview,” Kaitie spat.

“Have a seat, Kaitie, and we can talk about this,” Buddy calmly and quietly told her as he pushed out the chair across from him with his foot. “Sit. I’m not asking. I’m telling.”

Kaitie huffed as she sat down across from the county sheriff. “Fine. I need breakfast before I head to the clinic anyway.”

The waitress came over with the coffee carafe to refill the sheriff’s cup. She looked at Kaitie with a raised eyebrow before she smiled at her.

“Morning, Miss Kaitie. Would you like your usual?” the waitress asked.

“Morning, Rhonda. My usual is fine. Thank you,” Kaitie answered.

“It’ll be ready in a few minutes. You want some coffee while you wait?”

“Yes, please.”

Rhonda flipped over the cup on the table where Kaitie sat and filled it for her. She took some cream and sugar packets from her apron pocket and laid them next to the cup.

“Anything else, Hun?” Rhonda asked.

“No, thank you, Rhonda. Just breakfast when it's ready,” Kaitie answered with a smile.

The sheriff patiently waited until Rhonda walked away from the table. Kaitie glared at him as she poured creamer and sugar into her coffee. She never took her eyes off him as she stirred her coffee. Kaitie maintained eye contact as she picked up her cup and took a sip.

“Kaitie, I know you hate having yahoos from the city coming out here and being dumb. So do I. Unfortunately, there was very little I could do about this one. This time, someone was nearly killed,” the sheriff sighed. “This time, it wasn’t some drunk fisherman or hunter telling a tall tale about what they saw in those woods. Those are easy to discredit. Someone as severely injured as that young man would not go unnoticed. I figured it would be best if I told what I could and hid what I couldn’t.”

“You should have at least warned me about all this. I had no idea my name would be spread all over the paper. Not only that, it lists the Bailey Clinic. How can I care for my patients if I have to deal with tourists wanting to know everything I know?” Kaitie questioned.

“I had no idea anything about you or the clinic would be included in that article. I gave the paper a statement from my office. That was it. The only way they could have gotten that information is if someone leaked it. And you can be rest assured that I will get to the bottom of who it was that did it,” Buddy said.

“It just irks me to no end that people dig into things they don’t need to be digging in. My family has tried to keep things quiet around here since before Kentucky was a state. Heck, that’s why this town has our name.

“My family has been here nearly as long as yours, and I feel the same way you do about it. I don’t want people poking around Bailey, either. Our one saving grace is that it is winter and almost Christmas. Most people are smart enough not to be out in these hills this time of year. This guy was attacked over a month ago. The trail is cold. If anyone does show up, we can always misdirect them like we always do.”

“I guess you’re right,” Kaitie conceded as Rhonda sat her plate in front of her and left with a nod. “But I will tell you this. I will not tolerate anyone coming here and nosing around my clinic. That is where I draw the line. I have patients that I will protect.”

Buddy grinned, “I would expect nothing less from you, Kaitie. I’ll tell you what. I’ll buy your breakfast for ya. It’s the least I can do since your morning has started out the way it has.”

“Thank you. And you’re right. It is the least you can do,” Kaitie smirked. “By the way, your wife called me at the house this morning and said your blood pressure has been up. You need to come in and see me today. No excuses.”

“Yes, ma’am, Nurse Kaitie. I will be in after lunch. I promise,” Buddy said. “Between you and my wife, I won’t get any peace until I do.”

“That is because one of us likes you,” Kaitie said as she took a bite of biscuit.

“Which one of you likes me?”

Kaitie grinned, “Well, now, you’re the sheriff. You figure it out.”