Nowhere to Run by Mary Jane Clark Read Free Book Online

she returned from Yelena’s office. If he paced up and down much longer he would wear a hole in the carpet, thought Annabelle. She felt sorry for the thin, intense young man. It was bad enough having Linus Nazareth as a boss. Annabelle couldn’t imagine having him as a father. Wayne was as quiet as his father was brash. Thoughtful and talented, yet well aware of the whispers of nepotism that hissed through the office.
    “I’m not going to, Wayne,” she answered. “The nose is the body’s first line of defense. There are thousands of germs swirling around in there, and even if anthrax is in the nose, that doesn’t mean it’s in the lungs. Besides, the container of anthrax was sealed. We haven’t been exposed.”
    “Then why were those HAZMAT guys in the orange suits wearing boots and masks when they checked the studio and Lee’s office?”
    “Taking precautions, I would imagine, while they tested. But Lee says he never opened the anthrax, and I believe him. He may be many things, but he’s not suicidal.”
    Wayne considered Annabelle’s reasoning. He didn’t want to be a wimp, but he was worried. “I don’t know,” he said, his brow furrowed.
    “Look, Wayne, if it will make you feel better, get tested. But just know that while those nasal swabs may allay public fear, they’re not very useful at a clinical level. If it comes up positive, all it means is you’ve been exposed. That doesn’t necessarily translate into an infection.”
    “Then maybe I should just get a prescription for Cipro?” he grasped.
    Annabelle tried to be patient. “Again, I wouldn’t, Wayne. That’s an antibiotic that you’ll have to take for sixty days. It causes serious side effects for some people. And even more important, if you take antibiotics when you don’t really need them, there’s a chance they won’t work if and when you do.”
    Annabelle didn’t know what else she could say to assuage the young man’s fears. She decided to try to distract him. “If you don’t have another assignment, I could use some help with my story. I have to do the follow-up on this thing.”
    “Gee, Annabelle, I’d like to help you out, I really would, but I already have a load of stuff I’m working on. I have to go down to Wall Street and do an interview for Gavin, and I promised Lauren I’d do some research and pull file tape for her piece.” He backed out the door.
    Watching him disappear down the hall, Annabelle wondered what it would be like to have a brother, a twin no less, lying for twenty years in a vegetative state, a sibling you had been with since conception, as close as two people could be. She thought of Thomas and Tara, and the special bond between them. Chilled, she rubbed her arms, imagining what it would be like for one of them to watch the other sink beneath the broken ice of a skating pond, as Jerome’s manuscript recounted six-year-old Wayne Nazareth had done all those years ago. According to Jerome’s research, Wayne had stood there, screaming for help, not wanting to run away from his brother. How had he dealt with the realization, which must have come as he grew older, that those precious wasted minutes could have made a difference? If he had gone for help right away, his brother might have been all right. It was too horrible to dwell on, and she intended to tell Jerome that, in her opinion, he should strike that chapter from his secret manuscript.
    It was too cruel.

Chapter 16
    Joe Connelly returned to the president’s office with the latest news.
    “The FBI want to see John Lee’s e-mails,” he announced.
    From behind her desk, Yelena looked up without expression. “What a surprise.”
    “What do you say? Should we cooperate?” the security chief asked.
    “No, Joe. If the feds want Lee’s e-mails, let them get a subpoena.”

Chapter 17
    Today was definitely a day to lunch at Michael’s, but not because of the California-sunny decor or the mouthwatering menu. The restaurant was a media hangout,