Wild Fire by Nelson DeMille

Author:Nelson DeMille
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: FIC000000
ISBN: 9780759569447
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: 2006-11-06T10:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

We got to the car, and I slid behind the wheel, started the engine, and pulled out to the road.

As I drove through Ray Brook, Kate asked, “Tell me what Major Schaeffer said.”

“I will. But now I’m thinking.”

“About what?”

“About something that Schaeffer said.”

“What?”

“That’s what I’m trying to remember . . . it was something that made me think of something else—”

“What?”

“I can’t remember. Here’s an intersection.”

“Bear—turn left. Do you want me to drive while you think?”

“No, stop bugging me. I shouldn’t have said anything. You always do this.”

“No, I don’t. If you tell me everything that you and Schaeffer discussed, it will come to you.”

“All right.” I turned onto Route 86, which was dark and empty, and as I drove, I related my conversation with Schaeffer. Kate is a good listener, and I’m a good reporter of the facts when I want to be. But facts and logic are not the same thing, and I couldn’t recall the word associations that had illuminated something in my brain.

When I finished, Kate asked me, “Did it come to you?”

“No. Change the subject.”

“Okay. Maybe that will help. Do you think the Custer Hill Club is or ever was a government facility?”

“No. This is Bain Madox’s show from beginning to end. Think Dr. No.”

“Okay, Mr. Bond, so you think this is more than a hunting lodge, and even more than a place where possible conspirators meet?”

“Yeah . . . there seems to be a whole . . . like, technological level there that is not consistent with the stated purpose of the place. Unless maybe, as Madox said to us, his wife meant it to be a refuge in case of an atomic war.”

“I think that was just part of his smoke screen—a logical explanation for what he knew we would eventually hear about the construction of that place twenty years ago.” She added, “He’s very sharp.”

“And you seem especially sharp and bright this evening.”

“Thank you, John. And you seem unusually dull and dim.”

“This mountain air is clouding my brain.”

“Apparently. You should have pressed Major Schaeffer more on some of these points.”

I responded with a little edge in my voice, “I was doing the best I could to get his voluntary cooperation. But it’s not easy questioning another cop.”

“Well, when you sent me out of the room, I just assumed you guys would bond and spill your guts to each other.”

The words “fuck you” popped into my mind, but that’s how fights start. I said, “You and I will press him a little more tomorrow, darling.”

“Maybe you should have told him what we found written in Harry’s pocket.”

“Why?”

“Well, first, it’s the right thing to do, and second, he may know what elf means.”

“I doubt it.”

“When are we going to share this information?”

“We don’t need to. Your FBI colleagues are so fucking brilliant, they’ll find it themselves. If they don’t, the state police will. If they don’t, well then, we’ll just ask Bain Madox what mad, nuk, and elf mean.”

“Maybe we should. He knows.”

“Indeed, he does .

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.