“Damn,” muttered Cam. “I mean, I’ve thought about it and thought about what Kate gave up in her career but I guess it never fully registered for me.”
“Listen, we have a small city here. Almost four-hundred people. Men, women, and children. We have every profession you can think of, from every military or para-military discipline. And as we’ve seen the last few weeks, the best medical teams known to man. I know they’re exhausted and frustrated that they can’t fix this for everyone but they’re doing amazing work,” said Nine.
“What are you saying?” asked Luke.
“I’m saying, how fucking lucky are we that we get to wake up here with all these amazing people and attack the day like we own that shit,” he smirked. The men all chuckled, laughing.
“Stop whining,” said Trak walking toward the group. They all raised their brows, smirking at the man. “Alvin has given me a piece of information that I believe might help.”
“Well? Are you going to tell us or not?” asked Luke.
“I will tell everyone. I don’t like repeating myself.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“Wait, wait,” said Kennedy rubbing her temples. “You got this idea from Alvin? The alligator?”
“Is there another Alvin on the property?” asked Trak with confusion.
“No. There is no other Alvin. What exactly did he say again?” she asked.
“He said that all the patients had something in common. Mail and packages.”
“Kennedy, it’s possible,” said Ajei. “If someone touched the mail or package and there was something on it, a substance that became airborne or absorbed into the skin, it’s possible. The journal Irene gave me had a note in it about an animal parasite that spread due to a contaminated fur that was sent from a ship. This could be possible.”
“I know, I know,” she nodded. “I guess I just never fully thought that one through. No one said they saw any powders or substances, so this has to be nearly untraceable.”
“We have to contact all of the patients again and ask them if they received any packages in the last few weeks,” said Riley.
“Listen, even if they all received packages with their regular mail, they live all over the area. It wouldn’t have come through one postal center,” said Ian.
“No,” said Ajei, tapping her head as if in deep thought, “but the packages could have traveled through one hub. Mail doesn’t just go to your local post office. It passes through a hub in your city, parish, county, and then to your local postal carriers.”
“Damn, she’s right,” said Luke. “Let’s find out who received packages. From there we should be able to track where those packages came from or which hub they went through.”
“Sounds like we’ve got some work to do,” said Cam. “Let’s go.”
With the list of patients in hand, they called each one on the premise of simply asking how their recovery was going.
“Mr. Osgood, I’m thrilled that you’re feeling better and yes, I agree with you. Our medical team are nothing short of miracle workers. I just had a question. Did you receive any packages the week before you started to feel sick?” asked Eric.
“Of course, I did. I get a package a week with my meals. It’s got all my food ready for me so I don’t have to cook.”
“That’s good to know sir. Please let us know if you start to feel sick again.” He looked at the others on their phones and held up one finger. Ajei made a tick mark on the board as the calls continued.
“Yes, Mrs. Curry, that handsome new nurse is going to be here for the foreseeable future,” smirked Luke staring at Quentin. “Yes, ma’am, he can always check your blood pressure for you.”
Quentin flipped the bird to Luke, remembering the rather large, elderly woman who kept touching his ass.
“Mrs. Curry, we were just wondering if you received a package the week before you started feeling sick?”
“Sure. I get a package every week with my medical supplies in it. Comes ready for me, all dosed out so I don’t mess anything up.”
“That is good to know,” said Luke. “Please let us know if there’s anything else we can do for you.”
It took them nearly six hours to call everyone on the list. The last one was Mr. Rabalais.
“Mr. Rabalais? This is Jeremy from the Belle Fleur clinic. I’m just calling to see how you’re feeling.”
