A plan began to come together in Nate’s mind. “I can scan the databases to see if either of those names pop up as having entered the country, and if so, we might be able to get footage from the customs entry area and get a verified ID.”

“Good. And just in case you were thinking about it, we don’t need to let the good doctor know what’s going on. He’s got enough on his mind as it is. I’ll tell him that I’m just being overly cautious about his safety.”

Nate put the note back in the envelope and stuffed it in his suit pocket. “And I’ll put together my team recommendations and get them to you right away.”

“This afternoon. We don’t know how desperate these folks are.”

The fatigue Nate had been feeling melted away as an electric thrill coursed through him. He gave his supervisor a cold smile. “Understood. We’ll get them.”

###

Nate slowed his jog to a walk as he approached Madison’s grave.

It had been two days since his last conversation with Jeff. The team had been assembled—almost all of them former military, special operations—and two of them were already following leads on the suspects. Nate could feel the electricity in the air, almost as if he knew he’d be getting a call any moment telling him that one of the suspects had been spotted.

He blinked away the rain as he knelt at Madison’s grave. “Maddie, I sometimes wish I were with you. Work has been a nightmare. People have died, and we don’t know who’s at fault. There’s a guilt-ridden doctor who’s literally working around the clock trying to save people because someone is using his work against others.”

The sun had just peeked above the horizon, and the cemetery was silent except for the sounds of the gentle rain and the chirping of the birds celebrating the first light of a new day. Nate tilted his head up, caught some raindrops in his mouth, and tried to relax. The stresses of the past few days had been building. He needed this visit with Madison. He needed to vent.

“Medicine is so different now, Maddie. You wouldn’t believe what the doctor’s been working on. Before this nightmare started, he was actually working on a cure for cancer.” Nate’s throat thickened. “Maybe he could have cured you if only you’d gotten the disease now instead of twenty years ago.”

The rain began to fall a little harder, and with it came the sound of tires on wet asphalt, slowing to a stop.