Burke shook his head. “But they already had possession of the pathogen. And they’re using it to cover their tracks. This has to be about something else.”

“Like what?”

Burke seemed to hesitate. He glanced between the two of them, looking unsure of himself. Carter had seen that look on Burke’s face before, when he was holding back, when he had a theory he was too afraid to share. He was about to push the kid on it, but full of surprises, Nic beat him to the punch.

“Listen, Burke, we believe in you,” Nic said. “Me, Carter, we have your back. You don’t have to be afraid of saying the wrong thing.”

“I just don’t know anything for sure.”

“So what? Then we’ll help you dig deeper. Don’t worry about offending someone or just plain being wrong. Right now, today, you’re a part of this team. And my team members aren’t just coworkers. They’re my brothers. I’ve got your back. Carter has your back. Hell, even Taz. Now, little brother, let’s catch these guys.”

A small grin crept onto Burke’s face, and he quickly looked back at his iPad. “Okay, you said Bristol is over there with the hostages?”

Nic’s phone vibrated. He looked at the screen and said, “The doctor says that it doesn’t appear to be contagious, definitely not airborne. But there’s also no vaccine or treatment he knows of. He’s hoping that the CDC or USAMRID docs will know more.”

No one spoke for a moment, the gravity of those words sinking in. From the last he had seen, Carter didn’t expect those poor people to live long enough for the CDC or the army’s experts to arrive.

“I need you to send her a message back,” Burke said. “Tell her it’s important and to drop whatever else she’s doing.”

“Okay, what do you need?”

“Have her find out if the manager, Quentin Yarborough, is wearing a watch.”

Chapter 66

The doctor was a short but handsome man with shaggy brown hair in dire need of a trim. His eyes were kind. They reminded Gabi of her father’s eyes, having seen death many times but gaining a greater appreciation of life and an affinity for people because of it. She missed her father now more than ever. After all that had happened, she wanted nothing more than to sit on his lap and let his arms take her back to a time when the world was beautiful, and she didn’t have to be afraid.

She knew she would never see her father again. She could never return home, and even if she could, his arms wouldn’t be strong enough to calm her fears or ease her pain.

The doctor had already examined the room’s other inhabitants, her white-haired coworker Deb and the mute blonde woman. They had been the only hostages not to consume the tainted hamburgers, her because of religion and them because they had each carried out a message before the burgers had arrived.