“What?”
“I don’t know, exactly.” I looked up and held her eyes with mine. “But as soon as you’re released, I need you to get out of town. Detective Hollingsworth said he can put you into protective custody.” As she started to protest, I said, “Just for a few days. Just until the police can catch him. He probably won’t try to come after you again, but I can’t take the chance.”
“Fine,” Andrea said, “but only if you come with me.”
“I can’t.”
She sat up in the bed. “You can’t? Why?”
“The police need my help. It seems it has something to do with my father’s experiment. They need someone with a scientific background to explain it.”
“I don’t understand. Why can’t they just get someone else to do it?”
I took a deep breath. “I have to do this,” I said. “It was my father.”
Andrea slowly pulled her hand out from under mine. “I guess now is as good a time as any to tell you.”
Blinking, I asked, “Tell me what?”
“I put the house up for sale a few weeks ago. I have a buyer. All that’s left is for you to sign the bill of sale. And,” she added, “repair the damage from this morning.”
“What?”
“Half of the money is yours by rights. You can have it all; I know you’re broke. I don’t care about the money.”
Not understanding what she was meaning, I shook my head. “You sold our house…?”
“Kyle.” She looked down at her hands to avoid my eyes. “I couldn’t wait for you anymore. I’m going back home. My parents want me to stay with them until I can get my life back together.”
“Why didn’t you talk to me about this?”
Her voice became sharp. “Talk to you? I’ve been trying to talk to you for the past year. It’s like you’re someone else, or you’re somewhere else. I don’t even know you anymore.”
“Andrea,” I said in a breathless rush, “I need you.”
Tears sprung from her eyes. “I’m so sorry your father is dead. I know the timing is horrible.” She held up the arm with the splint. “I’m scared, Kyle. It’s all too much.”
At once, I felt betrayed that she’d taken another step toward the dissolution of our marriage, and I regretted that I’d been the one who’d pushed her in that direction all these months.
I couldn’t blame her for being frightened, not only by my personal spiral into depression and anger over the last year, but from the very real possibility that the madman would return to finish the job he’d started.
Just because I understood her reasons, it didn’t mean I had to like it or accept it.
At the moment, I was too overcome by my emotions to be eloquent.
“Fine,” I said, unable to keep my voice from cracking. I could feel my skin grow hot. “Whatever you want.”
The roar in my ears drowned out whatever Andrea said to me as I turned on my heel and stormed out of the hospital room, ignoring the screaming pain in my knee.
* * *
I was aware it was the second time today I’d walked out on Andrea in anger. What was wrong with me? Did I have no control over my emotions anymore?
Everything around me was falling to pieces. I’d been under immense pressure throughout medical school and during my internship, and I’d survived. Why couldn’t I get a grip on my life now?
More than that, it hit me that Andrea had given up on me. Really given up. I guess, somewhere deep inside, I thought she would always be there, no matter what. We’d been through tough times earlier in our relationship. Medical students and interns work long hours with little pay. There had been many months when we couldn’t make ends meet. Still, through all that, we’d been young and in love, and that had sustained us.
The truth was, everyone had their limits, and with me completely absorbed by my problems, I’d ignored her, and I’d pushed her past her limits. I had no one else to blame; if she had any indication that I would turn back into the man she married, I had to believe she would never have considered putting the house on the market.
I’m sure being attacked by a madman had only confirmed to her that it was time to move on.
Lost in thought, I found myself wandering aimlessly through the halls of the hospital. When I realized I was on the opposite side of the building, I stopped, turned around, and headed back to the main reception area.
Hollingsworth and Vanderburgh stood up from their seats in the waiting room as I approached. They’d followed me to the hospital.
Vanderburgh asked, “Is she all right?”
I pressed my lips together, not trusting myself to speak without making a comment that was both none of their business, and that I wouldn’t later regret. Instead, I nodded.
“I’ve contacted our department and made the arrangements to take her into protective custody. A few officers should be here soon.”
“Thank you,” I said.
Hollingsworth beckoned me closer as he pulled out his cell phone. He tapped something on the screen and turned it toward me.
“Vanderburgh confirmed it, but I’d like corroboration. Is this Lawrence?”
I looked closer. It was a clip from the security camera in the university cafeteria. There wasn’t any sound, but the table was close enough that the poor quality didn’t blur the image much.
I watched as the video showed my father sitting in wait, leaning forward in anticipation until a second person entered the frame—a very tall, imposing figure with his back to the camera. My father stood, extended his hand to shake the other man’s, and then gestured for the newcomer to take a seat.
They spoke at length, but it was only toward the end of the conversation that the man looked around, and I saw his face.
“It’s Lawrence, for sure.” I stepped back as the video ended. “Do the campus police have anything on him?”
Shaking his head, Hollingsworth said, “There isn’t a record of him entering through the security gate. It’s possible he walked there, or came in on one of the busses.”
Vanderburgh shrugged one shoulder. “It doesn’t seem like much now, but it helps establish a timeline. You never know, it might be connected to something else. We’ve got a few officers canvassing the students. Maybe someone overheard the conversation. Lawrence could have given out some personal information.”
“So, what’s next?” I asked. When the two detectives glanced at each other with an air of uncertainty, I frowned. “We can’t just stand around and wait for him to make the first move. He might try to come after Andrea again, or me, or someone else.”
I realized that’s exactly what they were thinking. “You want him to try again.”
With an assuring tone, Vanderburgh said, “We’ll have officers with Andrea around the clock, and the two of us will stick with you.”
“That’s not good enough,” I said. “We have to be more proactive.”
Frowning, Hollingsworth leveled his eyes at me. “You mean, go back and finish looking through your father’s research?”
I shook my head. “The digital copy of his journal is incomplete. I might be able to piece the clues together and figure it out, but that would take a lot of time. The only two people who know the whereabouts of the rest of his journals are dead.”
“We’ve gone through the lab, his office, and his house.” Vanderburgh rubbed the back of his neck, as if he were still sore from the encounter with Lawrence. “Where else would he have kept the journals?”
“Maybe we can ask his investors?” I said.
“His investors?”
Nodding, I said, “Enoch Enterprises.”
Chapter Fourteen
Though I’d been a part of the medical community for all of my adult life, I’d never heard of Enoch Enterprises until last night. I thought I was familiar with every technology firm in Chicago that supplied the local facilities.
We visited the hospital administrator before leaving. He told us Enoch Enterprises was a relatively new vendor in the c
ity. They specialized in genetic testing equipment, helping to identify those who had a predisposition to hereditary diseases.
As we left the hospital, I wondered aloud. “It seems odd that they’re investing in organ regeneration. It’s a completely different field.”
“Probably a business decision,” Vanderburgh said. “No one takes care of themselves anymore, but everyone wants to live forever. Organ regeneration sounds like a growth industry.” He let out a small laugh. “Pun intended.”
Hollingsworth’s sedan was totaled. Though I wanted to take my own car, he insisted we stick together, so we all piled into Vanderburgh’s SUV and drove toward the industrial sector of the city. Hollingsworth used the browser on his cell phone to look up their exact address.
While we drove, my mind drifted back to Andrea. She’d obviously been planning to move out for months. Had I been so horrible to her all this time? I realized the answer to that question was, yes.
Was I so far gone that she had completely given up on me?
Things just kept getting worse. In some recess of my mind, I realized that the only thing keeping me going was finding out why Lawrence had killed my father and the others, and what it was he needed. What was in the OrganKnit that had altered Lawrence like that?
Before he’d killed the officer, the burn scars had covered his arm and face like a massive black growth of dead skin. He’d wrapped his hands around his face and, from what I could guess, he’d absorbed the man’s healthy skin. It was almost as if he needed a transfusion of fresh cells to reverse the growth on his own skin.
At the same time, he must have transferred some of the OrganKnit to his victim, and though dead, the officer’s skin had tried to replace the lost cells with new growth—the tendrils.
I said to Hollingsworth, “I assume they're going to autopsy Tim and his father, and the officer.” A moment later, I added, “You said they were going to autopsy my father as well.”
“It’s standard procedure in a homicide.”
I asked, “How long until they get the results?”
He cocked his head. “We can usually get a report the same day for physical causes of death. Toxicology can take days or weeks, sometimes months.” He gave me a quick nod. “You know how backed up the labs are.”
Vanderburgh said, “I thought it was obvious how they died…”
Emotionally, it was difficult for me to talk about it, but I summoned the professional demeanor I’d cultivated over the years. “If I had to guess, I’d say it was massive epidural hematoma due to skull fracture.”
“Yeah,” the young detective said, his face darkening. “That.”
I said, “But what caused the skull fractures? No one is that strong.”
I recalled seeing Lawrence’s hands vibrating when they were wrapped around the officer’s head, and remembered the same thing happening to my father. Originally, I had put it out of my mind, but now, I knew, somehow, Lawrence had caused their skulls to shatter with very rapid vibrations. The same kind of vibrations that had made localized tremors around him. How was that physically possible?
I said, “What I’m more interested in is the rapid post-mortem epidermal growth. If, for some reason, we don’t get anything out of Enoch Enterprises, an analysis of those cells might give us an idea what was in OrganKnit that initiated the mutation.”
Hollingsworth hefted his cell phone. “I’ll call the ME and tell them to make it a priority.” He dialed the number and spoke with the chief medical examiner, explaining the urgency.
When he was finished, he said to me, “Even with a rush, it could still take days.”
Vanderburgh said, “Meanwhile, Lawrence is still out there on a rampage.”
We fell into an uneasy silence until we arrived at Enoch Enterprises.
* * *
The building itself seemed innocuous. If not for the small sign beside the double glass doors at the entrance, I would have thought we were at the wrong place. It was almost as if Enoch Enterprises did not want to call attention to itself.
Once the three of us stepped inside, there was no doubt we were in the right place. The reception area was decorated in a very modern style. With an overall earthy color scheme, none of the furnishings had a ninety-degree angle anywhere. Everything looked molded. The front desk looked as if it had grown out of the floor. Even the walls sloped in at the top and bottom corners. The entire area was filled with potted plants, and there was a tree in the middle of the room stretching up to meet the sunlight filtering in from a huge skylight.
It seemed like a very inviting place to work.
The young woman sitting at the front desk stood up as we entered and offered us all a warm smile. She was tall and striking, dressed in a pantsuit, which was tight in all the right places. Her long blonde hair spilled over her shoulders in broad curls like a waterfall. She had movie-star looks, and exuded a confidence and presence that was overwhelming.
All three of us were dumbstruck, staring at her as if we were nothing more than awkward teenagers.
Before Hollingsworth and Vanderburgh could get their badges out, the receptionist greeted us.
“Gentlemen,” she said, her voice immediately captivating the three of us. “My name is Danee. Welcome to Enoch Enterprises. We’ve been expecting you. The director has given me instructions to send you to his office.” She raised a long arm and extended a well-manicured finger toward the opposite side of the reception area. “You may find him in the last office down the main hall.”
I mumbled something I thought was a ‘thank you’, but Vanderburgh was the only one to say it aloud.
Even before we headed away, the receptionist resumed her place on the chair behind the desk and busied herself with other tasks. We were already a memory.
It took us a few moments to get control of ourselves. Hollingsworth looked embarrassed, and kept his eyes focused straight ahead. Vanderburgh’s neck was flushed red.
I wondered at my own visceral reaction. For the past few months, it had been a rare occurrence that I’d had any carnal thoughts. Stress is a mood-killer, and the mountain of problems that had fallen on me hadn’t left much room for anything else. Certainly, even before Andrea had kicked me out of the house, we hadn’t been intimate for months.
With my father dead less than a day, I thought it was extremely odd that I would have that kind of reaction, even though I had to admit Danee was certainly one of the most beautiful women I’d ever seen in person.
As we progressed down the hall, we passed several other employees of Enoch Enterprises. Though none of them evoked such a sharp reaction in me as the receptionist had, I noticed they were all extremely attractive people, both males and females. All seemed to be young and fit.
I could see in both Vanderburgh and Hollingsworth’s faces that they’d noticed it as well.
“Well,” Vanderburgh said, keeping his voice low, “it is a genetic testing lab. Maybe they do some kind of genetic screening for their employees.”
I knew some employers utilized certain unofficial hiring standards. For a company in the genetics field, having healthy and attractive workers might be a public relations directive.
The director’s office was as large as the main reception area. There wasn’t a door separating the room from the hall. A gently curved archway was the only barrier.
Standing in front of his desk—also earthy and ergonomic in construction—a middle-aged man with short-cropped hair waited with an expectant smile on his chiseled face. His hands were at his sides, hanging loosely, and his stance was casual and confident at the same time.
The man’s voice was deep and rich, almost melodic. “Welcome, detectives, Mr. Chase. I’m Sam Lancaster.”
Hollingsworth flashed his badge. I guessed it was not just habit, but also protocol.
“You were expecting us, Mr. Lancaster?” Hollingsworth asked, his voice tinged with suspicion.
The director nodded. “It’s all over the news. They’ve been running updates all day.” He tu
rned a sorrowful face toward me. “I’m so sorry to hear about your father. I never had the privilege of meeting him, but from what I was told by Phil Bellows—may he also rest in peace—Professor Chase was a brilliant man, on the verge of revolutionizing the field.”
“That’s part of why we’re here,” I said. “We were hoping you have a copy of his research.”
Sam cocked his head in question.
Hollingsworth asked, “You were funding him, weren’t you?”
“The funding process was in the early stages of negotiation. There was nothing concrete, however. We were waiting for the results of his last experiment before we committed any resources.”
“So you don’t have any of his notes here?” I asked.
Sam shook his head. “I’m afraid all we have is the original proposal, and our internal notes on the project. I can certainly provide you with all the documentation we have.” He leaned over his desk and pressed a button on the intercom portion of his office phone. “Danee, can you copy the file on Professor Chase and have it ready for the officers?”
“Yes, Director,” came the dulcet reply.
Looking up at us again with a convivial smile, Sam said, “If there’s anything more I can do, please let me know.”
Hollingsworth said, “If there is, I’ll be in touch.” He pulled out a business card.
“You can leave that with Danee. She’ll keep it on file.”
As the three of us took a step toward the door, Sam Lancaster spoke one more time.
“Kyle, I understand your father was bringing you in to work on the project with him.”
“Yes,” I said, wondering what he was getting at.
“If you intend to continue his research, please let me know. We’re still keenly interested in the project. Perhaps, when this is all over, we can have a conversation.”
My professional future was the last thing I was thinking about, and my gut response was to dismiss the offer. A heartbeat later, I nodded at him. “Thank you, Mr. Lancaster.”
He smiled at me as we exited the office and returned to the front desk where Danee waited for us. She had a thick folder in one hand, and traded it to Hollingsworth for his business card.
The Complete Book Of Fallen Angels Page 49
