Dressed down or not, she was unlike any doctor he had ever met.
She had one apparent feminine wile. That scent of hers left a trail wherever she went, like a sweet trap or a very gentle come-hither. Well, he wasnt falling for it. In another time and another place, maybe. But he had his hands full at the moment, and as lovely as the scent was, it bugged the hell out of him.
Dr. Martin, he said in a businesslike tone of voice as he followed her to the elevator. Several of my patients are allergic to perfume.
I assure you that has nothing to do with the virus, she said pragmatically.
He gritted his teeth. I know that. Its just that while youre working here, perhaps you shouldnt wear any.
She glanced in his direction as they stepped onto the elevator, a puzzled expression flitting across her oddly pretty face. I never do.
Crap.
Two
T he caf that Dr. Winston said served fair enough food was one of those wonderful mom-and-pop places. Small, out-of-the-way restaurants that served fabulous food was something else Faith missed when she traveled outside of the country. The sweet and spicy aromas filling the air were fabulous. She was certain dinner would be heavenly.
She traveled frequently, but shed never been to Montana. So far, she was impressed with the landscape and most of the people. Rockland was a small, quaint town, with mountains to one side and vast plains to the other, magnificent and wild, soothing in a gut-deep way. And the people had all been warm and welcoming.
Well, with one very obvious exception.
The local doctor had been kept busy since theyd ordered their meals, answering questions from concerned townsfolk. It was rather interesting to watch. The people who gathered around the table called him Luke, not Dr. Winston, but the respect they had for him was evident. He was straightforward with them, answering their questions truthfully while being very careful not to scare anyone. He introduced her as Dr. Martin, and said she had come to help. Nothing more. They nodded politely and thanked her.
Dr. Winston was one of those physicians who cared for their patients in a very personal way. He felt each pain, and beat himself up over every failure. She had known him less than an hour, and yet she was certain he grieved for every patient hed ever lost.
That was a luxury she could not afford.
As huge plates laden with meat loaf, green beans, corn pudding and rolls were placed before them, the people who had gathered around to ask questions about the epidemic backed away one at a time. Several of them thanked her again for coming to their aid.
All right, Dr. Winston said as he forked up a piece of meat loaf. He kept his voice purposely low so as not to alarm any of the other patrons. What is it? Tell me exactly what this damned disease is.
Its similar to a hantavirus, but we havent been able to identify the exact strain. There are, in fact, some indications that it might be something entirely new. By the time we return, the lab will be set up and I can conduct further tests. We need a detailed genetic analysis before we can continue.
But you said you knew what it was.
I believe I do, though it does seem to have mutated. Theres a yellowish tinge to the fingernails, and an unusual discoloration about the eyes that leads me to believe its a particular virus. And as I said, it isnt spread from person to person.
Are you sure about that? he asked.
Faith was not accustomed to being questioned. Have any of your staff become ill? she asked.
Dr. Winston shook his head. No. Weve been careful. And lucky.
Its not luck, she said. In order to contract the virus, you have to come into direct contact with the contagion by either breathing the particles or touching them directly so that theyre absorbed through the skin.
Its spreading quickly enough, he grumbled. I have seventeen patients in my clinic. Seventeen! Add the five casualties and were talking about twenty-two people who have been infected. Twenty-two, in a very sparsely populated county. They all became ill over a period of four days. Some of them live miles apart. How do you explain that?
I cant, not yet, Faith let the puzzle settle in her mind. Each epidemic was a puzzle, a deadly riddle, and it was her job to make the pieces fit. Were going to have to get local law enforcement involved. Have the homes and workplaces of your patients been examined?
Our local law enforcement is a sheriff who shouldve retired two elections ago and a handful of inept, underpaid, very young deputies, Dr. Winston said impatiently. They have their hands full dealing with the reporters who have shown up to follow the story. We cant count on them, not for anything.
Surely they can bring in reinforcements. Faith was horrified by the news that she would not have the assistance of the sheriff and his men. I can instruct them on what to look for, and show them how to protect themselves as they search for the host. Commonality must be established as soon as possible. Inept or not, she would make use of whatever manpower she could find.
Dr. Martin, the local doctor began, shaking his head as if he had arguments for her perfectly sensible plan.
She was in no mood to argue. I can call in military support.
The widening of his eyes revealed his reaction to this suggestion. Military support?
If necessary.
He shook off the concerns. Right now I just want to get my patients stable. I cant treat the disease if I dont know what it is. Until now weve just been treating the symptoms. You can do more, right?
After I conduct a few preliminary tests, yes.
He seemed relieved by this news, so much so that his entire face changed. Softened just slightly. He was tired and angry and confused by the changes that had swept through the town with the virus. For a moment, Faith felt genuinely sorry for the doctor.
Dr. Luke Winston was a good-looking man, she observed indifferently. He could use a haircut. Brown hair curled around his collar and over his ears. She suspected his shaggy hairstyle and stubbly jaw were due to a lack of time for a visit to the barbershop, rather than a fashion statement. He had very nice blue eyes and symmetrical masculine features. He would definitely be handsome if hed get that sour expression off his face! Of course, handling an epidemic of any kind was difficult for a physician, especially one like Luke Winston. He was under a lot of strain, and it showed.
When will you be able to tell me what it is? I want you to give this virus a name for me. Something besides Rockland Fever, which is what the damn newspapers have been calling it. He sounded as if he thought if he had a name, he could curse the disease back to where it had come from.
What Ive seen thus far is similar to a microbe that was named Muerto Canyon , in 1994, but of course until I do more tests I cant label the virus at all.
Muerto Canyon? What does that mean?
The Valley of Death, she translated.
He paled visibly.
The majority of those infected will be able to fight off the virus, she assured him. Once we have a treatment formulated and the culprit eliminated, we should be able to bring this to a quick and sure halt.
He nodded.
We
ve done this before, she said gently. Everythings going to be fine.
He lifted his head to glare at her, his jaw tightening and his lips growing thin and hard. At that moment, his eyes were almost electric blue. There was definitely fire there. Dr. Martin, I dont need you to reassure me like Im some kind of rube who doesnt know his ass from a hole in the ground. Save the kindhearted consolations for someone who needs them.
You would prefer our discussions to remain strictly professional, she said, not allowing her feelings to be hurt by his rejection. She didnt have time for such nonsense. So Dr. Luke Winston was a jerk. He wasnt the first jerk shed met; he wouldnt be the last.
Yes.
Fine. When we return to the clinic, perhaps you could compile a list of your patients, the day they became ill, and their home and work addresses. If any of your patients have ties with one another, if theyre neighbors, if they work together, then I need a note of that, too. Connectivity, Doctor, that is our first responsibility. We must establish connectivity.
It hit six people at once, and I had five new patients the next day, Dr. Winston interrupted. Seven the third day, four the fourth. There have been no new cases since then, but until we know what it is and where it came from, I cant rest easy.
The source of the disease must be identified as quickly as possible. She didnt want to imagine what would happen if this virus spread. If they could not identify the source, that could very easily happen. Its too late in the season for a mosquito-transmitted disease in this part of the country, so we must look at mice, birds and sheep first. We must find the host and eliminate or contain it.
What if we cant? Dr. Winston asked sharply. What if we dont find the origin of this disease?
Faith didnt believe in pulling punches. We could very easily have a national emergency on our hands.
He wouldnt admit it to Dr. Martin, but he did feel better. The meal had done him good, and so had getting out of the clinic for a breath of fresh air. As they walked back to the clinic they moved quickly. October in Montana was cold, especially once the sun set.
A few strands of the good doctors ponytail had come undone so that several waving locks fell over her shoulder and down her back, but she seemed unaware of the fact. Faith Martin seemed unaware of many things, to be honest, as if she lived in her own little world. There were no outward signs that she took time to pretty herself up, and yet she smelled good. No perfume, or so she said. She used scented shampoo, maybe, or a special scented soap that tested the patience of any man who came near, without openly tempting him.
Dr. Martin moved gracefully, but completely without artifice. She didnt have what anyone would call a mouthwatering figure. In fact, she was almost flat chested. Almost. Her curves were small but nice, and she definitely didnt dress to show off what shape she possessed. She was delicate and yet strong, attractive and yet completely ignorant of her striking looks.
Luke shook off his unexpected fascination with the woman; anything he felt right now was simply the effect of not enough sleep and too much emotional turmoil. He roped in his stray thoughts as they neared the clinic.
For a small town, Rockland was lucky to have such a well-equipped clinic. Much of the equipment and supplies had been purchased through donations from the two guest ranches outside the city limits. The owners said it made their guests feel safer when they spent a week or two in the summer pretending to be cowboys. Since one of those ranch owners had five sons, all of them involved in the rodeo in some way, a nearby medical facility was definitely a good thing.
The clinic looked plain from the outside, squat, square and constructed of yellow brick. Inside, the first floor was comprised of a large lobby, rest rooms, a snack area with a few tables and vending machines, and the offices where Luke normally saw his patients.
The second floor was similar to a small hospital floor, complete with nurses station, patient rooms and Lukes personal office. Until recently, the facilities had not been put to the test. In the past week, however, theyd been strained to the limit.
A trio of reporters milled about restlessly in the lobby. Luke wondered if the others who had been gathering here for the past few days had decided theyd gotten all they were going to get out of this story, and had finally gone home. If so, things would be quiet again at the Rockland Motel, which never saw this kind of business after the summer, like everyone else around here.
The three reporters who remained in the lobby all looked bored and tired. A couple of them, the redheaded woman and a man, had been here all week. The shapely blonde from Great Falls had only been hanging around for three or four days. As soon as word had leaked out that there was an epidemic in Carson County, small Rockland had become news. Not big news, but news just the same.
The reporters became alert at the appearance of the two doctors.
Hey, Dr. Winston, the redhead called, flashing them a tired smile as she stepped forward. Whos your friend?
He ignored the query, as he ignored all the questions the reporters threw at him. Anything to report? Is it true that the government is now involved? Have you identified the disease, yet?
A sheriffs deputy had been on duty in the lobby for the past five days, to keep reporters and anyone else who didnt belong away from the second floor. It was amazing to Luke that it was necessary to have a guard to keep people away from a deadly disease. Until Dr. Martins arrival, no one here had realized that the virus didnt spread from person to person, and still the reporters had gotten too close. One deputy had caught the male reporter who was still here, an annoying man from Billings, trying to sneak up the stairs at least once that Luke knew of. What some people would do for a story.
When the elevator doors closed, Luke was grateful for the immediate silence.
There was no conversation as they rode to the second floor. Dr. Martins mind was definitely elsewhere. Luke was in no mood for idle chitchat. When they reached the second floor and the elevator doors opened, a short, balding man in a white lab coat was waiting for them.
You really must see this, the man said in an excited voice, his attention entirely on Dr. Martin. Luke felt momentarily invisible.
The man led the way to the end of the hall, where the partition between two rooms had been opened. Beds had been taken out, tables and sophisticated laboratory equipment brought in. While theyd been eating, Molly and Dr. Martins team had been busy setting up a functional lab. Luke was amazed that theyd been able to work so quickly.
Hello. One of the doctors approached Luke with a hesitant smile. He was tall, thin, blond and wearing a white lab coat over dark trousers. Im Dr. Willis Helm. Thank you so much for inviting us in.
Luke refrained from informing Dr. Helm that he had not been invited.
Thats Dr. Larry Gant, Helm continued, pointing at the excited man who had met Luke and Dr. Martin at the elevator. And that he indicated a dark-haired man about Lukes age who was presently pushing his glasses up on his nose and staring intently at the only woman in their group is Dr. John White. Were all very excited to be here.
Very excited. He was burying his patients, and these nerds were very excited.
Luke shook his head. He could tell Helm had meant no offense. The doctor was just a world-class geek in a room full of world-class geeks. He would leave the lab work to Dr. Martin and her crew. All Luke wanted was another look at Benjy. I have a patient he began.
Dr. Martin silenced him with a single raised finger. She didnt even
look at him as she donned a lab coat and pulled on the proper protective gear before approaching the microscope.
Luke leaned against the door, amused and chagrined at the same time. Who the hell did she think she was?
His trace of amusement died when Dr. Martin lifted her head, laying her eyes on him for the briefest split second.
Whats wrong? he asked, pushing away and standing up straight. Is this thing what you thought it would be?
Not exactly. She turned to her colleague. Its similar to a hantavirus, but this is definitely something different. Perhaps new, as we suspected. But I believe it can be treated with a megadose of a new antibiotic.
Ive given my patients antibiotics, Luke protested.
This is a specific antibiotic and a specific dose. Ive been developing it for months, and its designed to fight diseases that do not respond to traditional treatment. Unfortunately I dont have a great deal of the antibiotic with me. Who are your most critical patients?
Benjy. A six-month-old who was in ill health before he contracted the disease, and two elderly sisters.
Theyll be first, she said, ripping off her gloves and disposing of them in a mindless manner. I can have more of the antibiotic flown in by morning.
Wait just a minute, Luke said as he followed the maddening woman out the door and into the hallway. I appreciate the fact that youre here to help, but I wont allow you to come into my hospital and start treating my patients with experimental drugs without even consulting
She spun on him. If he hadnt been paying very close attention, he would have run her over. You have no idea what youre dealing with, she said in a lowered voice. What Ive found thus far is not exactly what I expected, but I am certainly more familiar with the mechanics of an epidemic that you are.
Family Secrets: Books 5-8 Page 73