So the timeline here is a little fudged. The beginning of this episode (the night time break out at the zoo) was meant to take place approximately 20 hours ahead of the time cut, but it would take them over 20 hours to get from Boston (where the opening says they are) to drive to Clearwater, FL. Seriously, writers. It doesn't take a genius to Google this stuff. Also, why the hell would they stop anywhere near Boston for gas and food when every officer from the city level to the federal is looking for Jamie and Chloe? Since it's my AU (and I apparently have greater access to basic information like driving distance from Boston to Clearwater?) I am fixing the mistakes.
Determinant: a gene or other factor that determines the character and development of a cell or group of cells in an organism.
Chapter 10: Emotional Contagion - Boiling Point
The way to Africa goes through Florida and an old acquaintance of Jackson's. Of course, he wants something in return and none of the team is happy about it. Mitch struggles to balance his professional convictions with their need to leave the country. A Jamie/Mitch rewrite
They were about two hours outside the Boston city limits when Jackson announced they needed gas. Mitch looked down at Jamie sleeping against him and frowned. She looked completely wiped and she'd only been napping for a short time. Still, he thought, she might like to grab a bite to eat before they got on the road to…well, none of them knew exactly where they were going. They just knew that they needed to get out of Boston and find a way to get to Zambia without Chloe and Jamie getting arrested at an airport.
They ended up in a small town at a four pump station with a burger shack attached to the store. There were picnic tables outside, and the only security cameras Abe could see were the ones on the pumps themselves. Jackson pulled up to the diner to let them out as Mitch nudged Jamie awake.
"Hmm?" she mumbled groggily and sat up, pushing her hair back from her face as she blinked blearily.
"We're getting gas and food," he told her. "You hungry?"
"Yeah," she turned her head back and forth to stretch her neck out. He'd tried to make her as comfortable as possible, but there was very little room with three of them crammed into the backseat.
Abe volunteered to pump the gas and check the tires if Jackson and Chloe got them all food. Their cash stores were running dangerously low, and none of them knew how much longer they would need to worry about gas. They agreed to fill up here and keep their food purchases small where possible until they could find another money source. Chloe had already contacted a friend at the DGSE, though she still had no idea if he could help them or not.
Mitch and Jamie camped at a picnic table as the other two went inside to place their order. They emerged a few minutes later but stayed near the door talking in low tones; Mitch wondered if they were planning their next move. Jamie was still a little out of it, and Mitch's frown deepened at the dark circles under eyes. She needed a good night's sleep in a real bed, but it looked like none of them were getting that any time soon.
Mitch pulled out his tablet and perused a few local news sites, wincing as he stumbled on two large pictures of Jamie and Chloe above the words "Manhunt Underway for Suspects in Death of FBI Agent." He saw Jamie tense next to him, and unconsciously he reached out to lay a hand on her back. He knew Ben Schaffer's death still plagued her, and being the subject of a manhunt was likely not doing anything good for her stress levels. He clicked away from the site, settling on perusing the growing reports that were creeping up all over the country.
"Do we have a plan?" Jamie asked after a few minutes.
"That depends on what you call a plan," Mitch quipped. "As of now, I think it's something along the lines of 'get out of Boston, then figure out how to get to Zambia.'"
Jamie looked at him with a hint of a wry smile. "That's sort of vague."
"Not sort of," Mitch shot back. "And that's not even the whole of our dilemma. I've been thinking about how the hell we're even going to create the cure when and if we do find the leopards." He tapped on his screen and typed in a search. "We're going to need an electroporator."
"Electro-what?"
"Electroporator," he repeated as he tapped a link. "We're gonna need one, once we find the leopard, to combine its stem cells with the Mother Cell."
"Wait," she leaned in closer to inspect the image that had popped up on his screen as Jackson and Chloe came over with two paper bags. "Jackson, we saw one of these. In Mobile, in the optometrist's office."
"Yeah," Jackson confirmed. "Evan Lee Hartley thought it would help cure him."
Mitch knew immediately why the crazed man had sought the machine. "Makes sense. Electroporators are used to introduce new coding DNA."
Jamie must have finally woken up, because her dry humor was back. "So we're probably not going to find one in the wilds of Africa."
"No," Mitch agreed. He moved to stand up, closing his tablet cover as Jackson gathered their food.
"So we'll have to take one with us," the younger man said.
"And it's not like we can just swing by a convenience store and pick one up," Mitch continued as they made their way to the car. "It's a highly specialized piece of equipment."
"Where to do we find one?" Chloe asked.
Mitch squinted against the sun emerging from behind the clouds and thought about her question. "Genetics labs," he said. "Certain hospitals." Abe had finished airing up the spare tire and was standing at the open driver's side door as they arrived. "So we can add that to our list of impossible stuff to do." He couldn't help it - blunt pragmatism had always been his modus operandi. Sugar coating things simply wasn't in his nature.
"Well, no one said saving the world is gonna be easy." And as always, Jamie was there to keep that little spark of hope alive. Mitch followed her around to the opposite side of the car, bypassing her to lean against the open passenger door.
"Hey guys," Abe reached in and turned the radio up. "Listen to this."
"The CDC is, however, looking into the matter," a woman was saying. "We've heard enough reports about aberrant animal behavior that we're considering the possibility of a virus."
Mitch scoffed and barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "It's not a virus," he insisted. The others already knew that but the scientist in him couldn't let the point stand uncontested, even if the speaker couldn't hear him.
"What can the people at home do?" the newscaster asked.
"If you notice any odd behavior in your pet, see your local veterinarian."
"Well, that was helpful," Abe drawled.
"So, I have a question," Mitch leaned back and crossed his arms. No one else seemed to want to ask it, so he would. "If we keep driving south through Florida, eventually we're gonna run out of terra firma."
"That's it," Jackson perked up. "Florida."
"Florida?" Chloe sounded just as confused as Mitch felt.
"Let's go to Clearwater," Jackson explained unhelpfully.
"Why?" Mitch asked. "I mean, never in the course of human events has Clearwater, Florida ever been the solution to anything."
"Well, today it is," Jackson was adamant. "In Clearwater, there is a way to get back to Africa."
Jamie looked at Mitch for help, but he had no idea what Jackson was on about. She leaned into the car to address Jackson directly. "Well, what's in Clearwater?"
"Oh no," Abe finally groaned. "You're thinking of Ray, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am," Jackson affirmed.
Abe shook his head, meeting Jackson's muted excitement with a firm refusal. "No, not that. Not Ray."
Jamie had finally had enough of their ambiguity. "Who is Ray?" she snapped.
"He's a nightmare," Abe sounded resigned and, judging by the satisfied smirk on Jackson's face, Mitch guessed it didn't matter how bad this Ray was. If he could get them to Africa, it was really their only option.
"Okay," Chloe sensed the tension between the two friends and intervened. "Look, we might as well start driving that direction. We can meet this Ray and see if he can help us. In the meantime, I'll keep pressing my contacts in Paris and try to get us a plane out of the country."
It was a plan of sorts, and it was more than they had five minutes ago so they all piled into the car for the long drive to Florida. Abe drove while Jackson divvied up the food from the backseat. They ate in relative silence, the drone of the news station buzzing just shy of discernible. Abe pointed them south as Mitch rummaged through his bag for his charging cable. He plugged his tablet in and began perusing all of the news channels looking for any indication that the CDC or any other agency had a clue what was happening. Every site he visited mentioned some sort of virus or bacterial infection, and Mitch grew more irritated with each consecutive page.
"Anything interesting?" Jamie's voice over his shoulder startled him, though thankfully he managed to repress the urge to jump in his seat.
"Not really," he sighed. "No one seems to have a clue what's going on."
"Except us," she finished. "It's not surprising, though. If Wilson's editor was silenced for a simple inquiry, I can imagine what Reiden's done to anyone actively looking into this."
For a moment she sounded like that headstrong reporter that had tracked him down in the lion enclosure and peppered him with questions regarding odd animal behavior. She had been so sure then, so driven. The past months had tossed her about pretty handily, and her fire had been dimmed with each subsequent setback. But here she was, once again railing against Reiden with an assuredness that bordered on obsessive. Her resilience astounded him.
"You should get some more rest," he told her.
"I'm alright," she told him, but the yawn that punctuated her declaration betrayed her. "Okay," she relented under his pointed stare. "We all need rest. Abe, you okay for a while?"
"Yes," the man kept his eyes on the road. "I will be fine for some time. Mitch is right; you should rest."
"Here," Mitch reached into his bag and pulled out his flannel shirt. He'd taken it off at the park in a rush as the fire trucks amassed, and it had been hastily stuffed in his bag on their way out of Audra's. He handed it back to Jamie to use as a pillow or a blanket. Jackson was already passed out against the door, Chloe leaning against his arm as she slept.
"Thanks," Jamie traded his shirt for her phone. "Can you charge this?"
"Sure," he tucked it into his bag where his tablet normally sat so he would remember later. He heard her shuffling around behind him, adjusting to find a comfortable position in the cramped space. It took a few moments, but finally there was nothing but silence from the backseat. Mitch glanced in the sideview mirror, angling his head just enough to make out Jamie's profile against the window. Out of the corner of his eye Mitch thought he saw Abe smirking, but when he turned his head the other man's face was devoid of emotion.
After a few more minutes of surfing the web, Mitch gave up on learning anything helpful. He shut off his tablet and let it charge, turning his attention to the radio. "What kind of music do you listen to, Abe?"
"Anything is fine," the other man said. "Just keep it low."
Mitch found a classic rock station that seemed to play more music than commercials, and he let himself drift off into a light doze to the strains of Led Zeppelin.
It was almost dark when they stopped again, pulling into another small town gas station to fill up. Mitch rubbed his eyes as he checked the time, surprised to find almost four hours had passed. Abe glanced over at him hopefully.
"How are you on cash?"
Mitch dug into his bag, taking a moment to trade out his tablet for Jamie's phone. He plugged it in and made sure it was charging before counting what little money remained in his bag.
"About fifty," he said. "Should be enough to fill the tank." He handed it to Abe before twisting in his seat to pop his back. His muscles protested the confined space, but he stretched as much as he could. Jamie hadn't stirred, which spoke more about her exhaustion than anything. Chloe and Jackson were still out as well, which meant Mitch was probably next on the driver's list. He got out and walked a bit to relieve the ache in his legs and back, and when Abe finished pumping the gas they switched seats.
"How far is it to Clearwater?" Abe asked.
"Uh, from Boston it's probably 1200 miles. I'm guessing we're not even a third of the way there, yet." It took a moment, but Mitch finally figured out the on board navigation system. He'd been off on his estimate by only a little bit, and the map showed they had traveled a little under 400 miles from Boston. "Looks like we'll be in Clearwater before noon tomorrow if we drive straight through."
Abe settled into the passenger seat and passed Mitch a water from the twelve-pack he'd bought. "Well, let's get going then."
They traded off drivers three more times in the next fifteen hours, and it was Chloe who pulled them to a stop in front of the Sun n' Sands Motel just after eleven. Mitch had managed a few hours of sleep in the back, but he was still stiff and cranky when they all piled out into the thick, humid air.
"Wonderful," he grumbled as they surveyed the two story, green building. All of the doors were weather-beaten and faded by the sun, and through the windows Mitch could see the thick woolen curtains that seemed to be a staple of every roadside motel. "I'm guessing room service is out of the question."
Jamie came up beside him shielding her eyes against the midday sun. "Maybe it's cleaner on the inside."
He didn't even grace her statement with a response, instead choosing to shoot her a withering glare. She just smiled back and patted his arm sympathetically. Chloe came around the car and handed Jamie a wad of cash.
"Just get one room," she said.
"Uh," Jamie took the money but didn't move. "Shouldn't someone else book the room? Someone who isn't wanted for murder?"
"You're the only one of us with a working alias right now," Chloe countered. "The FBI will likely be looking for all of us soon. They will not be looking for Nancy Armstrong."
Jamie accepted the explanation and moved in the direction of the office - a small, windowed room tacked on the end of the row of rooms. The others milled around the car and discussed just how they would go about tracking down Ray.
"He will be in whatever place allows him to cause the most chaos," Abe pointed out.
"He sounds like a charmer," Mitch leaned back against the bumper. "Are we sure we want to get involved with this guy?"
"Yes," Jackson said just as Abe said no, and he glared at his friend. "Ray might be a bit unconventional, but he's our man for getting to Africa under the radar. We don't have a lot of time and our options are limited."
Abe grumbled but didn't reply. Mitch was beginning to feel a twinge of unease in his gut. He usually ignored it - preferring hard facts and logical reasoning - but for some reason he couldn't push it aside like he usually could.
"We got two adjoining rooms," Jamie came back with two keys - real ones, not the magnetic cards of modern hotels. They were each attached by a single ring to large plastic numbers, five and six. She handed Chloe one of the keys and the leftover money.
"How?" Chloe looked down at the change and the key incredulously.
Jamie just shrugged. "It's not tourist season," she said.
Mitch rubbed the back of his neck where sweat had soaked through his collar. "I wonder why." He remembered the summers of his high school years and how the temperatures in the southeastern part of the US grew to sweltering conditions. The beach had been just a few hours' drive, but Mitch had very few friends to go with. Most of the time he'd ended up spending his summers working to save enough money for college and helping his mom prep for her upcoming school year.
They unloaded their bags as Jamie opened the door to room five, and Mitch prepared himself for a very dismal scene. He was not disappointed.
"I think my college dorm was bigger than this," he remarked. The square room was maybe ten feet on each side, with tiny vanity on the back wall and a door that no doubt led to an equally tiny bathroom. The adjoining door was closed, but Mitch unlocked it as he heard Abe speaking in the next room. Chloe opened the door and peeked in.
"Cozy," she joked. "This one's the same. But at least we've got four beds." Mitch glanced at Jamie out of the corner of his eye, suddenly very self-conscious. Chloe had no doubt assumed - as Mitch had - that he and Jamie would be sharing a bed like they had at Chloe's apartment. Of course, he hadn't actually discussed it with Jamie, and felt like an ass.
Hoping to divert the topic until he could speak with her in private, Mitch jumped to their entire reason for being in Clearwater in the first place. "Any idea how to find this Ray guy?"
Chloe shook her head. "I was actually hoping Jamie might have some ideas."
"Me?" Jamie reeled back slightly.
"Yes," Chloe nodded briskly. "Jackson said you tracked down Evan Lee Hartley in a matter of hours. A man like Ray should be no problem at all."
"Okay," Jamie unzipped her bag and pulled her computer from its sleeve. "So who's this friend of yours?"
"He's not our friend," Abe insisted as he and Jackson came from the next room.
"He's an ex-Marine," Jackson cut him off. "An animal rights activist, and he spends a lot of time in Africa interfering with poachers. That's how Abe and I met him."
They spent the next few minutes offering up a few suggestions on where he might be, but none of the numbers Jamie found led to Ray. After almost half an hour of surfing, Jamie stilled in her seat. At first Mitch thought something had popped up on her screen to elicit the reaction, but closer inspection told him otherwise. She had a look on her face he'd seen only a few times, often followed by one of her unorthodox but brilliant ideas.
"We're looking at this wrong," she shook her head and began typing faster than any of them could keep up with. A few pages flashed on her screen as she clicked on links and paged back at nearly inhuman speed. Mitch took a moment to appreciate the sight of Jamie in rare form, doing what she was trained to do. She gathered information, sorting through what was relevant and discarding what wasn't, creeping ever closer to her target. Finally she clicked one final link and sat back triumphantly. "Found him."
"Where?" Jackson leaned in to peer over her shoulder.
"Remember when I was looking for Hartley?" Jackson nodded, but Jamie explained anyway for the others. "I made him into a villain of sorts, and the web found him for me. Well, with everything you and Abe were saying about Ray I guessed he probably didn't need me creating enemies for him - he probably has enough on his own. And I was right." Mitch couldn't help but smile at the pride in her voice. It was nice to hear her spirits lifting, even if it was a small thing in the grand scheme.
"Eco-Terrorists Terrorize Local Fisherman," Jackson read aloud. "Oh yeah, this has Ray all over it." He stood up and turned to Abe. "Looks like we're headed to the docks."
"I'll go with you," Chloe insisted. Neither Abe nor Jackson had any protests, and they all promised to call Mitch or Jamie if and when they found Ray. They were talking and planning even as they walked out, and as the door closed behind them it left a silence in the room that was almost deafening. Jamie closed her laptop and stood, stretching as a yawn escaped.
"I'm gonna grab a shower," she announced, moving to her bag to grab a cleaner set of clothes.
Mitch suddenly felt the grime of the last few days on his body and nodded. "I think I'll join you." The words were out before he had a chance to think about them, and both of them froze at the implication. Mortified horror gripped him and he began to stumble through an apologetic explanation, but Jamie just laughed. She padded over to him and stopped his rambling with a kiss.
It was extremely effective.
When the kiss ended Mitch opened his eyes, surprised and wondering when he'd closed them. Jamie stayed close, laying her palms flat on his chest and looking up at him through fluttering lashes. "I know what you meant," she let him off the hook. "But," she added after a few seconds, "when all of this is over, and the world is back to normal and I don't have a federal warrant out for my arrest…" She raised her chin to look at him squarely, and he saw even in the dim yellow light of the hotel lamps how the black of her pupils seemed to swallow the blue of her eyes. "We will definitely revisit that topic."
She kissed him once more and left him standing in the center of the room as she moved to the small bathroom. The door clicked shut behind her, and Mitch finally figured out how to move again. Abe had left the adjoining door opened, so Mitch took advantage of the second bathroom to take a shower of his own.
When he emerged he felt cleaner, though he didn't feel as rejuvenated as he usually did after showering. He blamed it on exhaustion and decided to catch a nap before the others called or returned. Jamie, it seemed, had beat him to it. She was curled up on top of the covers on the bed nearest the bathroom, her hair still wet from her shower. He stood in the doorway for a moment, his eyes darting between the expanse of bed next to her or the empty one nearest the door. After a few seconds of silent deliberation, Jamie's voice startled him.
"Mitch." It held a note of warning, and he smiled as he remembered the last time he'd heard that tone.
"I know," he chuckled quietly, "stop thinking so much." He turned off the lamp and discarded his damp towel, leaving it in a heap on the floor as he settled onto his side next to her. She maneuvered enough to get the top blanket over them, and as Mitch's head hit the pillow she slotted herself against his body. He wrapped an arm over her to tug her to a more comfortable position, and she hummed irritably. Finally he gave up and rolled to his back, pulling her to lay halfway on top of him. She was slight enough that her weight wasn't oppressive, and he felt her breathing deepen and even out in a matter of seconds.
Hushed voices woke him some time later, and as he came to he identified Abe's first. The others had obviously returned and were discussing something in the other room. Someone had pulled the adjoining door to but hadn't closed it completely, allowing only a soft murmur through. Mitch laid in bed for a moment more, soaking in the feeling of Jamie in his arms. He hadn't been able to properly appreciate it the last time because of his early morning meeting, and the only other time he'd held her like this had been just after Ben Schaffer's death. He'd been so focused on making sure she was alright that he hadn't really paid attention to the way she fit so naturally against him. Her head was pillowed on his shoulder, and he could smell the bland floral fragrance of the hotel shampoo whenever he breathed in deeply. One of her hands was lying limply against his chest, and without thinking he brought his free hand up to grasp it.
It was too dark to make out her face, but Mitch had already memorized every detail anyway. It still baffled him that he'd only known her a few months; sometimes it felt as though she'd always been a part of his life. She hadn't of course - he had the proof of that in Clementine. In a rare moment of fancy, Mitch wondered what his life might have been like had he met her first. Before Audra, before Allison. He probably would have ruined her. His father had done quite a number on his psyche, and it had taken him a lot of years and half a world of space to get to a place where he was at peace with it.
And that's when Jamie had come into his life. She'd appeared so suddenly - all business, so focused on her goals and completely unaware of the effect she'd had on him from day one. He let his mind wander back to that morning at the zoo, crouched over a pile of lion feces and wondering if it was a sign of how the rest of his day would go. Then she'd called his name and his entire world had tilted on its axis. The carefully constructed walls he'd built up around himself had been dismantled at the utterance of her name. He still had no idea what had possessed him to call her up and invite her to lunch, but looking back he was glad he had. Who knows where they would be if he hadn't? Would she even be here with them now? Gaspard had been rather adamant about Mitch's recruitment in that bar so many months ago, but Mitch had been just as adamant about not leaving Jamie behind.
"You're thinking again, Professor." Jamie shifted against him, raising her head to stare at him with a sleepy smile.
"Busted," he confessed. "The others are back."
She raised her head and paused, and when Chloe's soft alto floated through the crack in the door she sagged against him. "I guess that means we have to get up."
"Probably." He made no move to leave the warm nest of blankets. She didn't either. "Do you feel better?"
"Yeah," she finally pushed up to a sitting position and ran her fingers through her hair to comb out any large tangles. "Ugh." No doubt that was meant as some comment on the state of her appearance, but Mitch thought she looked beautiful. He told her so. "Thanks," she smiled at the sudden compliment. "But I'm pretty sure your opinion is biased."
"Well sure," he returned just as cheekily. "But mine's the only opinion that matters."
"Is that so?" her smile morphed into a playful smirk. "And why is that?" She was baiting him and he knew it. She wanted him to take that first step in defining their relationship, to put a name to it. If it had been any other woman, Mitch would have shut her down and refused to play her game. But Jamie wasn't any other woman.
He was pretty sure he was in love with her. And, if he was reading the signs correctly, she was more than a little infatuated with him as well. Despite that, he couldn't force the words past his lips. It didn't matter how many times he reminded himself that Jamie and Allison were as different as night and day, or that he and Audra had only married because of some chivalrous notion that the mother of his child should also be his wife. Jamie wasn't any other woman, and she certainly wasn't either of the two who had wrecked his heart and shoved him into this cynical shell. Still, he couldn't say it.
"You guys up?" Jackson interrupted their non-conversation with a light knock on the door. Mitch saw Jamie's face fall, but only for a second before she schooled her features. He didn't think she knew he'd seen it, and she stood up with a languid stretch.
"Yeah, gimme just a sec." She disappeared into the bathroom without looking back. Mitch cursed inwardly and resolved to talk to her the next time they were alone. She deserved that, at least, and he could get past his aversion to confronting his emotions if it meant he never had to see that disappointment on her face again.
"Everything okay?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah," Mitch stood and made a half-hearted attempt at making the bed. Chloe and Abe came up behind Jackson, and when Jamie came back out all of them were perched in various places around the room discussing what had happened with Ray.
"He wants us to what?" Mitch had been listening quietly as Jackson explained how they'd found Ray Endicott, but he balked at the word "liberate."
"He's crazy," Abe added, but Jackson just glared.
"He's not crazy." Then, a little less convincingly, "He's just not uncrazy."
Chloe decided to intervene before the two friends could erupt into a full-blown argument. "His group calls themselves the Free Animal Rights Militia."
"F-A-R-M," Mitch drawled. "That's...clever." He grabbed one of the bottles of water from the 12 pack they'd bought in Massachusetts. "I've dealt with these kind of people before. They don't know the first thing about animal welfare." His time spent at various zoos had exposed him to all sorts of animal rights protesters and activists. While most of them had their hearts in the right place, they had no clue about what conservation and animal protection actually entailed.
"Not to mention some of us are already wanted by the police," Jamie put in. "Maybe committing another crime doesn't help our case." Mitch raised his hand in acknowledgement of another point against this foolish endeavor.
"Well I agree," Jackson said, "but we gotta get out of here and we gotta get out of here fast." No one seemed convinced, and Jackson sighed. "I admit, okay? Ray...Ray can be a bit of a loose cannon." At Abe's pointed stare he shrugged. "Maybe more than a bit. But everything he has ever done has been for the animals."
"Look," Abe pushed away from the door, "I know desperate times require desperate measures, but this isn't desperate. It's reckless."
The debate went on and on, with Jackson and Chloe on one side and Abe, Jamie and Mitch on the other. Ultimately, it was the breaking news on the television that decided things for them. Mitch kept his expression neutral as he looked at his picture next to those of his friends in connection with Ben Schaffer's death. Jamie was across the room, but a brief glance revealed all he needed to know about her state of mind. The guilt was written on her face, and he knew what they had to do.
"Alright," he reached down and turned the set off. "Let's go." They packed all of their things back into the car, unsure if they would be able to return to the hotel before they flew out of the country. Jamie left the keys on the nightstand with a note apologizing for not returning them to the front desk. Mitch watched her dig into her pocket for whatever cash she had left to leave for the housekeeping service, marveling once again at the depth of compassion she held in her heart.
They squeezed in the back with Chloe as Jackson rocketed off toward wherever Ray and his friends were holed up. Mitch felt sick to his stomach at the thought of helping these people. Fanatics like Ray and the rest of the members of FARM typically held an extremely narrow - and often incorrect - view of zoos and animal preserves. In his experience, they were ignorant and militant - a combination that often led to terrible things. It went against everything he believed in regarding animal conservation and welfare, yet here he was about to help them break into a zoo and remove animals who knew no other life than the one they lived. The odds of them surviving in the African wilds were almost nil, but Mitch knew he couldn't say it. They needed Ray and his plane to get out of the country.
"You alright?" Jamie kept her voice low as Jackson and Abe continued their good-natured argument about which of them had first befriended Ray Endicott.
Mitch guessed she'd seen the pinched look on his face, and he forced himself to relax. "Yeah," he nodded. "I'm just not looking forward to dealing with the level of ignorance these people are likely to display."
"I guess in the zoo world, these guys would be like your nemesis." She was trying to lift his spirits with a joke, but she had spoken truth.
"Yeah," he nodded. "A few years back, we rescued a small herd of elephants from Swaziland. They have a managed population there, and their herd was getting too big, encroaching on the habitats of other animals, because of a major drought. The local government wanted to cull the herd, but we said we'd take a few of them instead." Mitch shook his head as he remembered the uproar that announcement had caused. "So called animal activists protested almost daily, tried to sneak into the zoo and disrupt operations, stuff like that."
"Wow. Anyone get hurt?"
"No," Mitch shook his head. "They're persistent, but mostly harmless. But people like Ray, like FARM? They're the really dangerous ones."
Jamie's face morphed from curious to apprehensive. "Dangerous?"
"They're fanatics, and from what Abe and Jackson have said they're militant. Add to that the unpredictability that comes with transporting zoo animals - and ones that don't know us to boot - let's just say I'm not looking forward to the next 24 hours."
"If we had another option -"
"No, I get why we have to do this," Mitch stopped her before she could somehow find a way to add more blame onto her already overburdened shoulders. "I'm just warning you that I may not be my normal charming self for a day or so."
She chuckled and laid her head back against the seat. "Fair enough."
Mitch closed his eyes and didn't open them until Jackson pulled up to an old rundown warehouse at the end of a long road. He was already picturing the para-military scene he was likely walking into as he followed Abe toward a side door. Jackson knocked loudly, banging his fist against the metal three times in quick succession. A rusty bolt slid back and the door cracked open. A man peeked through, his face a stony mask until he saw Jackson and Abe on the other side.
"Boys!" he lit up and opened the door wider to let them in. "Glad you could make it. The gang's through here." He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder as Mitch followed his friends into the dimly lit warehouse. Empty shelves and spare sheets of metal had been hastily constructed as some sort of foyer, with only a small gap serving as the entry into the main area. Jackson took the lead and made the introductions.
"Ray Endicott, these are the other two members of our team, Jamie Campbell and Mitch Morgan."
Jamie took Ray's proffered hand quickly but firmly. When the man turned to him, Mitch stuffed his hands in his pockets and nodded quickly. Ray seemed to sense his hostility, but it didn't faze him. Instead, he turned back to Jamie with a charming smile.
"Jackson, you've been holding out on me, man. You didn't tell me you were working with two gorgeous women." There was a beat of silence as Ray waited for his compliment to be acknowledged. When no one spoke up, Mitch decided he should be the one to do it.
Jackson cut him off before he could potentially damage whatever deal they had struck. "Ray, we're here. We'll help you, as long as you can promise me that you'll get us to Africa."
Ray grinned. "Oh, I'll get you to Africa, buddy boy. Got the cargo plane fueled up and ready to go. All we have to do is go liberate the animals." Mitch sneered at Ray's words but kept silent.
"There is something else," Abe added. "We will need to get to the pathology lab and get their electroporator."
Ray seemed as confused by the request as he was by the word. "What for?"
"It doesn't matter what it's for," Mitch finally snapped. "We just need it."
"Okay," Ray held up his hands and nodded toward the opening. "We're putting the final touches on the plans now. Come on."
They made their way to a larger open area, lit by crudely erected floodlights. A low table sat in the center with what appeared to be a jumbo sized map of the Clearwater Zoo. Two others were hovered over the it speaking in low tones as they approached. The woman was stern looking with a tight bun and angled features. Her hawk-like eyes surveyed the newcomers silently. Mitch got the feeling she was as against their involvement as he was.
The third member of the FARM team was a young man with dark skin and bright eyes. He was less apprehensive about Ray's hired help, but his enthusiasm for their upcoming task was immediately dampened upon their arrival.
Ray ignored the obvious tension in the room and made introductions like they were meeting for dinner rather than a covert operation. "Cody, Anissa, these are my old pals from Africa, Abe and Jackson. They've brought us some manpower for tonight's liberation."
Cody nodded at them, but Anissa wasn't so welcoming. "As long as they do what they're told, fine."
Mitch opened his mouth to fire back, but Jamie nudged him sharply in the ribs and he clamped his mouth shut. Ray went on like he hadn't noticed. "We found what works best for us is a two-pronged assault, so four of us are gonna go in here, four of us in here." He indicated two points on the map that corresponded with what Mitch knew were probably larger loading areas. The hoofstock barns usually had their own loading ramps and chutes, with the smaller animals being transported from the hospital loading area to their exhibits. One team was set to breach at the zebra barn, the other near the hospital. Mitch guessed he was in that team.
Anissa sounded almost boastful when she added, "Toss in a couple of flashbangs and the rent-a-cops won't know what hit 'em."
"Flashbangs?" It was Jamie who couldn't contain her surprise. "Seriously?"
Mitch decided the moratorium on keeping quiet was off. "The term 'gung ho' comes from the Chinese meaning 'work together,' but I find it can also mean 'excitable morons groping for a cause.'"
To his surprise, it was Cody who rounded on him. "You kidding me, man?"
"My friend," Abe warned, "I wouldn't, if I was you." There was a moment of tense silence as Mitch stared down at the man, almost daring him to continue. He weighed his options and decided it wasn't worth it.
Cody had backed down, but Anissa had had enough. "Who are these guys again, Ray?
"These are some old chums of mine," Ray said evenly, "who are presently of the mind that the animals are uniting against us. Which we deserve, by the way."
"Good for them," Anissa was sounding more and more disconnected from reality. "I mean, we have been eating them and keeping them in cages since the dawn of time."
Mitch couldn't let that crazy stand. He took a breath to rebuke her fanatical viewpoint, but Jackson spoke first. "Alright, how about we just focus on what it is we're trying to do here."
Ray nodded sharply. "Okay, once we're in one of your people can go fetch the, uh, velociraptor thing from the path-lab."
"Electroporator," Mitch corrected tersely.
"Sure. That." Ray matched his tone. "Rest of us are gonna free the animals, load them into the truck. We're in and out in under thirty minutes."
"What if we try a different approach?" Jackson asked.
Mitch had reached the end of his patience with these lunatics. "Yeah, like the one where we don't break into the zoo to free the animals."
"What, do you think this is funny?" Cody had apparently overcome whatever hesitation he'd had at their initial confrontation.
Mitch rose the occasion and let go of his own inhibitions. "Oh, there's nothing funnier than adrenaline junkies trying to mask their thrill-seeking in altruism."
Anissa was still atop her high horse, preaching her nonsense to the masses. "Zoos are an idea whose time has come and gone."
Her blind ignorance was starting to piss him off, and Mitch added a bit of bite to his next words. "Tell that to the dozens of species who have benefited from captive breeding programs."
"Alright, relax," Ray stepped between them. "Relax." He glanced sharply at Anissa and she backed off with a sour look. "Anissa did a couple of tours in Afghanistan," he explained calmly. "Took some mortar fire. Unfortunately the doctors couldn't save her sense of humor."
Chloe joined Ray in refocusing the group. "Jackson, you were saying?"
"I was thinking that maybe we try a more stealthy approach," Jackson said. "One where we get in and out without security even knowing we're there."
Ray stood up and crossed his arms over his chest. "And how do you propose that?"
Jackson smiled knowingly. "We have a secret weapon." Mitch didn't like the sound of that at all, but if it meant getting one over on these losers then he was willing to roll with it.
"Oh, you do?"
"We do," Jackson turned to Mitch and pointed. "Him."
Anissa's disgust was plain. "You've got be kidding me."
Mitch recovered from the surprise quickly. "Well as it turns out Miss Jarhead, I know a thing or two about zoos." And then, because he had no idea how he was going to do it alone, he turned to Jamie. "And Jamie knows a thing or two about getting information from people." She looked up for a moment but schooled her features quickly. Before anyone could argue or offer a counterpoint, Mitch went on. "Give us ten minutes."
"Ten -"
"Alright," Ray interrupted Anissa before she could go off on a tear. "Ten minutes. See if you can come up with a plan better than the one we've been using for years." He sounded confident they couldn't, and Mitch resisted the urge to snipe back. Instead, he steered Jamie toward a smaller area separated by more sheet metal.
When they were out of earshot, she predictably rounded on him. "Thanks for volunteering me."
"We were already volunteered," he countered, "I'm just giving us an opportunity to keep aggravated assault off of our rap sheets."
"Okay," she saw the sense in his argument, "so what now?"
"Now," he said, "we figure out how to get into the zoo without being seen."
Jamie thought for a moment, pacing in the small space before turning to him. "Does every area have cameras?"
"Yeah," Mitch confirmed. "Keepers can use them to check on the animals when they're not around."
"They can log in remotely?" Her tone had picked up, now more encouraged than curious.
"Yep."
"What if we can have someone monitoring all the cameras at once? That way we know when security is around and when it's clear."
"Okay," Mitch could see the benefit of it, but the execution would be difficult. "How do you get the login information? They don't just give that to everyone."
"Getting information from people is what I do, remember?" He smiled at her teasing tone, accepting the shot at his earlier comment with a nod. "Can you send Ray and his goons on an errand? I need smart phones, like a dozen of them. And they all need internet access so I can set each one to look at a different camera."
"Alright," he was beginning to see her plan. "What about the alarms?" he asked. "We'll need to to cut those without messing with the cameras."
"Abe can do it," she answered assuredly. She sounded like she knew from experience, and he didn't question her. Instead he went off to relay her instructions to Ray and the others.
They were understandably skeptical.
"Just do it, Ray," Jackson cut off their protests with a sharp rebuke. Ray glared at them but eventually backed down. Anissa and Cody followed him out of the warehouse reluctantly, leaving Mitch and the team alone.
"Abe," Mitch turned to the larger man, "Jamie seems to think you're the man who can cut power to the alarm system without interrupting the camera feed."
Abe pressed his lips together for a moment, then nodded. "I can do it."
"Fantastic," Mitch clapped his hands together. "I need some coffee."
Chloe directed him toward the tiny makeshift kitchen that was set up on a balcony in the back of the warehouse. He brewed the instant coffee with a sneer of disgust, grimacing at the bitter taste. He found a smaller version of the zoo map next to the mini-fridge, and he took the time to make sure he knew the fastest route to the pathology lab. They would likely split into teams once inside to allow for the greatest chance of success. Mitch just hoped he wasn't paired with anyone from Ray's team.
"What are you thinking about?" Chloe's voice startled him, and he half-turned to acknowledge her as she walked up beside him.
"I'm just trying to figure out how I went from working at a zoo to breaking into one in the span of three months." He couldn't keep the acid from his tone, and Chloe nodded sympathetically.
"This goes against everything you believe in," she said. "I understand this is difficult for you."
Accepting the opening she was giving him, he took the opportunity to vent his frustration. "It's just these animals were more than likely born in a zoo. This life is all they know. Taking them to Africa and setting them free is practically a death sentence." He ran his free hand through his hair in a gesture of irritation. "And these so called activists don't give a damn about the animals. They think they're doing good, and it makes them feel like they're accomplishing something when in reality they're making things so much worse." He paused, working through the last barrier to utter what was really bothering him. "And I'm helping them do it. I'm condemning these animals to death."
"But on the other hand," Chloe spoke what he would not, "this is the only way we can get Jamie out of the country and away from the FBI. Your head is at war with your heart." He stayed silent, but it was enough of a confirmation for her to continue. "Have you spoken to her about this?"
"No," he shook his head. "And I'm not going to. She's already got enough on her mind without adding my own crap onto the pile."
"Do you love her?" Chloe's question caught him off-guard. He glanced at her for a moment in panic, but from her expression he knew she already had the answer. She was just giving him a chance to say it.
"Yeah," he breathed. "Yeah, I do." It felt good to get it out there, even if he was telling the wrong woman.
"Then tell her. Speak to her about your feelings...all of them. She deserves that much." She left him then, giving him space to think about what she'd said. He stared at the map for a few more minutes, but all of his earlier thoughts had been drowned out by Chloe's words. She was right - they needed to have a long talk - but now was not the time. Right now they needed to focus on completing their task and not getting caught by the authorities.
He made his way back down into the main area, listening as Jamie expertly manipulated whoever was on the other end of her phone call into giving her the login information for the cameras. When she hung up he saluted her with his half-full mug.
"Nicely done."
"Let's just hope it works." Her computer pinged, alerting her to a new email. She opened it and showed him. "Now all we need is the phones." She moved away, pacing in the small space for a moment before speaking again. "I don't know about this."
"About what?" There was a hesitation in her tone that he wasn't used to hearing from her. Usually when she decided to do something, she was all in.
"This," she gestured vaguely. "The cameras...everything." She was second guessing herself, and he silently cursed Ben Schaffer for the millionth time. She had been the one to give the FBI agent the benefit of the doubt, to trust him when the others were still unsure. Mitch wondered how she balanced the skeptical curiosity of a journalist with her innately trusting nature, and tried not to think about how much trouble that combination had probably brought her throughout her life.
"But this part was your idea."
"I know," she was agitated now, rocking her weight from one foot to the other like she couldn't decide whether to pace or not. "But look, it should work - it should work. But what if it doesn't?"
Empty platitudes were never his thing. "If it doesn't I'm gonna be breaking into a zoo with a bunch of nut-job radicals and no one is gonna have my back." He saw her panic for a moment before he went on. "But I'm not worried about that. You know why?"
"Why?"
"Because I have faith in you." He let his words sink in, watched as she let them seep into her bones and settle. She relaxed enough to smile at him and he nodded.
"Got what you wanted," Cody and Anissa came in carrying what looked like a pillowcase.
"Okay," Anissa handed Jamie the sack. "How's this supposed to work?"
Mitch listened as she laid out her plan to monitor the cameras and alert them to the presence of security. She sounded so naturally confident in her explanation he almost forgot how uncertain she'd been just moments before. When she was done, Cody shook his head.
"Seems complicated."
"Yeah, it is," Jamie tried for a positive tone, but missed the mark.
"No it isn't," Mitch pushed. "You got this. She's got this, right?" At his pointed question Jamie nodded sharply. It wasn't the most convincing, but Cody and Anissa seemed to accept it. They glanced once more at the map before disappearing into the depths of the warehouse for the last of the preparations. Once they were gone, Jamie deflated slightly.
"Mitch -"
"No," he set his coffee mug down and moved around the table to stand next to her. "It's not complicated, and it's a brilliant idea. In a few hours this will all be over and we'll be on our way to Africa." He reached out to rub her shoulder, and when she leaned into him he wrapped both arms around her.
"I miss my bed," she murmured.
Mitch's shoulders shook with amusement as he laughed softly. "I think it's safe to say it'll be a while before any of us see a bed again."
"It's time, boys and girls," Ray snapped his fingers and spun a finger over his head to indicate they should get going.
Mitch rolled his eyes and sighed as Jamie stepped back. "Wish us luck." He turned to walk away, but Jamie grabbed a hold of his hand to stop him. She tugged him back and pushed up to her toes to kiss him. Mitch savored it, lingering just a little longer than he meant to.
"Be safe," she whispered. She let him go and opened her mouth to say something else, but whatever it was caught in her throat. Finally she muttered, "I'll be here."
He knew in that moment what she had wanted to say. It was the same thing he'd been trying to tell her for a few days now. Somehow, the thought that she was having just as much trouble saying it gave him enough confidence to overcome his own hangups.
"Jamie, I -"
Ray whistled loudly, making both of them wince. Mitch closed his eyes and fought the urge to strangle the man. Jamie nudged him out the door with a quick warning not to kill their comrades before they could get to the plane.
"No promises," he grumbled back, but followed the other six to the large truck idling outside. The moment was lost anyway, he told himself. Cody was behind the wheel, with Ray riding shotgun and Jackson in between them. Anissa was driving her own truck, and as Mitch climbed into the backseat she turned to glare at him over her shoulder.
"Nice of you to join us."
Next to him, Chloe shook her head to warn against a reply and Mitch clenched his jaw shut. It was almost four in the morning and they were all stressed and exhausted. Adding the vehement protests Mitch had against this entire endeavor, and it was a wonder he hadn't completely snapped. It's almost over, he told himself. The words repeated like a mantra in his head as they made their way to the Clearwater Zoo.
Anissa pulled her truck up behind a service entrance. She'd obtained the security code somehow, and as the large gate rolled back she led Cody through the back roads of the zoo toward the loading dock. Cody backed up to the ramp as Ray and Jackson jumped out. Once everyone was situated for the easiest getaway, Abe followed Ray over to a power box as Anissa and Cody went over the plan again.
"I'm going to the zebra barn first," Anissa said. "Once Ray and Abe are done, they'll grab the other hoofstock nearby. You two can go grab whatever you need from the hospital, but when you're done you need to get back here to help." It was clear from her tone she had expected Mitch to be of no help whatsoever. He thought about stalling on purpose to keep them from taking too many animals, but Anissa's sharp eyes were leveled on him as she finished her speech. "We need to be out of here in half an hour."
That half hour turned out to be one of the worst in Mitch's life, which was pretty astounding given his life so far. Adrenaline was currently overriding his anger, but he knew the moment things calmed down he was going to erupt. Abe was currently navigating the semi full of animals as Mitch tried to keep Ray from bleeding out in the back of Anissa's truck. She was driving erratically, alternating between asking how he was doing and cursing under her breath. Mitch was certain he wouldn't like what she was saying if he could hear her, so he focused instead on keeping Ray alive.
They screeched to a halt in front of the warehouse, and Abe maneuvered the truck around to the alley as Anissa and Jackson rushed to find something to help get Ray out of the truck and into the building. Jamie was pacing nervously when they burst through the doors, and Mitch saw the color drain from her face as she saw all of the blood.
"What happened?"
Anissa rounded on her with fire in her eyes. "Ray got shot and Cody is dead because we didn't have back up we could count on!"
Abe beat Mitch to an angered reply by a breath. "Back up you could count on? Nobody said anything about guns." Mitch had never heard him so much as raise his voice. Now he was livid. "No one said anything about guns!"
"Alright, everybody calm down," Jackson yelled. "We can point fingers later. Jamie, help us."
"Why didn't you take him to a hospital?" she asked.
"Because if he goes to the hospital, then he goes to prison," Anissa snapped. "Besides, your friend says he can help him."
Jamie looked at him in surprise. "You can?"
"I hope so," Mitch checked the wound and winced. "Otherwise GI Jane here is gonna put me down."
Anissa ignored his comment and handed him a towel to staunch the blood flow. "Okay, what do you need me to do."
Mitch replaced his hand with the cloth and glanced around, mentally compiling a list of things he would need. "Just get me whatever first aid supplies you have around here."
Luckily for all of them she was used to taking orders. "Okay, got it!"
"Sharpest knife you can find!" he added. "And a lighter to sterilize it." She nodded and dashed off. "Grab some rope or electrical cord, whatever you got," he added quickly. Jamie hovered just out of reach, her breathing short and erratic. Mitch knew she was still freaking out about Anissa's outburst and he needed to refocus her before she hyperventilated.
"Jamie, I'm going to need you to help me." She didn't respond, and when he looked up her face was still white as a sheet. "Jamie!" She jumped but he couldn't feel bad about it now. Ray was bleeding heavily, and he needed to get the bullet out. "I'm going to need your help."
Her eyes snapped back into focus and she took a few deeper breaths, though her face was still very pale. "Okay," she breathed. "Okay."
"I need to get the bullet out of him, but I don't have any anesthesia. We'll need to hold him down." Under his hand, Ray bucked twice then stilled. Anissa chose that moment to reappear.
"Oh God, is he -?"
"He's passed out," Mitch nodded at the bundle of rope in her hands. "Tie him to the table."
"Why?" Anissa asked, tethering Ray's left leg as Abe, Chloe and Jackson each took one of his other limbs.
"Because this is gonna get rough," Mitch said brusquely.
"Ray's in good hands," Abe spoke soothingly. "His bedside manner notwithstanding, if Mitch says he can help him, he can."
Anissa finished tying Ray's leg down, cinching the knot a little more tightly than necessary. "Look I know where the plane is, but it's not gonna do you any good."
"Why not?" Jackson asked.
"Because Ray's your pilot!"
Everyone froze for a moment as the implications of her statement sank in. "Wonderful," Mitch mumbled, turning to set Chloe to sterilizing the knife and tongs. Anissa was hovering very near Ray's head, and Mitch felt the last of his patience snap. "Go somewhere else!" She sneered at him and didn't move from her spot. It was Abe who finally stepped in.
"Anissa, Ray will be fine. We should prepare the plane for take off." He reached out to cup her elbow, steering her away from the makeshift surgery table and Mitch's acid tongue. She resisted for a moment, but Abe's gentle coaxing eventually brought her around. She promised to meet him outside in ten minutes and moved off, presumably to wash the blood from her hands. Mitch wished he could do the same.
Chloe returned with the small instruments and excused herself, leaving Mitch alone with Jamie. He turned and grabbed the bottle of rubbing alcohol.
"Bullet's in a bad place," he told her as he opened the bottle and drenched his hands. "This isn't going to be pretty." He wasn't evenly really sure he could do this, but he couldn't back out now. The others expected him to save Ray's life, but that wasn't the reason he was working so hard to keep him from bleeding out. If Ray died, Jamie would feel responsible. She couldn't have known the feeds were crossed, but she had been the one in charge of the cameras. In her mind, Ray's death would be her fault, just as Cody's was. Mitch would do everything in his power to shield her from any more pain.
"You ready?" She seemed more together, though she still looked a little shaky as she nodded. "Okay, hold him down." Jamie placed her hands on Ray's chest, and Mitch realized she didn't have the proper leverage to exert any real control over him if he decided to buck. He hoped the ropes held. Using his left hand to pry the wound wider, he leaned over Ray's shoulder and slid the tongs into the gaping hole.
Ray bucked. His eyes opened, wide and wild from the pain. A strangled cry bubbled from his throat as Jamie tried to calm him down. "No, you're okay, you're okay," she told him, pressing her hands onto the right side of his chest away from the wound. She couldn't keep him completely on the table, but Mitch noted she was surprisingly strong for her size. Ray didn't lift more than a few inches, and he was able to probe for the bullet. "You're gonna be fine," she urged. "You're gonna be okay."
"What the hell is wrong?" Ray groaned, turning his head to glance at Mitch. His entire body was tensed in agony, and he grunted several times before going limp. As soon as his muscles relaxed, Mitch found the bullet and carefully pulled it from Ray's flesh. It made a satisfying plink as it hit the bottom of the bowl Jamie held out for him.
"Now what?"
"Now," he traded the tongs for the needle and thread, "I sew him closed and get cleaned up."
"Do you need me to help with that?" There was something in her tone that alerted him, and when he looked up she was once again pale and shaky. She was about to pass out on him, and if she did he wasn't entirely certain he would give a damn about closing Ray's bullet wound.
"Go lie down," he directed. "Find something to drink that isn't coffee." She moved off quickly, and Mitch split his attention between sewing the hole closed and listening for the sound of her body hitting the floor. When it didn't come, he assumed she'd made it to the cots and focused on his task. The man was still out when he was done, so Mitch cleaned up as much blood as he could and left him to rest.
He found Jamie lying on a cot upstairs, her arm thrown over her eyes and a half empty water bottle on the floor next to her. She'd taken her shoes off and unbuttoned her jacket, and if Mitch didn't know any better he'd think she was just napping. He sat on the edge, reaching for her wrist to take her pulse. She looked at him sluggishly but didn't move. Her heart rate was normal, but she was still very pale.
"How do you feel?" he asked quietly.
"I'm alright. How's Ray?" She sat up slowly, and he scooted back to give her room.
"He'll live." There must have been something in his tone, because she gave him a half-hearted glare. "What?"
"You might disagree on some things -" he scoffed, but she ignored it, " - but, he's still a human being. You did the right thing by saving his life."
Mitch thought that he and Ray probably disagreed on just about everything, but he didn't say it. Instead, he just shrugged one shoulder and stood. "Yeah, well, he's our pilot. He dies, we don't make it out of the country."
"Mitch!"
"The man nearly got us killed, Jamie," he countered. "He and his band of wackos opened fire on security guards and we were caught in the crossfire."
"It's not his fault you didn't know the guards were there," she shouted back. "If I had been paying more attention, if I'd had seen the feeds were crossed -"
"There's no way you could have known," he argued. "And it was their decision to bring guns in the first place!"
"If they hadn't, you'd be in jail right now."
"Don't," he hissed. "Don't you dare try to justify anything they did tonight."
She opened her mouth for a rebuttal, but he was keenly aware of how amped up he was and didn't want to say anything he'd regret. He held up a hand and turned away, retreating to the small area that acted as a kitchen. Someone had made a pot of coffee on a hot plate, and Mitch looked for a clean mug as Jackson and Chloe came crashing through the door.
"What's going on?" Mitch glanced between them, noting how Chloe's hands were shaking.
"Something's wrong with the animals," she said.
"Yeah," Mitch snarked. "That's sort of why we're all here right now."
"She means the ones in the trailer," Jackson explained. "They were all growling at us. First the serval cat, then the rest."
"And you were expecting them to behave themselves? They're in a place they don't know with people they don't recognize," Mitch knew he shouldn't be taking his irritation out on his friends, but Ray was unconscious and Anissa was taking Abe to the plane. Unfortunately, they were convenient targets. "Not to mention whatever the hell Reiden's Mother Cell has done to their brain chemistry. So, I don't really blame them for being a bit tetchy."
"Look," Chloe's tone was sharp as she stalked over, "I understand that you're under a great deal of stress right now. You don't want to be here; you've made that abundantly clear. But we're here now, and we all have to deal with it. Including you."
Mitch clenched his teeth together to keep from saying something else he didn't really mean. Instead, he turned his back to them and poured himself a mug of bitter coffee. It was awful, but he choked it down anyway. He had never been great at apologies, so he addressed Jackson's concerns about the animals instead.
"So they were all growling at you?"
"Every single one of them," Jackson confirmed. He seemed to sense Mitch's intent and accepted it in stride. "Like they'd all found a common enemy."
"Us," Chloe put in. She, like Jackson, was willing to move past Mitch's outburst and forget about it.
"And at first it was just the serval, but then the rest of the animals joined in?" Mitch began walking back toward the cots and Jamie. She would want to know what was going on.
Jackson and Chloe followed him, posting up by the makeshift doorway. Jamie was cinching the knot on her shoe when they arrived. Mitch glanced at her as he walked by to lean back against a rail, but he couldn't tell from her neutral expression if she was mad at him for his earlier behavior.
"Yes, but not all at once," Jackson said. "It was more like it was passing from one animal to the next."
Jamie had turned toward them, placing her feet on the floor but making no motion to stand. "What is it? What's going on?"
"I don't know," Mitch told them honestly. Animal behavior was more Jackson's expertise. He'd only heard one one thing that could explain it. "Maybe it's some kind of emotional contagion?"
Chloe crossed her arms across her chest. "What's that mean, 'emotional contagion?'"
"It's a biological phenomenon," Mitch fell back on his scientific explanations; they were infinitely easier to understand than human emotions. "Nobody quite understands it, but it's real. Like yawns are contagious," he offered. "You see somebody yawning, you can't help but yawn yourself. Same thing with laughter."
"And you think that's what happening with the animals?"
The scientist balked at the absolute in her statement. "I can't say for sure, but it's a theory."
"But if it's true, that would explain why the abnormal animal behaviors have been increasing so much these past weeks," Jackson latched onto the theory and ran with it. "Because animals in proximity could be triggering each other."
"Like inside the truck." Chloe said. "You're saying one of the animals starts displaying the behavior, then it spreads from one to the next."
"Like a spark." Jackson's voice sounded distant, like he was recalling a long past memory. When the others turned to him, he explained. "Something my father said - I didn't understand at the time - but he called it 'the spark.'" Mitch frowned, still put off at the mention of Robert Oz and his ideas. Jackson didn't seem to notice his disgust and kept going. "Okay, he said that once the spark was lit, it would spread all over the world from animal to animal, like wildfire. And that once this happened, it would be impossible to put out the flame."
There was a beat of silence as Jackson's words sunk in. Mitch was the one to break it. "Dramatic - and slightly apocalyptic - ramblings aside, we need to get out of here. Fast."
"Abe said he would call when they reached the airfield." As if on cue, Jackson's phone rang loudly, echoing in the almost empty warehouse. "That's him now." He answered it, nodding once and promising to be careful after extracting a similar promise from Abe. He hung up and sighed. "We've got a plane."
"I'll make sure our things are packed in the SUV," Chloe stepped back toward the door. "You three check on Ray and get whatever we need from here." Mitch went straight for the electroporator while Jackson went to look in on Ray. Jamie didn't follow either of them, choosing instead to visit the kitchen and pack up any remaining food.
Mitch found a spare backpack lying on the floor beneath the table. He tried not to notice the blood that had congealed on the far side of the slab, but it was difficult. Eventually he grabbed Ray's discarded shirt and tossed it over the mess before unzipping the pack and dumping the contents to make room for the ill-gotten equipment. The screen went in first, padded by one of Mitch's own shirts from his bag. The second large piece just barely fit, and Mitch silently thanked his antisocial adolescence and his almost cult-like devotion to mastering Tetris.
Jackson came up beside him as he was packing the power cord into the outer pocket. He quietly began loading all of the leftover first aid supplies into his own pack, offering silent companionship as Mitch worked up the nerve to say what he needed to.
"Listen, I'm...sorry. About blowing up before." Mitch didn't look at Jackson, but he could feel the other man's presence. "I just can't believe we let it get this far." Suddenly, everything he couldn't say before came bubbling to the surface. "One minute Jamie's wanted for killing an FBI agent, the next minute we're in a gunfight. At a zoo."
Jackson finally spoke, his tone firm but friendly. "You think I wanted it this way?"
"It was your idea to contact this Ray character," Mitch finally turned to Jackson. "Doesn't take a fortune teller to figure out that bad things might occur when he's around."
"Yeah, well I didn't hear you come up with any ideas about how to get out of the country undetected."
"Right," Mitch conceded the point and countered with one of his own. "But my no ideas beats the hell out of robbing a zoo to get out of here." He zipped the pack up more forcefully than he intended.
"We had no other options, Mitch. None."
The bubbling became a rolling boil. "People got shot, Jackson! By masked gunmen. We were among those masked gunmen." And, he added silently, it could have any of them that were shot instead. The fact that the security guards hit two FARM members instead of one of his friends was sheer luck.
Jamie had finished with her packing and came downstairs as the two men were talking. Jackson was apparently done with what he finally realized was a futile argument. "Well, at least you got your electroporator."
Jamie stepped in before Mitch could reply. "Ray still out, huh?"
Mitch had finally reached the end of his civility. "Yep. And I say we leave him."
"We're not leaving the guy, okay?" Jackson protested. "He's hurt."
With a final zip, Mitch stood tall and stared Jackson square in the eye. "I'm a veterinarian," he said coldly. "I didn't take the Hippocratic Oath." Without another word, he turned and walked away. Chloe was waiting with her bag next to the door, and as Mitch approached she opened it. Mitch followed her out as Jackson and Jamie caught up.
"Are we really just gonna leave him here?" Jamie asked.
"We could put a bow on him, leave him front of the police station," Mitch offered.
"We'll call an ambulance once we get to the airport," Jackson had at least seen the sense in leaving Ray behind. "Then we'll call the zoo, tell them where they can find their animals."
"And to use extreme caution when approaching them," Chloe added.
"Hold on, everybody."
Ray's voice halted them all in their tracks. Mitch bit back a groan and turned with the rest of them to find a very pale but very determined looking man staring them down. With a gun. Jamie was standing next to him, and he saw her flinch at the sight of the weapon. Mitch shifted ever so slightly to angle his body between her and Ray.
Jackson held his hands out but didn't sound at all cowed. "Seriously, Ray? What is it with you guys and guns?"
"Well, my charm only gets me so far, pal." Ray was holding his left arm tenderly, no doubt due to the crudely stitched bullet wound in his shoulder. He was clearly in pain, but the gun in his right hand was convincing enough. "Where's Anissa?"
"She's with Abe. They went to the plane."
"Good," Ray gestured with his gun. "Let's go get 'em. It's my plane, after all."
Mitch saw Jackson debate their options, coming up with the only answer he could while standing at the wrong end of a gun. "Fine. Come on." He turned back toward the SUV, his intent clear.
"No, the plan abides," Ray commanded. "We're taking the animals."
"We can't." Chloe was just as adamant, but Ray wasn't swayed.
"Sure, we can." He nodded toward the truck behind him, as though they had forgotten it was even there.
"No, it's impossible," Chloe tried to explain rationally. Mitch thought she was wasting her time. "Something is wrong with them."
"And we can make it right by setting them free." Ray gestured again, demonstrating why they couldn't really say no. "So get in the truck, and let's go to Africa." When no one made a move, his face hardened. "Now!"
A look passed between all four of them, a resignation that said they didn't really have a choice. Almost as one, they began walking slowly toward the truck. Ray turned in front of the cab and smiled. "So who's volunteering to ride in the back? Or do you wanna draw straws? All five of us can't fit up front."
Mitch was willing to go along in the face of a gun, but the thought of any of them having to make the trip locked in the back with already agitated, mutated animals didn't sit well. "Look, you're not getting it. The animals, they're not right. It's not safe back there."
"I'll ride in the back," Jackson offered. Ray wasn't budging, and the longer they stayed where they were the greater chance they had of being caught. Mitch understood, but he didn't like it.
Jamie didn't either. "Jackson, no. You cannot do that."
"I'll come with you," Chloe followed Jackson around to the trailer, leaving Mitch and Jamie standing with a half-crazed gunman.
"How sweet is that, huh?" Ray mocked. "All this saving the world stuff is really working out great for you, Jackie Boy!" Mitch didn't bother hiding his look of disdain as Ray turned back to them. "Mitch, you drive."
Mitch had no idea how to operate an eighteen wheeler, though he assumed it was similar to towing a trailer with a truck. Jamie climbed in first, situating herself in the middle as Ray came in behind her. He was panting and sweaty from the effort, his lips white from suppressing his pain. Mitch wondered if any of his friends would object to dumping him on the side of the road when he inevitably passed out.
"Let's roll."
It took Mitch a few tries, but he'd always been a quick learner. By the time they made it to the highway, he had the hang of it. Jamie had scooted close enough that she was pressed against him from hip to knee. He knew she was trying to keep from jostling Ray's injured shoulder, but he took it as a sign that she'd forgiven him for his earlier outburst.
"Appreciate you saving my life, sport," Ray said as they passed a sign for the airfield. 26 miles seemed like a million.
"You say that now," Mitch shot back snidely. "But I might have left a nickel in your chest. Shouldn't hurt, but getting through airport security might be an adventure." It was petty (and untrue) but he didn't care. Ray had already been afforded more chances and grace than Mitch thought he deserved, and the man knew that he didn't like him. There was no need for false civility.
They ate up the miles to the airfield in good time, and Mitch followed the signs as they neared the entrance. The entire truck gave a sudden shudder, then jerked. A loud bang echoed from the back, and Jamie reached out to grab his arm.
"What is that?"
"I'm pulling over," Mitch announced, fighting to keep the truck steady at fifty.
Ray adjusted his grip on the gun in his lap pointedly. "Like hell you will. We're almost there." He nodded at the sign welcoming them to Baker County Airport. The Cargo Terminal was just past the main gate.
The truck lurched again, and this time Mitch wasn't experienced enough to correct it. He slammed the brakes, hoping to keep the thing from jack-knifing or rolling. Jamie's grip on his arm tightened painfully, but he didn't care. After several terrifying seconds, the truck came to a stop in the middle of the road.
Mitch bailed first, jogging to the back to make sure Jackson and Chloe weren't being stampeded by crazed zoo animals. The trailer door had come unlatched, and the animals were escaping out onto the street. Jamie and Ray came around the other side just as the peal of sirens began to grow closer.
Jackson came out of the trailer, followed closely by Chloe. "We gotta get to the airport," he said. He took off at a run for the airfield just beyond the perimeter wall. The others were right behind him.
Jamie, at least, had the sense to remember the important things. "Mitch, the electroporator!"
He was already on his way back to the cab. "Yeah, I got it!" He snatched the strap and hauled the pack from its place in the floorboards. Half a dozen police cars screeched to a halt behind the truck, and Mitch wondered how they'd found them so quickly. He caught up to the others easily, and like a flock of birds they moved as a unit toward the open cargo door of Ray's plane.
Jackson slowed his pace, letting Mitch and Jamie ahead of him. "Go, go, go!" he yelled as they neared. Abe was already sitting in the cockpit, and Mitch saw the propellers spin up as he began the takeoff procedure.
Jamie made it in first. Mitch turned and ushered Chloe in ahead of him before boarding in two long strides. The cargo netting on the walls helped steady him as he moved as far in as he could. Jackson was moving toward the cockpit as Anissa reached to help Ray the last few steps.
"Hey! Go!"
"Hold on!" Abe yelled, and suddenly the plane lurched forward. Mitch reached out to steady Jamie as she nearly toppled over, and she gripped his hand like a lifeline. They began taxiing down the runway, and Ray finally made it to the front of the plane.
"Let's get out of here!"
Mitch glanced back, surprised to see a car chasing them down. It stopped, and an older man in a black suit got out and started running after them. After a few paces he stopped to aim his pistol at the wide open bay.
"I've got this." Mitch watched in horror as Anissa braced a military style rifle against her shoulder.
"No!" Both Jackson and Chloe moved to stop her.
Chloe got there first. She tackled the other woman in an effort to keep her from killing the man. The slick surface of the metal ramp caused them both to pitch forward out of the plane and onto the concrete runway.
"Chloe!"
"Anissa!"
Both Ray and Jackson moved toward the door, but they could only watch helplessly as the two women tumbled to the tarmac. The plane was picking up speed now, and soon Abe would have to close the door to take off.
Jackson shrugged his pack off and sank down onto the small platform under the netting. There was no way they could go back for her now. Mitch felt all of his anger and frustration suddenly disappear at the quick, cold fear that shot through him. Chloe would be arrested, tried as an accessory for the murder of an FBI agent, and there was nothing any of them could do.
The bay door began to close slowly, forcing them back into the main cargo area. Abe glanced over his shoulder quickly, then turned his attention back to the takeoff.
"What happened?" he asked.
"We lost Chloe," Jamie told him. Mitch could hear the despair in her voice, and he reached out to hug her to him with one arm. She turned her head into his chest and sheltered there, clutching at the side of his shirt with her hands. Mitch carefully slid the electroporator off his shoulder and wrapped both arms around her as she cried silently.
"We're taking off now!" Abe told them. "Sit down."
Jackson reached back and threaded his fingers through the netting to stabilize himself as Ray took the co-pilot's seat. Mitch noted his drawn face, and for once he had no snide remark. As Jamie settled down next to him on the bench and took his hand, he tried to imagine if it had been Jamie instead of Chloe who had tried to stop Anissa. The pang of loss hit him hard, and he felt the first bit of sympathy for the man who had antagonized him for the last twenty four hours.
The gravity shifted as the ground fell away, and Mitch felt his stomach give a little flip. Next to him Jamie's head lolled back to the mesh net, and he focused on her to keep from raging against the injustice of Chloe's capture. Turning her hand over he began massaging just below her pulse point, pressing his thumb into the niche between her bones to stave off the motion sickness she must be feeling now.
Her eyes opened, but she didn't look at him. "I can't believe…"
"I know," he whispered. His fingers kept up their ministrations as he leaned his head toward hers. She met him halfway, resting against him as she forced herself to take even breaths.
It took a few minutes, but the plane eventually leveled out and Abe turned the controls over to Ray in order to check on Jackson. He met Mitch's eyes as he passed, and the two men shared a nod of solemn acknowledgement. Mitch watched as Abe knelt in front of his old friend. He couldn't make out what they were saying, but Jackson nodded a few times in response. Abe patted his shoulder firmly, squeezing it in a brotherly show of comfort before standing and returning to the cockpit.
"We'll have to stop in Brazil," Ray said finally.
"Not my favorite place ever," Mitch frowned.
Ray looked at him with an expression that spoke volumes. There was no love lost between them. "This plane can't make the trip from here to Namibia in one go."
Jackson finally stood. "Zambia," he corrected. "We need to get to Zambia."
Ray looked at him, then at Mitch. "What's in Zambia?"
Mitch had nothing else to say to Ray that wouldn't devolve into one of them ending up on the floor, so he stayed quiet and concentrated on Jamie's breathing. Her eyes were closed, but he could tell she was still awake and listening.
"We'll explain later," Abe answered diplomatically. "For now, let's get to Brazil."
Author's Aside: This chapter was really amazing to write. I volunteer at a zoo on my weekends, so out of all the characters Mitch is the one identify with the most. What he was asked to do this episode had to have been phenomenally difficult for him, and I tried to draw on my own feelings to flesh out a bit more of what he might have been thinking/feeling during the entire endeavor.