Pestilence (12 page)

He nodded and kicked the stallion with his heels. The horse reared and broke into a run before leaping.

* * * *

The boom of thunder shook the condo where Pest and Bart slept, but neither man reacted to it. They settled closer to each other, finding comfort in the other’s presence.

Chapter Six

The smell of bacon enticed Bart from his bed the next morning. He wandered down the hall to the kitchen, freezing in surprise at the sight of Pest standing in front of the stove. His white hair hung in a braid down his back to his ass. He wore black dress pants and a green button-down shirt. Bart must have made some sort of sound because Pest turned and smiled at him.

“Good morning. I hope you slept well.”

“Ah, yeah.” He cleared his throat. “Yes, I did. Thanks. You didn’t have to cook breakfast. Hey, did it rain last night?”

“I don’t mind cooking when I can do it with modern appliances. As to rain, I don’t think so. Why?”

“I thought I heard thunder last night. Must have been dreaming or something.”

Pest slid the bacon on a plate and then carried it over to the table. “Possibly. Sit and eat. I set up an appointment with your dean for ten this morning. That should give you enough time to eat and get dressed.”

Bart sat and filled his plate while Pest cleaned up the counters. He sipped the coffee and grimaced.

“Doesn’t taste quite as good as the java we had down in the Amazon, does it?” Pest joined him at the table, sitting back in his chair and crossing his legs.

“No, it doesn’t. Must be because it was a lot fresher.”

Pest nodded. “That and the water’s cleaner down there as well.”

He ate a few bites of his eggs before clueing in on what Pest had said. “You made an appointment with Dr. Kakkar? Did you get to talk to him? How did he react when he found out I was alive and well?”

“I talked very briefly with the doctor. He was shocked and amazed you survived. Also, he’s not very keen on letting me see the other men. I think he assumes I’m just a gawker, not an expert or anything.” Pest frowned down at his cup. “I’m hoping he doesn’t automatically quarantine you when he finds out how sick you were. As far as I know, you’re no longer contagious.”

“But how does he know that?” Bart shrugged and finished his breakfast. “Did you tell him who you were?”

“Of course I did. I gave him all my credentials and references, so we’ll see if he’s done his research by the time we get there.” Pest drained his coffee and stood, gesturing to Bart’s plate. “Are you finished or would you like more?”

Bart shook his head and handed the plate to Pest. “I’m done. Thanks for cooking. I’m going to get dressed now and we’ll head to the campus. I want to check my office, if I even have one anymore, before we go see the dean.”

“I’m sure he’ll let you know everything when we meet with him.” Pest shooed him toward the bedroom. “Go on. I want to see where you teach. I’ve never been to Harvard before.”

“Okay.”

Bart didn’t waste time. He showered quickly and got dressed. Instead of a suit like he knew Pest would be wearing, he put on a pair of khakis and white dress shirt. He found a pair of loafers and slipped them on. He rarely wore a tie while he taught and did his research. There wasn’t any point in starting now.

Walking down the hall, he fastened his watch and tried not to get nervous about the upcoming meeting. Why was he getting worried? It wasn’t like he was the one who had abandoned his fellow scientists in the jungle. He’d been left behind and that would be Jasper’s problem, not his. He stepped into the living room and spotted Pest standing by the door.

His mouth dropped open. Holy hell did the man clean up well. The pants fit Pest perfectly, as did the shirt. Pest had tugged on a suit coat and put on a deep blue silk tie. As Bart watched, Pest slipped on a pair of sunglasses and checked his image in the mirror hanging in the front entry.

“You look amazing,” Bart blurted out.

Pest turned and smiled at him while scanning Bart’s body. “So do you, though I have to admit, I’m rather partial to the shorts and no shirt look you rocked down in the rainforest.”

Bart ducked his head and felt his cheeks heat. “We’d better go.”

Opening the door, Pest bowed and flung his arm out. “After you, good sir.”

Shaking his head, Bart walked through and made sure the door was locked before they headed down to the street. They flagged down a cab. After climbing in, he gave the driver the address and they settled back against the seat. Pest reached over and took Bart’s hand in his.

Bart started to protest, not wanting the cabbie to see them holding hands, but when he met Pest’s sun-glass buffered gaze, he realized he needed the man’s touch. He’d been plucking nervously at his pant leg.

“Don’t worry. I won’t let anything bad happen to you,” Pest promised.

He wasn’t sure Pest would be able to stop anything from happening, but he appreciated the words. He spotted a briefcase on the floor by Pest’s feet.

“When did you get a briefcase?”

“I picked one up yesterday while you and Kerry were debating the blue striped or red striped shirt.” Pest nudged it with the toe of his shoe. “I thought it would make me look more official. What do you think?”

“It looks expensive, but do you have anything in there?”

Pest looked offended. “Of course I do. All my references are in there along with a few of the medical journals I’ve had papers published in. As much as I keep away from people, I am quite well known in the infectious disease community as a researcher. I’m the reclusive and strange doctor who makes his home in the Amazon Basin where many bacteria and viruses lurk without anyone ever discovering them. I’m trying to find homeopathic methods of curing them.”

“Truly?” Bart tilted his head as he studied Pest.

“Yes. I have to do something between missions. Why not try to find cures for diseases no one has seen before? Maybe something I find will stop an epidemic like the Black Death or something as deadly as that.”

“I guess that’s a possibility. So Dr. Kakkar shouldn’t have a problem with you asking to see Jasper and the others.” Bart pursed his lips. “What about me?”

“I think once Dr. Kakkar and the others find out you’ve survived whatever the others have, they’ll want to bring you in for tests.”

Bart tensed. He didn’t want anyone poking and prodding him, but he understood why they’d do it. “You won’t abandon me in the hospital, will you?”

Pest shook his head. “No. Why would I do that? You’re healthy now, except for that pesky fever coming and going like it is. You’re not infectious like they are and on the road to a full recovery.”

The cab pulled up to the curb in front of a large stone building.

“Here we are.” Bart paid the driver before climbing out.

Pest stepped out of the vehicle and studied the large structure. “I love old architecture. They really built them better back then.”

“Are you ready?” Bart asked.

“Yes. We need to get going on this.” Pest gestured for Bart to lead the way. “You know where you’re headed.”

“Right.” Bart straightened his shoulders.

They went up the steps and into the building. He winced as their footsteps echoed through the entrance rotunda. He’d rarely been in the dean’s office, having flown under the radar for much of his teaching career. Bart stopped in front of the dean’s door and turned to look at Pest.

“Got all your ducks in a row, Pest? And what name are you going to use? I can’t see Dr. Kakkar calling you Dr. Pest or anything like that.”

“My name is Dr. Aldo Bianchi, and I’m a third-generation Italian-American with strong ties to my ancestral land.”

“Okay then. Here we go.”

Bart opened the door and entered the outer office. Dean Kakkar’s secretary glanced up from where she sat. She broke into a bright smile as she saw Bart walk in.

“Dr. Winston, it’s wonderful to see you again. We were afraid you were lost forever.”

The friendly greeting shocked Bart slightly. He hadn’t expected anyone, besides Kerry, to be happy about him coming back. Not that they would have thrown him out or anything, but he certainly hadn’t thought his absence would have been noticed for more than a month, once they’d gotten someone to take over his classes.

“Thank you, Ms. Nielson. I believe Dr. Kakkar is expecting Dr. Bianchi and me.”

“Of course, let me check and make sure he’s ready for you.”

He nodded and sat in one of the chairs, while Pest stood next to him. He threaded his fingers together to keep from drumming them against the arm of the chair. His anxiety ricocheted through his body, nerves sparking when he wondered what Dr. Kakkar was going to say.

“Dr. Winston, Dr. Kakkar will see you and Dr. Bianchi now.” Ms. Nielson smiled and nodded.

“Thank you.”

He held open the door, letting Pest walk in first. Bart shut the door behind him and stood to the side, watching the meeting between the two men.

“Dr. Kakkar, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve read several of your papers on evolutionary biology in Patagonia. Brilliant.”

Pest held out his hand and Bart saw Dr. Kakkar blink at Pest’s direct approach. He hid his smile when Kakkar shook Pest’s hand.

“Nice to meet you as well, Dr. Bianchi. I have to admit I was a little surprised when you contacted me. From what I was led to believe, you rarely leave your home in Brazil.” Kakkar waved a hand for them to take a seat. “Dr. Winston, it’s marvelous to see you again. When Dr. Jones returned and said you’d been lost, we were very upset. A search was launched, but I’m afraid nothing turned up. Of course, you know that.”

“Dr. Kakkar.” Bart shook the dean’s hand before sitting in the chair next to Pest. “We’ll have to talk about that, but later. I do believe Dr. Bianchi is very intrigued with the virus Dr. Jones and the others seem to have brought back with them.”

“Oh yes. Terrible thing. We’ve sent out notifications to all the cities they passed through, letting them know the possibility of exposure. So far we’ve been lucky and it sounds like no one else has been infected. You’ll have to get more details from the CDC doctors. I’ve taken the liberty and contacted them for you.”

“That was very kind of you.” Pest nodded. “I hope they’ll be willing to let me come and examine the patients. In addition, I’d like for them to give Dr. Winston a check-up.”

Bart bit his lip to keep from protesting. He didn’t need strangers looking him over like he was some kind of science experiment. Kakkar looked confused.

“Why would they want to do that?”

“I have the feeling he survived the same virus his fellow expedition members are dealing with now. I have some herbs I used to help keep his fevers down and stop the convulsions when his body temperature got too high. After taking care of Dr. Winston, I’m led to believe it’s the fever that’s the deadliest part of this disease. As I’m sure you’re aware, a sustained fever of one hundred and three degrees can pose a threat for brain damage and worse.” Pest set his briefcase on his knees and opened it. Shuffling through papers, he pulled several out. “Here are my notes. I’ve made several copies for all the pertinent people involved.”

Dr. Kakkar’s eyes lit up and he eagerly took the papers from Pest. “The CDC quarantined all four men at Walter Reed in Washington. It was the best place for them until they could figure out what might work. If you want to go down there today, I’ll call Dr. Darvi, the head of the case, and let him know you’re on your way. I’m sure he’ll be interested in your opinion.”

Pest stood and Bart joined him. They shook hands with Kakkar.

“Thank you for contacting Darvi for me, Dr. Kakkar. I’ve actually have done some consultation work with the man. He’s very talented and dedicated.”

“Thank you for stopping by, Dr. Bianchi. If you come back to Harvard, I would love to have dinner and talk about some of your findings.” Kakkar looked over at Bart. “Dr. Winston, when you get back from Washington, I’d like to hear about your expedition. Dr. Jones didn’t have time to give me much information about whether you actually achieved your goal.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll call as soon as I get back.”

After saying goodbye to Ms. Nielson, they went outside and Bart sank to sit on a bench. He braced his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands. Pest rested a hand on his shoulder and squeezed before pulling out a cell phone and dialing.

“Yes, I need to purchase two plane tickets to Washington D.C., preferably for today.”

Bart closed his eyes and listened to Pest making plans for them to get to the airport by five that day. Pest hung up and sat next to him.

“You took notes on me while I was sick,” Bart commented.

“Uh-huh. I did because that’s who I am, Bart. While I might be something more than a doctor now, I was a doctor to begin with. I can’t take that part of my personality out.” Pest bumped their shoulders together. “Besides, my notes might be able to help them with the case. Who knows? A cure or a vaccination might be figured out.”

“You didn’t find a cure for me,” Bart pointed out.

“True, but something tells me the best thing the men of your expedition did for you was abandon you. I still haven’t figured out why you didn’t get as sick as they seem to be. Maybe it was the heat and humidity of the rainforest. It’s possible the herbs I had Lam start giving you helped stop the virus in its tracks. You were sick enough for the fever, but you didn’t get the boils or other things.”

“Why didn’t I?”

Pest sighed. “I don’t know why. All I know is that you weren’t going to die on me. No matter what Death said, I wasn’t going to let you die, and Lam made a promise to me. He can’t break his promises, not even to me.”

“Sounds like that sucks. Why can’t he break a promise?”

“He can’t lie either.”

Bart eyed Pest and asked, “Why not?”

Pest bit his lip and stared off toward the quad where students gathered. Bart could almost feel him fighting with himself on what to tell Bart.

“I can’t tell you,” Pest finally said.

“Jesus! I swear you’re trying to annoy the shit out of me.” Bart shot to his feet and stalked a few feet away.