Page 99 of Her Last Whisper
“I’ve found weird things, symbols and sayings. Things where they shouldn’t be.”
“Where?”
“Around. I saw some weird stuff written in blood on the floor in one of the operating rooms, and then another time an ‘X’ written in some heavy marker on my locker. Like I said, weird stuff I can’t explain.”
“Why would you make this stuff up?”
“I told you—I’m not making anything up! There’s something going on.”
“Is there anything else?”
Bobby looked away but he became agitated, holding his frustration back—his fists clenched.
“What else?”
He shook his head.
“What else are you not telling me?”
He pushed his chair back as far as he could and crossed his arms.
“What else!” Katie stood up and leaned across the table. “Tell us!”
“I…”
“What?”
“I… think I’m going to be next.”
“What do you mean?” she said.
“Killed. I think I’m going to be next.”
Fifty-Six
Monday 2015 hours
Katie was already beat and it was only Monday. Every waking moment she stressed over the investigation—with thoughts that another woman might be the next homicide victim. Her anxiety constantly tried to beat her down and take her out of the game, but the overlapping adrenalin pump with each new lead and bit of evidence kept her going. She tried to stay one step in front of it during the day, but sometimes at night, when her strength and wherewithal were sapped, she couldn’t hold up a strong front anymore.
She curled herself into a fetal position on the couch as her senses assailed her with flashbacks from the battlefield. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut, Cisco snug at her side, waiting for her to get through the next shock.
Crawling on her stomach keeping her head down, she moved through the heavy dust cloud on her elbows and knees. She felt the heat of Cisco’s body crawling next to her. He stayed next to her torso. She felt his heart beating—rapidly. She knew that the old building ahead was shelter but there were rocks and pieces of cement she had to navigate around without blowing her cover—bruising and scraping her arms, legs, and face. Cisco made these detours with ease as he waited every few feet for her to catch up. Shouts broke out all around her. Smoke obscured her vision. Katie couldn’t see her team but knew that a few were following her. She thought she could hear Nick shouting orders to move somewhere ahead but wasn’t sure. Her ears buzzed. She tried to speak but her mouth was strangely wet.
Finally the dust cloud cleared and she saw an entrance. She heard Nick’s voice, “Move, move, move!” So she moved faster. Crawling over a threshold, she entered a safe haven out of direct exposure. Cisco pushed his way in and sat next to her thrusting his wet nose against her face. He began to lick her. She looked at him and realized he was bleeding, but upon closer inspection, the blood was coming from her mouth and face, dripping on the dog. Katie looked down at the front of her heavy uniform and saw that it was dark red, soaked with fresh blood. To Katie’s horror, it wasn’t hers or Cisco’s blood, it was a soldier in her platoon. Her friend Jack, funny, strong, had lost his life. Katie was now saturated in his blood—alive because of him. A joy and burden she would carry close to her heart for the rest of her life.
Katie opened her eyes through the streams of tears, her arms wrapped around her torso. Her body trembled as she let the surges of grief and fear take over her. She thought that she could see that same cloud of dust swirling in her living room, but it was only her imagination. Cisco remained close, keeping his keen attention on her—comforting her the best way he could until the episode ended.
Worn out. Feeling lost. Alone. She had new burdens to bear and she didn’t want to lose someone else on her watch. She stood up, gathering her emotions as best she could and burying them until she was forced to release them again. She made it to the shower and turned it up as high as it would go, the cascading water punishing her and cleansing her in equal measure. She imagined her memory disappearing down the drain and felt a little better.
In yoga pants and a loose sweatshirt Katie did some stretches and tried to just breathe and relax. Cisco had decided that the day was over and climbed into her bed—his curled-up body pressed up close to Katie’s pillows. She didn’t have the heart to move him.
She breezed through the house restoring order and picking up anything that was out of place, just in time to see headlights approaching up the driveway. Cisco barked and scurried across the hardwood floors, taking a tight corner sliding into the living room, and then stood strong at the front door.
Katie opened the front door and Cisco shot out to greet Chad. “You’re such a good boy. A handsome boy,” he cooed several times, leaning down to pet the dog.
He walked up to Katie and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “It’s nice to see you.” He studied her and by his expression he knew that she was hurting.
“You too. I’m sorry we haven’t gotten together sooner.” She waited until Cisco followed Chad inside before closing the front door. In truth, she had forgotten about Chad coming over.
