Killing Hour - Lisa Gardner [43]
Dr. Corben looked at them both wildly. He definitely was thinking of an argument. He definitely wanted to argue. But then his scientific mind seemed to reassert itself. He glanced at the body again, watched the horrible distortion of its face, and slowly, very slowly, nodded.
“Eye gear on,” he said at last. “Masks, gloves. Whatever it is, I want us to be prepared.” And then, almost as an afterthought, “Gina, stand next to the special agent.”
Nitsche moved hastily behind Kaplan’s large build. Kimberly straightened up and worked on her own composure. Knees slightly bent, legs ready to move. She put on her goggles, her Crayola long since discarded on the floor, and her favorite hunting knife now in her hand.
Dr. Corben moved gingerly. He got just close enough to be able to touch the girl’s stitched-up mouth with his scalpel, without his body being in the line of fire for Kaplan’s gun.
“On the count of three,” Dr. Corben said tightly. “One. Two. Three.”
The scalpel went slash, slash. Dr. Corben fell back from the body, his feet already scrambling. And a dark, mottled shape exploded from its unwanted prison and hurtled halfway across the tiled floor.
One moment Kimberly was alone in her corner of the room. The next, she saw the unmistakable, brown-splotched shape of a coiled rattler. The viper reared up with an ominous hiss.
Kaplan’s Glock exploded in the tiny room, and Kimberly hurled her knife.
CHAPTER 12
Quantico, Virginia
5:14 P.M.
Temperature: 97 degrees
MAC WAS STANDING OUTSIDE A CLASSROOM asking Genny if she happened to know of a good botanist in the state of Virginia, when the blurred form of a blue-clad figure came roaring down the hall. The next instant, he felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder, just had time to look up in surprise, and promptly got whacked again by his favorite new agent.
“You did not say anything about snakes!” Kimberly Quincy swung a solid right; he barely dodged left. “You did not say anything about leaving live vipers in their mouths!” She followed with a jab to the ribs; he fell back three steps. For a tiny thing, she really could hit.
“You lying, manipulating, cold-hearted bastard!” She took a good wind-up and he came to his senses just in time to block the blow, twist her arm behind her back, and turn her into the solid restraint of his body. She, of course, tried to flip him over her back.
“Sugar,” he murmured in her ear. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, but maybe you’d like to wait ’til we’re alone.”
He felt the outrage scream through her stiffened frame, but then his words must’ve penetrated. She seemed to become aware of their surroundings. For example, as students generally didn’t assault other students in the halls of the Academy, she now had everyone’s full attention. Genny’s gaze was most amused. She had it locked on Mac’s face with blatantly unconcealed interest.
“Just practicing a little drill,” Mac drawled out loud. “You know, always happy to help out a new agent.” He gingerly released Kimberly’s arm. She didn’t hit him, or stomp on his foot, so he figured he was making some progress. “Now then, darlin’, why don’t we go outside where we can discuss other ways for ambushing a possible suspect?”
He hightailed it for the double doors. After another awkward moment, Kimberly scrambled after him. She managed to make it all the way around the corner of the building to a somewhat isolated flagstone patio before she went after him again.
“Why didn’t you warn me about the stitched-up mouth!” she yelled.
He threw up his hands in surrender. “Warn you about what? I still don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“He left a rattlesnake in her mouth. A real live rattler!”
“Well, that’ll put hair on your chest. Did you hit the rattler as hard as you hit me?”
“I threw a knife at it!”
“Of course.”
She scowled. “But I missed. Special Agent Kaplan shot it with his gun.”
Ah, no wonder she was pissed. Her big moment, and she missed throwing a knife at a striking viper. The girl did have her standards.