D Carpenter - Infertile Grounds

His alcohol-mellowed mind shifted to Pell and from there to Sarah Burns. If she really existed, she was fascinating. It sounded like something out of a Hollywood script. He had hardly slept in over three days now and even though his mind was racing, he dozed.

When he awoke, the room was dark. He must have slept through the entire afternoon. As he pulled himself out of the chair, he heard a muffled cough.

He sat frozen in terror. Someone was in his house. He stared into the darkness, trying to see through it, but it was pointless – dark shadows were everywhere. Slowly he rose and crept toward the front hallway. Inching by the fireplace, he picked up the poker, took a deep breath and prepared to search his house. Was it the same people from the Wild Bear?

His heart tried to punch a hole through his rib cage as he walked toward the front door. He strained to hear something again, but all he got was an ominously pervasive silence. Then he saw it. A motionless, dark form on the floor just inside the door. What should he do?

Silently he tiptoed to the light switch. Holding the poker at the ready, he flicked on the light.

Sarah was surprised when Camilla returned with Mike Kemper. On the patio, even at this late hour of the day, the southern California sun soothed her body. She was wearing shorts and a loose cotton shirt and was enjoying the rare opportunity to relax on a sun lounger and forget the stress of the last few months for a few moments.

She blushed as Camilla said, “Sorry to disturb you, Sarah. Are you enjoying the sun?”

“It’s a big change from Maine,” Sarah replied as she glanced at Mike curiously. Why was he here?

“I met with Mike this morning and told him about what’s been happening back in Maine.”

Sarah’s chest tightened and blood pressure soared. “I thought we didn’t need to share this?”

“I know, but I thought that he could help.”

“I want to help,” Mike said. The sunlight hitting his beard brought out red highlights that contrasted handsomely with his dark brown eyes and bright white, Hollywood teeth. “I wanted to get involved – be more hands on.”

“That’s nice, but, like I told you yesterday, Camilla, Seth has everything under control.”

“I don’t doubt that he does, but you’ve got to admit that you’ve lost three men. Three out of six – that’s a chunk. You’re going to need some help, and between Mike and myself, we can fill in the gaps.”

Mike said, “I don’t care if I’m just an errand boy.”

Sarah stared blankly at her friend. “I guess we could use the help,” she said finally. “When are you going to be ready to go?”

“Right now,” Camilla said. “I just need to talk to Albert about a few things and then we can leave.”

Sarah left to get her things. Even though she was still angry with him, she wanted to talk to Seth, who was probably almost to Eureka by now. She needed to hear some reassurance from him. Just a simple ‘Everything’s going to be alright.’ would do. Their house in the woods was about twenty miles out of town. It was the perfect place for anonymity. In Humboldt County, people respected land and privacy. With all of the marijuana farmers up there, snooping around was highly discouraged in a variety of ways.

As she threw the last few things into her packed her bags, Mike slipped silently into the room.

“I hope you aren’t upset with Camilla,” he said softly, but his voice still startled Sarah, who turned and glared at him.

She went back to zipping up her bag as she said, “I’m not mad, just surprised, that’s all.”

“Why are you surprised?”

“Because I thought that everything except financing was my responsibility. Camilla would raise the cash, and I’d do the rest.”

“It’s got nothing to do with your competence, Sarah. Camilla has nothing but the highest regards for your abilities. We just think you could use some extra man-power.”

Sarah finished with her bag and turned to Mike. “Thanks for saying that. I’m sorry if I seem a little bitchy; there’s just been a lot of pressure lately.”

“I understand,” he replied as he and Sarah reached for her bag at the same time. Their hands touched and their eyes met for a split second.

“Let me get this,” Mike said.

He picked up her bag, and Sarah followed him down to the foyer where they waited for Camilla, who appeared almost immediately, jingling keys in her hand. “Is everything okay?”

They both nodded.

“I’m driving to the airport,” Camilla said. She obviously didn’t drive much.

“Where’s Albert?” Mike asked as they all walked toward the garage.

“In his quarters. He’ll be heading up tomorrow morning with the truck. There’re a few things that he needs to attend to here first.”

They all climbed into the sporty BMW convertible, and Camilla drove frighteningly fast down the short, twisting driveway.

The bright light blinded Chris briefly, and he involuntarily started to jab the poker forward, expecting the person to suddenly leap up and attack. To his horror, he saw that Pell lay slumped against the door, his chest covered with the dark crimson of blood and a handcuff dangling from his right wrist. The scene in the woods a few days ago with David Rose flashed through his mind.

“Pell!” He dropped the poker and knelt beside him.

Chris echoed his name several times, gently shaking his shoulder. Nothing. He continued this for several minutes until finally Pell’s eyes opened. Slowly he focused on Chris and a faint grin bent his lips as he said, “I bet you’re surprised to see me?” He coughed softly.

Chris nodded – surprised was an understatement. “What happened?” He asked as he pulled open Pell’s shirt to inspect his wound. Pell had already applied a makeshift bandage made from a piece of ripped clothing. From the quantity of blood, it had to be a nasty wound. “We need to get you to a hospital.”

“I can’t,” Pell said. He recited the day’s events in a soft, strained voice sounding like a quadriplegic who used a mechanical ventilator to fill their lungs before they could speak.

When he got to the part about the cop, Chris exclaimed, “You shot a cop! Again?”

“It was an accident. I couldn’t let myself end up in jail while Sarah Burns and her cronies are out changing the future of mankind,” tears rolled down his cheeks as he turned away, ashamed of what he was about to say. “I couldn’t let Carl screw me again.”

Chris sat down on the floor and leaned back against the wall. Somehow he had to get him to the hospital.

“I think I know how we can find Sarah Burns,” Pell said.

“How’s that?”

“She was very close to Camilla Haywood back in college.”

“You said that, Pell. But what are the odds that they still see each other? How many of your friends from college do you still see?”

“I know, but it’s all we have to go on.”

“Maybe so…”

Pell went limp. Jesus, was he dead? He leaned forward, listening for breathing. It was there – faint, almost inaudible.

“That’s it,” Chris said. He wouldn’t be a spectator to another death. He stood up and was about to go call 911 when Pell snapped out of it.

As if he didn’t realize that he had been unconscious, he continued. “I made a couple calls on my way down here,” he said. “I know where Camilla Haywood is, I’ve got her address and confirmation that she’s in the country and at her house in California. You’ve got to go find her. Don’t let Carl Moscovitz break open this case. Do it for me.”

“Look, I’ve done my part. It’s not my place and besides, if I get involved now, after what you did today, I’ll probably end up in jail.”