Page 8 of Operation: Discovery

Praise God. They were unharmed. This room was full of older children, between the ages of twelve and fifteen, if Brendon had to guess. There appeared to be about an equal number of boys as girls, and they’d stayed grouped together. He could only assume that they hadn’t been drugged because they hadn’t complied.

He headed for the front room and had each family go in one at a time to retrieve their children, giving instructions on how to manage the scene so police could do their jobs and evidence wouldn’t be destroyed. He told them they couldn’t leave the building until they spoke to an officer. The scene would be difficult as it was and with the addition of so many people, police would struggle to whittle down who was supposed to be there and who wasn’t. He watched the reactions of each child to make sure these were their parents and no one else came to pick up the children.

Once all the children had been reunited with their parents and the paramedics arrived, Officer Blake sent word to Brendon and Dee to meet him in the room where they’d found the three drugged children.

“Mrs. Moira Bixby is in the back room with her son, Adam. She was, understandably, distraught when she came in. He is still sedated, but the EMS team said his vitals were steady.”

“By the grace of God, we got there in time.” Brendon couldn’t give credit to anyone else. He’d almost told Dee he didn’t want to go with her. If he’d stayed home, she may have had to face this alone, or worse. He felt her presence right behind him to his right. How would he have reacted if Dee had been taken?

“It appears that one child is still missing. They must have grabbed him as they rushed out the back. We can only assume he was drugged or prevented from calling out because no one can recall seeing him at any point.” Officer Blake led them to the furthest room and opened the door.

Brendon wanted to know more, to start some kind of pursuit. Could they catch up with the boy if they hurried? “Are there officers looking for him?”

Blake nodded, but didn’t verbally answer. Mrs. Bixby lay on the gurney next to her sleeping son, cradling his head on her arm. She sniffled softly and looked up at them as she wiped her nose with the back of her hand.

“Are you here to take me away?” She swallowed so hard Brendon heard it. “I’m not negligent. I didn’t know what was going on here. I still don’t.”

“I’m only here to ask some questions,” Officer Blake assured her. “This is nurse Heather Rose and psychologist Brendon Ruse. Can you tell us what happened when you came here today?” He stood to the side so Brendon could get close enough. He pulled out his small notepad and pen.

She adjusted her position slightly and brushed a stray hair from her son’s forehead. “I hadn’t planned on having him get his shots today, but the nurse was adamant that it was a good thing and that the school wouldn’t let him in on the first day if he didn’t get them now.” She glanced at each of them as if imploring them to believe her. “I thought he was up to date, but that nurse said she checked his records and claimed he wasn’t. I’d only come here today to donate plasma so I could buy a few things we need before school starts. I don’t know how I’m going to pay for this ambulanceandwhat I need without anything.” A tear raced down her cheek.

One of the EMS workers came in and checked the boy’s vitals, then backed off. She looked over the monitor and pushed the button on the screen to check his blood pressure again.

“Did the nurse at the front tell you what hospital they were with or their affiliation?” Officer Blake asked.

The mother shook her head. “No, and I didn’t ask. I just assumed this was like every other blood drive. They have them once a quarter at the Lutheran church. I’ve never had trouble. Maybe I should’ve questioned them because the location was different and they looked different, but I didn’t.”

“Did anyone else say anything to you, or did you see anyone you recognize?” Officer Blake continued his questioning.

Mrs. Bixby shook her head. “No, and I couldn’t see who any of them were. Usually, the nurses only wear gloves. I guess that part was odd. Why didn’t I question what they were doing?” She closed her eyes tightly. “What if they’d . . .?” She hugged her son tighter.

“Ma’am, I know it’s hard not to think about what could’ve happened, but thankfully it didn’t.”

At least, not to Adam.

Officer Blake closed his notebook. “If you think of anything else, no matter how trivial you think it might be, please call me at the nonemergency police line.”

Mrs. Bixby nodded. “Anything else?” She cast a wary glance at Brendon.

“No.” He didn’t want to pressure her any more than Officer Blake had to and there were still many people to question before the scene techs could come in and try to find evidence. “Anything Dee and I can do to help you? These people are all pretty traumatized.”

Officer Blake shook his head. “I’ve got my theories about what went down here, and I want every answer documented with one of my men. Thank you for calling me. Unless you have anything further you’d like to share with me, you’re free to go.”

How many families would avoid genuine blood drives after this had happened? He turned his chair around and headed for the door. Now that everything was done, the stiffness in his muscles that came with intense strain or stress almost made him sick to his stomach.

Brendon headed toward the entrance with Dee at his side. The parents with their children all waited but the room was mostly silent. Whoever the parent was whose child had gone missing, wasn’t with the others. He prayed they wouldn’t be there long and that the officers would find the missing child before it was too late. He’d have to report to Connor what had happened here and warn him that either Viceroy was back, or a new sect had taken root, right in their own backyard.

* * *

Dee sat nextto Brendon as he drove her, not toward home as she’d expected, but toward a small coffee shop called Sacred Grounds. “Cute shop.” She wasn’t sure what else to say or why they were here.

“We need a minute to decompress before we go right back to the office to work. I know; coffee isn’t great for relaxation, but I come here to unwind when I’m in town.”

She’d never thought of Brendon getting in his car and going out for coffee like anyone else, forcing her to ask herself why. Brendon was just like everyone else with wants and needs. Who didn’t need an occasional coffee or tea? She shouldn’t have assumed he wouldn’t enjoy going for something simply because—to her—the work of getting there outweighed the reward. To him, it obviously didn’t.

She’d worked mostly with elderly clients since he’d left. The elderly people she’d worked with had enjoyed her fun demeanor and she hadn’t had to worry about falling in love with one of her patients again. However, now the worry was falling for a co-worker and that was almost worse.

She got out of the car and waited for Brendon to put his chair together, then meet her on the sidewalk. He clicked the button on his keyring to lock the doors, then motioned for her to go ahead of him. “I already know what I want, but it will take you a minute to decide.” He grinned.

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