When the Wind Blows by James Patterson Read Free Book Online Page A

good, Mr. Harrison. Maybe we should head back?”
    Kit almost lost his cool with the guy. The pilot was an asshole of the first order. Actually, he’d flown in plenty of helicopters
     before, flown in snow-blind blizzards, bad rainstorms, and on dangerous raids. There had never been a problem until August
     of ’94.
    He’d been a good agent until then, one of the best. Resourceful, bright, hardworking, tough enough. It was a matter of record
     in his personnel file. So what the hell had happened to him?
    “The natural color of my gills is green. I’m just fine. I’m all right.” He tried a little self-deprecating humor.
    “Whatever you say, Kermit. It’s your dime.”
    Yes, it sure was his dime, and he didn’t have a lot of them to blow on costly surveillance junkets like this. But he felt
     he needed an overview; he had to see the big picture; take in the lay of the land. And the
real
big picture here had to do with subjects as lofty and important as the survival of the human race. He believed that, or he
     wouldn’t be out here on his own.
    Kit tried looking down at the treetops again. Acres of ponderosa pines with aspen groves nestled in. Occasional “blowouts”—stacks
     of trees blown down in winter. And, of course, the snowy peaks of the Continental Divide.
    There was a lab out here somewhere near the Divide. Kit knew that much. Where the hell could it be?
    The helicopter passed over Gross Reservoir. Then he could see the Eldora ski area, and the small town of Nederland. Then another
     picturesque reservoir—probably Barker, if he was reading the maps correctly. Off in the distance, he spotted Flagstaff Mountain.
     Closer in was Magnolia Road, Sunshine Canyon.
    He knew what he was looking for… the end of civilization as we know it. A brave new world. That’s all. It was out here somewhere.
    He thought about Dr. Frank McDonough again. Dr. Mc-Donough had been on his list. McDonough, and also David Mekin and his wife.
     He had wanted to meet with Dr. McDonough—a pediatrician with a background in embryology.
    Unfortunately, he’d been a day late getting here. Blame his boss, Peter Stricker, for that. Hell no, blame himself.
    Dr. McDonough was victim number four. Four doctors had been murdered that he knew of. Four doctors with suspicious pasts,
     dubious presents, and now, no futures at all.
    He watched a couple of paragliders off in the distance. They almost seemed to be flying. They looked so free.
    “Okay, let’s go down,” he finally said to the rent-a-chopper pilot. He had his overview, anyway; he had the lay of the land.
     It was the right first step for the investigation.
    The pilot grinned and gave Kit a thumbs-down signal. What a jerk. “Hang on to your insides… Kermit.”
    F-you, Sky King,
Kit thought. He didn’t say anything, didn’t want to start a scene up here. Especially not up here.
    The helicopter swooped and went into a steep dive. He knew it was a physical impossibility, but his stomach seemed to drop
     before the rest of the chopper and its contents.
    He was feeling unsatisfied and uptight as he left the tiny “High Pines” Airport at around ten-thirty in the morning. He needed
     help, but knew he couldn’t ask for it from the Bureau. He was on his own, and that really sucked.

Chapter 17
    H
AVE FAITH AND pursue the unknown end.
Oliver Wendell Holmes said it and Kit had always believed it. He still did, so here he was in the Rocky Mountains. Pursuing
     the unknown end, and trying like hell to keep the faith.
    He needed answers, or maybe he just wanted to hear a familiar voice. He called Peter Stricker’s office in Washington. This
     was going to be tricky, but he thought he could pull it off. He might just be able to get a little help from the Bureau.
    Peter Stricker was in charge of the Northeast sector of the FBI. They were still pretty good friends. Up until two and a half
     years ago, Peter had actually worked for him.
    Then Kit’s world turned upside down, and he