by L. T. Ryan
“Be right in, Charlie. Thanks.” When the kid shut the door behind him, Howie held out his hand to McKinnon and Bear in turn. “Sorry I couldn’t be more help. If there’s anything else I can do, just holler. You can call the main office and tell Marie to transfer you.”
“Thanks for your time.” McKinnon waited until Howie disappeared into the building before trekking back to the car. “Well, that was a bust.”
“Seems strange not to have a go-to guy for vehicle work, don’t you think?” Bear was grasping at straws, but something didn’t feel right. “Especially with that many vans. Not even a mechanic on site? Just go to the cheapest place?”
McKinnon shrugged, then slid into the front seat of the car. “Maybe that’s how they save money.”
Bear squeezed himself in beside her.
She turned the key in the ignition and the vehicle roared back to life. “Look, if he was hiding something, he deserves an Oscar. He was cool as a cucumber. Didn’t resist. Didn’t try to slow us down.”
Bear didn’t know what to say. She was right, of course, but saying it out loud was admitting that they’d hit a dead end. He hated dead ends. With the van out of action and nowhere to be found, there was only so much they could do to dig it up again. You couldn’t follow a trail that had gone cold.
18
Every cell in Mandy’s body buzzed with energy as she walked home from Marcus’ house. She was supposed to stay there until dinnertime, when Bear would pick her up, but as soon as she saw what was in Laura Lynn’s file, she couldn’t wait. She tried calling, but Bear wasn’t picking up. And she needed to move. Be active. Do something.
Sitting still with this kind of info led her mind down the obsessive path. Since leaving Europe, those types of thoughts had subsided. Even thinking about them got her a little upset.
So, she said goodbye to Marcus and slipped out the back, where his mother wouldn’t see her. She’d probably get a lecture from Bear. Whatever. It’d be worth it to bring him this information. The papers in her backpack felt like they were on fire, radiating a heat that soaked through her clothes, into her skin, and buried itself in every muscle of her body.
The walk from Marcus’ house to her own would only take her about fifteen minutes. A single country road skirted the center of town and acted as a straight shot between the two houses. Every time a car passed, it kicked up dirt and gravel, making Mandy cough and choke and spit. She had the urge to flip them off every time someone new drove by, but she resisted. She had more important things to focus on. If only the people in this town knew what she knew.
Mandy was still processing. When they’d logged into the hospital’s portal, she wasn’t sure what she was looking for. She just wanted answers—answers that adults wouldn’t volunteer. If Bear was hellbent on keeping her out of his investigation with the sheriff, then she’d form her own hypothesis and conduct her own experiments.
When they’d looked at Laura Lynn’s file, the answers had jumped off the page. The doctors didn’t know what was wrong with her, but they were treating her like she’d been poisoned. Laura Lynn’s bloodwork showed not enough of some chemicals and too many of others. Mandy couldn’t pronounce half the words. The doctors’ notes showed they didn’t know why. But something was wrong. And it'd been wrong for weeks.
The first culprits that came to mind were Laura Lynn’s parents. Mandy had dismissed that idea as soon as she’d thought of it. Mrs. Weinberger had said they’d all been feeling sick. What was the point in slowly poisoning your daughter if you were going to eat the same food or drink the same drink?
No, someone else was doing this to them.
But why? Laura Lynn was fourteen years old. She didn’t have any enemies. She was the sweetest girl Mandy had ever met. Her family was targeted at random, or her parents were. Mrs. Weinberger was a kind, soft-spoken woman. A bit too much of a doormat. Unless that was a cover Mandy couldn’t see through, then the reason they were on someone’s radar was likely Mr. Weinberger’s fault. He seemed like a guy who pissed people off regularly.
Mandy had no idea what he could’ve done. Laura Lynn didn’t enjoy talking about her father much. She didn’t even know what his job was, nor what kind of extracurricular activities he was involved in.
So, they were back to the drawing board. It had taken Marcus a minute to find the right keywords, but he searched the hospital’s database for similar symptoms. More than a handful of cases came up. Was the hospital aware they were all related? Did they have any clue they had an epidemic on their hands?
Mandy wasn’t sure that was the correct word for this situation, but it felt right.
Her ears perked up at another car coming up behind her. She moved over to the side of the road, along the tree line, and got ready to hold her breath. The amount of dust directly correlated with the speed at which the car would be moving. Her brain tried to come up with a formula, but it sputtered and stalled. She liked math, liked the order of it, but it didn’t always come easily.
The car slowed. That was unusual. Mandy looked over her shoulder and saw a white panel van, like the one that had tried to run her, Bear, and the sheriff off the road yesterday. Her neck and shoulders tingled. Goosebumps erupted all over her body. Half of her brain told her to run, but the other half told her to hold her ground lest she trigger a predator’s hunting instinct.
She kept walking with her eyes forward, watching the van approach from her peripherals.
It pulled up next to her.
Mandy stopped and turned to the driver, squaring off with the van and staying on the balls of her feet. She looked the man in the eyes, absorbing every feature of his face. Taking in as much detail as her brain could process.
He had dark hair and tanned skin. It wasn’t wrinkled like he was old, but like life’s lessons had worn him down. Although something about his expression told her he hadn’t learned very many of them. He had a tattoo on his neck, and although she could see splotches of color, she couldn’t make out any shapes. When he hung an arm out of the vehicle, there was a shiny gold watch on his wrist. She vaguely wondered how much it was worth. When the man opened his mouth to speak, she saw he was missing a tooth along the top left-hand side of his mouth.
“Do you need a ride?”
“No, thank you.”
The last thing Mandy wanted to do was be polite to a creep like this, but she was hedging her bets. Firm answers, direct eye contact, and no fear. Maybe he would move on. She wouldn’t be an easy target, despite her size and age, and she wanted to let him know that up front.
“Are you sure?” His brow furrowed in mock concern. “Your backpack looks heavy.”
“No, thank you.”
“Come on, it’s hot out. You’ll get home way faster.”
“I’m not going home.” She hoped he didn’t know where she lived.
He smirked, and she realized they both knew that was a lie. “Mandy.” His voice was firm now. Deeper. Scarier. There was a dark glint in his eyes that sent another wave of goosebumps skittering over the surface of her body. “Get in the van.”
Mandy took off running like her life depended on it—and it probably did. Whether or not this was the same guy who ran them off the road, he was definitely working for the same people. This wasn’t the first time someone had attempted to get to Bear through her. Bear had trained her for this. She was ready for this. Every fiber of her being focused on one thing.
Staying alive.
As she sprinted away, she almost relished the burning of her muscles. This was doing something. She had gathered more evidence as soon as the van had pulled up next to her. She hadn’t caught a glimpse of the license plate, but she knew what the driver looked like. And he was easy to identify.
Mandy heard a curse and the van door popping open behind her. Then the crunch of gravel underfoot. She didn’t dare look back. She kept her eyes forward, pumping her arms in rhythm and pushing off the ground with all her might. She was the fastest in her grade, even among the boys, and she wa
s nearing top speed.
Her feet left the ground. Something had caught hold of her backpack and yanked her to a halt, sending her sprawling onto her back like she was awkwardly sliding into home plate. Gravel cut into her elbows as she landed, and dust replaced the air in her lungs. She tried to cough, but she could only manage to wheeze.
“Why are you running, huh?”
The man was hovering over her now. His face a sneer, even less inviting than before. Up close, she saw his cheeks and forehead were pockmarked. And though the tattoo was hidden by his collar, she saw hints of red and blue. Was it the American flag?
Mandy didn’t have any more time to cement the man’s image in her head. When he reached down to grab her by the shoulders, she slammed her foot into his crotch.
He grunted and fell to his knees just as she rolled out of the way.
In seconds, she was back on her feet. Before she could run away again, his hand clamped around her wrist like a vice. Pain shot up her arm, and she couldn’t help the cry that escaped her mouth.
He yanked her closer. “You’re going to regret that.”
“Doubt it.” Though she was scared, something in her had awoken. No matter how much she had complained to Bear about all her boring and repetitious lessons, she was once again reminded of how important they’d been. Everything came second nature. She didn’t even have to think.
Instinct.
She dragged her fingernails down the man’s face. She could’ve punched him in the nose, but despite being strong for her age, she was still small. And this would leave a mark. He howled in pain, and she took advantage of his distraction to peel back his thumb and release her wrist from his grip.
Mandy hopped back two steps, distancing herself. She saw him in a new light now. He was skinny, but he had muscle. That meant he was fast. The man was also tall, and his arms had a long reach. That would be to her disadvantage, too. He had caught up to her so fast, and because of her backpack, he’d had something easy to grab onto to slow her down.
Her brain yelled at her to ditch the bag. The burning-hot papers stuffed into the main pocket were enough for her to dismiss the idea. She’d never be able to remember everything on Laura Lynn’s charts without them, and she needed to show Bear what she’d found.
But when the man whipped out a knife, everything around her came to a halt. She and Bear had trained with weapons before, carefully at first and then increasing in speed and intensity over the years. He’d never gone full tilt at her before, not like this guy would. She knew the basics. She only had to keep it simple.
Mandy slung off her backpack and used it as a shield. When the driver lunged, she spun out of the way and deflected with her bag. The knife caught and ripped open the front. The backpack’s contents spilled out onto the road, whipping about in the wind.
He saw her eyes get wide. His narrowed into another sneer. “Worried about your homework?”
She didn’t bother responding. The fight was taking all of her concentration. Maybe when she was older, more experienced, she could throw in a few comeback lines, like Bear did. As it was, she needed to focus. Now was the time to decide—grab what she could, or run?
The man lunged again, and Mandy spun out of the way a second time. But he was ready. With his other arm, he grabbed her around the neck and pulled her in close. She had a feeling he didn’t want to kill her—just take her hostage—which meant he was also at a disadvantage. She was fighting for her life, and she’d do whatever it took to survive. No matter the consequences.
The driver had underestimated her. She might not have been as strong as him, but she was just as fast. As she aligned her body to his, she stomped down on his foot with all her might. It did nothing. Steel-toed boots.
Changing tactics, she swung her arm down. For the second time in as many minutes, she hit him as hard as she could in the crotch. He bowed. She dropped the backpack and made to swing a second time. His hands were rushing to protect himself, and Mandy used the momentum to push his wrist down at an angle and drive the knife into his leg. It didn’t sink all the way to the hilt, but it would need immediate medical attention.
The man was distracted by the pain in the lower half of his body. His bloodied hands slipped off the knife’s handle.
Mandy reared back and flipped her hips to ramp up the torque as she drove forward and slammed the heel of her hand into the guy’s face, breaking his nose. His head tipped back, and blood spurted from his nostrils. She curled her fingers into a fist, pulled back, and with all her might, punched him in the throat.
The man went down, gasping for air. But Mandy didn’t stick around to gloat. He’d already proven he was fast on his feet and could recover quickly. She spun around and sprinted into the woods, using the trees to cover her path. If she could stay off the road, she’d have a chance. He might know where she was going, but he wouldn’t dare attack the house with Bear at home. She just had to hope her dad wasn’t out with the sheriff.
As Mandy pumped all her remaining energy into her legs, her final thoughts lay with the answers covering the road behind her. She let out a few creative curses—the kind she’d heard Bear speak on more than one occasion—and then moved on.
It was a loss, but she was determined to recover, one way or another.
19
Bear had only been home for five minutes. In that time, he’d checked the entire house for any disturbances, circled the backyard to see if anyone had been poking around, and cracked open a beer. He’d drained half of it in one gulp when the front door crashed open.
He was through the kitchen and into the living room with a butcher knife in hand within a matter of seconds. He had the weapon clutched in an attack position. Who the hell had been so bold as to attack him through his front door? He lowered the knife when he realized that the figure hurtling toward him was a dusty and dirty Mandy.
As she launched herself into his arms, he dropped the knife and scooped her off the ground. She wasn’t crying, but he could feel her ragged breaths against his neck, and the shaking of her limbs told him she’d sprinted home.
He kicked the door closed and locked it with his free hand, then placed Mandy on the couch. She didn’t let go. He had to pry her hands from around his neck. When she looked up at him, he noticed a scrape along her face that had beaded with blood. Her hair was a tangle of knots, and dirt had clung to the sweat on her arms.
“What happened?” Bear knelt in front of her. “Are you okay? Hurt?”
She shook her head. Her eyes were still a little wild. “Not hurt. I’m okay.” She swallowed. Caught her breath, then inhaled deeply and calmed herself further. “Someone attacked me.”
His attention went to the front door. “Did they follow you here?”
“I don’t think so.”
“I’m going to go check, okay? You stay here. I’ll be back in sixty seconds. Tops.”
Mandy looked like she wanted to protest, like she wanted him to stay and hug her and tell her everything was going to be okay. But she swallowed her fear and nodded, folding herself into the couch, closing her eyes, and continuing to take deep breaths.
Bear snatched the knife off the floor and parted the blinds. The front yard seemed clear. He slipped out the door and walked down the driveway to the sidewalk and peered up and down the road. No cars. No pedestrians. It was relatively quiet for a Saturday afternoon.
Once he was satisfied, he checked the perimeter, peering into the woods to see if any figures were darting through the trees. A branch popped to his left, but the squirrel scurrying away told him it wasn’t the quarry he was hunting.
Inside, Bear poured a large glass of water and gave it to Mandy, who gulped it down. Her gasping breath when she finally lowered the glass indicated she had spent a fair amount of energy.
He waited until she stopped drinking and faced him before he spoke. “What happened? Tell me everything, step by step.”
“I was at Marcus’ house. We found something about Laura Lynn. He hacked into the hosp
ital and found her file.”
“He what?”
She ignored the interruption. “The doctors think she was poisoned.” She paused here, waiting for a reaction, but Bear kept his face neutral. “There are other patients with the same signs and symptoms. We printed off the information. I wanted to show you.” She looked down, momentarily embarrassed. Her voice, already straining past the dirt in her throat, got quiet. “I called you, but you didn’t answer.”
Now it was Bear’s turn to look away. He pulled out his phone and saw one missed call. He cursed. “I’m sorry.” He met her eyes. “With everything going on, I got distracted. It won’t happen again.”
“It’s okay.” Mandy sounded cavalier, but he could tell she was hurt. “I decided to walk home. I know I shouldn’t have.” She rushed on, “But this feels big, Bear. Something is going on.”
“I know. We’re working on it.” He stopped himself from chastising her for ignoring the rules and walking home by herself. Something told him she had learned a lesson today. “What happened when you walked home?”
“A van pulled up behind me. Another panel van, like the one from yesterday. And the driver stopped and leaned out the window. He asked me if I wanted a ride home. I said no. He didn’t like that. He knew my name. So I ran. But he caught me and we fought.” She gasped around a sob, her bottom lip quivering. Bear pulled her into a hug, but after a few seconds, she pushed him away with a gentle hand and finished her water. She sounded stronger now. “He had a knife, and I stabbed him in the leg with it. Then I broke his nose and punched him in the throat.” She grinned now, proud. But it only lasted a few seconds. “But I lost my backpack. The papers. I just ran. I ran all the way here.”
“You were smart to leave them behind.” He ducked his head to meet her downturned gaze. “Hey, you did good, kid. You did the right thing. I’m proud of you, okay?” He waited until she nodded before he continued. “Was it the same van that hit us?”