67. Chapter 67

Walking into Black Badges office with a coffee in one hand and the other intertwined with her wife’s hand, Nicole sipped on the hot beverage as she looked around the room. Finding that everyone was present; Emily, Dolls, Jeremy, and Wynonna were sitting around the conference table as Jeremy was working on his computer.

“Hey, what’s up to Red?” Wynonna sniggers as Nicole’s face turned the same colour as her hair.

“WYNONNA.” Waverly raised her voice as she slapped Wynonna’s upper arm, causing the older brunette to yelp.

Rubbing her arm and a scowl on her face, Wynonna crossed her arms over her chest and slumped down in her chair. Dolls were focused on Jeremy’s computer when he heard the commotion, he turned his head towards Nicole and Waverly, who had sat down.

“Right, now that everyone’s here, we’ll get started. Jeremy ran a couple more tests and was able to access the BBD database files and found out more information on Wendigo and what we are to expect if it’s still around. Emily went through the missing person reports and any unusual reports in the Police system, and nothing has stood out. We’ve got to wait till we have another attack or ...” Wynonna interrupts Dolls.

“You mean to say, that we offer the citizens of Purgatory up as a lamb to be slaughtered. Surely Jeremy can come up some way of us being able to find this thing. Didn’t you say that this thing will just keep on killing? We just can’t sit here and do nothing. What about the pups, it’s not like they can defend themselves from this thing.” Wynonna stares at Jeremy, who’s peeking over the top of his laptop.

“Last night, Waverly and I were talking about the possibility of training our pups, in being able to protect themselves by learning how to pounce and attack prey. With this Wendigo on the loose, we were wondering if you all be interested in helping to train all our pups. That way we can know that at least they will be safe if something happens.” Nicole looks around the group, watching for their reactions.

Dolls leant back in his seat and ran his hands behind his head, “You know Haught, that sounds like a good idea. You and I could teach them, simple skills and tricks to keep them safe. The Homestead would be the best place to do the training. And Wynonna we are not offering the citizens of Purgatory as lambs to the slaughter. We are waiting for this Wendigo to make its next move. While searching the BBD database, Jeremy found some documents that need to be researched further, before we can do anything.” Dolls look in Waverly’s direction, who was using Nicole’s free hand to rub her swollen belly.

“Waverly, do you want to give me a hand with this?” Jeremy stands from his seat, then picks up the folders while looking at Waverly.

“Sure, you know how much I love researching. Let’s get into it. Babe, could you please get me one of my herbal teas for me.” The brunette stands and places a kiss to Nicole’s cheek.

Jeremy discusses with Waverly as to what they were looking for, before diving into a serious session of researching, much to Waverly’s delight. Meanwhile, Nicole heads out of the office and towards the Station’s kitchen to make her wife’s cup of tea.

Still wondering as to what the next move should be, Wynonna pulls out her phone, “Baby girl, what was the name of the farm that your friend Hetty lives at, the one near where the severed head was found? Waves, in your research, you come across any cattle rustlers?”

“The Tate family were cattle rustlers. They stole livestock and rebranded it as their own. I guess somewhere along the way they went legit because they eventually morphed into Tatenhill Farms. Totally organic operation grass-fed cattle farm.” Waverly replies.

“Herman, Hetty’s brother looks after the cattle, while she and Mama Olive run the dinner,” Waverly says while reading through the pages of research on the Wendigo.

Picking up a doughnut with icing and sprinkles from the box in the middle of the table, with it sitting in her mouth, Wynonna searches through the internet on her phone for information on ‘Tatenhill Farm’. “How do you feel about cows?” Looking at Dolls with the Doughnut in her hand.

“I guess it’s the best place to start, maybe this Herman saw or heard something?” Dolls grab his jacket and follow behind Wynonna out the door of the BBD office. Emily had returned to her Police duties for the rest of the day. Nicole returned with Waverly’s herbal tea and after making sure that her wife had everything she needed, Nicole then returned to the stack of paperwork that hides her desk from plain sight.

Arriving at Tatenhill Farms in Dolls SUV, driving up the long driveway towards a two-storey house, surrounded by snow-covered fields that are bordered by a line of tall Spruce trees, on the top of a hill. At the front of the house was a porch, that had a set of stairs leading to the wooden porch. A way off from the house was a red-painted barn, with a snow-covered roof. Just inside the front fence to the property was parked a red delivery van, with ‘Tatenhill Farms-Hormone Free-Local-Always fresh’, written along the side of the van.

From within inside the house, Herman stood chopping up the internal organs of the deceased hiker on a butcher’s chopping table. Armed with his meat cleaver, Herman spies the SUV from the window, that overlooked the driveway. Leaving the hiker’s severed body parts on the table, Herman makes his way towards the porch to greet the intruders.

Wynonna and Dolls exit the SUV and begin to walk towards the house, when Dolls says, “So we need to talk with Herman and try and find out if he knows anything about the missing hiker. HQ says they want evidence of this Wendigo’s existence before they send any resources. Don’t screw this up. Earp! Quid pro quo for the resources they provide.”

“What resources? You won’t even buy the coffee and doughnuts.” Wynonna snaps back at Dolls.

“Could you please take this seriously just ONE goddamned time?” Dolls aggressively snarl.

A bit took aback by Dolls aggressiveness, Wynonna bites back, “Ok, A-the last guy who talked to me like that got a nail gun to the nads. (Wynonna turns her head just slightly towards the house). And B-creepy dude, farmhouse porch, 2-o’clock.” They both turn their heads to face the house, where they are confronted with a male, dressed in blood-stained blue jeans, a brown leather jacket, with a blue bandana tied around his face, to hide his face, and a black cowboy hat resting on top of his head. Within his right hand was a meat cleaver, which he made sure that could be seen.

“Oh, yeah, Dolls. That’s him.” Wynonna says as both her and Dolls reach for their guns and prepare themselves for any trouble.

While standing on the porch there was a steel drum positioned just next to the top of the stairs, where it joins with the porch, just then Herman raises the meat cleaver above his shoulder before throwing it towards both Dolls and Wynonna. Luckily for the BBD Marshalls, they were able to move out of the way of the projectile meat cleaver, which lands behind them in the snow.

Realising that he was now in trouble, Herman runs down the stairs and towards the field behind the fence line, but as he reaches the gate, his loses his footing on the slippery gate rails and falls to his knees. Close behind him was Dolls and Wynonna, “Hey, Stop! I’ve got a beef with you, Tate.”

“And it is not just delivering meat puns.” Wynonna holds Peacemaker in her hand and points it at Herman’s head. Herman has turned around to face the pair, “Leave us alone!”

Dolls try to persuade Wynonna to lower her gun, “Don’t shoot him, Earp.” Herman’s bandana is still in place, Wynonna reaches over and yanks it down to reveal his face and a tattoo mark on the right side of his neck. “I can see your great-great granddaddy in your eyes. Last photo of the Earp legend, that I saw just before I heard that you had come back.”

Dolls speak up, “All we want is to ask you a couple of questions, about a hiker that was killed near your land. Did you hear anything maybe a couple of days ago?” Wynonna has not lowered Peacemaker, “Put Peacemaker down, Ok?” Dolls plead.

“He tried to kill us Dolls.”

“It’s a shame that I missed, I wanted to watch you bleed out.” Herman spits out. Wynonna places Peacemaker right on Herman’s forehead before she pulled the trigger. Dolls try to stop her but are unable to get to her before she shoots. Herman falls to the ground dead, with a single bullet wound in the middle of his head. “What the hell, Earp? Now we don’t know if Herman knew anything about the hiker or the Wendigo?” Dolls grabs hold of the gate and shake it aggressively and grunt his frustration.

“If he did, Herman would have told us, not try to kill us.” Wynonna slides Peacemaker back into her holster. Dolls observe the dry grass at the bottom of the fence and notice something in amongst the dry grass. Crouching down and rummaging through the blades of grass, Dolls finds a mummified human hand. “What the hell is your deal?” Wynonna whinges and upon seeing the hand, “Uhhh…”

“It’s human.” Dolls hold the hand as he inspects it.

“In theory anyway.” Just then Wynonna is spooked by a distorted screaming noise coming from within the house, “US, ‘Leave US alone’ that’s what Tate said. So, who the hell is ‘US’?” After bagging the mummified hand and placing it into the SUV, Dolls and Wynonna made their way into the house, where they found the remains of the hiker, as it was chopped up and left on the butcher’s table.

“Why do all the baddies always have to be such a freakin’ hassle?” as Wynonna rummages through items on the shelves within the room, trying to find more evidence as to who Herman meant by ‘US’. Upon one of the shelves, Wynonna finds under other documents, a Family Album, which she begins to open, to find no photos of Herman’s family, but newspaper clipping of missing persons.

“This guy had a mummified arm on his property. And this (Dolls indicates the butcher’s table). It’s way more than a ‘hassle’.”

“Good point. The at-home butcher shop raises it to the level of aggravation…. But the creep factor on this aggro goes to 11. Not so much ‘family’ as ‘victims’.” Wynonna shows Dolls the album.

“Maybe he tries to keep their memories alive.” Dolls look at a couple of the newspaper clippings.

“Oh, that’s nice. You know, for a serial killer or Wendigo.” Wynonna takes a couple of photos of the chopped-up hiker’s body for Jeremy and for evidence to justify as to why she shot Herman.

Dolls head back to the SUV to radio through to the Police station and requests for Nicole and Emily to come out to Tatenhill Farms. While they waited for Nicole and Emily to arrive, Dolls walks around the outside of the homestead, trying to find any more evidence which can be used in his report. Finding only dry grass alongside the old building, Docs storms his way back towards Wynonna, who has made the front passenger seat and playing with the SUV’s radio.

“You better not be changing the radio station, Earp.” Before Dolls could say anything more, the noise of a vehicle approaching the homestead and when he turned to see as to who it was, Dolls noticed that it was Nicole and Emily.

“So, what do we have here? Dolls.” Nicole asked while Emily started to remove from the trunk of the cruiser, the bag which they kept all the equipment used to retrieve evidence from the scene.

“We tried to talk with Herman, but he attacked us, and Wynonna shot him. He’s body is over by the gate (Dolls points towards the gate). But it gets a whole lot better, inside is the remains of what I think is the body of the hiker, we’ve been looking for. The only problem is that the body has been chopped up, just like it was being butchered for eating. Wynonna’s taken photos of the scene for Jeremy. And we also found this in amongst the dry grass next to the fence. (Dolls moves to the back of the SUV and shows Nicole the severed hand, which is now in a plastic bag).”

Nicole explains to Emily as to what they were to gather as part of the evidence and then after everything had been photographed, bagged, and documented. Nicole called for the coroner to collect both Herman and the hiker’s body to return to the morgue, where a post-mortem would be conducted on the premises of the station.

Once all of them had returned to the station, Dolls, Wynonna, Nicole and Emily headed into the BBD office to find Jeremy viewing something on his computer, while Waverly had her head stuck in a book and not realise her wife kneeling in front of her, only when the redhead placed her hand on Waverly’s knee, that the brunette looked up from her book.

“Hi, honey.” Waverly smiles at Nicole.

“Hi, there yourself. You look like you need to take a break from that book. When was the last time that you had something to eat or drink?” Nicole looks at the half-drunk cold cup of tea that was sitting on the table in front of her wife.

“I’ve been busy.” The book in Waverly’s hand begins to be lowered onto the table, as the brunette bites her bottom lip.

“I think it’s time we got you home and pick up those pups of ours from school along the way. I just don’t want you to overdo it.” Nicole raises a hand and places it on top of Waverly’s baby bump and runs circles over the fabric of her wife’s top. Waverly looks into her wife’s pleading eyes and knows that Nicole was right, she needs to be careful as this is her fifth pregnancy, of which four she went full term with. Taking hold, her wife’s hand in hers, Waverly lead them to the door where they said goodbye to the team and made their way home for the day.

Meanwhile, Wynonna had placed the photos from the ‘Family Album’ onto a board and dated their disappearances, while Dolls used Jeremy’s equipment to create a mould of the teeth marks on the severed hand. As he is waiting for the mould to set, Wynonna is pacing in front of the board.

“11 people between 93 and 2000. That’s when Daddy was Sheriff.” Wynonna states as she points to the photos. Then she comments, “Then Tate just starts hacking them to death again this year. Why? Maybe Tate was feeding the Wendigo with the butchered body parts?”

The timer dings to indicate that the time is up and Dolls can remove the mould and begin to examine the teeth markings. “Bone marrow in this arm has been cleared out. Spontaneous mummification isn’t unknown in nature. But this …”

Jeremy looks over at both Wynonna and Dolls and in unison, both Jeremy and Wynonna say, “Ain’t natural.”

“OK (Dolls holds the mould to reveal the teeth to both Wynonna and Jeremy).”

“Those are human bite marks.” Jeremy states.

“But is it our Wendigo?” Wynonna questions.

“Resources were scarce in the old west. People starved.” Dolls comments.

“Eat or be eaten,” Jeremy replies.

“Most would try not ever think of it again, but some …. some just got a taste for it.” Dolls hold the mould in his hands.

“I can’t believe he was eating people.” Wynonna makes a disgusted face.

“He wasn’t. Based on the size of the jaw, we’re looking for a woman Wendigo.” Dolls look at both Wynonna and Jeremy.

“A cannibalistic serial-killing female Wendigo?” Wynonna looks over at Jeremy with a concerned look on her face. “Some girls have all the fun.”

A couple of hours later when Nicole had returned to the station, she and Dolls had to go and inform Hetty and Mama Olive of Herman’s death. When they arrived at the dinner there were no customers, which made it easier to ask Mama Olive and Hetty to use the office, where they could talk to them. After delivering the sad news, Dolls asked if they knew as to why Herman had been butchering up a human body in their house. To which Hetty replied that when they had left that morning, Herman was out working in the barn and there was no dead body in their house. This didn’t sit well with Dolls and he made sure that when he returned to the station, he would run some checks on the Tate family.

One other thing that did seem strange to both Nicole and Dolls, was that when it was revealed that Wynonna had been the officer who had shot and killed Herman, neither Hetty nor Mama Olive cried, instead they just sat there looking deadpanned.

Meanwhile, Emily had returned home to her very pregnant wife and rowdy pups, who were running amuck around the lounge room, when she stepped in the house. Louise was dead on her feet from working all day and then having to try and calm down two very excitable pups from trashing the house. The cause for all this rowdiness was because at the Preschool, they had been shown how to pounce on prey and they both thought it would be alright to try these moves in the living room. All Emily could do was to place a hand over her mouth, to hide the smirk that was on her face, because she knew that Louise would not appreciate it for her to encourage the two little terrors.

“What do we have here? A couple of monkeys, no they can’t be monkey’s, they don’t have long tails. They must be tiger’s, but they don’t have stripes, so they can’t be tigers. They must be pups being naughty.” Emily chases after the little girls, who have chosen to shift into their wolf forms and were now heading towards the back door, which Louise quickly opened for them to head out through. Emily quickly stripped out of her clothes and changed into her wolf form and followed her daughters into the snow. With their thick white fur, the pair of tiny wolfs blended into the snow, making it that much harder for their Ma to find them, but she soon found them by picking up their scent. Playing for a couple of hours where Emily showed them a couple of tricks for when they needed to protect themselves from other wolves, but mostly they spent the time having fun.

Now that the two little ones were tired out and hungry, Emily leads them back towards the back of the house, where they changed back into their human forms and dressed in the clothes that Louise had left out for them beside the back door. Once inside the little family sat and enjoyed their evening meal together before Emily helped the girls with their baths and Louise read to them before falling asleep. Emily wanted to make sure that Louise took it easy, so she took over the chore of washing up the dishes and tidying the house, while Louise rested on the couch.

Leaning over her wife Emily placed a kiss to Louise’s cheek, “I’m going to have a shower and then we can go to bed.”

Standing in the shower letting the water run over her face and down her body, Emily felt the tension of the day wash off her, just like the water falling onto the floor of the shower. With her eyes closed, Emily knew the instant when her wife entered the shower as her scent was strong and close. Feeling hands wrap around her belly and her shoulders being peppered with tiny kisses, Emily groaned as she moved back into the front of her wife’s body, with the baby belly being pressed against Emily’s lower back.

“Mmm, that feels nice.” Emily notices that she is already aroused and ready to go, with just the briefest of touches from her wife. It’s been a while since Louise has been interested in being intimate.

“I just need to touch you. I know it’s weird, but I need to be near you.” Louise squeezes Emily’s waist tightly. Emily turns so that she can look her in the eye. “Baby, like the last time with the girls, it’s not weird, I love it when you want to be touching me, its because you're wanting to feel safe and protected. I have no problem with that if anything it’s all I want to do.” Emily leans forward and kisses her wife.

Louise’s hands explore Emily’s body and rest upon her wife’s ass, which she gives a tiny squeeze. “But what you say, if I want to do more with you than just cuddle you.” With a wiggle of her eyebrows and a wink, Louise beacons her wife to follow her towards their bedroom. Wiping her body and following her wife, Emily is shoved back on the bed and Louise straddles her lap. With her cock all ready to go and Louise’s scent oozing her arousal, Louise climbs onto of Emily and begins to ride her until they both reach their climaxes, and after Emily moves them in the bed so that they are more comfortable and able to fall asleep in each other’s arms.

Outside of the town limits in a homestead, were two women sitting around an old-fashioned TV set, plotting revenge on Wynonna Earp for the death of their son and brother. The younger red-headed woman was seething with anger, while the grey-haired woman sat munching on what looked like a large lamb leg. On the floor beside the older woman’s foot, sat a severed human hand. Looking over at the older woman, the younger woman relayed her plan to get even with the Earp’s.