Rescue My Heart

by Lorana Hoopes

  “I can understand that, but I called in a few favors. It turns out David here has been receiving quite a few large payments over the last year.”

  “For what?” Curiosity threaded Cara’s voice though her face remained impassive.

  “That’s a good question, but my guess would be that he was helping someone. Someone or some group with large pockets who wanted intel on your project. There’s more though.”

  “More? What more could there be?” Anger flashed in Cara’s eyes, and Cole knew he better tread lightly.

  “It turns out that David’s sister has a rare form of cancer. She was diagnosed shortly before he became an intern for you if my timeline is correct, so my guess is that his actions are about getting the money to pay for his sister’s cancer treatments.”

  Cara crossed her arms and fixed him with an icy stare. If looks could kill, he would have been incinerated on the spot from her gaze. “I don’t care what the reason for his actions are. He killed Steve, and his actions may kill many in this town.”

  “It’s certainly not justifiable, I agree.”

  “It’s madness is what it is. I just hope he lives, so I can interrogate him and go after the people or person who sent him on this mission.”

  “I get your frustration, but we don’t know for sure that he killed Steve. Did he seem like the type to wear cufflinks?”

  Cara opened her mouth to reply and then closed it. She blew out a harsh breath before raking her hand through her short hair. “No, he didn’t, but I didn’t know him very well. However, I also don’t know many college kids who even know what cufflinks are.” Another sigh escaped her lips. ‘You know what? I need a break. I’m going to get a coffee and cool off a bit.”

  Cole watched her walk away and bit the inside of his lip. He wished he had the right words to say, but it seemed Steve had been like a partner to her. That kind of loss wasn’t easy to recover from. He knew that all too well.

  “Was that Cara I saw leaving?” Nick asked as he stepped out of David’s room.

  Cole nodded. “It was. I shared some information I learned about your patient, but her emotions are too raw right now. How’s he doing by the way?”

  Nick ran a hand across his jaw. “It’s still early, but I think we may have gotten him the medicine in time. He certainly doesn’t appear to be getting worse.”

  “That is good news. I know Cara would like to have a few words with him when he wakes up.” He folded his arms across his chest. “How about the women?”

  “I’m on my way there now to check. Want to come with me?”

  Cole had no reason to stand in the hallway alone, so he agreed and followed Nick toward the nurses’ station. Before they reached it though, a loud worried voice carried their direction.

  “We have a ten-year-old with a high fever and complaints of pain. Page Dr. Pearson.”

  Cole’s heart sank. Though he hoped he was wrong, somehow, he just knew the youth in question was the one who had received the food from the kind, elderly woman.

  “I’m here. Let’s get him to room one. Stat.”

  As Nick disappeared with the nurses trailing after him, Cole noticed a thin blonde woman watching the scene. Her hand clutched tightly at her necklace, and the fear that radiated from her eyes seemed to create an almost perceptible cloud in front of her.

  “Excuse me, are you the mother?”

  The woman blinked at him a few times before nodding. “What’s going on? Is he going to be okay? He came in about an hour ago complaining of stomach pain. I thought he was just trying to get out of his chores, but then the fever started.”

  Cole pursed his lips as he thought back to Cara’s briefing and his own research on the disease. Could it spread that fast? If her son had touched or ingested the contaminated food, it would have only been in the last few hours. That seemed a rather fast timeline, but the alternative was an even scarier thought.

  “Do you know if your son ate the food he brought home from the church today?”

  Fear filled the woman’s eyes, and she took a step away from him. “How did you know about that? Who are you?”

  Cole sighed. Generally he was better at choosing his words, but his gut was telling him something was off. “My name is Cole Davenport. I’m a Criminal Investigator, and I think your son has been exposed to Melioidosis. We just came from the church where it appears someone poisoned the food, and Edith told us she gave some to Robbie. It’s important we know where it came from. Can you tell me where he’s been over the last week?”

  “Melio what? What is that? Is it deadly?” Hysteria was creeping into the woman’s voice and clouding her wide, frightened eyes. Cole knew he was running out of time to get answers.

  “Dr. Pearson has the antibiotics on hand to help your son, but if I don’t figure out where he was exposed, a lot more people might get sick. Can you help me out? Please?”

  The woman blinked at him a few more times before running a shaky hand through her hair. “Um, well he went to the church this morning. Yesterday, he delivered newspapers in the morning and then he played with some friends. I’m sorry. I have a baby and several other children who need my attention during the day. Robbie is on his own a lot in the afternoons.”

  Cole’s heart went out to the woman. He could see the stress of her situation weighing heavily on her heart, and he didn’t want to make it any worse for her. Placing a hand on her arm, he offered a smile. “That’s okay. Can you name one of his friends? I can go talk to them.”

  Relief at his lack of condemnation on her parenting skills covered her face, and she offered a slight smile in return. “Cecil Jacobs. That’s Robbie’s best friend. They do everything together.”

  “Thank you.” Cole had no idea who Cecil Jacobs was, but he knew someone who would be able to find out. Now he just needed to find Cara.

  17

  Cara

  Cara looked up as Cole strode her direction. A fierce intensity rolled off him like an invisible wave, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Something was wrong. “What’s happened?” she asked when he was within ear shot.

  “Little Robbie was just admitted.”

  Cara’s brow furrowed. “So soon? That makes no sense. The incubation time is usually-”

  “At least two days,” he finished for her. “Which means he must have gotten it earlier this week.”

  Cara felt her stomach drop. If she had been standing, her knees would have given out beneath her. “So David managed to disperse it somewhere else, but we have no idea where? We have to alert the media.”

  Cole held up a hand. “Slow down. We may not know where yet, but his mother was able to give me the name of his best friend. Evidently they do nearly everything together. If he’s not sick yet, maybe we can figure out where Robbie was exposed.”

  Cara tilted back the last of her coffee and pushed her chair back. “What are we waiting for then? What’s his friend’s name?”

  “Cecil Jacobs.”

  Cara was unfamiliar with the name, but she knew exactly how to find his address. After tossing her cup in the trash, she pulled out her cell phone, finger punching Jordan’s speed dial number. “Jordan? It’s Cara. I need an address.”

  Twenty minutes later they pulled up to a small rambler that appeared in dire need of some TLC. The paint peeled in large curls from the siding, and there was an obvious sag in the porch. As they opened their doors, Jordan pulled up behind them.

  “You two will let me ask the questions, understand?”

  Cara nodded. Though she hadn’t expected Jordan to show up just to ask a kid a few questions, she did feel better having him there.

  She and Cole fell into step behind Jordan and waited as he knocked on the door. A boy who looked to be about ten with sandy blond hair opened the door slightly and stared out at them.

  “Hello, my name is Detective Graves. Are you Cecil Jacobs?” Cara recognized Jordan’s soothing voice - the one he always used when talking to kids or stressed out people. He had an imposin
g demeanor most of the time, but he could soften it and come across like a teddy bear when he wanted.

  The boy’s eyes narrowed as he took in Jordan’s normal clothes instead of a uniform as well as Cara and Cole behind him. “Are you a real cop? Do you have a badge? And who are they?”

  Cara pressed her lips together to keep from smiling. The kid was smart. She wasn’t sure if he was home alone or not though she guessed he was, but his parents had obviously taught him well.

  “I am a real cop. In fact, I’m going to reach in my pocket and pull out my badge.”

  This was another thing Jordan always did that Cara didn’t hear many others do. He always explained what he was about to do so as not to take anyone by surprise. She’d seen many times in the military where surprised people acted instinctually and often got themselves or others hurt. She would bet he had seen his fair share as well.

  After seeing his badge, the kid nodded his head slightly. “Okay, you’re real, but who are they?”

  “These are my friends. Cara here owns a bed and breakfast in town and Cole is a criminal investigator here on a case.”

  Jordan obviously thought honesty was the best policy here, though Cara wasn’t so sure how much the boy would understand. Evidently, whether he grasped it all or not, the explanation appeared to placate him. The door opened a little wider.

  “I’m Cecil Jacobs. Did I do something wrong?”

  Jordan shook his head. “Not at all. We’re actually here because your friend Robbie is sick. We think he was exposed to a virus that’s making him ill, and we’re hoping you can tell us where you two have been the last few days.”

  Cecil’s eyes widened. “Robbie is sick? Am I going to get sick too?”

  This time Jordan turned to Cara. She took a small step forward but stayed behind Jordan. “We sure hope not, but it would be really helpful if you could tell us where you guys went this week.”

  The boy didn’t seem entirely convinced, and he dodged her question with one of his own. “How would I know if I was sick?”

  “It can be different for everyone, but the main symptoms would be a fever, cough, aches. It might feel like the flu. Have you had any of those symptoms?”

  He shook his head. “Does that mean I’m okay?”

  “It’s very likely though I would love to get you tested just in case. Now, can you tell us where you went?”

  The boy chewed on his bottom lip. “Well, yesterday we went to the school and played around on the playground for most of the day, but the day before, we snuck into the community pool. It was really hot, and we just wanted to cool off.”

  The pool. Cara closed her eyes and tried not to show emotion. Why had she not thought of the pool? Though few people would drink the water, it could get in their system through their nose, ears, or any cuts. “Did you go in the water?”

  “Robbie did. I can’t swim, so I just stayed near the sprinkler lines.” His eyes widened. “Do you think that’s how he got sick?”

  “It’s very possible. Were there other people in the pool?”

  Cecil nodded slowly. “Yeah, the place was packed.”

  Cara felt her heart drop. There was no telling when David had poisoned the water. How many people had been exposed?

  “I’ll call and get the pool shutdown. Maybe they have a way to track who’s been there.” Jordan was already pulling out his cell phone and walking away as he tossed the words at her.

  Cara nodded and kept her eyes on Cecil who looked as if the gravity of the situation had finally hit him. “Cecil, are your parents here?”

  He pursed his lips and shook his head. “They’re both at work.”

  “Would you be okay if I call them and see if we can take you to the hospital for testing?”

  He nodded, and when she held out her phone, he tapped the number in before handing it back to her. “That’s my mom’s number. Dad will never answer.”

  She wondered briefly what his father did that he couldn’t answer a call from his kid who was home alone, but then her heart ached for parents who needed to both work and leave their young son home alone. She would have to ponder ways to help out families like his in the future.

  After punching the call button, she held the phone to her ear and listened. There was only one ring before a woman in a hushed voice answered. “Hello?”

  “Hello, is this Mrs. Jacobs?” She looked at Cecil with raised eyebrows, hoping to confirm that was in fact his mother’s last name. She should have asked that first.

  “Yes, who is this?”

  “My name is Cara Hunter. You don’t know me, but I’m here with Cecil-”

  “Is he okay?” The woman’s volume rose just a bit as fear flooded her voice. “Has he done something wrong?”

  “No, he’s done nothing wrong, and he’s fine, but he may have been exposed to a virus. I’m calling to see if Detective Jordan Graves and I can take him to the hospital or if you can come home and take him in yourself.” Cara didn’t want to overstep. She didn’t have kids, but she imagined she wouldn’t be comfortable with some stranger claiming to take her son or daughter to a hospital. “It is important that he get tested.”

  As the silence dragged on, Cara knew the woman on the other end was weighing her options. “I’ll see if I can take an extended break and bring him in.”

  It wasn’t what Cara had hoped to hear, but she could understand the woman’s hesitation. At least now that she knew where he lived, she could check on him or send someone from the hospital to do it if he didn’t make it in. “That sounds like a plan. Thank you.”

  Cara ended the call and looked back at Cecil. “Your mom is going to try and come home to take you in to get tested. Please let her know it’s important, okay?”

  Cecil nodded.

  “And no more sneaking into the pool. Especially not until we know it’s safe.”

  He nodded again, a look of chagrin on his face.

  “What now?” Cole asked after Cecil had gone back in the house and closed the door.

  Cara sighed. She didn’t know what the next step was. Holding a press conference? Getting the word to the media outlets? Checking on Robbie and the women? Continuing to work on the vaccine? “I’m not even sure.”

  18

  Cole

  Cole bit the inside of his lip as he studied Cara. The news of the day was certainly taking a toll on her. Dark circles now sat prominently beneath her eyes, and she had run her hand through her short hair so much that it stuck up in crazy directions.

  “What if we take a break and get some food? You look like you could use a short rest.”

  She arched an eyebrow at him. “How can I think about taking a rest? I need David to wake up so I can question him; I need to find out who has been in the community pool; I need to find out if the CDC will show up and help us out; and I need to continue working to find a vaccine. How on earth can I even think about taking a break?”

  Cole stepped forward and placed his hand on her arm. “It’s because of everything you just said that you need to take a break. If you don’t, you will exhaust yourself and you won’t be able to do any of it. Then, where will we be?”

  Cara opened her mouth to protest, but then acceptance flickered in her eyes. She knew he was right. “Fine. We can grab some lunch and then we need to get back to the hospital. I need to find out who David was working for. I don’t suppose there was any name on those deposits you were able to find?”

  Cole shook his head. “No, they came from an unknown source, but it’s definitely someone with connections.”

  Jordan returned at that moment. “I got the pool closed and they do keep a log of most of the people who were there. Members have to scan a card to get in and visitors have to sign a log. However, if there were any more kids like Robbie and Cecil who snuck in-” He shrugged, letting his statement fade. They all knew what it would mean if there had been others.

  “I’m going to get the log and then I’ll start checking on people and sending them to the hospital.”
>
  “Can we help?” Cara asked.

  “I think it would be better if police officers showed up with these questions. I’ll call in the rest of the team to help. You should continue doing what you do best - research this stuff and find a cure. I’d love to say we lost no one.”

  Cara bit her lip and nodded. “Me too.”

  As Jordan walked off, Cole touched her arm again. “Come on, let’s get some food and then we can check on David again.”

  She let him lead her to the car, but he could tell her brain and energy were focused elsewhere. He couldn’t blame her. Though none of this was her fault, it was her research that had brought the disease here which very well might claim the lives of people she knew. It was a heavy burden to bear.

  “Fire Dreams again or is there some other place I should try?” Cole had enjoyed the food at Fire Dreams. He wouldn’t mind going back, but he was always willing to try new places as well.

  Cara shrugged. It appeared the fight had gone out of her with the frustrations over what to do next. Cole sighed but pointed the car in the direction of Fire Dreams. He didn’t know the area well enough to drive around aimlessly, and he didn’t trust the app on his phone to lead him to a good restaurant.

  The same hostess who had seated them a few days ago greeted them with a smile as they entered. It faded slightly as she took in Cara’s dark cloud, and she sent a questioning gaze in Cole’s direction. He shook his head. Not even knowing this woman’s name, he certainly didn’t feel comfortable sharing the current troubles.

  Thankfully, she took the hint and led them to a table near the back of the restaurant. After laying the menus down, she quietly excused herself, and Cole stared at Cara. He didn’t know her well, but he’d worked with enough people in his career to know that he needed to get her out of her funk as soon as possible.

  “What made you join the military?” he asked as he opened the menu.