Chapter 3: Cold Water

"I can't believe there's no hot water here!" Kate shouted through the door to Will as she wrapped the towel tightly around her body. The shower was 'refreshing' in more ways than one - she was grateful to have the caked mud off of her skin and she definitely felt invigorated by the cold water,

"Just hurry, I'm still waiting for a turn." Will responded, throwing his filthy shirt onto the floor on top of his boots and socks, he'd deal with that later. "I still don't understand where that creature went?" Will half-asked, half-stated.

"I know!" The door to the bathroom flew open in an exasperation that mimicked the look on Kate's face. "We were right there according to the thermal scans and then, bam" she threw hands up in agitation as she spoke, the wrapped towel wavering slightly on her head.

"It doesn't make sense," he muttered heading towards the empty shower, "I was hoping this would be an in and out extraction, but it seems that tomorrow's date with Abby will have to be rescheduled."

"Taking your girl out, eh?" she punched Will playfully in the arm as he passed. He recoiled at the sting.

"Yes," he managed, still rubbing his arm gingerly; "we were going to a new restaurant downtown which serves a Victorian dinner by candlelight. It's her birthday and I had a few things planned. But, I should have known this," he gestured towards his muddy pants and legs, "would have happened."

"You saw us chasing after a disappearing abnormal in the middle of Masaya, Nicaragua?" Freelander joked as the door to the bathroom shut. "Dude, why didn't you give me a heads up? I wouldn't have dove head first around that tree and into that mud pit!"

"You know what I mean!" He shouted back over the sound of the running shower water.

She simply shook her head and pulled out the bag of recently bought clothes from the artisan market, lots of thin cotton items but no jeans or t-shirts. She was grateful they were able to find somewhere to shop in the tiny town as she slipped into a set of hand-woven jade pajamas.

As Will shivered reaching for a towel, he heard Kate ask, "So, where do we pick up tomorrow with this extraction?"

Hurrying to wrap the towel around his goose bump covered skin, Will shrugged, unseen by Kate. "I say we retrace today's steps, starting where we first picked up the signal. The files said it's not a fast creature."

Kate fiddled with a muddy handheld device, wiping the screen clear enough to make out an empty grid. "That's for sure. Looks a lot like a sloth and moves as such. Maybe we can recalibrate this tracker. That thing was all over the map. The last Bradypodidae docilus I caught was a walk in the park. Tranq'd from a distance, bagged and sold for a nice sum of money," she smirked, thinking back to the days past. "There's no way Hank programmed this correctly," she muttered, fiddling with the casing.

Will had done his homework and thought that they were well equipped for this tag and bag. The Bradypodidae docilus, or Angel Sloth, was an abnormal offshoot of the three-toed sloth. The subtle differences being its carnivorous nature and a unique defense mechanism, a chemical spray to fend off predators and euthanize small prey. The mist was not fatal to humans and other large animals, but the effect of inhaling the musk was cited as a semi-paralyzing, hallucinogenic high comparable to a combination of rohypnol and phencyclidine. A live adult Bradypodidae docilus would sell for upwards of $75,000 on the black market, after which, it would be caged and 'milked' for the compound, which fetches more than $50 an ounce on the street.

"Why is it these assuredly 'calm creatures' are the ones that wreak the most havoc?" Will postulated as he exited the restroom, clad in a new pair of cerulean cotton pajama pants. "Lepidoptera, Nubbins, Vampire squid, and now Bradypodidae docilius, the Angel Sloth." He plopped down on the bed opposite Kate's with a tablet, intent on reviewing the file.

"You'll feel like you're flying with angels if you get a whiff of what it's selling," she smirked as the casing popped off. "Ha! Let's see if I can't fix Hank's mistake. Maybe I should be presenting at that tech conference instead."