When the Wind Blows - James Patterson [65]
I told her all about Kit, at least what I could tell. I left out the part about our finding Max, of course. And I also didn’t mention that he was with the FBI.
Chapter 67
KIT WAS WORRIED, even more uptight than he’d been, but he was definitely feeling sick to his stomach.
He had what he jokingly called “FBI stomach,” a recognizable queasiness, a tenderness and weakness that belied the hardness of his gut. He’d been hanging out with little Max all day, playing it as cool as he possibly could. He had hoped she’d drop some information about where she had come from. She hadn’t so far.
He had checked in with Peter Stricker’s office and they hadn’t come up with a whole hell of a lot about Dr. Frank McDonough—other than that he had once worked with James Kim in California, which Kit knew already. Actually, he had called in just about every favor he could in Washington and Quantico, but nothing he found out was too helpful.
This wasn’t good. He was in an extremely tough place now. He ought to tell Stricker about Max, but something inside told him not to do it yet. Call it his sixth sense. Call it certifiable insanity. Or a death wish for his career.
Whatever the name, it was an emotional component that the Bureau wasn’t as high on as he was. He understood that a lot of people wouldn’t have agreed with his thinking, but they hadn’t observed how the Bureau had treated this case. They hadn’t been there. They hadn’t seen the disparaging look on Peter Stricker’s face, or the cynicism in his voice.
After Frannie returned from her friend Gillian’s house they ate another pasta dinner with Max. Frannie definitely seemed more relaxed. They took a moonlit walk in the woods later that night. Max knew the names for most of the trees they passed, the flowers, shrubs. She seemed to like to talk once she got started.
“Impressive,” Frannie told her. “You know more about these woods than I do.”
“I read a lot,” Max said and shrugged. “And I retain information.”
“Did you go to classes at your school?” Kit asked as they circled back toward the cabin. The moon was a large white plate looming over the dark treetops.
“What do you think?” Max answered with a question, then she scooted on ahead of them—walking, not flying.
“I’ve got an idea,” Kit offered when they got close to the cabin. “Let’s all go for a car ride, see the sights a little. What do you say, Max?”
“I love that idea!” Max said and seemed terrifically excited. Her green eyes beamed. She jumped into the air—and stayed up. “I’ve never been in a car before! Never in my whole life!”
Chapter 68
THE JEEP held the three of us in front. Since it was already past midnight, Kit figured we would be safe enough. On the way out of Bear Bluff there wasn’t another car on the road. So far, so good. Max was positively radiant as she peered out through the windows.
A little more than an hour later, we entered the city of Denver, which at that time of night was pretty much shut down. I knew the glittering skyline very well. The Daniels and Fisher Tower, modeled after the Venetian campanile, pierced the darkened sky. So did the state capitol, a Federal Revival—style building with a gold-leafed dome. The beautiful Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was framed up ahead. And clearly visible, even at night, was the looming and magnificent Front Range of the Rockies.
I think Kit was trying to get on Max’s good side, and maybe it was working out. We were taking a small risk coming here late at night, we knew, but not too much of one.
I watched Max out of the corner of my eye. She kept shaking her head in utter amazement and awe. “Look at the buildings, the lights, the everything. I never knew there were so many tall buildings in the whole wide world.”
Kit and I pointed out the McNichols Sports Arena, Larimer Square, Mile High Stadium. Max made Kit stop the Jeep so she could look at a red-brick school building covered with expressive, very colorful murals. A school. A nice, peaceful one.
She’d never been in a city, but she knew a lot about them. She