through The boys ducked tight spots between the trees and splashed through boggy water They crawled under a briar thicket and scrambled over another fallen tree Pretty soon they couldn’t see or hear the bog monster splashing and grunting behind them Tyler grabbed for the trunk of a nearby tree hugged it and gasped Rest he wheezed Sean was wheezing too He looked at Tyler shaking his head I wouldn’t hug that tree You don’t know what kind of insect life lives in it Gabe watched the woods behind them It’s weird we got away from the monster so easily You call that easy Tyler said It does seem odd Sean agreed Logically the bog creature would know this swamp far better than we do It should have caught us I hope you aren’t disappointed Tyler said Because I’m not Not at all No Sean said Just suspicious 8
Gabe peered into the woods the way they’d come Then he heard a thick hoarse voice calling Gabe Did you hear that Gabe whispered It’s not good when the monster knows your name Tyler said That’s got to be an omen or something He looked at Gabe wide-eyed Maybe it means you’re going to die Unlikely Sean said He walked over to stand by Gabe The swamp around them was noisy Insects whined and buzzed Splashes sounded in the water Things skittered in the underbrush The growth is so thick and shadowy Sean said It would be quite easy for something to sneak up on us Gabe The voice came from behind them Gabe nearly fell over as he spun to face a mud-covered hulk It held Tyler’s arm in one muddy paw Help Tyler said weakly just before fainting 9
chapter 2 HOME OF THE MOTHMAN Wiping sweat fr Wiping sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand Gabe watched his brother’s face Gb on the video camera’s view screen Ben never looked nervous when filming Discover Cryptids Gabe couldn’t imagine being that calm facing a camera He’d stutter and forget everything he wanted to say He’d probably throw up Many cryptid stories have been around for hundreds of years Ben said And we have no way of knowing exactly how they began The Mothman is different We know exactly when the tale began and where That was Gabe’s cue He zoomed out slowly The view screen now showed a monster looming over Ben with outstretched claws 10
The first person to see the Mothman was from right here in Point Pleasant West Virginia in November 1966 That scary sighting began a year’s worth of sightings Ben continued Gabe slowly moved the camera upward on the tripod and focused on the monster’s sharp teeth and red eyes He stopped the recording That looked good he told his brother Let’s see Ben strode over to watch the footage Gabe’s friend Tyler walked closer to the tall stainless steel Mothman statue Tyler still held the microphone they used to get the best sound for voice-overs Scariest thing I’ve ever seen Really Gabe said grinning at his friend Scarier than Ben covered in mud Tyler pointed at him Don’t laugh You thought Ben was the bog monster too True Sean looked up at Tyler from where he sat cross-legged in a patch of grass flipping 11
