“I'm sure you can, Dr. Reynard.” Esmeralda sat in Schwartzman's chair, and Heather sat across the desk from her. “It sure was nice of Dr. Schwartzman to loan me his office while we're here. He's been so nice and helpful.”
“I'm sure your work is important.” Heather gave her a smile. She felt a strong desire to help this girl and be supportive.
“Maybe we could start with an overview,” Esmeralda said. “Can you tell me what happened the day of the...outbreak...in Fallen Oak?”
“The reports say it was some kind of chemical leak,” Heather said.
“I know what the reports say. But we're after the facts here.” Esmeralda winked and patted Heather's hand. Heather's heat skipped a beat. She liked the touch of the girl's hand. Heather had a crazy, elated sense of falling in love with this girl. “You understand. Somebody has to get to the truth here, don't you agree?”
“I really do,” Heather said, gazing into the girl's dark gray eyes. “But I was told to keep quiet...”
“By who?” Esmeralda squeezed her hand. “You don't have to keep any secrets from me.”
“Homeland Security took control of the scene,” Heather whispered. “The investigation, the media, everything.”
“That's exactly the problem,” Esmeralda said. “We're not investigating the CDC here. You guys are great. Our concern—the committee's concern—is that the Department of Homeland Security might have been used in a way that put politics ahead of the country's security. We think critical information was deliberately kept from members of Congress. We want to know the details.”
Heather found herself nodding along. She wasn't happy with how the Fallen Oak situation had been handled, either. Something needed to be done, and she wanted to help, but that wasn't really what she was thinking about at the moment. She was wondering how this Esmeralda girl would react if Heather kissed her.
“So, will you help us?” Esmeralda asked. She was stroking the back of Heather's hand now, and Heather found the sensation delightful beyond words.
“Of course,” Heather said. “Anything you want.”
“What was your role in the Fallen Oak investigation?”
“I'm an epidemiologist,” Heather told her. “So my job was to identify the pathogen and try to find the source.”
“What did you discover?”
“There was no pathogen,” Heather said. “The disease was so extreme and so rapid, I was thinking it must have been genetically engineered. I was initially worried about bioterrorism, to be honest. But there was nothing to be found. It was all symptoms, no vector. Strangest thing I've ever seen.”
“Did you have any luck finding the source?”
Heather bit her lip. She wasn't sure how much she should share, when everything had been declared classified.
Then Esmeralda laced her fingers together with Heather's, and suddenly all Heather could think about was how to get alone with this girl. Esmeralda was from out of town, so she must have a hotel room. That would be easier than Heather taking the girl home to her own bed, where Liam was obviously going to ask questions.
“The source of the outbreak?” Esmeralda asked again.
“Oh...there's a girl,” Heather said. She was feeling drunk now, aching to touch the girl. “Jennifer Morton.”
Esmeralda's eyes narrowed. “Tell me about her.”
“We...I think she's an immune carrier,” Heather said. “Some reports say she can exhibit symptoms at will, she can become contagious at will. That sounds crazy, but that's what I've heard. And I'm starting to believe it.” Her voice dropped to a whisper again. “Something supernatural is going on here, Esmeralda. Not many people believe it, but I do.”
“So you think Jenny Mitt...Morton willingly infected and killed all those people in Fallen Oak?”
“That's what I think.” Heather giggled—the girl's touch was making her lose her mind. “Don't tell anyone I said that, though. I mean, I examined Jennifer's hair and blood, and there was nothing unusual there—until I put them in contact with a control group of live blood cells. All of the cells that didn't belong to her just shriveled and died on contact. But I never saw a transfer of a pathogen. It's really not possible, what I saw. But that's what I saw.”
“And where is Jenny Morton now?” Esmeralda asked.
“That's the billion-dollar question. Homeland Security is looking for her, but she's gone into hiding somewhere.” Heather's fingertips stroked their way up along the inside of Esmeralda's forearm. She couldn't stop smiling at the girl. “Do you want to go get a drink with me, or...?”