Page 3 of So I Fell for Bigfoot
I couldn’t lecture my colleagues about being workaholics, because I was one myself.
Marissa handed me an envelope. “Someone dropped this off for you.”
“It didn’t come in the mail?” I asked as a slid a finger under the flap. A special delivery of a regular letter seemed odd, even under the best of circumstances. After all, email and text messages existed.
She shook her head. “Random delivery person. They insisted on handing it to you themselves, but I refused. I told them you were busy. I had a feeling that he was trying to get close to Lars.”
That made all the little hairs on the back of my neck stand straight up. Definitely ominous.
Tina cocked a brow. “If Lars is already attracting this kind of attention, are we sure going forward with this episode is a good idea?”
“I’m not, but something tells me that backing off isn’t a better option.” I opened the crisply folded paper and gasped as I read the note inside.
Bibi,
It feels so weird to call you that, but if I have any hope of getting you to listen, I have to play by your rules. You might not want me in your life anymore, but you can’t just walk away from me. Throw me away. Our bond is unbreakable. You might not have realized that I’m still part of you, no matter how famous you get, but others have. They plan on using our bond against you.
You can put a stop to this. You have so much more power than you ever had in the past. These creatures are betting that you still care about me, and sweet moon, I hope they’re right. I need you now more than ever.
-C
“What is it?” Tina put her hand on my arm, jumping when I stiffened. My wolf was on full alert, ready to burst out of my skin. “You’ve turned ghost white. Who sent you that letter?”
“Calista.” I could hardly believe it. It didn’t feel like her. Even though we’d gone no contact, I did still feel that connection. I moved my fingers down the margins, noticing a dark red fingerprint. My animal senses told me it was blood. Whoever sent this wanted me to believe it was hers. “I have a bad feeling her disappearance might be tied to Lars’s sighting of these long-dead beasts.”
two
Hannah
Three, two, one…my heart beat harder with every number that showed on the video countdown timer.
“Hey, this is Hannah, and sweet mother of the moon, pinch me, because my Mating Game episode is about to start.”
I reminded myself to breathe. As one ofThe Mating Game’s biggest superfans, I’d won a contest to star in my very own episode of the show. The ladies in the show forums were the ones who’d supported me every step of the way, even in the early days when I was nothing more than a screen name.
They’d become my friends. My family when my own had turned their backs on me.
This video didn’t have to be perfect. The forum regulars would hate that. There were a few people who posted in here who insisted I was an actress who’d been paid to come on the show and that all my content was staged.
No way.
I might be a hot mess, but I came by it honestly.
I refreshed my purple hair in the sink of my room at the chalet every week while I waited for my episode to start. Shaved one side of my head myself. Learned how to do the perfect cat eye by watching online tutorials. No faking anything around here.
Bibi, my fairy dragmother, was as real and pure as they came. I’d literally trusted her with my life.
But there was no denying my life was about to change. Bibi told me almost every day not to let the haters in the forums catch me squirming. I was about to be famous, and that meant everyone would have an opinion about me, whether I agreed or not.
These videos were a way to control the narrative. To let everyone hear the truth directly from me. I hadn’t sold Bibi on my methods yet, but she always said the most important thing I could do was be myself.
“So here’s what’s happening,” I continued, feeling a little better once the favorable comments started to roll in. “Bibi and the crew are about to arrive at my hotel room any freaking minute.” I did a little dance in my seat. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to a place where this was no big deal. “The purpose of our meeting is to discuss what will happen when I go on stage.”
The comments on the side of the screen were now moving so fast I could hardly read anything more than a word here and there. But there was no missing that same one kept coming up.
Lars.
“Yes, Lars has asked to take the stage as one of the three shifters that I interview. I have no idea if he’ll actually be there or not. I don’t have any say over who goes on stage. That’s how the show stays reality. I’ll pick the beast whose answers make my heart race. You’ve seen the shows and all the behind-the-scenes interviews. You know things can get a little crazy on stage. One of the reasons I decided to go live today is to ask for your help. What do you think I should ask these gorgeous beasts?”