“All right, we’ve waited long enough,” Derek said. “Mitch, head down and make sure we’re loaded up. I’m going to call Norah back.”
“You’re in no shape to do this.”
“Duly noted. I trust you have something in that bag of yours to help me compensate.”
“Can I go on record as stating this is a stupid idea and that you should be in a hospital bed?” Mitchell asked with a frown.
“Of course.”
“Good, because if you drop dead from a heart attack out there, I’d prefer to not be written up for it.” He grabbed his backpack and began cataloging the various vials inside it. “And, just for the record, I have stuff in here that will not only keep the pain at bay, but it’ll make you high as a fucking kite in the process.”
“Keeping me on my feet will be good enough. Save the rest for when we end this.”
“What about me?” Julia asked.
“Us,” Arthur corrected. “I want to help, too.”
“Absolutely not,” Derek stated, borrowing Mitchell’s cell.
“But you need backup,” she said.
“Which is exactly what I’m calling for. No offense, but I need trained agents on this one, not someone with mean grammatical skills.”
“I know how to use a gun,” Julia said.
“Me too,” Arthur added. “If you show me what to do, anyway. But seriously, I want to help you guys find Danni.”
Derek turned to the younger man and put a hand on his shoulder. “You are helping her, son. The work you did for us has been immeasurable. We now at least have an idea what we’re up against. We went in underestimating these ... things last time. We won’t make that mistake again.”
“You made a lot of mistakes you won’t be making again, Jenner.”
The group turned to see Jonas Yarlberg step in the door, with Eric Zeist and two uniformed police officers flanking him.
Derek stood up, wincing as he waited for the pain to pass, then strode over to him. “Governor Yarlberg,” he said as way of greeting, forcing his voice to remain calm. “I don’t know what you’ve been told, but...”
“You bastard!” Julia snarled, stalking past him. She raised a hand, no doubt intending to smack the smug grin off the governor’s face. Derek managed to grab hold of her wrist before that could happen, just barely holding her off in his weakened condition.
“Let me go! This pig covered up John’s death.”
Mock concern replaced the grin and the governor replied, “Whatever do you mean, Ms. ... whatever your name is?” He turned to Derek. “By all means let her go.” He glanced back at the two cops with him. “If she so much as raises her voice to me again, arrest her and have her charged with felony assault.”
“Assault?” she cried.
“Oh, yes. It’ll be your word against mine and my witnesses.” Julia turned to Derek, to which the governor added, “I wouldn’t count on Dr. Jenner’s help or that of his friends.” He stopped and looked around the room. “Friend, anyway. I think you’ll find they have little to add to your defense in a court of law. Isn’t that right, doctor?”
Derek refused to be baited by the man. Unfortunately, he was right. Doing what he and his team did required a certain amount of discretion, whether they liked it or not. “Julia, please go back and wait with the others.”
“What?” She rounded on him, her green eyes wide and angry. “How can you just...”
“I’m not,” Derek interrupted. “You’ll just have to trust me. This isn’t going to help anyone, including Sophie. We need to pick our battles, and this one is for another day. We don’t have the time, and our friends certainly don’t.”
That seemed to get through to her. She nodded, however ruefully, then walked back to sit with Arthur and Mitchell, but not before flipping the governor off.
Eric looked like he wanted to say something, but the governor merely held up a hand. “Don’t mind her. Just exercising her first amendment rights, nothing more.”
“Enough with the games, governor,” Derek said. “We need...”
“I one-hundred percent agree, Dr. Jenner. No more games, such as the cock-up I hear your people caused out there in the woods. I thought you were supposed to be professionals, yet in one day you’ve managed to potentially screw this up worse than my people have in months.” He lowered his voice. “What the hell were you thinking? She’s a reporter.”
“She’s also the only reason I’m still alive,” Derek replied, careful to keep his tone neutral. “You’ll have to forgive me, but when I’m at death’s door, I tend to forget to ask whether people have press credentials or not.”
“You look pretty lively to me.”
“I apparently don’t have much choice in the matter.”
The governor shrugged as if he wasn’t concerned. “My apologies for that. I figured a celebrity, however minor, such as yourself would attract some undue attention in a public hospital. Such attention would bode ill for my administration, considering yesterday’s press conference. I doubt we could convince everyone you were there for a simple case of food poisoning. Besides, it looks like your man did a fine job of patching you up.”
It was all Derek could do to not deck Yarlberg, but he held himself in check. He didn’t fancy being arrested, especially since he wasn’t in any shape to do much damage anyway. Might as well save it for when he could at least dislocate the fat bastard’s jaw.
The governor looked down and noticed the phone in Derek’s hand. “I wouldn’t bother if I were you.”
“Oh?”
“Agent Caseman,” the governor clarified. “I assume you’ve been trying to reach her. Don’t waste your breath. I already had a chat with her superiors. There will be no backup coming.”
“What?!” Mitchell stormed over, echoing what was going through Derek’s head. “Are you out of your fucking mind?”
“Dr. Jenner, kindly keep your subordinate under control.”
“Do you have any idea what happened out there?”
The governor faced Mitchell. “I only know what I’ve been told, as I believe is the case with you. Or did I hear incorrectly and you were out there, too, confronting this so-called Jersey Devil?”
Mitchell glared at him.
“I thought not, Mr. Harkness. Seems Dr. Jenner here is the only eyewitness. Awfully convenient, I’d say. And, considering his somewhat less than stellar condition, I’m not sure how any of us can be expected to believe his take on matters with one-hundred percent certainty.”
Derek put a hand on Mitchell’s shoulder. “If I’m not to be trusted, then where’s the rest of my team? Are you implying that perhaps they ran off, maybe got a better deal from a competing channel?”
“Could be,” the governor replied, all good humor gone from his beady eyes. “Or could be that you had an accident out there and are afraid to admit it. Or, maybe a falling out. These things have been known to happen.”
“That’s a serious accusation.”
“Not an accusation at all. Merely speculation. But you’ll forgive me if I find it a bit more believable than ... what was it you said, Mr. Zeist ... ah, yes. Toxic, inbred hillbillies.”
Eric smirked and nodded toward his boss.
Derek turned to his teammate. “Knew we should have discussed that in the other room.” After a moment, he faced the governor again. “Regardless of what you believe, the fact remains that my people are missing and I aim to find them and bring them home.”
Yarlberg shook his head. “Out of the question. You’ve done enough damage out there and I, for one, won’t stand by and let a small army of feds march into the preserve to play cowboys and Indians. The only thing you’ll be doing is catching the next flight out of my state. I should have known better than to think you could fix this without making a mess of things.”
“We’re not leaving without our friends,” Mitchell said.
“I don’t recall giving you a choice.”
“But...”
“Do I really need to point out,” Yarlberg said, addressing both men, “that the door swings both ways when it comes to your service? I have lots of pull in Washington. Believe me, it would take all of one phone call to get an investigation launched. We’re talking dereliction of duty at the very least, possibly even criminal negligence.”
“Criminal negligence?”
“If you were to disobey, say, the jurisdiction of a publically elected official such as myself.”
“That would never stick,” Derek said.
“Maybe not, but you and your friend here would still have a chance to cool off nicely in a prison cell while awaiting trial.” When neither Derek nor Mitchell said anything, he continued. “I’ll assume my point is made then, gentlemen.”
“You still haven’t told us what you plan to do about...”
“Yes, yes, your friends. Don’t worry. I’ll, of course, do everything in my power to ensure their safe return.”
“You’ll forgive me for asking how you intend to do that,” Derek replied.
“It’s none of your concern anymore but, if it helps, we’ve decided to make it an internal matter. We’ll cordon off the area, leak some story to the press about an endangered species being found.”
“Cordon off the area?”
“Yes, to minimize any further casualties. Then, once the election is past, we can...”
“The election is four months away!” Julia cried.
“I’m warning you for the last time, Ms...”
Derek stepped in front of the governor. “My apologies. As you can probably guess, it’s a stressful time for us all.”
The governor’s face turned a shade redder. “Stressful or not, I won’t tolerate another outburst from her ... or you, for that matter. One more word and I’ll see to it that your team is shipped off to the most remote part of the Alaskan tundra.”
“Been there already,” Derek replied grimly, but then held up his hands in a placating manner. “But I believe I get your drift, governor.”
“Do you?” Eric asked.
Derek ignored him, continuing to face Yarlberg who he towered over by a full head. “I know how this game is played. So does my team. We know the risks involved, both in the field and out. And we also understand the consequences. So long as you can assure me that everything possible will be done, I’ll take your word for it.”
Yarlberg stared at him long and hard, their eyes locked until Derek looked away. That seemed to satisfy the governor. “I give you my full assurance.”
Derek nodded and turned back toward Mitchell. “Start breaking everything down and packing up the equipment.”
“But...”
“And get the paperwork ready for Julia.”
“I’m afraid the reporter needs to come with...”
“And give her cause for both a criminal and civil lawsuit against your administration?” Derek asked, turning back to the governor. “Once she signs everything, I’ll give you copies so you can make sure they’re duly filed. You know as well as I do what’ll happen if she tries to talk. Her word will be about as good as Monopoly money at a bank.”
The governor thought that over for a moment, but seemed satisfied. “Mr. Zeist, please ensure Ms. ... uh...”
“Wilhelm,” Eric offered.
“Yes, Ms. Wilhelm. Please ensure she doesn’t leave until she signs everything Dr. Jenner requires of her. After that, she’s free to go.”
“You can go to hell if you think I’m signing squat!”
“Ms. Wilhelm,” Derek replied in a placating manner. “Think about this. You want to help your sister, right? Well, you won’t be able to do anything until you give us what we need. It’s nothing onerous, just some affidavits swearing you to silence about this matter.
“And what? If I don’t sign, some spook will shoot me in the head?”
“Hardly, but there will be consequences. At the very least, your career would most likely be over.”
“So you’re going to gag me?”
“I’m trying to ensure you’re free to do your job and continue your search.”
“And my sister and your friends can all rot while those things do God knows what to them?”
“The governor has assured me he’ll do everything in his power. Officially, I’m inclined to believe him.” He turned away from her before she could say anything further. “You’re all set with us, Arthur. Same deal applies to you. After you help Mitchell wrap up...”
“And send copies of everything to my office,” the governor interrupted. Derek raised an eyebrow, to which he added, “So that Mr. Krychech can continue this investigation from his end.”
“Of course,” Derek replied, before addressing Arthur again. “After that, you’re free to return to your normal class schedule.”
“But...”
“Where I highly recommend you forget about everything you’ve seen and learned here.”
The younger man merely nodded, seeming to understand that he was well out of his league on this.
That seemed to finally mollify the governor. “Make sure that everything is handed over to Mr. Zeist’s team within the hour. Then you’re to be on your way, and by that I mean, I don’t want to see your faces in my state ever again. Eric, kindly walk me out.”
Eric did as told, but not before flashing the others a triumphant smile as he and the governor stepped from the room.
The second the door closed, Derek held up a hand for silence. He knew he was about to be bombarded with questions and accusations, but also realized they didn’t have time for it.
“Let’s go, people. You heard the man. We have an hour to get packed up and be gone. We wouldn’t want to disappoint our esteemed host.”