Page 64 of Logan

“Thought you might be checking on Vivian.” Grinning, he added, “Figured you wouldn’t be able to stand not being with her for even one night. Sally was surprised when Vivian stopped by this morning to say she was taking a few days to visit where her grandparents used to live. We figured you two wouldn’t be able to be separated.” Turning back to oversee the dying flames, Iggie missed Logan’s anguished expression.

Five minutes later, he hurried inside to his computer with his radio earpiece bringing in the information coming from LSIMT.

“We’ve got their phone records. About the time the explosion occurred, Akram had sent a message to Rashad,” Frazier said.

“Does it give his location?”

“It says ‘testing in Tanana.’That’s a small town. Perfect for trying out their bacteria contaminating water or food.”

Tanana?“Goddammit, that’swhere Viv is heading!” He raced into the bedroom, grabbed his bag from the closet, and checked the content with hasty efficiency—weapons, Kevlar, ammunition, night vision goggles, and a variety of other necessities. Throwing in extra clothes, he hefted the bag on his shoulder before stalking back to gather his electronics. Seeing Sakari sitting on the floor, staring up at him with an accusing glare, he dropped his bags and raced to the closet, where he’d seen a cardboard box. With a few slices of his knife, he had poked air holes in the top and sides. Scooping the cat up, he placed her inside before securing the top. Grabbing some cat food, he thrust it into his duffel.

Three minutes later, he threw his hand up toward Iggie as he climbed into his truck. Tapping his earpiece, he said, “On my way to Tanana. Let Cole know of the different location to fly to. I can’t get Viv to answer. Have someone there see if they have any luck getting ahold of her.”

As he executed a three-point turn in the yard to leave, he passed the emergency vehicles still dealing with the Zamans’ destruction. With the cul-de-sac in the rearview mirror, he steeled his mind.You might have saved me the trouble of destroying your house and lab, assholes, but I’m coming for you.

Small. That was the only word Vivian could think to describe Tanana as she drove through.Why do things seem so much bigger when you’re a kid?She grinned as she spied the town sign listing the population as 308. Driving along the rough,partially paved roads, she passed stores, a few she remembered, some new, and some appearing to be long empty. A few restaurants. A bar. A couple of churches. And even a school, which she assumed housed kindergarten through high school in the one building.

Turning off the main street, she drove north for a mile, passing houses and a few subdivisions. The road was so familiar, she remembered summers of riding in the back of her grandfather’s pickup truck, bouncing as he hit the invariable potholes. Looking back, she wondered if he hit them just to see her bounce and giggle.

Finally, pulling up to the small house, she parked on the street. The wooden siding appeared to have been recently stained, and it was nice to see her grandmother’s flower gardens were still neatly tended. The plot of land next to the house had been wild, with trees flanking a meadow, but it now held a newer house. Looking up and down the street, she noted more houses, creating a neighborhood instead of just her grandparents’ house standing alone.

When she climbed out of her car, she heard children playing in the backyard and could see a woman hanging laundry on a line tied between two poles set in the ground. The woman looked up at her and smiled.

“Hello,” she called out as she walked up the front stone path. “I’m Vivian Sanders. I hope this doesn’t seem presumptuous to stop by… it’s just that my grandparents used to live here. My mom was born here, and I remember lots of summers spent here as well.”

A wide, welcoming smile greeted her warmly as the woman said, “Oh, the Panikaks were your grandparents? I knew them when I was younger. I’m Carly. It’s nice to meet you.” She jerked her head toward the house. “Would you like to see inside?”

“You wouldn’t mind?”

“Not at all, come on.”

She followed Carly inside, immediately engulfed in memories. While the furniture was newer and the walls painted a different color, the house resonated with the images of her grandfather sitting in his comfy chair in front of the TV and her grandmother bustling in the kitchen.

Turning down an offer of tea, she said, “No, I really have to be going, but this”—she waved her hand around—“has meant so much to me.”

“Are you staying long?” Carly asked.

“I saw there’s a hotel in town.” Chuckling, she added, “It wasn’t there when I was a kid.”

“Oh, that horribleMen of Alaskashow on TV that they filmed around here brought in tourists, and of course, the show’s crew needed somewhere to stay. So they tore down the cute little single-room cabins that had been here for so long and built a new hotel that could house so many more. I have a feeling they’ll have plenty of rooms now that the show is over. We still get tourists looking for the places the show exploited, but hey, it brought some money into the town.”

“Sounds good, I’ll check there. It was really nice to meet you. My grandparents loved this house, and it’s nice to see that it’s still housing a family.” Smiling at Carly, she thanked her for the chance to revisit her family home. Stepping out into the sunshine, she slid her sunglasses on her face as she walked to her car.

A helicopter flying overhead caught her attention, and she leaned her head back, shading her face with her hand at her forehead. The reminder of Logan was painful, but she battled through, determined not to shed another tear. She had shed enough of them on the hour-long drive to Tanana.

Climbing back into her car, she took one last look at her grandparents’ house and drove into town.

Stepping inside the warm interior of the Tanana Inn from the crowded parking lot, Vivian heaved a sigh, wondering if this stay was a bad idea.I’ve seen my grandparents’ house…maybe it’s time just to go back to Fairbanks and catch a flight home.The hotel was much busier than she anticipated, but seeing a large sign in the corner announcing a “Men of AlaskaTour Weekend,” she grimaced, realizing the hotel might be full. Looking at her watch, she shook her head, knowing it was too late to arrange a flight today.

The desk clerk was on the phone but mouthed, “Sorry, I’ll just be a minute.”She nodded and walked to one of the windows overlooking the parking lot. A shawl-draped head caught her attention, and as she moved to the left to have a better line of vision, she recognized Akram and Farrah.

Her breath left her lungs in a rush as she tried to think of why they were here. She could only come up with one reason terrorists working with a known bacterial agent would come to a tiny, nowhere town on a weekend with a hotel full of guests from all over—It can’t be good, no matter what they’re doing!Reaching her hand into her purse, she grabbed her phone, then realized it was her personal phone, still turned off. The burner phone with Logan’s number was back on the kitchen counter of the house in Ester, and she didn’t have his number.

Sucking in a deep breath, she knew whatever happened, it was up to her to stop them. Smiling at the receptionist who had just hung up the phone, she said, “I…uh…see a friend. I’ll be back.” Moving to the door, she watched as the Zamans got into their car and backed out of the parking lot. Hurrying out the door and down the steps, she jumped into her car and began to follow them from a distance.

35

Having landed and loaded his equipment out of the helicopter and into another truck, Logan leaned down and stuck his finger through one of the holes in the box. “Hey, girl. I’ll be back just as soon as I can.” He unfolded the top and placed some food into one side of her dish and water in the other. Then he opened his bag and pulled out a T-shirt and tucked it inside as well.

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