by C. D. Bell
Nessa realized she might not have looked carefully at the third recruiter until he stood. He was wearing chinos, but they were wrinkled. His shirt was not a golf shirt neatly tucked into a belted waistline but an oversize flannel shirt with pens in the breast pocket. He had gray hair, was balding, and had a vacant, somewhat surprised expression on his face, like a person who was about to confess that he’d misplaced his glasses.
“I saw you run yesterday,” was all he said. “Your back left foot was dragging behind your right. It’s not a huge deal.” He pronounced “huge” without the “h.” “But it opens you up for injury, and it’s something you might want to talk to your coach about cleaning up. College-level scouts, that’s something they’re going to see.”
Standing behind the three men, Vivian gave Nessa a significant look. This was the one Vivian was backing.
“Okay,” Nessa said.
The three recruiters started to talk. They didn’t have offers for her just then; they mostly wanted to get to know her, they said. They wanted to see what kind of school/experience she was looking for. What kind of program would be a best fit and then start talking to coaches.
“Trust me,” said the one with red curly hair. His name was Chuck, Nessa thought. Or maybe the other one was named Chuck? “There’s going to be a great deal of interest in you. A great deal.”
“You’re going to have your pick of program with a full ride,” said the brown-haired one. He was named Mike, Nessa thought. “I’m hoping I can be here to help you.”
The gray-haired recruiter put a hand on his stomach and hoisted it up and over his beltline as he reached across the table for his third slice of coffee cake. “Can you believe we all here used to run a five-minute mile?” he said. “Ugh. I read recently that athletes have more propensity for weight gain in later years. Who knows why. This is delicious, Mrs. Kurland. I’d ask for the recipe, except I don’t cook.”
Chuck and Mike closed their mouths deliberately. Nessa wondered if the three of them spent a lot of time in the same kitchens of the same high school athletes. They didn’t look like they were struggling with weight gain. But no one pointed that out.
“What school do you represent?” Nessa asked the recruiter with the big belly and gray hair.
He burped a little bit behind his hand. “Stanford,” he said.
And at that, the two well-dressed recruiters moved their chairs back slightly, as if conceding their ultimate defeat.
As they continued discussing the different schools they represented and what coaches were looking for, Nessa found it hard to focus.
As hard as she’d worked toward this moment, it was difficult to envision the actual outcome, that she, Nessa, would one day leave this house and this town and travel far away to become a college athlete.
What happens at these schools when you need to transform into a wolf?
Nessa snapped to attention when Mike leaned toward her.
“Have you thought about that at all?” he said.
“Sorry,” Nessa said, realizing she must have missed the question. “Can you repeat that?”
But just then the doorbell rang again, and there was yet another man in a golf shirt and chinos. “Come on in,” Vivian called out from the kitchen, like this guy was a trick-or-treater on Halloween. “You take cream in your coffee?”
The new guy stepped to the side so he could get a view of the kitchen table. He was much younger than the others. “No need for coffee for me,” he said. “I’m not here to try to scout your daughter.”
“You aren’t?” Vivian said.
Delphine and Nate each looked up from their screens.
“I’m representing Paravida?” the new man said, sounding as if he was asking a question. “I’m on the community relations team. I’m based out of corporate? Over in the Chicago office?”
“Well, I figured you didn’t work at the plant out here, because no one does, as far as anyone can tell,” Vivian said crisply. Vivian, like everyone in Tether, had not yet forgiven Paravida for providing close to zero local jobs.
As if that were the biggest of their problems, Nessa thought bitterly.
The handsome man—he looked like he could be the host on the red carpet—spoke again, “Did you know we’re the corporate sponsors of the cross-country team at Tether High?”
Nessa did know. She knew it because of the new uniforms they’d been given when she was a sophomore and because of the Paravida Award that Cynthia had won last year. It was—to put it bluntly—everything Nessa had ever wanted. A scholarship to the summer training academy of your choice, a GPS running watch, a new wardrobe of running clothes, including four pairs of shoes and two spikes over the course of the year.
Was this man here to talk to her about…?
Nessa couldn’t utter the word. Not even in her own head.
“Nessa Kurland,” he said. “I’m Joe Napier. It’s my sincere pleasure to inform you that you’ve been selected as the next Paravida Award recipient. I don’t know if you’re familiar with the program, but it’s something we at Paravida are very excited about and believe represents the company’s true commitment to the community of Tether.”
Nessa stood up. Regardless of how important the moment might be, the events of the past twenty-four hours suddenly rearranged themselves in her head. It was time for these men to go.
“Thank you Mr. Napier,” she said with the biggest smile she could muster, considering that one of his Paravida coworkers had tried to shoot her with a gun less than twelve hours earlier. “I need to discuss all of this with my coach. He’ll be in touch with all of you very soon, I’m sure.”
She looked over at Vivian and saw that her mother was staring with her mouth a little open. Nessa gave her the hairy eyeball, and suddenly Vivian got it.
“Thank you, gentlemen,” Vivian said, standing up. She started clearing coffee cups, even though the recruiters weren’t done drinking. She picked up the coffee cake without even offering a slice to Joe Napier, and she cleared her throat. “Okay everyone. We are thrilled. But we’ve got to get Nate to his soccer game!”
This got Delphine’s attention. Nate didn’t play soccer on a team.
“As you can imagine, yesterday was quite a day. I think we’re all tired,” Vivian said, moving toward the front door. “It wasn’t just Nessa’s win. A little boy named Billy Lark, who was a friend of ours, died suddenly and inexplicably. The whole town is in shock. We were there until late last night.”
At the mention of Billy Lark, the recruiters got quiet, stood, promised they would be in touch. It was clear they had no idea what to say or do and preferred to run for cover. Joe Napier didn’t look any different. Nessa studied his face as her mother was talking. Did he know Billy’s body had been inside the Paravida facility sometime around midnight the night before?
If so, he made no sign of it. He just looked hurt and confused, organizing a sheaf of papers for Nessa and Vivian to sign—personal conduct forms, forms agreeing to wear a Paravida logo at all times, forms promising they would never sue Paravida—Joe Napier called this “boring legal stuff.”
As soon as he was gone, Nessa heard Delphine’s voice calling, “Nessa! Get out here. We have a surprise for you!”
Nessa returned to the living room, where Delphine had just finished dividing a liter of ginger ale into the four mismatched wine glasses Vivian never used.
Delphine’s pretty face was flushed. Her eyes were sparkling. Nessa saw that Vivian was leaning against the counter, her hands braced behind her, watching, her face warm with pride.
“It’s pretend champagne!” Delphine said, passing glasses to everyone, including Nate.
“To Nessa!” Delphine made Vivian and Nate say, like this was the last scene of a movie. They all took sips.
“To Stanford!” Vivian said. They all took sips again.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
As soon as her family’s celebration toast was over and the recruiters had been dispatched, Nessa was frantic to meet an
d talk with Bree. Magically, the house emptied out within minutes. Nate didn’t hang out with other kids often, but there was a boy down the street whom he played Pokémon with, and he announced they had a meet-up at noon. A few minutes later, Vivian left for Sunday call at the animal hospital, dropping Delphine at a Girl Scouts meeting on the way.
Nessa texted her friend. She wasn’t sure why, but as soon as Bree arrived, she dragged her into her bedroom and closed the door. She just felt like they needed the extra privacy. She hurriedly caught Bree up on what had happened the night before—the body snatch by Paravida, the eerie autopsy she had overheard, the terrifying killer wolf pack, the mysterious gray wolf, their narrow escape from the Paravida campus, even Pasty Pete. She finished with the surreal visit by the recruiters and an emissary announcing she had won the Paravida Award.
“Whoa,” was all Bree could say when Nessa was done. Her eyes were saucers.
They sat there for a few minutes, silently absorbing the implications.
“Bree, I don’t know what to think anymore. I feel like I don’t know anything anymore. We all thought Paravida was this great company, that they were coming to save our town, help the kids, and now.…How can there be so much evil in yet another company? What has Tether ever done to deserve this?”
“What are they doing to the kids in the study?” Bree said, more a statement than a question. “That’s the question. We all should have suspected something when Paravida appeared, the white knight to fulfill Dutch Chem’s settlement with Tether. I mean, why? What’s in it for them? Some patents?” Bree shook her head. “Billy’s body is the thread. That’s what is going to lead us to answers. Do you know what they did with him after?”
“You mean after they shot at me? No idea,” Nessa answered. “The Larks think Billy’s body was going to the hospital in Saginaw for the autopsy. Mavis Cartwright and some other women were in the kitchen last night gossiping about it. Mrs. Lark didn’t trust Paravida to take Billy. So I assume Paravida somehow got him to Saginaw Hospital.”
Bree’s eyes narrowed, like her thoughts had shifted course.
“What about the guy from Paravida who offered you the prize?” Bree asked. “Anything strange about him?”
Nessa thought about it. She shook her head. “No. He seemed professionally nice,” Nessa said. “He claimed he was based in their corporate office in Chicago and told us he works in community marketing. He’s probably never even been to Tether.”
“Did he touch anything in the house? Use the bathroom? Leave anything behind?”
“He was in front of us the whole time,” Nessa replied. “He left some permission papers for my mom and Coach to review and sign. Why?”
“If they’re on to you, and they might be, he could have planted a listening device,” Bree replied. “Where are they now?”
“You mean because I was there the day Mrs. Lark discovered that the kids in the study were being restrained?” Nessa asked. “So were you.”
“No. I mean because they have your blood. From the doping test. And based on what you’re telling me about the strange pack of killer wolves, I just wonder about all of that. If they can steal an eleven-year-old’s body for an autopsy out from under his parents’ noses, they can plant some dope in a locker.” Bree stood up. “Where are those papers?”
They rushed into the kitchen. The papers were on the counter in a slick folder with the Paravida logo embossed in three raised triangles on the cover. They searched page by page and found nothing. Bree got down on her hands and knees to examine the flooring and carpet under the chairs where the four men had sat, and ran her fingers under the rim of the kitchen counter. Still nothing.
Nessa was stunned. Bree was right. What could happen if they knew she’d been bitten? And planted the dope in her locker knowing she would be required to submit to a blood test? What did they want from her now? Were they after her like Billy?
CHAPTER FORTY
A few hours later, Bree and Nessa lay on their stomachs in the leaves, in a dense thicket of trees, staring at the Paravida campus down below. It was dusk. Bree was propped on her elbows, looking through some binoculars they had borrowed from Bree’s aunt, who was an avid bird-watcher.
“Just observing some Emerald-Crested Boobie Thrushes,” Bree had said breezily, waving the binoculars in her aunt’s direction as they ran for the car. “Extra credit for Chemistry! We’ll have them back by dark.”
Nessa had started laughing out on the front walk.
“What does bird-watching have to do with Chemistry?” she asked. “And what’s an Emerald-Crested Boobie Thrush?”
“No idea,” Bree said. “I was improvising.”
There was a single, long driveway into the Paravida facility. They couldn’t approach from that direction or they would be seen. So they had parked the Monster on an old logging road and hiked a quarter mile to the top of a ridge from the opposite direction.
“I don’t see any white van,” Bree said.
“It’s gone,” Nessa said. “Last night it was parked right there.” She pointed to the building with the loading dock. “The autopsy was being performed inside.”
“Where are the wolf kennels?” Bree asked.
Nessa showed Bree the passageway. They could not see the kennels from where they were. “You can’t see it, but trust me—it’s awful. Like some depressing zoo from hell.”
Nessa hadn’t mentioned it to Bree, but she was being careful to sniff for the aggressive wolves, to make sure they wouldn’t be ambushed. But their scent was faint. None had passed anywhere near their current position in at least a few days. She guessed they might already be in lockdown for the day.
“The spotlights are affixed to the five guard towers,” Nessa added. “It looks like daylight when they are on.”
Only two of the five guard towers appeared to be staffed—one guard in each. Neither one was Pasty Pete. Nessa supposed he had to sleep sometimes. The first guard was reading a magazine, and the second one appeared to be asleep.
“I know what!” Bree said, sitting up.
“What?” Nessa asked.
“Tim!”
“Tim who?” Nessa asked. “Tim Miller?”
“Yes. Tim Miller. Think about where Tim Miller works.”
“You mean his after-school job? I have absolutely no idea,” Nessa said.
“Come on,” Bree said. “Yes, you do. Mr. Pre-Pre-Med? Mr. Paramedic Volunteer?”
“Oh,” Nessa said. She was remembering now. “He volunteers at Saginaw Hospital!”
“Exactly,” Bree said. She sounded very pleased with herself. “We can ask him about how they track bodies for autopsy. I bet he would look into it. If we asked nicely.”
“Okay. That’s an idea. Worth a try,” Nessa agreed.
Bree was already calling. It went through to voicemail. Nada.
Just as she ended the call, Nessa saw one of the doors to the kennel building open. Four men quickly emerged, two in lab coats and two dressed in guard uniforms. Nessa grabbed the binoculars.
“Oh my god. I think they see us!” she said.
Did they pick up the cell signal from Bree’s phone?
One of the lab coats was pointing toward the ridge where they were hiding. A walkie-talkie crackled and one of the guards in the towers stood up. The door in the fencing clanked to life, and began to ascend. Moments later, Nessa saw the aggressive wolves emerge from the kennel building and run toward the exit.
“We need to get out of here. Now!” she said. She jumped up and pulled Bree up by her hoodie. They turned and ran back the way they came. Nessa could smell the wolves getting closer just as they were safely back in the Monster.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Nessa and Bree drove down the logging road as quickly as they could and back out on to Route 18. They passed a Paravida SUV heading toward them, but there was too much traffic on the road for them to stand out. They returned the binoculars, declined an invitation to dine with Bree’s aunt, and drove to Nessa’s. They
tried Tim Miller again from the car, but no luck.
“Let’s get to school early tomorrow and catch him before the first bell,” Bree suggested, and Nessa agreed.
The next morning, when Nessa and Bree pulled into Tether High, the parking lot was empty; none of the buses had arrived. But even so, they still had no luck finding Tim. Nessa did have to field lots of high fives and all kinds of admiration for her win on Saturday. She figured it was worth the cause.
“Who knew he was such a man of mystery?” Bree complained, when the bell for first period finally rang. “See you at lunch?”
Nessa nodded.
Nessa noticed that people were subdued and the halls were quiet as people walked to first period. Even though Billy was homeschooled, he would have been known to many kids from Little League (he’d been a terrible player but his mom brought the best post-game snacks). They’d seen him at the library and the health clinic, and his picture was always in the paper every year when he helped build the model train set up in the Town Hall lobby during the Christmas season.
Mr. Porter spoke into the intercom during morning announcements, letting it be known that he was keeping his office door open all day in case anyone wanted to speak about the events of the weekend or other related issues.
Then Principal Sarakoski got on the intercom. “In the midst of our sadness for Billy Lark, I’d still like to acknowledge the achievement of junior Nessa Kurland who came in first place on Saturday and became the State Champion in the cross-country 5K. Cynthia Sinise and Luc Restouille also turned in excellent performances. Congratulations to Nessa and the entire Tether High cross-country program.”