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"I'm guessing you're hungry," Chance said. "Let's go get you some food."
"I'm starved, but I want answers too."
The door opened before we reached it. "How are you feeling, Everly," Cassie asked.
"OK. Dr. Wainwright said I'm OK."
"We were going to get her some food," Chance said. "What's the plan?"
"We'll meet in the conference room in half an hour. If you're not through eating, just bring your food with you. I'm going to let everyone know. See you in a few minutes." She continued on down the hall.
I realized I was glaring at Cassie’s retreating back. "I want food, but we need to talk before that meeting."
Chance led me to the cafeteria that served the lab employees. The cook offered to make us anything we wanted. I was glad she offered some suggestions. I made my choice and sat down at a table in the corner, while Chance fixed me a cup of tea. "It's not your brand, but it is Earl Grey."
I explained my concerns about trusting the BITES people. "She was my protection, and she wasn't there. I'm not sure I can forgive that."
Chance reached for my hand across the table. "Babe, you don't have the facts. When Meecham and Greg got here, things went to hell. Trevor and the guards took the two of them hostage along with the rest of the staff. Greg was able to get a message out and someone at BITES headquarters relayed it to Cassie. She got the call when she was driving to the handoff site to get in position. She called me, and we decided to change the plan. I would never have pulled her off the assignment if I didn't believe you'd be safe. Surely you know that."
"I do, but I don't understand what happened."
"We all agreed that Gracie's kidnappers would never let you hand them the coordinates and walk away. You knew that too. We expected they'd make you lead them to the observation point. We agreed to divert the team to the lab to free the hostages. Cassie met us there."
"So, you all just figured I'd deal with the kidnappers myself."
"To be honest, I expected that, but the plan was that we could retake the lab, then have the chopper drop Cassie and I as close to the observation site as we could. We expected to be there before you and the kidnappers got there. We were on the ground headed to the location when we heard the gunshots."
"So, you still trust the BITES people?"
"Absolutely." Chance looked at the clock as the cook delivered my BLT and cheese fries. "I think we'd better take it with us. Do you need anything else?"
"I'm good. I think."
Chance got a tray and carried my food and tea to the conference room. People were just trickling in. Chance and I sat down, and I leaned over to whisper to him. "Where's Gracie Layne?"
Just then the door opened, and my sister walked in laughing with Dr. Wainwright and Matt Henshaw. She'd changed into a set of green scrubs and her hair was wet from a shower. She was wearing a Harvard Medical sweatshirt. I went to hug her. Are you OK?"
"I'm good," she said. "I talked to Mom." Visions of my mother’s face when she heard I'd been shot must have shone on my face. "I just let her know we were both fine and would talk to her soon. I can't believe you threw a knife into that guy's throat then shot the other one. Who are you?"
Dr. Wainwright took her elbow and escorted her to a chair on the other side of the table. I leaned in to Chance, "Was Gracie Layne OK when y'all found her?"
"She was kind of hysterical, but she calmed right down when she saw me. I think she was exhausted and shocked by your actions, but she wasn't injured."
Mr. Meecham walked in and took his seat at the head of the table. I was surprised to see a bandage on his head. "OK everyone. Let's get started, we've got a lot of ground to cover. "First let me thank all of you for your efforts over the last two days. I can't tell you how sorry I am that we didn't deal with the problems here at the lab sooner."
Over the next two hours, everyone shared their part of the story. Dr. Trevor Wilhelm and his co-conspirators were taken into custody by DHS agents. When Greg reported on that part, I leaned in to Chance. "Is that why Jim isn't here?"
He nodded. Gracie explained that she ran but realized she'd gone the wrong way when she saw the kidnappers lying in the trail. She found a hiding spot and came out when she heard Chance and Cassie talking.
Cassie escorted Gracie Layne back to the lab, while Chance continued to search for me. I was unconscious when he found me. He carried me to a clearing and the chopper transported me back to the lab where Dr. Wainwright treated my gunshot wound.
There was talk about how the lab was supposed to function. BITES didn't want to publicize its location because they didn't want people thinking it was some sort of cryptid zoo where they could see the mythical creatures. It was supposed to be low-profile but deadly force was definitely not authorized to be used against civilians who trespassed onto the facility.
"Are the animals supposed to be loose?" I asked.
"Definitely not," Dr. Wainwright said.
"Then you may have containment problems," Chance explained. “Harry Wilkins and my dad reported finding several cryptids in the area that aren't native to this area including a waheela and Dingonek."
"And I have a feather from a giant bird of some type that flew overhead when we were close to the lab," I said.
Our revelations started a flurry of discussion about creatures that had been reported as dead or missing from the lab.
"DHS agents will be in touch with you to take your official statements, and all of us could be called to testify if there are any trials," Mr. Meecham explained. "That leaves us with one last issue to tackle—what do we do with the bigfoot family?"
We spent another hour discussing possible options for the bigfoot family. In the end, the decision was unanimous.