The Influencer

Halfway up Route 18, near the edge of the Mojave Desert, a redrock canyon cuts across ancient lava flows and scrubby foothills before fading, without fanfare, into the western horizon. The canyon is walled by high cliffs, perfect for wandering sightseers and swarms of rock climbers, happily risking their lives for the view. Far below the cliffs, in the canyon bottom, a web of hiking trails, adorned with manzanita and yucca and creosote, leads to great domed rock formations, big enough for crowds of weekend visitors on Saturday afternoons.

But there were no such crowds the morning Benny Mullens set out with his GoPro and a gallon of water and a pound of snacks stuffed into his backpack. He had parked his car at the trailhead, pleased that no other souls were in sight. He didn’t need people in the background of his videos. After all, his favorite crowd–15,000 online followers–depended on attention to such details.

“Hello everyone, I’m here today in Star Canyon State Park, ready to enjoy the beautiful scenery it has to offer. If you’re interested in visiting for yourself, check out the link to the park website in the comments.” Just at that moment, a deer fly landed on his ear and he instinctively swatted it away.

“I’m hoping to find some cool animals today.” he continued, talking into the phone, which was mounted on the end of a selfie-stick. “I know you guys really appreciated my last video. That bull snake was one of my coolest finds, and I appreciate all the comments that followed.”

He paused the video again, thinking about all the effort it took to produce content. For every specimen he found, he spent hours wandering, enduring discomforts and risks that his followers would never know. It wasn’t uncommon for him to waste an entire day, or even days for that matter, looking for something content-worthy. He really needed something good now, he thought as he began to follow a dry creekbed that diverged from the trail. He knew he was close to a huge increase in followers if he could just get one video over 1M views.

The phone rang at the end of the stick. It was Benny’s older brother Matt.

“Hello,” Benny said, putting the phone on speaker. He figured it wouldn’t bother anyone this early in the day.

“What are you doing?” Matt asked.

“I’m at Star Valley, trying to make a video,” Benny replied. “Why?”

“I need your help later today,” Matt answered. “And you’ve already spent too much time wandering around this week. Besides, Mom and Dad don’t like it when you go out by yourself.”

“Ya, ya, I don’t need to hear it,” Benny said. “You guys never said anything when I was home alone all the time. Don’t you know that most people die at home? Look it up.”

“Whatever,” Matt said. “Are you on a trail at least? You’re not going off road are you?”

“Maybe,” Benny said. “Anyways, I’ll call you when I’m done."

Benny ended the call and put the phone back on the stick. He moved farther up the creekbed but it became choked with dry vegetation and a few large boulders that nearly touched each other at the top.

“I’ve found some good habitat here in this dry creek bed,” he said as he angled his face into the sunlight. He lowered the selfie-stick a little to get a better angle, with more scenery in the background. “I’ve already seen whiptails down here. And the sun is warming up the rocks so it’s time for some serious thermoregulation.” He was especially proud of that last line.

Then there was a rustle in the leaves. Benny looked over and caught just a glimpse of something unusual. The colors blended so well, orange, black, against the background. It seemed to be the shape that he recognized first–the fat, scaly tail, protruding from the leaf litter, just showing a glint of sunlight.

Benny’s heart began to race. He crept closer, and confirmed that he was not just delusional. He could see the Gila Monster’s head now, black and resting contently on a low stone. The creature watched as Benny approached, but it didn’t move.

“Oh my gosh,” Benny said into the camera. “He turned the stick and began creeping closer. “I think I’ve found something epic today. This is so incredible. It might be my greatest find yet.” As he got within about five feet, the lizard began to react to his presence. It did not move quickly. It was still chilled, having been in the shade up until only a few minutes ago.

“He’s moving slow right now,” Benny continued. “He hasn’t begun to really warm up for the day. He’s just resting here under this bed of scrub oak leaves.”

Benny was close enough to bend down and touch the monster now. He slowly crouched, looking for a good stick instead. He knew Gila Monsters were protected and it was probably illegal to harass them, but he needed a better view and there were too many leaves in the way.

“I have to show you guys this amazing animal,” Benny continued. “I normally wouldn’t mess with this dude, but I think I can just clear the leaves a little so you can have a better view. It’s warming up now, and he was most likely getting ready to head out for a little feeding time.”

Benny was keeping a close eye on the lizard while still scanning for a good stick. There was nothing in the sandy creekbed that he could see within his immediate reach, and he feared that if he stood up again, the lizard would move into a nearby shrub and become unreachable. He could see it watching him closely, with its head angled slightly upward, toward him.

Benny paused the video. It was taking too much time, and the lizard wasn’t moving on his own. Then he decided to gently clear the leaves with his hat. He put the selfie stick on the ground, took off his hat, and began to slowly lower it toward the lizard’s back. When he got within a few inches, the monster let out a hiss and Benny saw the mouth begin to open. He could just make out a row of tiny, serrated teeth along the black shiny scales of the lower jaw. The hiss made Benny recoil a little. It was clearly a warning. He reached in again slowly and brushed the brim of the hat along the leaves, where he knew the lizard’s back would be. The tail swished a little to the side when he did this, but the lizard still didn’t move from his spot. And the leaves were deeper than Benny thought, so it was impossible to clear them with the floppy brim of the hat.

Finally, growing desperate and knowing that these types of encounters don’t come often and certainly don’t last forever, Benny decided he would just clear the leaves with his fingers. He began down by the tail and had made it all the way to the back legs. When he moved a twig, he could see a pudgy foot with claws on it. Being so close, he felt a great temptation to touch it. He thought that if he could just tickle the lizard’s foot a little, it would probably move ahead, hopefully emerging fully onto the low rock, where Benny could start the video.

He touched the foot. The scales were cold, and this was good, because he knew the lizard would likely be less agitated and slower to react. He moved up the leg a little wanting to feel some of the bigger, rounder scales on the lizard’s back.

The contact caused a rush of adrenaline. It was inconceivable to him when he heard the hiss, and felt the deceptively fast movement, the surprising quickness with which the lizard spun around. There wasn’t any pain, at least not in the few seconds after the lizard clamped down. It caught Benny on his left hand, in the meaty part below the pinkie finger. Then, when the adrenaline began to ripple away, the pain began to come, like a burning, stretching feeling. Benny was shocked to see the lizard did not release after biting.

“Aarrrghh,” he yelled. He went to his knees and raised up his arm as the lizard wriggled. The belly scales were so ornate, but terrible to him now. Benny could feel the burning, stabbing sensation moving up toward his wrist. His vision had almost gone blurry at times, but when his mind became more composed, he began to accept that this was really happening and he knew he needed to act.

With his right hand, he tore the phone off the selfie-stick and was able to call 911. To Benny’s great relief, the call went through.

“Hi, yes, I’ve been bit by a Gila Monster,” Benny told the dispatcher, trying not to pant too much into the phone. “I’m at Star Valley State Park, about 300 yards from the Gem Trail, maybe a mile in from the trailhead is all. I’m down in a dry creek bed. I’ll try to walk out to the trail at least.”

“Where is the lizard now?” the dispatcher asked.

“He’s still attached to my hand,” Benny said, hardly believing the words.

And the lizard was still there, gripping, like a pitbull, almost grinning as he seemed to be chewing. And the black, beady eye looked straight into Benny’s eyes. Fearing he would pass out, Benny took a deep breath and picked up the selfie stick. He began to walk back toward the trail. He thought about hitting the lizard with the stick, or bashing it on a boulder, but knew enough that it might cause more agitation–more venom to be released. He knew that was exactly what was happening: the little monster was chewing and working the venom into his flesh.

When Benny reached the trail, he began to stagger, scanning frantically for anyone else. He yelled for help, but there was no response, only the sound of his own panicked voice echoing back at him. He had gone about a half mile with the lizard still dangling from his hand. He thought about how ridiculous he must have looked–like he was wearing some ill-conceived Halloween costume. Then he began to hear the sirens in the distance. He knew they were coming for him. He considered, for a brief moment, recording the incident now. He had not captured any of it since the attack. It would make the most incredible video. But he knew that at least 50% of the comments would be negative. He knew he would be trashed online for getting so close, for touching the monster, for attempting to manipulate nature. The cost to his viewership would be too high. Despite the thrill and drama, he would never again be respected as an authority.

The venom was beginning to work now. He could feel the sweating, the nausea, the dizziness. Thankfully, the lizard seemed to be thrashing less; at least the tail wasn’t switching back and forth. Strangely, as he walked, Benny still admired the round little belly, and the beautiful orange and black scales that seemed so stark now, hanging in the air.

Then came a lightheadedness that worried him. The sun was higher and hotter now. The sand beneath him felt radiant and soft. He began to stoop toward it, unable to keep himself completely upright. He began to hear voices over a nearby ridge. He tried to call feebly, but his heart was racing into his throat. He saw the sand coming closer, and he stopped resisting it. He let his body relax, and he let himself fall.

“I’m giving him epinephrine,” was the next thing Benny remembered hearing. The words sounded metallic in his ears. He was squinting, but he could see the ceiling of the ambulance and there were forms hovering around him. When his eyes began to clear, he saw the stretcher and heard the beeping sounds and the sounds of the EMS radio. He heard people talking outside the back doors. Then a face became clearer to him. It was a paramedic, seated next to him. And there was another, placing an IV into his right arm. And he could hear the two of them talking over the top of him.

“We’re about ready to roll,” said the one on his right. “What do you want to do about the lizard though?” Benny was able to raise his head just slightly off the slim pillow on the stretcher. He could see the lizard resting next to him on the clean, white sheet, still attached to his hand. He could see it breathing slowly, the belly contracting and expanding. He tried to speak to it, but couldn’t. He wanted to say that he harbored no ill-will, that he understood that it was his actions that had brought him to this point, not the lizard’s. “It’s not your fault, little…” And then he felt another wave of dizziness, and he laid his head back down and closed his eyes.

“I don’t know how to fix this,” Benny heard the paramedic say. “I’ve never seen this before. I know we need to get him off of there, but I don’t know the best way to do that without causing damage or making it worse.”

“Maybe we could tranquilize it somehow,” Benny heard the other medic say.

“I wouldn’t know how to do that, or what the dosage would be for that,” the paramedic replied. “We’ll just have to start transport as is. I’ll call ahead, and tell them we’ll need some expertise on the removal. I’ve heard of them hanging on when they bite, but this one is a champ for sure.”

A few minutes later, they were instructed to bting Benny and the lizard just as they were. The ER doctor told the ambulance staff that all the venom had likely been released. Benny could hear the siren begin to wail, and the ambulance began to lurch and buck on its way to the main highway. He didn't go entirely out of consciousness anymore, rather he seemed to go from consciousness to dreaming. He dreamed of a sandy beach, and the Gila Monster sitting in a beach chair next to him. They were admiring the sunset together. And the lizard was the size of a man, and he had his arms tucked leisurely behind his head and his legs were crossed over his tail. And then he began to talk.

“You know,” the lizard said, as the surf gently hissed in the background. “I’m your biggest fan. I’ll be your most loyal viewer forever. I’ll never watch anyone’s content except yours.”

Benny turned away, repulsed.

“I’ll never let go of you Benny. I’ll never go away.”

Benny felt deeply that he never would be separated. The lizard was a part of him, with him, attached in some way for the rest of his life.

He awoke to his left arm being manipulated. He saw the two paramedics standing over him now. The ambulance was parked, and Benny could see the entrance to the ER through the open back doors. There were hospital staff standing inside the ambulance now too. A gray-haired doctor approached, and he was holding a tongue depressor and some sturdy-looking forceps.

“Hold his arm to the stretcher,” he heard the doctor say. “I can’t have him move at all. And someone have the towel ready.” The doctor moved in, and he began to wedge the tongue depressor into the right side of the lizard’s jaw. The animal began to wriggle a little, and the paramedic began to softly cover the tail and back legs with the towel. The doctor, showing confidence beyond the normal duties of the ER, worked the forceps along the top of the tongue depressor, and as soon as the cold stainless steel touched the lizard’s upper jaw, it suddenly released.

Benny wanted to jerk his arm away, but it was still held down. He saw the lizard raise its head, and the purple insides of its mouth flashed at the people standing around. The paramedic immediately threw the towel over the lizard’s head and wrapped the whole thing up, placing it gently inside a cardboard box that a nurse was holding.

“Okay, everybody” the doctor called. “Now that we have that done, let’s get him back, and start him on vasopresser. And let’s get cleaning up the wound too.” Then he turned and spoke to Benny.

“That’s one crazy predicament you got yourself in,” he said. “I won’t ask how you got in it. But we’ll help you feel better regardless.” Benny could only nod. He felt the stretcher sliding forward and then lowering down onto the sidewalk. The lights of the ceiling dazzled and there was a certain thrill that began to rise independently, above any discomfort. There were two dozen people standing nearby, watching silently as the stretcher was wheeled in.

Benny couldn’t help himself. He began to revel in the attention, and he suddenly and unbelievably wanted more of it. He wanted to be paraded around the hospital with a big sign attached to the stretcher “Gila Monster Attack Survivor.” He wanted to be able to feel the awe and wonder of everyone around him, and he wanted to see all the faces that couldn’t turn away from his eccentricity. Then he caught a glimpse of the box on the floor near the doorway. And he saw it shudder from the movement of the creature. He remembered the open, purple mouth flashing at everyone--lone and defiant and deliberately unattached.