“Shit,” the second man yelled. “There a dog.”
The first man had reached the chase car. He jumped in behind the wheel and fired up the engine. The second man tried to open the passenger-side door, but Newton’s jaws closed around his trouser leg. The guy yelled. He managed to kick free and get the door closed.
The chase car did a three-point turn and roared off, disappearing around a bend.
Sam got to his feet and went cautiously down the hill.
Abby followed quickly. “Newton,Newton,come here. Are you all right?”
Newton trotted back toward her, giving her a doggy grin. She went down on her knees and hugged him close.
“Good dog,” she said. “Brave dog. You’re the best dog in the entire world.”
Newton licked her furiously.
“Always figured he’d go for the ankle, not the throat,” Sam said.“Let’s get moving.” He urged her toward the SUV. “I want to make a stop before we head back to the island.”
“Where?”
“The Black Box lab.”
“Don’t forget, we have to make that nine-one-one call to report Thaddeus’s body,” Abby said.
“We’ll stop at a gas station on the way back to Seattle,” Sam promised.
19
SHE FELT THE HOT CURRENTS OF ENERGY SWIRLING INSIDEthe lab as soon as she walked through the automatic doors with Sam. The interior of the Black Box facility, officially known as the Coppersmith Research and Development Laboratory, gleamed and sparkled with a lot of stainless steel and thick green-tinted glass. Instruments and high-tech equipment, including lasers that were clearly state–of–the-art and beyond, were arrayed on the workbenches. Computer screens glowed on every desk. Technicians in white coats hovered over chunks of raw ore and specimens of crystals and rocks.
There was a lot of heat in the room, Abby thought, and it wasn’t allcoming from the specimens. She was fairly certain that most, if not all, of the researchers and technicians were talents of one kind or another.
One of the techs looked up when Sam escorted Abby into the windowless room. He yanked his safety goggles away from his eyes and got to his feet.
“Mr. Coppersmith,” he said. “Sorry, sir, didn’t see you come in. It’s been a while since you dropped by.”
Several other members of the staff noticed Sam and greeted him with a mixture of surprise and friendly respect. They looked at Abby with veiled speculation.
“I know I haven’t been around as often as usual in the past few months,” Sam said to the technician. “But I’ve been keeping tabs on things from my private lab. Abby, this is David Estrada. David, Abby Radwell.”
David nodded at Abby. “Nice to meet you, Miss Radwell.”
“Abby, please,” she said. “A pleasure to meet you, too.” She looked around. “I’ve never seen anything like this place.”
“Not a lot of labs like this one around,” David said. He did not bother to conceal his pride. “Rumor has it that our competition, Helicon Stone, operates a decent version of their own Black Box, but I doubt if they’ve got anything we don’t have.”
“If you ever find out that the Helicon lab does have something we don’t have, let me know,” Sam said. “We’ll get it for you.”
David laughed. “That’s what I like about working here. I get every toy I want.”
“How are things going?” Sam asked.
“Humming along,” David said. “I’m working on a very interesting piece of amber today. Definitely charged. Would you like to see it?”
“I would, but I don’t have the time. We’re on the way to the library. I just stopped by to say hello. Where’s Dr. Frye?”
“I think you’ll find him in the library,” David said. He smiled, as if at some secret joke. “With Miss O’Connell.”
There were a few scattered snickers around the room.
