| |
Daniel drove Morton to the apartment while Julia and Johanna found a hotel.
The rain intensified and visibility lessened. In one sense, Daniel was relieved he was leaving the heart of Pittsburgh, but he regretted being away from Julia and Felicia after the traumatic event they had experienced. But he believed getting a hotel room in Pittsburgh would be the last place where the clone would expect them to be. Morton was probably right. The first place they’d hunt for them was at their homes. He just didn’t like the idea of returning to the city without the cat.
He couldn’t shake the fact that the black vans were associated with TransGenCorp, and he had been so close to the clone and didn’t realize it. Had he known they had just attempted to run Julia off the road, he would’ve probably slammed his car into the lead van. But such an action inside TransGenCorp was suicidal. The guards would have gunned him down before he had a chance to grab Lucas’ clone.
Daniel’s anger weighed evenly with his nervousness. The fact that the vans were inside TransGenCorp meant the same people protecting Helmsby were also protecting the clone.
“How much was Helmsby on the level?” Daniel asked.
Morton frowned. “You think he’s involved with this?”
“Don’t you?”
The cat shrugged.
Daniel said, “You didn’t sense any abrupt change in his behavior? Like maybe he was hiding something?”
“I’m a shifter, Daniel, not a psychic.”
Daniel watched the road through the rapid rain-sluiced windshield wipers. “I know, but animals do have a keen sense of detecting human emotions.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t have my Tarot cards with me at the moment.”
“This is serious.”
“I am serious.”
Daniel sighed. “I believe he’s hiding something.”
“A great deal more than we know. I agree with you on that.”
“But why put our lives in jeopardy?”
“Who says he has?”
“The vans are there. Lucas’ clone is there.”
Morton nodded. “Maybe he can’t say anything. Maybe his life is being threatened.”
“I don’t trust him. I can’t, even though part of me wants to.”
“I understand your position.”
“And Nancy is in Germany. My guess is to keep her out of harm’s way while we get stuck in the middle again.”
“Remember one thing that he said.”
“What?”
“Don’t lose your focus. You get preoccupied with nonsense details and you’ll put yourself off guard. That’s when you’ll be the weakest.”
“I’m not losing my focus,” Daniel said. “I’m just trying to evaluate everything.”
“Then you are out of focus. Zero in on the key issue here. That’s finding Lucas before he’s killed or before they find and kill us.”
Daniel gritted his teeth. “Helmsby seemed certain they are coming after us.”
“If so, he’s not our enemy. Why warn us if he’s involved?”
Daniel didn’t reply. There had to be more to what was taking place. Helmsby was involved somehow. What had the military offered him to keep his assistance?”
“You mull it over,” Morton said. “My cat genes insist that I take a nap. I’ll need to be keenly alert while working the night shift. Wake me when we get there.”
***
Daniel turned onto the street where they lived and nudged Morton. “Almost there.”
Daniel slowed to park in their assigned parking spot. Morton whispered, “No, keep driving. Don’t let them see you.”
“They’re here?”
“It’s possible. Drive further down the street and let me out at the curb. You go back and protect the women. I’ll call you after what’s done is done.”
“Maybe I should stick around, too.”
“No. These men, if my guess is correct, are better trained than you can handle. They will come in the dead of night when our neighbors are asleep. Besides, you saw how frightened Julia and Felicia were. You need to be there to ease their fears.”
Daniel turned the car around and parked at the curb. He scratched the back of Morton’s ears. “I know, but I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Me? I have night eyes. I work best in the dark. And besides that, I’m a shifter. Bullets sting but I heal fast.”
“Yeah, maybe so. But be careful. They might have night eyes, too. Who knows what Idris will send?”
Morton nuzzled Daniel’s hand. Daniel opened the door and let the cat out. The cool rain soaked his fur. Morton looked up and said, “If it didn’t draw too much attention, I’d ask for an umbrella.”
Daniel grinned. “Take care of yourself.”
Morton ran under a parked car and waited until Daniel drove out of sight. Slinking from car to car, he kept the rain to a minimum on his fur. As best he could tell, no one sat in any of the cars parked along the opposite side of the street. He really didn’t think they’d come until after nightfall, but he wasn’t taking any chances.
He entered through a side door of the apartment complex and headed upstairs. When he got to their apartment, he popped his head through the cat door.
Silence.
With cat stealth, Morton checked each room and then the windows. No one had broken in yet, but he had the uncanny cat sense they were nearby. With only hours until dusk, he moved through the room, refreshing his mind of each nook where he could hide.
Morton slid open the balcony door. Dark clouds released heavy raindrops. He inhaled the sweet air. The intruders would come this way, he reasoned. It was the quickest, easiest route to enter that lessened the possibility of being seen by other residents.
Morton studied the balcony railing, and he thought it odd that Daniel had worried that the shifters were still out there. He smiled. Just like Morton had mentioned to Julia, Daniel possessed a cat sense of his own. But Morton became uneasy because he hadn’t felt what Daniel did. Shifters weren’t their greatest danger. It was the people protecting the shifters; armed men who killed and threatened their lives.
He slinked back through the sliding glass door and pushed it shut. He found the television remote and channeled through satellite stations. He stopped at a channel to turn back on later once he made sure their home was safe. He turned off the lights and stared at the sliding glass doors.
Now came the waiting.
Morton sighed.
He wasn’t a patient cat.