Robin Cook - Fatal Cure

With Nikki clutching one of Angela's belt loops, they advanced toward the open door. They gazed out at the dark line of trees bordering their property. For a few moments they stood absolutely still, listening for any sounds. All they heard was the distant bark of a dog, followed by Rusty's rebuttal from out in the barn. No one was in sight.

Angela closed the door and locked it. Still gripping the gun in one hand, she bent down and hugged Nikki with all her might.

"You're a hero," she said. "Wait until I tell your father."

"I didn't know what to do," Nikki said. "I didn't mean to hit the window."

"The window doesn't matter," Angela said. "You did splendidly." Angela went over to the phone. She was surprised to find it was dead.

"The one in your bedroom's not working either," Nikki said.

Angela shuddered. The intruder had gone to the trouble of cutting their lines first. Had it not been for Nikki, Angela hated to think what might have happened.

"We have to make sure the man is not still here," Angela said. "Come on, let's search the house."

Together they went through the dining room into the kitchen. They checked the mud room and the two small storage rooms. Returning to the kitchen they walked down the central corridor back to the foyer.

While Angela was debating whether to check upstairs, the door chimes rang. Both she and Nikki jumped.

Looking out the side lights on either side of the door, Angela and Nikki saw a group of children dressed as witches and ghosts standing on their stoop.

David pulled into the driveway. He was surprised to see that every light in the house was on. Then he saw a group of teenagers leap from the porch, dash across the lawn, and disappear into the trees lining the property.

David stopped the car. He could see that his front door was plastered with raw eggs. The windows had been soaped, and the jack o' lantern smashed. He had half a mind to give chase to the kids but decided that the chances of finding them in the dark were pretty slim. "Damn kids," he said aloud. Then he noticed that more of the living-room bay window had been broken.

"Good gravy!" David exclaimed. "That's going way too far." He got out of the car and went up to his front door. The place was a mess. Tomatoes as well as eggs had been thrown against the front of the house.

Not until he discovered the broken glass and candy scattered across the floor of the foyer did David become truly worried. Struck by a sudden stab of fear for his family, David cried out for Angela and Nikki.

Almost immediately Angela and Nikki appeared at the top of the stairs. Angela was holding the shotgun. Nikki started to cry and ran down the stairs into David's arms.

"He had a gun," Nikki managed to tell David through choking sobs.

"Who had a gun?" David asked with growing alarm. "What's happened?"

Angela came part of the way down the stairs and sat down.

"We had a visitor," Angela said.

"Who?" David demanded.

"I don't know," Angela said. "He was wearing a Halloween mask. He had a handgun."

"My God!" David said. "I never should have left you alone here. I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," Angela said. "But you are later than you said you'd be when you called."

"It took longer than expected to get copies of the medical records," David explained. "I did try to call on my way up, but the phone was constantly busy. When I checked with the operator, I was told it was out of order."

"I think it was deliberately cut," Angela said. "Probably by the intruder."

"Did you call the police?" David asked.

"How were we to call the police when we had no phone?" Angela snapped.

"I'm sorry," David said. "I'm not thinking."

"All we've done since the man bolted is huddle upstairs," Angela said. "We've been terrified he'd come back."

"Where's Rusty?" David asked.

"I put him in the barn earlier in the day because he got so hyper with all the trick-or-treaters coming to the door."

"I'll get my portable phone from the car and I'll get Rusty while I'm at it," David said. He gave Nikki's shoulder a final squeeze.

Outside, he saw the same group of teenagers scatter.

"You'd better stay the hell away from here," David yelled into the night.

Angela and Nikki were waiting for him in the kitchen when he returned with the phone and Rusty.

"There's a wolf pack of teenagers out there," David said. "They've made a mess of the front porch."

"I think it's because we haven't been answering the door," Angela said. "All the trick-or-treaters have been turned away empty-handed. I'm afraid with no treats we've gotten our share of tricks. Believe me, compared to what we were facing, they're nothing."

"Not quite nothing: they've broken a few more window panes in the bay window," David said.

"Nikki broke the window," Angela said. She reached out and hugged her daughter. "She's our hero." Then Angela told him exactly what had happened.

David could hardly believe the peril his family had been in. When he thought of what might have happened… He couldn't bear to entertain the awful possibilities. When another barrage of raw eggs splattered against the front door, David's anger welled. Running to the foyer, he threw open the door fully intending to catch a couple of kids. Angela restrained him. Nikki held on to Rusty.

"They're not important," Angela said. Tears welled in her eyes.

Seeing his wife start to break down, David closed the door. He had no confusion in regard to his priorities. He consoled Angela as best he could. He knew that running after the kids would accomplish nothing; he'd just be blowing off steam in an attempt to assuage his guilt.

He drew Nikki to him as well and sat them both down on the family room couch. As soon as Angela had calmed down, David used his portable phone to call the police. While they waited for them to arrive, David cursed himself for having left Angela and Nikki.

"It's just as much my fault," Angela said. "I should have anticipated we'd be in danger." Angela then conceded that the rape attempt had possibly been an attempt on her life. She said that she'd told Calhoun about it, and he tended to agree with her.

"Why didn't you tell me this?" David demanded.

"I should have," Angela admitted. "I'm sorry."

"If nothing else, we're learning that we shouldn't hold secrets from each other," David said. "What about Calhoun? Have you heard from him yet?"

"No," Angela said. "I even left a message as you suggested. What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," David said. He stood up. "In the meantime let's take a look at that bay window."

The police were in no hurry. It took them almost three-quarters of an hour to arrive. To David's and Angela's chagrin, Robertson himself came in full uniform. Angela was tempted to ask if it was his Halloween costume. He was accompanied by a deputy, Carl Hobson.

As Robertson came through the front door he glanced at the refuse on the porch and noticed the broken window. He was carrying a clipboard.

"You people having a minor problem?" he asked.

"Not minor," Angela said. "Major." She then described what had happened from the moment the man appeared to David's arrival.

Robertson obviously had little patience for Angela's story. He fidgeted impatiently as she explained all that had happened, rolling his eyes for his deputy's benefit.

"Now, you sure this was a real gun?" Robertson asked.

"Of course it was a real gun," Angela said with exasperation.

"Maybe it was just a toy gun, part of a costume. You sure this guy wasn't just trick-or-treating?" He winked at Hobson.

"Just one goddamn minute," David said, breaking into the conversation. "I don't like what I'm hearing here. I'm getting the distinct impression that you're not taking this seriously. This man had a gun. There was violence here. Hell, even part of the bay window has been blown out."