Murders on the Edge

by Andie Alexander

“Nope. I think I’m healed.”

  “Not quite.” He helped me to our room and shut the door behind us. “I’m worried about you, and if you were any other agent, you’d be sent to the hospital for evaluation. However, you seem to be the key right now.”

  “I’m fine. You know it, right?”

  “No, I don’t know it. Vic wanted to fly you to the army base hospital in Texas. We called the CDC, but they’re not coming out until we have a defined epidemic, because they think it’s terroristic in nature. The EPA won’t touch it, because we can’t prove it’s in the environment yet. The FBI doesn’t want involved, because it’s medical. They don’t think it’s terroristic at all, since it doesn’t affect that many people. We’re in a gray area between agencies, and the DHS is the one agency who can handle all of it. Since we’re short agents, we can’t lose you. So Archie and I decided we’d give you a job that’s covert.”

  “Covert.” That meant they wanted me out of the way and were giving me some sort of fluff job, I was sure.

  “We want you to talk to people in town, but only in the mornings. We don’t want you there past noon.”

  Yep. A fluff job.

  I studied his face for a moment. “You think the drugs are being released after noon, don’t you?”

  “We have reason to suspect that, yes.”

  “What about Hagar Lawns in Animas? Or the copper mines? Has anyone gone to where these guys are from, near Tucson or Grande Mesas, to ask more questions? What about Tilvin? I could latch onto him and play his girlfriend if you want.”

  “Those jobs are all given out.”

  “Who’s playing his girlfriend?”

  Jim started to chuckle. “Jordan. No, you’re with me. I have to study you.”

  I sat on the bed and crossed my arms. “You don’t let me have any fun.”

  “Not right now. I have to think of the wellbeing of my agents, and your health is my foremost concern.”

  “Let me get this straight. You want me to march up to Mr. Moody tomorrow morning, tell him I quit, and hang out near his place all day long while I interview people? Does that even look normal to you?”

  He sat down beside me, deep in thought. “Tell you what. I want to hire you part-time for the afternoons. You can work until noon and come here to interview people as they come into the doctor’s office.”

  I rolled my eyes and sighed. “What do I tell Mr. Moody?”

  “Tell him I’m so booked out here, you need to work for me in the afternoons. I’m even going to give you a company car, so you can travel.”

  “Don’t need it. I have access to wheels.” I bit my lips, lowering my head. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “What wheels?”

  “Nothing to worry about. Where do I eat lunch?”

  He pulled my chin upward and stared into my eyes. “You have access to a bike, don’t you?”

  “Maybe.” I moved his hand away from me. “There aren’t many places to ride it, and the speed limit’s low, so relax.”

  “No, I won’t relax. You’re not riding a motorcycle. I’ll find you something. Until then, I’ll pick you up and bring you here at noon, where you’ll have a nice healthy lunch away from the city. Don’t eat anything there, but only here. This food’s from Hachita and safe.”

  “Yes, master.”

  “Now, tomorrow’s Monday. I don’t want to see you out of bed until I get up. Deal?”

  “Sure.” I intended to get up early. I had to find out where Hagar Lawns was located and get the address for the copper mines. If I could get into town, I could even get the bike. “Wake me.”

  After I stood up, I got ready for bed and slipped between the sheets. Jim lay beside me, kissed me a few times, and stood up. “I’ll be right back. I have to make sure everything’s ready for tomorrow.”

  “Got it. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

  He went silent and stared at me for a moment. “Something’s not right, but I can’t put my finger on it.” He walked out the door, closing it behind him.

  As soon as he was gone, I grabbed some clothes from my suitcase, and laid them on top of the dresser. I had a job to do in the morning and had to be ready.

  Chapter 25

  After taking a shower in the downstairs bathroom around four in the morning, I knew the day was mine. I even had my morning all scheduled out, to get things done before Jim woke up.

  I went into the downstairs office I’d seen beside the living room. I flipped on the computer, and as soon as the background came up, I was sure it wasn’t a DHS machine.

  An animated naked woman came up on the screen, with all the body parts labeled. Typical doctor. She winked and blew the user a kiss, making me realize that this Dr. Barr was nothing more than a dirty old man. Fortunately, the sound was off, so at least I couldn’t hear her wish me well in a sultry voice.

  I pulled up a browser and searched for a few things. Hagar Lawns was first. They had a nice updated website. As I searched through the pages, I realized that the place was a mom-and-pop business, owned by a little old man and a little old woman in their sixties, at least. They dressed like hippies, even with flowers in their hair. They only used natural chemicals and nothing toxic to anyone.

  I brought up pictures of their lawns on the screen, trying to figure out how a lawn could look that good without using real chemicals to treat them. Considering they must be good, from the amount of customers, it made me wonder what they weren’t telling the public.

  After bookmarking that site, I searched for Roger’s Imports. I found the place about fifteen miles north of Grande Mesas, but it had been closed for a few months. They were going to relocate the business in Animas, which was a town about thirty or so miles northwest of Señora Bonita.

  I bookmarked the website and moved on to the copper mines. There was one in the area, in a little town called Copper City, located about fifteen miles west of Señora Bonita. Denning Copper and Silver Mines boasted eighty thousand metric tons of both leached and concentrated copper mined each year…whatever that meant. They seemed to be proud of their accomplishments, so I had to figure that was impressive.

  I looked around the site, hunting for chemicals they’d use to extract the copper, when I found a picture that had me sit back and stare. The current employees of the copper mine were shown. Right in the middle sat the man with the dark eyes. Sitting near him were the other members of the local gang. I scrolled down a bit, to where all of their names were listed in order.

  After I turned on the color printer to let it warm up, I worked to get a good copy of the picture on the computer screen. I finally printed it out. Along with the copper mines domain name and the information from Hagar Lawns, I left it all on the kitchen table. There was only one more thing I intended to do. I needed to take a walk. I needed wheels.

  Fortunately, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt with my now-dried sneakers. I grabbed a jacket and a flashlight and slipped out the back door. It was nearly 5:30, and I knew I needed to be back at the house before 6:00, when Jim would probably roll out of bed.

  Winter was coming, and the mornings were in the lower to mid-forties. However, later in the day, it would get into the low to mid-seventies. I was glad for the jacket. The shorts made the air cool.

  I walked up the road toward town. It was pre-dawn and still a bit dark. I turned on the flashlight, just in case there was a snake or something to trip over. I wanted to see what was going on in town and get the bike, but found the countryside more interesting. Animals scurried across the road, the birds were just starting to wake up, and the streetlights in town lit the sky in the distance.

  Still walking along the side of the road, I heard a car engine off in the distance. Certain it was Jim out looking for me, I flipped off the flashlight and crossed the road to hide behind a tree.

  I was about twenty feet from the house with the blackened windows, hiding behind what was either a telephone pole or a tree trunk, when the car appeared on the horizon. I watched from a distance b
ecause I had no idea who it might be. For all I knew, it could be Jim and he’d definitely make me go back to the house. That wasn’t an option.

  The car came closer so I crouched down, hoping I couldn’t be seen. The driver pulled into the driveway for the house with the blackened windows. I moved so I could see yet not be seen.

  Two men got out of the car but the headlights stayed lit. The driver moved and opened the back door of the four-door. He grabbed a box, handed it to the other man, and took a box for himself. He shut the car doors, and they both headed toward the house, stepping up on the front porch. As soon as one of the men rang the doorbell, the porch light turned on, and the door was opened by the dark-eyed man. This was better than any research I’d done on the Internet.

  “This should help us for a week.” The man from the car was speaking Russian, and being a Russian and Chinese interpreter at my former job at the United Nations in both Geneva and New York, I was so glad they weren’t speaking Arabic.

  The guy continued speaking in Russian. “The boss wants you to add this instead of the stock you have. It’s a milder version, because, from the people we’ve kidnapped, we’re seeing side effects that are too strong.”

  The lost time. They were kidnapping people, just like they’d kidnapped the dog.

  The man continued. “If we use this for the whole nation, it’ll be too obvious and all water supplies will be turned off.”

  “What am I to do with what I’ve got?” the dark-eyed man asked in Russian.

  “Hold onto it. We’re thinking we’ll dilute it further and use it later. This new stuff is different and will stop the side effects we’re seeing now. The mind control will still work and be more effective, even though we haven’t used it fully yet. Put it the same place you’re putting it now, on the same scheduled days. Tonight is the first night it should happen, and do it right before four, just like we scheduled.”

  Four. That must be in the afternoon.

  Another man, who seemed to be Middle Eastern, joined the man at the door. As they took the boxes, I heard something behind me. I turned and saw Jim approaching. I put my finger to my lips, hoping he could see me in the darkness.

  “What’s going on?” he whispered.

  “Listen. I’ll tell you later.”

  “Right before four this afternoon,” the dark-eyed man said. “It should take hold around six, according to the tests on this new version. I think this is watering day, so we’ll report tonight. Do you want us to kidnap anyone and do tests tonight?”

  “Yeah. Make it one of the newcomers. Maybe the woman. She seems to be the most susceptible to the drugs. See if you can get her into town before four, so she can get wet. I want to see what happens to her, and see if she’s the lowest common denominator.”

  “Right. Test the weakest and see if they die.”

  I spun my head toward Jim and he just stared at me. I could almost smell his brain working.

  “What time do you want to see her?” DarkEyes asked.

  “Six tonight, so she’ll be under our power. That’ll give us plenty of time to do a complete physical and torture her heart.”

  “Torture?” I mouthed toward Jim. He just shook his head.

  “Do you believe her story about a boyfriend in Tucson?” DarkEyes asked.

  “No. There is no Jane Black in Tucson who fits her description. We’ll give her a truth serum and find out who she really is. If she’s a Fed, we’ll kill her and move to the next town on the list. We’re investigating today, so we might have that information already.”

  “How many towns are being affected right now?”

  “Four total, but this one’s leading the pack for results. They even believe the things we’ve been telling them, too.”

  “Good,” DarkEyes said. “We’ll meet you at six with the girl.” The two men walked away, got into the car, and drove off. DarkEyes shut the front door and turned out the light.

  We waited until we were sure no one was watching. When it was safe, we both crouched down and ran across the road, heading down the street. It wasn’t until we were in the driveway of the doctor’s office that we finally spoke.

  “Russians?” Jim asked. “What was going on?”

  “They’re putting drugs in some water supply. They want to torture and kill me, Jim. Did you hear that part?”

  “Yes, I heard that part and you won’t be kidnapped without us knowing about it. What else did you hear?”

  “They’re changing the drugs they’re using because of the side effects. It’s for mind control. The locals are believing everything they’re hearing. I wonder what they’re hearing.”

  “I intend to find out.” He held the back door opened for me. “Now explain all of this to me?” He pointed to the papers on the table.

  “I woke up early and did some research. Look at this picture. We know where the dark-eyed man will be today.”

  “I think he killed the hooker,” Jim said.

  “He did?”

  “Who knows, but Archie is going to suspect him. He’ll meet him at work at the copper mines and bring him in. Who else was in that house?”

  I lifted the paper in front of me. “This guy was beside DarkEyes. DarkEyes’ real name is Vladimir Olzo. And the other guy is Assam Delgado.” I looked up. “Delgado? That’s a Hispanic name, but Assam is definitely Arabic. What’s going on?”

  “Aliases. I bet they’re using their real first names. I also think you’re staying at your job at the mortuary today.”

  “I am?”

  “Yes. But don’t get near any water.”

  “I thought you guys tested the water.”

  He looked down at the papers on the table. “We did and it came up negative. It doesn’t make sense to me, but I don’t think Hagar Lawns is in on this.” He paused as if in thought, and then seemed to turn angry. “What were you doing outside at this hour in the morning?”

  “Just taking a walk. It’s gorgeous outside and I wanted to see the morning.” He didn’t need to hear that I was headed for the bike.

  “What’s going on in your head?”

  I crossed my arms. “Am I under house arrest?”

  “No, but I’m thinking about it. I’m not sure that whatever they gave you is out of your system. This isn’t like you at all, Harley, and I want to know what’s going on.”

  I turned the chair at the table so I could see him, and sat down. “I just wanted to know what’s going on in town. If I wouldn’t have been at that house, I’d be kidnapped tonight at six without knowing about it in advance. Aren’t you glad I went for a walk?”

  “I guess so, but don’t ever do that again without telling me first. If they’d seen you, you’d have been killed. I’m armed and could’ve fought them off. Did you even think to take a gun with you?”

  “No. Who in their right mind would be up at this time? Why would I need it?”

  He pulled a chair around and sat down in front of me. “Coyotes. And spiders.”

  He knew I hated spiders. “You made your point. Fine. But I wasn’t about to wake you at four in the morning.”

  “You’ve been up since four?”

  I rolled my eyes at him. “I’ve gotten so much sleep, what did you expect?”

  “Yeah. Right.” He pulled out his cell phone, pressed a button, and waited for it to turn on. “I need to wake the other guys so we can figure out how to proceed today. I need to call Kent and get his butt down here. If there are three other towns in the same predicament, chances are, they’re all down here, too. I need a few answers. Who’s doing this and why, where the drugs are coming from, and how to stop all of it, including for the three other towns.”

  “Got it. Want me to wake the guys and make breakfast?” I stood up.

  “Yeah. That would be very helpful. See how this works if you tell me what you’re doing first?”

  I shot him a dirty look, left the room, and ran up the stairs. Chris and Archie were in separate rooms, asleep, and both deserved to be wakened in a mean way
. I flipped on both of their lights, and stood in the hallway. “Wake up. We have a situation and both of you need to get out of bed.”

  “What’s going on?” Archie asked. “Do I need to arrest you again?”

  “Try it and die,” I said. “I got some intel this morning, and they’re changing the drug. It’s a mind control drug, and we need to strategize. Breakfast will be ready in ten minutes.”

  “Want me to call the other guys?” Chris asked.

  “Yep. Get their sorry butts out of bed and get them out here. This is major, guys, and may be the break we’ve been waiting for.”

  Archie walked out of his room wearing shorts and a t-shirt. “Are you moody today?”

  “Not at all, and I’m sorry I gave you a hard time yesterday.”

  “I heard about what happened. I was swamped until two this morning with the same types of calls. People were fighting with everything they could.”

  Chris joined us, yawning. “So what’s going on?”

  “I saw the bad guys this morning and they were speaking Russian,” I said. “They’re changing the formula and are going to kidnap me at six tonight to see if I’m a Fed.”

  Both guys stared at me in shock.

  “So we’re sacrificing you for the good of the nation?” Chris asked. “What does Jim think of that?”

  “I don’t know. Hurry up and get those guys out here. I want to find out if I’m going to live or die today.” And it had better be to live, or I’d hunt Jim down and haunt him for the rest of his life and beyond.

  I returned downstairs and got some cereal boxes out of the cabinet. When I opened the refrigerator, I saw no milk, so I improvised. Yeah. I could make breakfast like the rest of them.

  Chapter 26

  Jim had gotten a shower in the downstairs bathroom, entering the kitchen with wet hair. He pulled me into a hug and gave me a fresh-breath kiss. “Good morning, sweetheart.”

  “Good morning. Why are you so cheery today?”

  “Because, if things go the way I want them to today, we’ll be on our honeymoon in twenty-four hours. I can’t wait, either.” He winked and grinned, making me just laugh.