Page 52 of Storm Warning

“That was her. I saw her,” she said.

“Where?”

“She just went into the convention center through theside door.” Remi rushed across the packed parking lot, leaving Hawk to chase after her.

“Where are you going?” He caught up.

“After Dr. Holcomb, what do you think? She could be in danger. We have to help her.”

Remi opened the side door and entered a wide corridor outside of the main attraction of the Field Arts and Events Hall. Signs everywhere reminded her about Squatchcon. Remi wanted to follow Dr. Holcomb, but to get into the event she would need to pay, and that meant that Dr. Holcomb would have also paid. Would she have exited somewhere else, then?

Remi continued forward. Behind her, Hawk grumbled something she couldn’t make out as they approached the guy standing at a side entrance.

“Hey, you need a pass if you want inside.”

“I’m looking for a woman wearing gray slacks and a navy coat. Did you see where she went?”

He narrowed his eyes. “No. Lots of people coming and going today, lady.”

Remi didn’t believe him. “Look, we’re her friends. I think she’s in trouble. She just came through that door.” Remi pointed to the exit outside. “You couldn’t have missed her.”

“You want inside, you need a pass.” Great. This guy wasn’t budging or being the least bit compassionate.

She wanted to roll her eyes. “So, where do we get a pass?”

“Up front.”

Remi huffed and turned to head to the front, unsure if Dr. Holcomb already had a pass or would have gone into the convention center. But if she was trying to hide, she might have.

Hawk grunted and stepped closer to the guy. “Here’s our passes.” He stuffed something into the guy’s hand.

“You’re good to go,” the guy said.

Remi eyed Hawk briefly but said nothing when he held the door open for her. She stepped inside and Hawk followed. The exit door banged closed behind them.

“What did you say to him?” she asked.

“I gave him a couple of hundreds.”

“What? That’s all it took?”

“He’s a volunteer—that’s how these cons work. He has probably already been here for a day or two, however long this thing lasts.”

“You carry that much cash around?”

“Sure. When I’m trying to travel incognito.” He winked.

Incognito. Right. They were trying to stay under the radar.

“Thanks for that. Now that we’re here, do we even know she came inside?”

“We’re here, so let’s look.”

Remi took in the room. At the far walls were various booths for crafters and artists. Every age group was represented here, and a good chunk of the people had some form of costume for cosplay events. Lots of Bigfoot costumes, as well as other kinds of mythological creatures, including a variety of aliens.

She pushed through the crowd, Hawk on her heels. A voice Remi recognized spoke over the speakers and all heads turned to the stage. Straining to see, she pushed between a few people until she could. A man—Bigfoot, of course—stood at the microphone. He’d taken off his Bigfoot head and started talking about the upcoming costume competition.

“I know him. That’s ... that’s a friend. His name is Hank. He stayed at the lodge with some friends last year. He’s really into all this.”

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