[Gina Mazzio RN 01.0 - 03.0] Bone Set

by JJ Lamb

  It was slow, tedious work, but as the bones were tossed away, the light became brighter; they finally saw a small opening leading out of the pit.

  “Look, Gina!”

  Gina reached out and hugged Tuva. “We’re almost there.”

  They’d cleared out a small space, creating a narrow passageway through the maze of bones. They had to move very carefully; if they nudged a bone in the wrong way, they could be impaled by splintered shards. Even a sudden shift could wedge them in, leaving them with no hope of escape.

  “There’s not much room for both of us and the opening will need some digging, Gina said. “You stay here, let me go ahead, and I’ll take care of it.”

  “No! I’m going with you.”

  Gina saw Tuva fully for the first time—filthy face and probably dark hair, but so matted with gore and dirt, it was hard to really tell. Her eyes were filled with resolve and Gina knew she wasn’t going anywhere without her.

  “We’ll hold hands and step down onto the layer below. No quick movements. Okay?”

  Tuva nodded.

  Gina took her hand and they stepped on stack after stack of bones. Gina placed her feet on the long, thicker bones and Tuva followed in her footsteps. Finally, they stood in front of the tiny opening where the cats had been slipping in and out of the pit.

  “There’s hardly any space for us to get through,” Tuva said.

  Gina searched the piles of bones all around them and grabbed a thigh bone. She used it to carefully poke at the opening—the dirt began to fall away in clumps. Soon there was a hole large enough for them to squiggle through.

  “Wait a moment!” Gina said.

  Is it safe for us to go out there?

  “What’s the matter?”

  Gina could feel Tuva’s eyes boring into her.

  Does it really matter? We sure as hell aren’t going back into that damn pit.

  Gina reached for Tuva’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

  They walked out of the pit and into the bright light.

  Chapter 46

  Ethan watched Harry fall. He stood over the nurse, adrenalin pulsating, heart pounding.

  Pete was supposed to finish off this bastard.

  He spoke to Harry’s inert body. “Who the hell do you think you are, standing in the way of real genius, someone who’s on the verge of finding the answers to the Alzheimer’s puzzle?” He toed Harry’s shoulder. “What have you done for humanity lately?”

  Ethan looked around the lab at his huge collection of specimens. They represented all of his research and he was proud of his work. He’d spent hours, days on these brains—cutting, slicing, prepping, staining them. And now it was all going to end.

  The loss tore through him. He wanted to cry out his disappointment.

  There were still empty shelves, ready and waiting for his future brain specimens … specimens that would never come.

  These people are heroes. They gave their lives, gave them to me, so I could find the answers, so others could live … wouldn’t suffer.

  He kicked Harry’s shoulder. “You just wanted to make money. You hear me?” Then he kicked him harder. “Money!”

  Harry moaned, but was still out.

  Ethan thought about going after the gun; it couldn’t have landed too far inside the tunnel. It would be much safer to shoot Harry, get rid of him now.

  Look at him. Just a pile of disorganized laundry, his head leaking into a messy puddle of blood on the floor.

  Ethan didn’t like loose ends any more than David Zelint. As long as Harry was alive, he could get to his hidden copies of evidence. It wouldn’t matter where Ethan ran, that loose thread would be out there, waiting to bring him down.

  Ethan put down the computer case and moved to the medicine cabinet, pulled out a bottle of injectable morphine sulphate, and filled a large syringe.

  “Let’s end this right now,” he said to the inert nurse. He picked up Harry’s arm, looked at it, then let it drop.

  I haven’t got the goddam time to mess with, or dig for your vein.

  He wrapped a hand around Harry’s deltoid, jammed the needle in, and pushed the plunger.

  It may be a lot slower than a vein; but it’s just as sure. We won’t be hearing from you anymore. By the time anyone finds you, you’ll be just as dead as that little snoop Gina Mazzio. And I’ll be high in the sky, free as a bird.

  He glanced at his watch. He had to leave this instant, drive down the grade to the Reno airport, and grab his connecting flights to San Francisco and Argentina.

  Move! No time to pack. Grab my passport and run!

  He picked up the computer carrying case and the box holding all his slides, and then headed for the open lab door and the elevator.

  On the first floor, he walked as fast as he could toward his office. Delores was standing in the doorway.

  “Not now, Delores. We’ll talk later.”

  “But I need to know who's coming to relieve me. Gina and Harry never showed up this morning and there's no answer at their apartment. Have you called for a temp to relieve me?”

  “Get back up there on the unit and take care of things. Let me worry about the rest of it.”

  Delores was usually meek and compliant around him, but he could see a definite look of suspicion. More than that, a glint of defiance.

  He walked past her into his office, reached into his pocket for the key chain with both his keys and the original flash drive. From the bottom drawer, he swooped up his passport, shoved it into his pocket.

  She stood there, still not moving.

  “Well, what are you waiting for?”

  “I need to know who’s going to relieve me.”

  And I need to get the hell out of here!

  The look on her face was driving him crazy. “There’ll be a huge bonus for you, Delores. But I really need you to get back to the unit. I’ll talk to you later.”

  She was silent for a moment. “Okay,” she said, and left his office.

  Ethan headed for the front door, but he was breathing so rapidly, he could barely catch his breath.

  Slow down.

  He eased his pace as he walked out the door. When he got to the van door, he saw a sports car pull into a visitor’s parking space. He stopped.

  Who the hell is that?

  He hesitated for only a moment.

  Not my problem. I have a plane to catch.

  He got behind the wheel and started the engine.

  * * *

  Gina and Tuva looked back at the small opening they had just crawled through. It was almost closed off now with fallen dirt. They jumped up and down, hugged each other.

  “We did it! We did it!” Gina shouted.

  “Look at that gorgeous sky,” Tuva cried out.

  The sky was beautiful. “Look at that blue, Tuva. Did you ever see anything so incredible?” Gina couldn’t stop. “And those boulders. I’ve hated them from the moment I set eyes on them. But now, they’re wonderful.”

  Tuva laughed and threw her hands up in the air.

  Gina saw a cat off to the side, sitting on its haunches, waiting for an opportunity to enter the pit. She screamed at it, “Thank you, you beautiful creature.”

  “Really?” Tuva said softly.

  “You can’t hate the cats for being survivors. Besides, without them we would have never found a way out of there.” Gina looked around; saw the Comstock building off in the distance. Elation was replaced with a sudden feeling of exhaustion … and dread. It settled deep onto her shoulders, then into the pit of her stomach.

  Harry, where are you? Are you still alive?

  She took Tuva’s hand. “Let’s get back now.”

  “I don’t want to go in there again.”

  “That's up to you, Tuva. But I need to find my fiancé. You can get into your car and leave if you want to, but please, first go to the hospital in Carson City … they’ll take care of that cut on your neck. Tell the nurses what happened. Tell them to send the police. I have to stay here
and find Harry.”

  “My mother’s in that building, Gina.”

  “I know … but it’s still up to you. You have to make up your own mind.”

  Chapter 47

  Gina walked slowly, her purse pulling at her neck muscles. With each step she thought about dropping it, but it had been her lifeline. She doggedly kept the strap wrapped over her arm and around her neck.

  She and Tuva leaned heavily on each other as they moved with dragging steps toward the Comstock. It seemed so very far away.

  Gina knew they were both suffering from shock and dehydration, and out in the daylight, she could see the terrible bruises spreading across Tuva’s face and arms—injuries she hadn’t noticed or thought much about in the semi darkness of the pit. A large, serious laceration bisected the side of her neck; it was covered in blood and filth. If they hadn’t gotten out of the pit when they did, it wouldn’t have been long before a massive infection would have set in and finished her. She would still need serious medical attention; antibiotics to help her heal.

  If that cut had penetrated any deeper, it probably would have severed her carotid and she would have bled out.

  As that thought flashed through Gina’s mind, she resisted the urge to examine Tuva’s wound more closely—it would only alarm her, and there was nothing she could do right now.

  Tuva started crying. “Why did they do this to me? All I wanted was to see my mother.”

  “I know,” Gina said, taking the petite woman’s hand. “But they hadn’t been delivering your letters to your mother, and then you show up out of the blue. They probably didn’t know what to do with you.”

  “Why did they keep my letters hidden from my mother?”

  “You were too persistent, a big threat to their whole operation. If you started digging into her care, you could have caused them real trouble … brought them down.”

  ”That was never going to happen.”

  “Why not?”

  “I complained to the authorities. You can see how that turned out.”

  “Who’d you talk to?”

  “The man I saw said he would look into it.” Tears ran down her cheeks, cutting through a long string of etchings in grime and blood. “He promised.”

  “And then you came out here?”

  “Yes.” Her dark eyes were sad. “My mother kept coming to me in my dreams, kept calling for me.” Tuva looked away. “I’ll bet that sounds really weird. But she was crying for help and it got so I couldn’t sleep any more. I had to come.”

  “She’s lucky to have someone who loves her so much,” Gina said. But she wasn’t thinking of Tuva anymore.

  Harry? Did they kill you in that tunnel? No! No! Please be alive and safe. I’ll do anything. I promise I’ll stop trying to run away. I promise I’ll marry you. I promise, I promise ... promise…

  * * *

  Someone was calling her. A voice from very far away; she wanted to ignore it. She was so tired. It kept insisting: “Gina! Gina! Wake up! Please wake up!”

  She opened her eyes, stared up at Tuva, who was crying and shouting her name, over and over. She felt the hard ground under her, along with pinpoints of broken rock jabbing into her back.

  “Tuva?” Gina sat up too quickly; a wave of nausea swept through her. For a moment the sky spun, taking the hills around with it. “What happened?”

  “I don’t know. You just collapsed.”

  “Give me a minute … just a minute.”

  Her mind was spinning, her body floating. This was the moment she’d always dreaded, that mythical line in the sand. And when she crossed it, she would finally surrender to defeat. It was a time that came to everyone—as certain as death.

  The terror in the mine, the horror of the pit had drained her. But the thought that Harry could be dead tore away that inner core of strength that had always been there for her.

  “Gina, get up!”

  “I can’t do it anymore, Tuva. I’m sorry.”

  Tuva got behind her, tried to lift her.

  “Look, Gina, we’re almost at the Comstock. We can make it!”

  Gina knew she had to get up. She ignored the trembling that made her feel like she’d given the last of her grit, warned that she had to rest, had to wait to go on.

  All right, Tuva. Help me up.”

  Tuva half lifted Gina to her feet, put an arm around her waist and held on tight. As they walked, Gina started to gain momentum. By the time they approached the front of the building, she was holding her own, and so was Tuva.

  Chapter 48

  Annie Kreuger was getting restless. She glanced at her watch, saw it had been more than ten minutes since Carl had gone into the building after telling her he would only be a minute or so.

  Should have gone with him.

  She looked over at the entrance door, then at the façade of the building.

  Thought he said this had to do with an FDA drug study. So why all the bars on the windows?

  She’d barely finished the thought when two filthy, limping women in ripped clothing came around from the side of the building, headed for the front door.

  Oh, my God! They look like they’re going to keel over.

  She flung open the door of the Porsche, ran over, stepped between them, and wrapped an arm around each of their waists. They leaned heavily on her as she tried to keep them on their feet.

  “Jesus, what on earth happened to you?”

  The tallest one slowly raised one arm, pointed to her mouth. Annie saw the coating around both their lips, could see they were in desperate need of water.

  “Okay, let’s get you inside, get some water, and find you a place to sit down.” She struggled with the door, finally managed to pull it open with the help of the taller woman.

  Once they were through the doorway, she saw Carl standing in the foyer, talking to a woman who appeared to be a nurse. They both looked over at the trio, startled.

  “Could really use some help here, Carl,” Annie said. She felt like she would collapse at any second under the weight of both women.

  “Gina! Is that you?” the nurse shouted. “What the hell’s going on?”

  Carl had reached them; he took the closest woman from Annie’s hold and helped her walk to a nearby sofa. As he lowered her down, he got a good look at her face.

  “Tuva Goldmich?” His expression was a mixture of surprise, and alarm. The petite woman looked at him, squinted, and nodded.

  “Get them some water! Now!” Annie told the nurse, who was still standing there, seemed to be dumbfounded. She guided the one called Gina to the sofa, helped her sit.

  The nurse returned from the water cooler, a large cup of water in each hand, and held them out to Tuva and Gina. Tuva started to gulp hers down, but Gina lightly touched her arm; Tuva nodded and slowed herself down.

  * * *

  Almost from the moment the water touched her tongue, Gina felt better—she knew that she and Tuva desperately needed fluids. With slow, even swallows, she finished the water and was up and out of the sofa, limping to the cooler for a refill before anyone could stop her. She pulled down a fresh cup, filled it for Tuva, and went back to the sofa.

  “That’s him!” Tuva said. “Carl Kreuger, the man I told you about from New York.”

  “Well, Mr. Kreuger, at least you’re here. That’s something.”

  “And you are?” he asked coolly.

  “Gina Mazzio … the nurse who’s been taking care of Tuva’s mother.”

  “I’m going back up to the unit,” Delores interrupted. “I came down to answer the doorbell, but I’d better get back.”

  “Mr. Kreuger, I’d appreciate your coming with me to the basement,” Gina said. “There’s something there you need to see.” She was doing her best to remain calm, but it wouldn’t take much to give into the scream working its way up her throat.

  “My wife? Can she come?”

  “I don’t think so.” She glanced over at the agent’s wife. “But you were great! Thanks for your kindness. Tuva
and I were pretty done in when you came to our rescue.” She continued to look at the attractive woman.

  “I’m Annie,” she said. “I’m glad I was there.”

  “If you don’t mind, would you stay behind with Tuva?”

  “Of course.” Annie stood and went for more water. “Don’t you worry; I’ll take good care of her.”

  Gina barely heard Annie’s response as she moved to the elevator, Carl Kreuger at her side. “Mr. Kreuger—”

  “Carl.”

  Gina reached into her purse and found her employee card. When they stepped into the elevator, she shoved the card into the slot and sent them down to the basement. That simple action seemed to open up a floodgate of despair; she began to weep. Her sobs filled the elevator.

  Carl put his arms around her and tried to comfort her, but all she could visualize was Harry dead. Gone.

  She murmured into his shoulder, “Harry … what am … I going to do… without you?”

  When she could finally think again, she stepped back and wiped at her wet, gritty face with the back of her hand. Carl’s once clean shirt was streaked with black filth.

  She pointed to his shoulder. “Sorry!”

  “Never mind that. Who is this Harry person?”

  “My … my … fiancé.”

  “Then let’s go find your guy.”

  Chapter 49

  With the opening thunk of the elevator door, Gina painfully limped toward the basement’s middle corridor. Carl was right behind her.

  She switched on the lights and led them through the tunnels, heading straight for the Y where she last saw Harry.

  The dimly lit corridors should have frightened her, but her concentration was fixed on finding Harry. Fear kept her mindless and focused at the same time.

  “Wouldn’t want to get lost in this rat hole,” Carl said, “Are you sure this is the way?”

  “We’re almost there,” Gina said, barely getting the words out before the Y loomed ahead.

  “Oh, no!” Gina cried out. Both entrances were closed off, blocked by prison-like gates that sealed the tunnels from top to bottom. Gina rattled the metal trying to loosen it. She yanked the lock, but both the bars and the lock were solid.