Page 59
"Because she treated Jack, and she feels guilty that she let him down in some way. She's determined to help him. She's also the one who found my address on the floor of Jack's hospital room when he disappeared. She brought this problem to me, and I haven't been able to shake her since. Now I can't send her home, because she got a threatening note on her car tonight. She's been asking questions at work. She was outside the car when the shooting happened. She's been seen with me and Jack, so she's involved. It's too late to change that."
"Okay, I get it," Kara said. "What else do you need from us?"
Before he could answer, Rachel knocked on the door, then stepped inside. "I just wanted to let you know that Jack's vitals are stable. I was able to rouse him briefly, but he's still confused, and he went back to sleep very quickly. We're going to need to wait a few hours to talk to him." She paused. "I'll let you get back to it."
"Hang on," he said. "You can stay."
"All right." She was clearly surprised to be included, but he didn't want to waste time repeating everything to her later. He turned to Zane and Kara. "We need to identify the shooter from the laundromat. We also need to know why Waverly Health is siphoning off patients from East River Veterans Hospital. But what we really need is for Jack to get his head clear so he can tell us what's going on. He was rambling about being continually jabbed by needles and being asked a lot of questions that he doesn't think he should answer."
"Questions about what?" Kara asked.
"Not sure. I have a theory, but that's all it is."
"You have a theory?" Rachel cut in. "What is it?"
"We'd all like to know," Zane added.
"Jack has classified information in his head. So do I. We operated at a high level. Almost everything we did was covert. It would make sense that the questions have to do with his service."
"Seriously?" Zane asked, surprise running through his gaze. "You think this is about using medical treatments to extract classified information from veterans?"
"Like I said, it's a theory. Hopefully, Jack can tell us more when he wakes up."
"What else do we know about the clinic?" Kara asked.
"We know that another veteran that Rachel treated was there today. We ran into him when Rachel and I went to meet with Dr. Megan Prescott, the woman seen talking to Jack outside the bar next to Jack's apartment building. We didn't use our real names. We pretended to be a couple, looking for treatment for myself. I told Dr. Prescott I was in Special Forces. She said that Dr. Neil Levitan runs their specialized treatment programs focusing on PTSD in high-level, elite operators. I have an appointment for Thursday morning, but we need to find out everything we can before then."
"I'll look into the clinic and the doctor," Kara said.
"And I'll see what else I can find on the shooting and any evidence left behind," Zane put in. "Is there anything else you need here?"
"No, we're good. Thanks for the food and the medical bag."
"No problem."
"It was nice to meet you, Rachel," Kara said. "I noticed you asked for equipment to draw Jack's blood. Do you want to do that now? We can wait and then get it to the lab."
"If we try to wake him up for a needle, he might react negatively," Rachel said. "I'll try it later tonight."
"We'll touch base with you tomorrow, then," Zane said. "But let us know if you have any other issues before then."
"I'll walk you out." He led them out of the bedroom and down the hall, then he looked in on a sleeping Jack before heading into the kitchen where Rachel was filling a glass of water from the filtered dispenser on the door of the fridge.
Her hand was a little shaky as she lifted her glass, which surprised him, because she'd been cool and calm throughout all the day's events. "You okay?"
"I'm fine. There is pizza in the oven, if you're hungry."
"Maybe in a minute. Are you sure you're all right? Your hand is shaking."
She immediately set down her glass. "The day is catching up to me. I really want Jack to wake up and be clearheaded, so I know that he's physically okay and that I didn't make a mistake not insisting on taking him to the hospital."
He frowned at her words. "Are you that concerned about his physical condition?"
"Yes. I wish I knew what they'd given him, so I'd know how long the effects might last and whether there could be any negative reactions. I did notice when I checked him just now that he has a lot of needle marks on his arms. Far more than would be expected with any kind of treatment program."
"Which is why you were smart to not want to use a needle on him right now. He'd flip out."
"Especially if it was me holding the needle. He doesn't trust me."