Pathogen Read online

  On her way by, Andy leaned down and kissed Kate lightly on her lips.

  “Sorry I’m late,” she whispered, and then she kept walking back towards the bedroom.

  Kate tried to focus on the schedules in front of her, but the dates, times, and names blurred together as she listened to Andy moving around her apartment. She felt the soft tread of Andy’s feet on the floorboards, heard water splashing in the sink in the bathroom through the half-open door. Then, as Kate randomly began assigning names to boxes on the chart in front of her, she felt Andy climb over the back of the couch, sliding down behind her, long legs coming to rest on either side of her. Andy still had on her uniform pants, though her feet were bare and Kate could see the delicate bones, her high arches, the runner’s calluses. Kate very much wanted to run her fingers over Andy’s bare feet, up her calves, over her knees and thighs.

  “I’m almost done,” Kate said, gripping the pen tightly in her hand.

  “I can be patient,” Andy said and sat very still. That didn’t stop Kate from feeling the heat coming from her body.

  Kate had only filled in three more boxes when she felt Andy’s hands on her back, fingers tracing the shape of her curved spine as she hunched over the report. Kate smiled to herself and closed her eyes as Andy reached under her shirt, fingers slightly chilled against her skin.

  “Liar,” Kate said, throwing down her pen.

  Andy slid one hand around Kate’s waist, pulling her back until they were pressed together. Kate tilted her head against Andy’s shoulder, feeling Andy’s lips on her neck as she ran her hands over Andy’s bare arms.

  “Did you overestimate your patience?” Kate asked, her eyes still closed.

  “More like I underestimated how sexy you are in scrubs.”

  With a quick movement, Andy pulled Kate’s shirt over her head, ran her hand down her back, and unclipped her bra, pushing it off her shoulders. Kate could feel the hardness of Andy’s nipples through the thin cotton of her sports bra as Andy leaned back into the thick couch cushions, pulling Kate with her. Kate gripped Andy’s legs, feeling the muscles underneath her fingers as Andy ran her hands over Kate’s body. Kate pushed back into her hard and heard Andy respond with a groan in Kate’s ear and a thrust of her hips, so she did it again and felt Andy’s teeth on her shoulder. Kate tried to sit up. She wanted to face Andy, to be able to touch her. But Andy anticipated her movement and gripped her hard around the waist. Kate tried to fight back, but Andy wrapped her legs around Kate’s, pinning her. Kate dug her fingers high into Andy’s thighs and Andy pulled against her calves, spreading her legs farther. Kate, groaning, gave in, and she could feel Andy smile into her neck as she submitted to Andy.

  Andy resumed her exploration of Kate’s body, with one hand this time, the other still binding them tightly together. Kate knew her body had not been loved so completely or unself-consciously before Andy. It had been like that from the beginning, that first time in the hotel and then the three days in the cabin where Kate had learned the language of loving Andy. No thoughts then, as Andy moved her hand past the waistband of her scrubs. And as Andy’s fingers finally found what they were seeking, her moan of pleasure was as loud as Kate’s. No thoughts, just the sound of her own ragged breathing, the exertion of straining against Andy’s hold on her, the feel of her fingers between her legs, circling and stroking again and again until Kate couldn’t contain it anymore and her body arched into orgasm, the sensation lasting an exquisitely long time, ending with Andy’s satisfied sigh in her ear.

  Andy was quiet behind her, though Kate could feel the tension in her body. Andy released her and Kate stood up shakily, turning to see Andy properly for the first time. God, she was beautiful. With her hair slightly chaotic now around her bare shoulders, just a white sports bra showing off her athletic body, her pants low on her hips showing the waistband of her boy-cut baby blue briefs. Kate could also see the jagged, thick scar just above Andy’s left hip, the result of stitches from a gunshot wound being violently ripped open twice. Before Kate could think about it, Andy reached out and pulled Kate to her, the urgency of her lips betraying her need. Kate ran her hands down Andy’s chest, reaching under her bra, seeking out her sensitive nipples. Finding them hard, she touched them lightly with her fingertips, then harder, circling and pinching then backing off and coming back again until Andy was breathing hard, gripping Kate’s hips, thrusting against her. Kate knew it wasn’t enough. She could feel Andy’s body aching for release, so she raised herself and reached between them to undo the button and zipper of Andy’s pants. Andy tilted her hips. Kate knew what she wanted, so she slipped two fingers inside, feeling all of Andy’s muscles tense as she leaned her head back against the couch, eyes closed.

  But Kate didn’t want to make it that easy. She pulled back and raised herself just above Andy, kissing her throat, up to her ear, smothering Andy’s groan. She could feel Andy’s hands on her hips, pulling her down, but Kate resisted for just a moment longer, then slipped her fingers inside again, lowering herself onto Andy. She did it again and again until Andy, every muscle in her body vibrating, came against her, both their bodies rocking with the power of it until finally they fell against each other, spent.

  Kate lay wrapped around Andy, lips against her neck, the air trapped and hot between them. Eventually she felt Andy lightly stroking her back until she shivered at the touch. She sat up and met Andy’s lazy, smiling gaze.

  “How about a shower, and then I’ll make something to eat?” Andy said, arms now wrapped around Kate’s waist.

  Kate ran her fingers through the loose ends of Andy’s blond hair. “Sounds like the perfect end to a shitty day.”

  Andy searched Kate’s face. “Want to talk about it?”

  Kate loved this about Andy. She understood that sometimes you wanted someone to share in the frustrations or heartache of your day, but some days there were just no words.

  Kate decided to summarize. “Lost a sixteen-year-old, got into a playground fight with a trauma surgeon, pissed off Angstrom, and almost completely ignored my med students. And I got peed on.”

  “A shitty day,” Andy confirmed, bringing one hand up to massage the back of Kate’s neck.

  “Want to tell me about yours?”

  Andy frowned, the furrow between her eyebrows becoming more pronounced, the corners of her mouth pulling tight. Her grey eyes told Kate she was wrestling with something.

  “Sure, but while I make supper,” Andy said finally. “I think if we don’t get off the couch now we might not move again all night.”

  Kate kissed Andy lightly on the corner of her mouth. “That’s not the worst idea I heard today,” she murmured but stood up, pulling Andy with her.

  Half an hour later, Kate was sitting on the kitchen counter in her pyjamas, her red hair loose and damp around her shoulders. Night had fallen, and the air that came in through the partially open window was early October warm, bringing with it the sounds of the street three floors below. Andy pulled food from the fridge and cupboards, arranging items neatly on the counter. Kate watched as Andy, her grey T-shirt just hiding the blue briefs that hugged her thighs, washed vegetables in the sink. Kate loved to see Andy in her kitchen, moving around like she belonged here, like they belonged here together.

  “So, what was the assignment that Finns gave you?” Kate asked, legs swinging against the worn wooden cupboards.

  Andy kept her eyes down, carefully slicing red peppers into long, thin strips.

  “I’m not really sure what to tell you about it, actually.”

  “You mean what you’re allowed to tell me?” Andy shared a lot of her work with Kate, although she was also used to the unapologetic evasion.

  “No, that’s not it. I just don’t have a handle on why I was sent up there,” she said, handing Kate a few slices of pepper before tipping the rest of them into the sizzling pan on the stove.

  Kate chewed on the pepper, waiting. Andy chopped onions and zucchini with the same controlled deliberateness, th
e frown of concentration on her face having nothing to do with the task in front of her.

  “Why don’t you start at the beginning?” Kate suggested.

  Andy looked up from her completed knife work, then covered the short distance to kiss Kate lightly before opening the fridge and pulling out the ingredients for a sauce.

  “Finns gave me a last-minute, out-of-district assignment, telling me Superintendent Heath has requested I personally go up to Hidden Valley and check out a situation there.” She paused and looked over at Kate. “Do you know anything about Hidden Valley?”

  “Just that it’s north of Whistler, and my chances of affording a house there are about as good as Angstrom proposing marriage to me during my shift tomorrow.”

  Andy laughed and whacked her on the leg with the back of a wooden spoon. “Yes, it’s crazy rich, even by Vancouver standards. They’ve got a municipal helicopter landing pad so they can commute to the city, even though it’s only a two-hour drive. They’re on the Whistler side of the 99, a fact they’re very proud of, and they’re utterly exclusive, something they’re far too rich to say out loud. They just show you in everything they do.” Andy seemed more amused than judgemental. Kate figured this was one of the things that made Andy a great cop, the way she could get a handle on people but not judge them.

  “Finns gave me nothing more than the name of the constable up there, a guy named Ferris. Nice guy, pretty laid back given that I’ve just invaded his territory. So I assume Ferris is going to give me the rundown of the case, persons of interest, evidence gathered. But there’s nothing. No active case file, no police report, no complaint filed. Just four seemingly unconnected people who show similar presentations of a moderate flu-like illness, with symptoms lasting up to a month.”

  Andy paused as she added the sauce to the vegetables, the hot, sizzling smell of garlic and ginger spreading throughout the kitchen.

  “How is that a case for the RCMP to investigate?” Kate said.

  Andy raised her hands helplessly. “This is what I’m asking myself yesterday afternoon, sitting in the small-town police department. So I started digging.”

  Kate smiled. “Of course you did. And what did you find?”

  “For one thing, it turns out Superintendent Heath has a personal connection to Hidden Valley. His eldest daughter, Natalie Cardiff, lives in Hidden Valley with her two kids and her husband, Michael Cardiff, who is a local councillor running for member of parliament in the fall election.”

  “Interesting,” Kate said.

  “Interesting, yes. Relevant? I’m still not sure.” Andy lifted the lid off the rice, scooped a few pieces onto her spoon and blew on it gently. She took a careful bite between her perfect front teeth, then shook her head and returned the lid. “So once I start asking questions, it turns out the uproar over this flu, or whatever it is, has more to do with an article written by a small mountain-town newspaper about the effects of influenza outbreaks on elections.”

  Kate felt these two pieces of information war for sense in her head. “What?”

  Andy gave Kate a quick smile, like she had anticipated that reaction. “Apparently the journalist, a young guy with the Squamish Herald, quoted a study out of Sweden linking a decrease in voter confidence and voter turnout on viral outbreaks. More importantly, he quoted this study in a newspaper article after getting into a verbal altercation with Michael Cardiff. According to Constable Ferris, the journalist warned Michael Cardiff that his election results would suffer unless he changed his platform on two-tiered health care.”

  Kate tried to tie politics to influenza and failed. She ignored the erroneous interchanging of virus and influenza. It wasn’t the time for a medical lesson. “So remind me again what you were investigating?”

  “Apparently the article was seen as, and this is a quote from the constable in Hidden Valley, ‘a threat.’ And the fact that several people in a fairly small population are now sick has imaginations running wild.”

  Andy checked the rice one more time, then switched off the stove. Kate set the table with plates, cutlery, and glasses. She opened the fridge, held up a bottle of half-flat lemon Perrier and a bottle of white wine. Andy indicated the wine, then scooped huge mounds of steaming brown rice onto their plates, topping it with the vegetables. Kate, who hadn’t had a drink in over seven years, poured herself some of the Perrier, and they sat down together at the small table shoved up against the wall in her apple green kitchen.

  Andy held up her glass. “To a night off together.”

  “To a girlfriend who likes to cook,” Kate responded. They clinked glasses, sipped their drinks, and then picked up their forks.

  “Does it still feel strange to say that?” Andy asked, after a moment’s silence.

  Kate shrugged. “A little.”

  Andy waited for her to elaborate, but Kate wanted to hear more about Andy’s case, not to discuss her journey to accepting her new lesbian identity. Not that Andy, who had been out since she was eighteen, ever pushed. Not once, not ever. But Kate knew she worried about it. She could tell Andy wished she would give it more thought. Kate was content to be with Andy, to love her and completely share her life with this incredible woman. The label seemed shockingly unimportant.

  “So, the non-case in Hidden Valley,” Kate prompted, scooping another forkful of rice and vegetables.

  Andy took a sip of her wine, her grey eyes appraising. Kate waited it out. Andy finally shook her head, a slight smile on her lips.

  “Fine. So Ferris shows me what background he has on this journalist, which so far amounts to pretty much nothing. But I figure Finns would want more, so I ask more questions about the four patients. You know, when they got sick, any connections between patients, physicians. Any connection to the journalist, to the Cardiffs, to the election. Nothing very interesting comes up.”

  “Other than the fact that they’ve been sick for so long,” Kate added. She couldn’t help thinking that the description of the influenza was just a bit off.

  Andy nodded her agreement, like she hadn’t forgotten.

  “Was Public Health involved?”

  “Yes, that’s who I had to hang around to meet with today. The guy had to drive up to Hidden Valley to meet with me, which he wasn’t very happy about. He told me he investigated the cases and nothing showed up that caused him any concern or alarm. He stopped just short of saying the town was overbearing and completely out of line. It was hard not to agree with him.”

  “So now what?”

  Andy pushed her empty plate away and leaned back in her chair. “Now I find some way to fill a report about whether or not this was a credible threat and if so, what action needs to be taken.”

  “You’ve got a bizarre job,” Kate said, also leaning back in her chair. She lifted her feet onto Andy’s lap across from her.

  “I’m not the one who got peed on today,” Andy reminded her, running her hands over Kate’s bare feet, fingers on her ankles, palms cupping her calves.

  “Do you think that’s the end of it?”

  Andy took a moment with Kate’s question.

  “No,” she finally said. “No way. I have a feeling this non-case is nowhere near over.”

  Chapter Two

  Rain fell in a constant spray of mist, challenging Andy’s wiper blades. Blankets of dense clouds had covered the city for days, as if they were settling in for the next six months. Kate looked out the side window of Andy’s old Corolla, watching the city give way to the endlessly long suburbs, then finally to the small towns which dotted the eastern leg of the Lougheed Highway.

  It was Saturday morning, the first full weekend Kate had had off in months and the first weekend she and Andy had off together, ever. They were driving up to Andy’s parents’ place, an hour northeast of Chilliwack, for her brother’s fortieth birthday. Andy’s whole family would be there for the weekend, all three brothers and the various wives and offspring. Kate was nervous.

  “So Mark is the oldest. He’s a pilot, and he’s marri
ed to Shayna, and they have a boy and a girl named Denver and Brindle,” Kate said, though they’d already been through this more than once.

  “Yes. And don’t get me started on the names. Apparently, unique names are all the rage up in Whitehorse. It’s a good thing they’re cute,” Andy said, smiling at Kate.

  Kate didn’t return the smile. She was too intent on getting this right.

  “And Zach and his wife Deanna are expecting their first and they live in Calgary.”

  “Yes,” Andy said patiently. When Andy looked over at Kate, she seemed amused, like she knew exactly what Kate was doing asking these questions. “And Brandon’s the birthday boy, and he’s probably got three girlfriends, none of whom he ever brings home.”

  Kate watched through the blur of rain as they passed a lump of runners in bright gear, running in near precision down the highway. She felt Andy’s hand on her knee and looked up into her sweet, grey eyes.

  “Why are you so nervous?” Andy asked her gently.

  “Because it’s important,” Kate told her, knowing that was really only half the answer.

  Andy seemed to know it, too. She squeezed Kate’s leg with a gentle pressure and left her to her own thoughts. Yes, Kate was nervous because this was important. But it was more than that. Kate didn’t know how to navigate any of this. Until Andy, her adult relationships had been brief and boring. She never had enough time or chemistry to get involved much past dates and phone calls, awkward mornings, and drawn-out excuses for breakups. But what she had with Andy was important. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop Kate from feeling slightly disconnected, like she lacked the confidence needed to show everyone else how much Andy meant to her.

  “Who was the last girlfriend you brought home?” Kate said.

  Andy signaled, checked her blind spot, and overtook a slow-moving truck on the highway before answering. “Rachel. That was almost three years ago now.”

  Kate knew all about Rachel, the physiotherapist who had cheated on Andy with the captain of the UBC women’s lacrosse team. They’d been together a year and half and had lived together most of that time.