Haitian Harbinger

by Lincoln Matt

  Díaz led Alejandra, Bonnie, and Clyde down several long hallways and to a private hospital room in which Ethan and Robbie each lay in a bed.

  Alejandra beamed the moment she saw Ethan, and he met her eyes almost immediately. He gave her a genuine but weak smile.

  “Alejandra,” he said warmly. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “And it’s good to see you in one piece,” she chided, crossing over to him and squeezing his hand. “I thought I told the two of you to be careful.”

  “You did,” Robbie chuckled. “This was us being careful.”

  Alejandra gave him an exasperated look.

  “He’s not wrong,” Ethan added.

  “That’s concerning,” Alejandra laughed. “I’d hate to see what your version of being reckless is.”

  “I’m sure you would,” Ethan quipped. “We’ll have to meet up again some other time, then.”

  “I like that idea,” she said.

  “Alright, alright,” Robbie groaned, rolling his eyes. “You two will have time to flirt later. How about we get down to business, shall we?”

  Alejandra felt her cheeks grow hot, but she nodded.

  “Agreed,” Clyde and Bonnie said almost as one.

  “Yes, please tell us what’s happened,” Alejandra said.

  “Alright, but you’re telling it this time,” Ethan told Robbie.

  The other MBLIS agent related everything that had happened since Alejandra left for Santo Domingo earlier that morning.

  It was quite a story. When it was done, Alejandra almost felt like she’d just gotten off of a roller coaster.

  “He blew up his own ship?” she asked, incredulous. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I know,” Ethan said, shaking his head with wonder. “It was crazy. But I’m just sorry that we didn’t get away with a sample of the drug for you to study.” He gave Bonnie and Clyde an apologetic look.

  “Oh, didn’t you get my message?” Clyde asked. “We have a sample already!”

  “You do?” Ethan asked, sitting up a little straighter in his bed in his excitement. “How? When?”

  “That gangbanger you sent us, he helped us put it together out of the materials the Dominicans found in the airport bust,” Bonnie explained.

  “‘Put it together,’” Ethan repeated, shaking his head in confusion. “He kept saying that when we interrogated him. What did it mean?”

  “It meant that the drug was combined with other drugs to make something new,” Clyde explained. “I won’t bore you with all the scientific details, but the interaction with the other drugs created the anesthetic effect of the original ‘zombie powder.’ But by using modern drugs, it’s difficult to detect in the victims, since the doctors will just see the coke and heroin.”

  “You said there were some elevated levels of… what was it again?” Ethan asked.

  “Immunoglobulins, and some other stuff,” Clyde said, nodding to confirm. “This was from the herbal concoction the witch doctor used. We’ll talk to him when the Dominicans are done with him. It’s a gel-like substance with the other drugs in the package.”

  “Samuel’s here?” Robbie asked. “Where?”

  “That’s the witch doctor,” Ethan clarified, seeing the confusion on everyone else’s faces.

  “Oh, yeah,” Díaz jumped in. “He and his grandson are being interrogated by my boss right now. Then they’ll come over here and talk to your lab techs.”

  “Just make sure your guys don’t scare them off,” Clyde warned. “We need them.”

  “I know,” Díaz assured the lab techs. “And so do the other officers. We don’t want to let them off scot-free after what they’ve done, but we’re going to cut them some kind of deal so that they work with you.”

  Bonnie and Clyde seemed satisfied with this and returned their attention to Ethan and Robbie.

  “So, long story short, we have the drug,” Clyde said. “And we know how to identify it now. It just takes one extra test, and boom, we know if someone’s ingested it.”

  “Even the kids who took it and didn’t overdose had those levels?” Robbie asked.

  “Yes,” Bonnie said, nodding. “We still don’t know why some people die from taking the same drug, and others don’t, especially at such alarming rates. But it doesn’t seem like the cartel knew, either, judging by what you’ve told us.”

  “No,” I said, shaking my head. “That’s why they made that ‘ghost ship,’ as Ricardo called it, in the first place. So they could take people there and test it out. But this Solomon character didn’t seem to have any idea what that was about, though they were able to refine the drug and test it enough on people until they were confident the mortality rate was lower.”

  “If you had the new version of the drug, the one they sent to New Orleans, do you think you could be able to figure that out?” Robbie asked the lab techs.

  “It’s possible,” Clyde said thoughtfully, stroking his chin as he considered this. “It would be good to have it so we could compare it to what we have now and see what’s different. If we can isolate what changed, maybe we can isolate the cause of the deaths, as well.”

  Robbie turned to look at Ethan.

  “All the more reason to send a team back there to excavate the shipwreck,” he said.

  “Agreed,” Ethan said. Alejandra opened her mouth to protest, but he caught her eye with a smile. “Not now, of course. And with proper reinforcements when the time comes.”

  “Shouldn’t be hard since the ship was in international waters by the time it sank,” Robbie reasoned. “The guy sent that thing out into the sea as fast as he could when he got off. We won’t even have to go to Haiti, just send some copters and a ship of our own out there to take a look.”

  “It’s possible that if the drugs were sealed tightly enough, they’d be preserved enough to be of use to us,” Clyde mused. “And of course, there could be other clues that could be helpful to your investigation on the law enforcement side of things.”

  “Either way, I’m guessing we have a trip to New Orleans in store for us,” Robbie grinned, exchanging another look with Ethan. “I’m always down for a good crawfish boil.”

  “I doubt we’ll have time for that,” Ethan chuckled, but his eyes twinkled, causing Alejandra’s stomach to do that wonderful but irritating little backflip again.

  Just then, there was another knock at the door, and Alejandra’s father came walking in the room, closely followed by several of his personal security guards, all dressed in black suits.

  Alejandra straightened up instinctively at the sight of him.

  “Father,” she said, nodding to him. “We’re glad that you could join us.”

  “And I’m only glad that everyone is safe,” President García said, smiling at Alejandra and each of the MBLIS agents in turn. “And that we seem to have an idea of where we stand with this cartel situation at long last.”

  “Indeed,” Officer Díaz agreed. The kid looked terrified to be speaking with the President, but he spoke up anyway. “Now that we have a good handle on how and when to detect the drug, we’ll better be able to stop it from spreading. These American scientists have debriefed all the doctors here, and we’re already starting to see things take a turn for the better with the victims who have come in this afternoon.”

  “That’s excellent news, young man,” Alejandra’s father said, shooting Díaz a sparkling smile. “And those doctors will be able to debrief the health department. Soon the whole country will be under a new regimen, and now that law enforcement knows what to look for, it will be far easier to stop these dealers before they give the drug to anyone in the first place.”

  “And with our new border policy, things will clear up there soon enough,” Alejandra said, unable to keep herself from showing her pride at this accomplishment. “My hope is that once we get our own affairs in order, we’ll be able to cross over into Haiti and help the people there. Now that the cartel has lost its headquarters in this ‘ghost ship,’ along with muc
h of their product, it’ll take them some time to regroup.”

  “Yes, daughter, I fear our neglect for our neighbors has come back to bite us once again,” her father said, a look of grim determination overtaking his weary lines. “But we can hash out all these details later amongst ourselves. It’s high time that we get our American friends home.”

  Alejandra’s heart sank at this because she didn’t want Ethan to leave. But she knew that it was time. The MBLIS agents had other cases to work back in the States. The Dominican Republic and Haiti would have to sort things out for themselves for the time being.

  “Ah, let’s get that doctor back in here,” Robbie said, pressing the call light next to his bed. “I want to get the hell out of this place and find some real food.”

  Everyone laughed.

  “You have a one-track mind, Holm,” Ethan pointed out with another chuckle.

  Díaz, the lab techs, and Alejandra’s father and his guards stepped out into the hall to discuss the lab techs’ instructions on dealing with the drug further. Alejandra stayed behind to make sure that Ethan and Robbie were all right.

  Soon, a doctor came in and discharged the American men with instructions to take it easy for a few days and to follow up with a doctor back in Miami. Alejandra squeezed Ethan’s hand once more as she turned to leave.

  “I’ll meet you outside soon,” she promised him, and he nodded, meeting her eyes.

  “I’m looking forward to it,” he said, giving her a warm smile.

  Her stomach did that little backflip one last time as she wrenched herself away from him, wishing that they had more time.

  CHAPTER 34

  Ethan

  After the doctors discharged him, Holm left the hospital room to call Diane. Since I had a concussion, the neurologist wanted to do one more exam on me before he let me go. Though I wanted to be the one to report back to our boss, I relented, realizing that I didn’t have my phone anymore, anyway.

  I endured the exam, and then the doctor gave me a stern look.

  “You should not have kept going after you endured this head wound,” he said, practically wagging his finger in my face. He’d done this several times already since we’d arrived at the hospital.

  “I know, I know,” I said, a little annoyed now. “You’ve made yourself very clear. I’ll keep your advice in mind for next time.”

  “Next time?” the doctor repeated, arching an eyebrow at me. “Do you go leaping off of exploding ships on a regular basis?”

  “You’d be surprised,” I grinned.

  He just shook his head and begrudgingly handed me my discharge papers.

  By the time I got a fresh set of clothes on and walked back out into the hallway, Holm was already off the phone with Diane and was leaning back against the wall and resting.

  “What’s the verdict?” he asked when he saw me.

  “Apparently, I’m reckless with my health,” I chuckled, motioning for him to follow me down the hallway and to the exit.

  “What else is new?” Holm asked with a chuckle.

  “Hey, at least I don’t go around getting myself kidnapped,” I joked back, referring to another particular dicey mission he and I had gotten into with MBLIS recently. “What did Diane have to say?”

  “Well, she had her usual lecture about having to save our necks with that helicopter,” he shrugged as we rounded a corner into another hallway. “But she sounded happy about the way things turned out. If we hadn’t done what we did, we never would’ve found all this stuff out about New Orleans and the drug. Now at least the Dominicans know what we’re dealing with.”

  “And so do we,” I added. “Hopefully, whatever regimen Bonnie and Clyde are recommending here will work in NOLA. Otherwise, we’re in for another mission.”

  “At least, since it’s already our mission, none of the pencil pushers will be able to keep us away from it,” Holm grinned.

  “Fair point,” I laughed as we crossed the hospital entryway and headed out to meet Alejandra and Díaz in front.

  “I just wanted to say goodbye,” Díaz said, holding out his hand to me as we approached. “I’m glad I got to work with both of you.”

  “Us too, kid,” Holm said, clapping him on the shoulder.

  “Keep up the good work,” I said, taking his hand. “You’re a fine officer, and you’ll make an even better detective someday.”

  Díaz beamed, and I could tell that I’d made his year. With a final nod to us, he headed off to rejoin his fellow officers in the hospital.

  Holm bid his farewell to Alejandra and crossed over to talk with our driver about where we were headed, leaving me grateful for a moment alone with her.

  “It was really good to see you,” I said, taking her hands in mine. “Though I wish it had been under better circumstances.”

  “It was,” she said, meeting my eyes and squeezing my hands back, sending a pleasant warmth up my arms. “And who’s to say we couldn’t use a little excitement around here?”

  Her eyes sparkled, which only made me smile wider.

  “We’ll have to stay in touch,” I told her, not taking my eyes off of hers. “I’ll call you when we get back to Miami.”

  “I’m looking forward to it,” she said, reaching up and kissing me on the cheek.

  I caught her right as she was pulling away and kissed her full on the mouth. There was no way I was saying goodbye to her without doing that one more time. But it wouldn’t be the last—we would see each other again. I had no doubt about that.

  Just as I broke away from her, Holm gestured that it was time for us to leave.

  “Don’t be a stranger!” Alejandra called as I climbed in the backseat next to Holm.

  “Oh, I won’t,” I assured her with one last smile.

  I kept my eyes on her as we sped away until we turned a corner and I couldn’t see her anymore.

  “Oh, I almost forgot,” Holm said. “Diane said a package arrived for you back at the office.”

  “A package?” I repeated absent-mindedly, my thoughts still lingering with Alejandra.

  “Yeah, she said it looked like a book or something,” he said. “From Virginia.”

  Well, that got my attention. I whipped my head around to see that he was grinning at me.

  “Really?” I asked. “Grendel’s journal?”

  “Sounds like it,” Holm said, leaning back in his seat, still grinning. “Looks like things are going to get busier for a while.”

  EPILOGUE

  “Holy crap!” Ty exclaimed, his mouth hanging open and his drink abandoned as I finished my story. “That must’ve been the craziest one yet!”

  “You’d think so,” I asked, taking the final sip of my own drink before handing my empty glass off to Rhoda, who seemed equally captivated by my tale of real-life Haitian zombies.

  “Hold on, did you ever go back to excavate the shipwreck?” she asked, not moving to return the empty glasses she’d collected to the bar.

  “We did,” I nodded. “Didn’t find a lot, though. Solomon did a damn good job of covering his tracks. We were able to grab some of those crates with the newest version of the drug in them, though. And we took that for a souvenir.”

  I gestured up at the long wooden plank hanging on the wall I had shown the kids before. Their eyes all drifted back up to it, almost in awe. Part of that was probably because they’d already had so much to drink before they got to Rolling Thunder, but I liked to think that the tales of my adventures had more than a little to do with it.

  “And what about the Dominicans? Were they able to recover?” Jeff asked eagerly.

  “They were,” I nodded. “It took some time, but after the ghost ship sank, the cartel wasn’t able to really recover, not on the island at least. It gave the Dominicans time to root the drug out before it spread any further.”

  “And the Haitians?” Jeff asked.

  “I’m glad you noticed that many of them were victims, too, just like the Dominicans,” I said, giving him a small smile. “I’m h
appy to report that relations are better there now. The Dominicans helped the Haitians get back on their feet, and the Haitian government gave the Dominicans everything they had on the cartel. It’s still all very much a work in progress down there, though. There were centuries of conflict that built up to this.”

  “Wild,” Ty said, leaning back in his chair and shaking his head. “Actual real-life zombies. Who’d have thought?”

  “Well, not quite,” I chuckled. “There was a perfectly reasonable explanation for the zombies, our lab techs saw to that. And they didn’t go around eating anybody’s brains.”

  “Yeah, but still,” Ty said, his mouth still hanging slightly ajar.

  “You don’t have to tell me,” I laughed. “I lived it.”

  “Did you ever see Alejandra again?” Jeff asked.

  “Oh, we stayed in touch,” I said cagily, giving him a mischievous smile.

  “And what about New Orleans?” Rhoda asked. “I never heard about any of this on the news before. It seems like literal zombies would’ve been on every front page in the whole region!”

  “You would think that, wouldn’t you?” I asked, winking at her.

  “But what happened?” Jeff asked, his frustration growing at the withheld details. “You could at least give us something.”

  I glanced up at a small voodoo doll pinned to the wall right above the plank from the sunken ghost ship.

  “That,” I said with a grin, “is a story for another time.”

  Author’s Note

  Hey, if you got here, I just want you to know that you’re awesome! I wrote this book just for someone like you, and if you want another one, it is super important that you leave a review.

  The more reviews this book gets, the more likely it is there will be a sequel to it. After all, I’m only human, and you have no idea how far a simple “your book was great!” goes to brighten my day.