small, very mean part of me thought that if someone broke into my house and held me at gun point in my own back yard , they deserved what they got. Once again I closed my eyes and was simply thankful to be alive.
This brought me back to my current problem: my lack of planning. I had made it to Zaire and I was not dead. So now what? I stood up and looked around while I dusted off my shorts and tried to focus.
Obviously I needed to get to the rendezvous site. I had no idea where that was and no clue how to get there. I had not been to Africa for several years. Besides that, I had travelled to Kenya — several miles away from where I now stood and in the opposite direction from where I estimated I would need to go.
The pain in my stomach reminded me of more immediate needs. As much as I hated to admit it I need to eat, rest, and regroup for the rest of the afternoon and evening before I did anything else.
***
“ Well. ” I yanked the pen out from behind my ear and tossed it onto the papers I had spread around me on the bed earlier in the morning. “ Isn ’ t this just dandy? ” I said through clenched teeth.
I let out a long slow breath and went over the pages one more time to make sure I hadn ’ t missed anything , but I knew that I wasn ’ t going to find some missing link. I was too good to have overlooked anything. It wasn ’ t a statement that was made out of vanity, but of simple fact. Pharmaceutical research was hard work and an exact science. The same could also be said for science as a whole. There are rules, formulas, and boundaries. There was very little that ever escaped my notice.
“ That ’ s rich coming from the woman who maced her own butt , ” I snickered, laughing at myself.
I leaned back against the headboard and folded my arms behind my neck. “ Well, that ’ s it then , ” I said to the cracked plaster ceiling. “ The doorway is under a star , in a dark cave. Should have known. ” The muttered words were accompanied by a shrug.
That much was true. I should not have been surprised , but I couldn ’ t help it. Was it too much to hope for ... I don ’ t know ... a MapQuest version of the directions? I tapped my fingers on the paper I had chosen from the pile. Something like , ‘ Turn left at Monroe rock and follow Main Street twelve miles to Jefferson cave . Forty paces northeast , X marks the spot . ’ God, these were going to be all but impossible to follow, I realized grimly.
Being unfamiliar with the area and the most of the terrain to boot didn ’ t make matters any easier . It wouldn ’ t be an easy task in broad daylight, let alone in the dark. I wondered at that for a moment , curious about the reasoning behind such clandestine instructions. I felt the first tremor of nerves begin and vowed not to give it another thought. The plan was to start out that night, just before sundown. Going alone would slow me down considerably, but hiring a guide was out of the question.
A guide was exactly what was needed, but I was forced to remind myself that there could very well still be people after me . There was no way to know when John would be arrested, or who he may already have hunting me. It was impossible to say for certain that John would be arrested. But I trusted Mike, wherever he was , and as such was pretty sure my boss would be taken into custody before too long. Still, there was no guarantee of safety .
My eyes widened suddenly as an entirely new angle occurred to me. Had I made a mistake in handing the box over to the cops back in Seattle? Would the last official order that an enraged John Hanlen gave to an angry mob be something along the lines of “ Kill Claire ” ?
I bit my bottom lip and peeked out the window of my tiny room, suddenly wary. Would he do it if he had nothing left to lose? Just how far would he go ? I wondered. Would he go after Megan? God, I had to warn her. I grabbed m y purse and started out the door. I would find a phone and call her , warn her
This brought me back to my current problem: my lack of planning. I had made it to Zaire and I was not dead. So now what? I stood up and looked around while I dusted off my shorts and tried to focus.
Obviously I needed to get to the rendezvous site. I had no idea where that was and no clue how to get there. I had not been to Africa for several years. Besides that, I had travelled to Kenya — several miles away from where I now stood and in the opposite direction from where I estimated I would need to go.
The pain in my stomach reminded me of more immediate needs. As much as I hated to admit it I need to eat, rest, and regroup for the rest of the afternoon and evening before I did anything else.
***
“ Well. ” I yanked the pen out from behind my ear and tossed it onto the papers I had spread around me on the bed earlier in the morning. “ Isn ’ t this just dandy? ” I said through clenched teeth.
I let out a long slow breath and went over the pages one more time to make sure I hadn ’ t missed anything , but I knew that I wasn ’ t going to find some missing link. I was too good to have overlooked anything. It wasn ’ t a statement that was made out of vanity, but of simple fact. Pharmaceutical research was hard work and an exact science. The same could also be said for science as a whole. There are rules, formulas, and boundaries. There was very little that ever escaped my notice.
“ That ’ s rich coming from the woman who maced her own butt , ” I snickered, laughing at myself.
I leaned back against the headboard and folded my arms behind my neck. “ Well, that ’ s it then , ” I said to the cracked plaster ceiling. “ The doorway is under a star , in a dark cave. Should have known. ” The muttered words were accompanied by a shrug.
That much was true. I should not have been surprised , but I couldn ’ t help it. Was it too much to hope for ... I don ’ t know ... a MapQuest version of the directions? I tapped my fingers on the paper I had chosen from the pile. Something like , ‘ Turn left at Monroe rock and follow Main Street twelve miles to Jefferson cave . Forty paces northeast , X marks the spot . ’ God, these were going to be all but impossible to follow, I realized grimly.
Being unfamiliar with the area and the most of the terrain to boot didn ’ t make matters any easier . It wouldn ’ t be an easy task in broad daylight, let alone in the dark. I wondered at that for a moment , curious about the reasoning behind such clandestine instructions. I felt the first tremor of nerves begin and vowed not to give it another thought. The plan was to start out that night, just before sundown. Going alone would slow me down considerably, but hiring a guide was out of the question.
A guide was exactly what was needed, but I was forced to remind myself that there could very well still be people after me . There was no way to know when John would be arrested, or who he may already have hunting me. It was impossible to say for certain that John would be arrested. But I trusted Mike, wherever he was , and as such was pretty sure my boss would be taken into custody before too long. Still, there was no guarantee of safety .
My eyes widened suddenly as an entirely new angle occurred to me. Had I made a mistake in handing the box over to the cops back in Seattle? Would the last official order that an enraged John Hanlen gave to an angry mob be something along the lines of “ Kill Claire ” ?
I bit my bottom lip and peeked out the window of my tiny room, suddenly wary. Would he do it if he had nothing left to lose? Just how far would he go ? I wondered. Would he go after Megan? God, I had to warn her. I grabbed m y purse and started out the door. I would find a phone and call her , warn her
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