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"Maybe. " Grace ejected the tape. "Hell, I don't know what to think anymore. "
Neither did I.
"I so don't need this right now," she muttered.
With the festival in full swing, Grace and her minions had their hands full. Even with the rent-a-cops she'd hired - retired officers from Lake Bluff and surrounding areas - they had to be swamped.
"I've got to find him," she said.
"What happens if he's got rabies and he doesn't receive the shots?"
"You don't want to know. "
"I don't want to, but I think I have to. "
She tilted her head, studied me, then nodded. "Pretty much what you've seen in the movies - extreme thirst, foaming at the mouth, inclination to bite everyone you meet, spread the wealth. "
I cringed at the idea of the guy loping down Center Street at the height of the festival. That would kill the fun for everyone.
"The incubation period in humans is one to three months," Grace continued.
"Oh. " A trickle of relief flowed through me. "That's good. "
"As long as he doesn't leave town or disappear into the mountains. Freestone was a hiker and, according to his family, a good one. Been known to stay in the wilderness for weeks on his own. He knows the out-of-doors. "
"Crap. " The guy could survive indefinitely.
"There's also the chance that the virus has mutated. "
"Which would mean?"
"A much faster incubation period. "
"Like one to three days instead of one to three months?"
She shrugged. "Viruses are wonky that way. "
"I have to call the CDC. "
"Already done. "
"And?"
"They'll get back to us. "
I rolled my eyes, and Grace's lips tightened. "I can't wait around for them. Once the disease starts to exhibit symptoms, the vaccine is useless. "
"We do not need a death associated with this town, or the festival. "
"We don't need a rabies outbreak ever. "
"Right. Do rabies victims usually take off like this?" I asked.
"I've never dealt with a rabies victim. "
"Never?"
"According to the doctor, human infection is rare. I don't think he's seen it before, either. "
