Page 41 of Shattering Dawn

“Forget it.” He switched his attention back to Fulbrook’s note. “We need to find out whatever we can about this pharmaceutical company.”

“Right,” she said. “I’ll call Phoebe in Seattle right now and have her get started on a search. Trust me, she’s got a real talent for that kind of thing.”

“Tell her she can probably assume it’s an offshore operation.”

“What makes you think that?” she asked, curious.

“Aside from the fact that it is most likely engaged in some very illegal activities, you mean?”

“Well, yes.”

“The name of the company,” Gideon said. “The Aurora Islands are phantom islands off the coast of South America. Supposedly they’ve been sighted a couple of times over the centuries but no one has ever found them. Looks like whoever named the lab is into irony.”

“I get it. Fake islands, fake pharmaceutical company.”

“I’m sure the lab is real. It’s just not going to be easy to find.”

Amelia looked at the carpet near the bathroom door. A somber knowing whispered through her. “Please turn out the lights. I need to take another look at something.”

Without a word, Gideon switched off the lights again.

She raised her camera and studied the luminous dark energy on the carpet. When she was certain of her conclusion she lowered the camera.

“The person who died over there on the floor is the same individual who left the prints on the minibar,” she said. “Dr. Fulbrook did not make it out of this room alive.”

Chapter Twenty-two

It was oneo’clock in the morning. The rooms in the Cactus Garden Motel were dark except for the thin edges of light that framed the shade covering the window of Amelia’s room. There was not a lot of nightlife in the town of Lucent Springs to keep visitors out late, and evidently none of the handful of motel guests were insomniacs, Gideon thought.

He made his way to the manager’s office through the shadowy parking lot. Pete Ellerbeck’s truck was parked in back of his residence but the windows were dark. There were no flickering lights indicating late-night television or internet activity.

The lock on the back door of the office succumbed to the pick. There was no alarm system. It was easy to get careless about security matters when you lived in a small town.

He stood quietly for a moment, absorbing the feel of the empty space before he went behind the counter, took out a penlight, and started going through files.

It did not take long to find what he was looking for. Satisfied, he went back out into the night.

An electric frisson of awareness whispered across the back of his neck. For a moment he went very still in the shadows, his senses wide open.

Nothing moved. No one jumped out from behind a parked car. But he had done enough watching from the shadows to know when he was the one being watched.

Chapter Twenty-three

Amelia was onthe phone with Phoebe when she heard Gideon let himself into the other room.

“Hang on, he’s back,” she said. “Maybe he found the information we need. I’ll put you on speaker.”

“Excellent,” Phoebe said, her voice infused with anticipation.

Amelia went to the opening between the two rooms. Gideon was in the process of locking the back door.

“Any luck?” she asked. She held up the phone. “I’ve got Phoebe here.”

Gideon turned away from the door. There was a cold heat in his eyes. “Hello, Phoebe. Nice to meet you.”

“Same,” Phoebe said. “Amelia told me about the box with the logo of the pharmaceutical company and she gave me the name of the man who wrote the note.”

“Good,” Gideon said.