PCP—Julia’s lab was faster than...a pair of white rabbits. Definitely PCP in his system.

  ***

  Kody had stepped outside the room where Captain Lynch slept fitfully to get the information through to Brodie. It was important to let Brodie know right away the drug running rampant in the body of Captain Lynch was PCP.

  Julia was setting Lynch up with an IV—and the saline and nutrients to counter-act, as best as possible, the effects of the drug.

  “You know, I despise that place,” Julia told Kody while setting up the IV. “It always seemed weird to me. I mean I’ve met Dr. Hansom. He’s all enthusiasm and a nice person, but I can never tell if he’s just a charmer—you know, in the way a few serial killers have been charmers—or if he’s just naïve. It’s just, there’s something off! Any time the medical community has questions, they wind up being shifted off. That fellow you were talking about earlier—Micky Halloran—is a victim’s rights attorney and might well be our next governor. He’s always questioning what’s going on out there, and Hansom comes back with his wide-eyed enthusiasm and convinces people he loves the military and would do anything at all to help our wounded men and women. I just wish I believed in him. I’m telling you, Hansom works with a woman named Kelly Shelbourne—and she always seems like she’s afraid when she’s around him!”

  “I can’t believe, in a hospital setting, anyone would get away with ordering a drug—not used because of its dreadful effects—to be given to a patient. Can it even be ordered? I mean, it really seems as if he had been given a bad version of the drug, as in a street version,” Kody replied.

  Julia shrugged. “You’d be surprised what staff at a hospital can get away with. Don’t get me wrong—thankfully, most facilities are honestly doing their best to save lives and most medical personnel tend to be extraordinary people, compassionate and dedicated. But there are times when things go wrong—and there are always people who have their own agendas.”

  “What the hell could this agenda be?” Kody wondered.

  She leaned against the doorframe, looking back in at Captain Lynch. He was restful now, at ease. His breathing was deep and even.

  She smiled. The lodge was homey and beautiful. The rooms had been decorated for the season; a pretty little porcelain tree sat on the dresser beside a small Rudolph the Red-Nosed reindeer—with his nose alight, shedding something like a soft glow over a nearby creche.

  “Need a break? Want to prowl around the kitchen, grab some coffee, walk outside? Do anything other than sit in this room?” Julia’s voice brought Kody’s attention back.

  “Sure, thanks. I’ll dig around in the kitchen. Hadn’t thought of it, I’m starving.”

  “Bruce is down in the tavern ever watchful and keeping guard. Maybe he’d like something, too.”

  “I will check in on him,” Kody said.

  “Do it. I’m a doctor. The captain’s okay with me,” Julia said.

  Kody smiled. “I know that, of course. And thank you.”

  She hurried down the stairs to the old tavern area of the inn.

  Bruce, Brodie’s middle brother, was sitting there on his computer. He had positioned himself facing the front door and windows. He was engaged in what he was doing but looked up when she entered the room.

  “Hey,” she said. “Julia is with our patient. She thought I needed to walk around, maybe fix something to eat—and see if you might need anything.”

  Bruce sat back, watching her. “Sure. Food would be great. How are you doing?”

  “I’m fine—just finding it hard to wait.”

  He laughed. “Waiting is half of this, always. Watching, playing mind games.”

  She took a seat on the side of the table where he was sitting. “Sophie will be here tomorrow, right?”

  He nodded. “She and Marnie will be along. And for the wedding, well...everyone will be out here. We won’t be playing the game alone for long. Jackson and Angela are coming, of course.” He offered her a smile. “Your white rabbit is going to be okay. I don’t think whoever is behind all this had any idea what he might be facing—two dozen Krewe members. It will be all right.”

  “Do you think anyone knows the rabbit—I mean, Captain Lynch—is here yet?”

  “Honestly, no. You weren’t seen. I do believe, however, they will be crawling all over this area. They believe he’s hiding out and they are going to have to narrow it all down.” He was quiet a minute, watching her. The bothers were so similar in appearance, tall and dark haired and light-eyed, but with differences in the tones in their coloring and in their facial structure.

  She loved Brodie. But she liked his brothers very much as well. She even liked his somewhat crazy—maybe not crazy, but overly dramatic—mom and dad.

  She’d seldom heard of people having intrusive in-laws—especially if they were dead. But since she had come to the D.C. area with Brodie, she had gotten to know the two women who would soon be her sisters-in-law well, both working at the theater and through other means. Marnie—Bryan’s wife—was a renowned actress, which certainly pleased Maeve McFadden. But Sophie, Bruce’s wife, had been a detective in L.A.

  She, too, was now with the Krewe; but she loved the theater as well and seemed to have donned a cloak of patience where her mother-in-law was concerned.

  “Like I said, Sophie and Marnie are driving out together,” Bruce said. His expression was wryly amused then. “I believe my parents will be with them. You knew they’d be here—in spirit, of course,” he added.

  She grinned at that. “Of course, but more than that—you just made me think.”

  “About what?”

  “About seeking some assistance from people, I hadn’t thought about before.”

  “Oh?”

  “The dead,” she said softly. “I believe there’s an old graveyard by the hospital. And new burials are taking place there as well.”

  “Some of the dead being from the hospital?” Bruce asked.

  She nodded gravely.

  He suddenly stood.

  She hadn’t heard a thing; apparently, Bruce had.

  “Get behind the counter...bar, whatever it is now,” he told her.

  “Bruce—”

  “Please!”

  She did as he asked. She saw Bruce reaching to the holster wedged in his waistband at his back and heading to the door just before ducking down where he’d told her.

  There was no sound of knocking.

  He threw the door open. And she knew in that moment that someone had heard what she hadn’t. Someone was at the old inn, someone who had arrived with exceptional quiet...and might have or might not have knocked.

  ***

  The name plate on the desk in the office where Brodie and Bryan were led stated the desk really belonged to Herman Littlefield, head of security.

  The man who rose curiously to meet them introduced himself as Karl Granger.

  “Acting for chief, Mr. Littlefield. That gentleman is enjoying a long-deserved vacation with his family in San Diego,” Granger said.

  They produced their IDs, causing the man to look at them suspiciously. “You are brothers—well, I didn’t need the IDs to see that. You’re both FBI?”

  “And a third brother, too,” Bryan said cheerfully.

  “Runs in the family,” Brodie told him. He wondered what Littlefield was like; Granger was a man who appeared to be in his early forties, graying and balding, with dark eyes and a sharp face.

  He might have been ready to dislike just about anything having to do with the hospital; but where it seemed Dr. Hansom had been open, this man appeared to be wary of them and not about to share anything without a warrant.

  He might have been wondering if the two of them were even the real deal.

  “Feds,” Granger said.

  “Yes,” Bryan told him.

  Brodie might have been feeling a little too impatient with the man and the place. He didn’t bother with pleasantries, but said, “We understand you have men with rifles out looking for a patient—a man who has served his country diligently.”

  Granger sighed with grave patience, as if he was talking down to annoying children.

  “Captain Lynch is out there with a machete. God knows what his demented state might cause him to do. My men have to be prepared.”

  “Sounds to me as if your men just plan to shoot him down,” Brodie said.

  Bryan nudged him hard in the ribs. He smiled pleasantly.

  “I assure you, that’s not the case. But neither will I have a man, woman, or child out there beheaded by a very sick individual,” Granger said. “A road exploded today. He might have been behind that.”

  “Really?” Brodie asked. “You keep explosives along with machetes in your tool shed?”

  Granger stared at him. “The man might know just about anything. Who the hell knows what people have around here? We’ve got survivalists up in the mountains. Well that will be the concern of the local police—or maybe the Feds, too,” Granger said, his tone hard.

  They both ignored it.

  “How many men are on your security team?” Bryan asked.

  “Eight on duty here at all times, including myself now,” Granger said. “We deal with soldiers and other mental and addictive disorders. The strength of people suffering from such problems can be overwhelming. Our orderlies are trained to manage situations to the best of their abilities, and they know when to call us in.”

  “How many men do you have out searching for Captain Lynch?” Brodie asked.

  “Two—and they will do their best to bring him quietly back,” Granger said.

  “If that were the case, they’d be out there with dart guns,” Brodie said pleasantly.

  “Where are you staying while you’re out here?” Granger demanded.

  “Oh, we’re out of the D.C. area,” Bryan said.

  “Driving in and out, are you?” Granger asked. “What’s your interest here?”

  “Captain Lynch. He has friends in D.C.,” Bryan said, smiling pleasantly as well. He offered one of his cards to Granger. “My cell is on that. Should you find the captain and bring him in, we’d like to know immediately. As I said, he has friends. They’ll want to see him.”

  Or his body! Brodie thought, fighting to control his temper. Why the hell does this man—or someone else above him—want Captain Lynch dead?

  There were no more answers here. They’d seen Dr. Hansom and this man. Neither was talking.

  Brodie thanked him for his time. He saw that Hansom’s second-in-charge or assistant, the attractive young blonde doctor, Kelly Shelbourne, was waiting to see them out.

  They were escorted out. They could hear music playing softly. Soothing music.

  Christmas music.

  Bing Crosby crooning about a white Christmas.

  Brodie waited until they had cleared the building by a good fifty feet before exploding with, “That man is a liar.”

  “I agree. But accusing him of being one to his face isn’t going to get us anywhere,” Bryan reminded him.

  “Right. But I’m willing to bet he has more than two people out there looking for his white rabbit.”

  “And I’m willing to bet that they might not all be evident as security out to bring him back.”

  “Which means,” Brodie said, “one of us has to be with Lynch at all times.”

  He paused and looked back at the old building.

  The place was alive with Christmas lights. He could still hear Bing Crosby singing in his head.

  “Let’s get back—and hope someone has found something online or in a file somewhere that can help us,” Bryan said.

  “Or,” Brodie said quietly, “hope Captain Lynch might just be...Captain Lynch again. And he just might know what the hell is going on.”

  Chapter 7

  There were two men at the door.

  The men Kody had seen before—bearing rifles.

  She could just see them by peeking around the old tavern bar that was now intended for use as the lodge counter. She stayed low and back, though she doubted they could see her from their position.

  They had doffed their camouflage gear and now looked like a pair of good-old-boys clad in flannel shirts, jeans, and winter-weather vests.

  She stayed where she was; thinking it might be best they not see her—and she was certain Bruce would feel that way.

  “Hello, what can I do for you fellows?” Bruce asked the pair, his tone friendly.

  The first man—the one Kody had earlier named the deep voice—introduced himself and his friend.

  “I’m Rocky Morris and this is Barrie Stone. We’re with security at the Virginia Hansom Hospital. I’m afraid we’ve had a patient escape. We’re looking for a man.” He studied Bruce as he spoke and added, “Last seen in a rabbit costume and a gas mask. He was, um, carrying a machete. We consider him to be highly dangerous, and we’re trying to make sure he hasn’t come around and bothered you folks.”

  “We have not been bothered by a white rabbit,” Bruce said solemnly.

  “He’s not holding you or family members hostage in any way, forcing your answer?” Rocky Morris asked him.

  “A large white rabbit?” Bruce asked. Kody couldn’t see his face, but she thought he must have smiled. “Do I look like the kind of man who could be held hostage by a large white rabbit?”

  “No, no, of course not,” Morris said quickly, “but this man has a machete.”

  “I’m sorry, we haven’t seen this man. If we had, I’m sure we would’ve noticed,” Bruce said.

  “Perhaps he’s hiding on the property. We could search.”

  “I don’t own this property. If you want to search, I’m afraid you’ll have to come back with a warrant,” Bruce said.

  “When will the owners be back?” Morris asked. He frowned suddenly and seemed to have made a sudden realization. “This is the place owned by Dr. Newton or her husband, isn’t it? We’re at the old tavern.”

  “Yes,” Bruce said simply.

  “Let’s go, Bernie,” Morris said. He smiled—not a real smile. It was a grimace that stretched across his face.

  “Come back with your warrant,” Bruce said.

  “You are harboring the rabbit!”

  “No, I am not harboring a rabbit,” Bruce said, and behind the counter, Kody smiled. He hadn’t told them a lie once.

  They were harboring a man.

  The two turned and walked away. Bruce closed the door, but when she would have come out, he waved to her warning her to hold for a minute.

  “They didn’t leave,” he said. “They’re out there—trying to figure their best way to get in.”

  He made sure the door was closed and locked and the curtains covered the windows.

  “Now, it’s okay,” he told Kody.

  She crawled out from behind the counter and said, “Bruce, they know what this place is and who owns it. After he said it belonged to Julia—he said they should leave.”

  “I’m guessing she isn’t a fan of the hospital,” Bruce said. “They probably know there is no way in hell either Julia or Austin would let them in without a warrant. I also have the feeling they don’t want to go about the proper channels and try to get a warrant.”

  He started again. This time Kody heard the noise, too.

  Bruce looked out the window. “It’s okay; it’s Bryan and Bruce returning. Still, I’d stand back from the door. We don’t know if they’ve seen you or not, but let’s not show them who else is here. You didn’t talk to them, right?”

  She shook her head. “No, the rabbit—Captain Lynch—kept me from them.”

  “There’s definitely something rotten in Denmark,” he murmured. He opened the door just as his brothers reached it.

  Brodie stepped in quickly, frowning. “There are a lot of footprints outside....” He looked past his brother. “Kody, are you all right?”

  “Really,” Bruce said, shaking his head. “As if I’d have let anything happen to Kody!”

  “Sorry, I just—”

  “I’m fine,” Kody said quickly.

  Julia came hurrying to the top of the stairway anxious to see what was going on.

  “What happened?” she asked. “I heard voices. Is everyone all right? Austin didn’t get back yet, did he?”

  “Two men from the hospital—security,” Bruce told her. “I told them to go away, that they’d need a warrant. But I think they’ll be sneaking around here.”

  “I’d never have been afraid of Captain Lynch, even when he was a white rabbit, but I’ve never trusted what was going on at that hospital!”

  “Julia, why do you distrust the hospital so?” Bruce asked her.

  “You were there—what did you think?” Julia demanded, gripping the railing at the top of the staircase.

  “I wasn’t sure what to make of Dr. Hansom,” he said. “The security guy—didn’t like him.”

  Kody looked around the room. “I’m going to find out what they’re trying to do,” she said determinedly. “Julia, you come on down. I’m going to go up and sit with the rabbit—with Captain Lynch.” She hesitated. “He is my rabbit!” she said softly.

  Brodie looked up at her. He smiled slowly. “And he is invited to the wedding,” he said quietly.

  “And for Christmas,” she said.

  They smiled at one another. It was not going at all as they had intended. Her things were still in her car, she wasn’t adding the bits of decoration she had brought, and she had no clothing to change into until they could go back for her car.

  But the way he smiled at her…

  The wedding would happen; it would be wonderful. And Christmas, a promise of peace against all the confusion in the world, would come as well.

  “I’m on it!” she said.

  She headed up the stairs. Julia caught her at the top of the stairway.

  “Captain Lynch is going to be okay.”

  “I believe you!” Kody said.

  “Dakota!”

  She turned around. Brodie was looking up at her. “I believe they have more than those two men out looking for our rabbit. Stay with him—even if you don’t see one of us, don’t you go outside. Julia, please, the same for you.”

  “I’ll be in the kitchen coming up with something,” she said. She grimaced. “We have tons of food. There’s going to be a wedding here and then Christmas, remember?”