Robin Cook - Acceptable Risk

Arriving back at the compound, Kim intended to drive directly to the castle, but as she cleared the trees, she saw a Salem police car parked in front of the cottage. Curious as to what that could mean, she headed in its direction.

As she approached, Kim spotted Edward and Eleanor standing and conversing with two policemen in the middle of the grassy field about fifty yards from the house. Eleanor had her arm around Edward’s shoulder.

Kim parked next to the patrol car and got out. The group in the field either hadn’t heard her arrive or were too preoccupied to notice her.

Curious, Kim started walking toward them. As she approached she could see that there was something in the grass that had their collective attention.

Kim gasped when she saw what had their attention. It was Buffer. The poor dog was dead. What made the scene particularly gruesome was that some of the dog’s flesh from its hindquarters was gone, exposing bloodied bones.

Kim cast a sorrowful look at Edward, who greeted her with composure, suggesting to her that he’d recovered from the initial shock. She could see dried tears on his cheeks. As nasty as the dog was, she knew he cared for him.

“It might be worth it to have the bones looked at by a medical examiner,” Edward was saying. “There’s a chance someone could recognize the teethmarks and tell us what species of animal could have done this.”

“I don’t know how the medical examiner’s office would respond to a call about a dead dog,” one of the officers said. His name was Billy Selvey.

“But you said you’ve had a couple of similar episodes during the last few nights,” Edward said. “I think it behooves you to find out what kind of animal is involved. Personally, I think it was either another dog or a raccoon.”

Kim was impressed with Edward’s rationality in the face of his loss. He’d recovered enough to have a technical discussion about potential teethmarks on the exposed bone.

“When was the last time you saw the dog?” Billy asked.

“Last night,” Edward said. “He usually slept with me, but maybe I let him out. I can’t remember. Occasionally the dog stayed out all night. I’d never thought it was a problem since the compound is so big, and the dog wouldn’t bother anyone anyway.”

“I fed the dog around eleven-thirty last night,” Kim said. “I left him in the kitchen eating.”

“Did you let him out?” Edward asked.

“No, as I said, I left him in the kitchen,” Kim said.

“Well, I didn’t see him when I got up this morning,” Edward said. “I didn’t think anything about it. I just assumed he’d show up at the lab.”

“Do you people have one of those pet doors?” Billy asked.

Both Kim and Edward said no at the same time.

“Anybody hear anything unusual last night?” Billy asked.

“I was dead to the world,” Edward said. “I sleep very soundly, especially lately.”

“I didn’t hear anything either,” Kim said.

“There’s been some talk down at the station about these incidents being due to a rabid animal,” the other officer said. His name was Harry Conners. “Do you people have any other pets?”

“I have a cat,” Kim said.

“We advise you to keep it on a short leash for the next few days,” Billy said.

The police put away their notepads and pens, said goodbye, and started toward their cruiser.

“What about the carcass?” Edward called out. “Don’t you want to take it to the medical examiner?”

The two officers looked at each other, hoping the other one would respond. Finally Billy yelled back that they thought it best not to take it.

Edward waved them away good-naturedly. “I gave them a great tip and what do they do?” he said. “They walk away.”

“Well, I’ve got to get back to work,” Eleanor said, speaking up for the first time. She looked at Kim. “Don’t forget, you promised to come back to the lab real soon.”

“I’ll be there,” Kim promised. She was amazed Eleanor cared, yet she seemed sincere.

Eleanor started off toward the lab.

Edward stood looking down at Buffer. Kim averted her eyes. The sight was grisly and made her stomach turn.

“I’m very sorry about Buffer,” Kim said, putting her hand on Edward’s shoulder.

“He had a good life,” Edward said cheerfully. “I think I’ll disarticulate the back legs and send them to one of the pathologists I know at the medical school. Maybe he could tell us what kind of animal we should be looking for.”

Kim swallowed hard hearing Edward’s suggestion. Further mutilating the poor dog was hardly what she’d expected from him.

“I’ve got an old rag in the back of my car,” Edward said. “I’ll get it to wrap the carcass in.”

Not sure what she should do, Kim stayed by Buffer’s remains while Edward went for the old towel. She was rattled by Buffer’s cruel fate even if Edward seemingly wasn’t. Once Buffer was wrapped in the towel, she accompanied Edward back to the lab.

As they neared the lab a disturbing possibility occurred to Kim. She stopped Edward. “I just thought of something,” she said. “What if Buffer’s death and mutilation had something to do with sorcery?”

Edward looked at her for a beat, then threw his head back with howls of laughter. It took him several minutes to get himself under control. Meanwhile Kim found herself laughing with him as well, embarrassed at having suggested such a thing. “Wait just one minute,” Kim protested. “I can remember reading someplace about black magic and animal sacrifice going hand in hand.”

“I find your melodramatic imagination wonderfully entertaining,” Edward managed amid renewed laughter. When he finally got himself under control, he apologized for laughing at her. At the same time he thanked her for a moment of comic relief.

“Tell me,” he said, “do you really think that after three hundred years the devil has decided to return to Salem and that witchcraft is being directed at me and Omni?”

“I just made the association between animal sacrifice and sorcery,” Kim said. “I really didn’t think too much about it. Nor did I mean to imply that I believed in it, just that somebody did.”

Edward put Buffer down and gave Kim a hug. “I think maybe you’ve been spending too much time hidden in the castle going through the old papers. Once things are really under control with Omni, we should go on a vacation. Someplace hot where we can lie in the sun. What do you say?”

“It sounds fun,” Kim said although she wondered what kind of time frame was in Edward’s mind.

Kim did not care to watch Edward dissect Buffer, so she stayed outside the lab when he went in to do it. He came back out in a few minutes, carrying a shovel, with the carcass still wrapped in the towel. He dug a shallow grave near the entrance of the lab. When he was finished burying Buffer, he told Kim to wait a moment since he had forgotten something. He disappeared back inside the lab.

Reemerging, Edward snowed Kim a chemical reagent bottle he had retrieved. With a flamboyant gesture he placed the bottle at the head of Buffer’s grave.

“What’s that?” Kim asked.

“It’s a chemical buffer called TRIS,” Edward said. “A buffer for Buffer.” Then he laughed almost as heartily as he had with Kim’s suggestion of sorcery.

“I’m impressed how you are handling this unfortunate incident,” Kim told him.

“I’m certain it has something to do with Ultra,” Edward said, still chuckling over the pun. “When I first heard what had happened I was crushed. Buffer was like family to me. But the awful sorrow I felt passed quickly. I mean, I’m still sorry he’s gone, but I don’t feel that awful emptiness that accompanies grief. I can rationally recognize that death is a natural complement of living. After all, Buffer did have a good life for a dog, and he didn’t have the world’s best disposition.”