LITMIR.BIZ

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flatly. “Nothing,” she said adamantly.

      There was nothing for Pete to say, so he remained quiet. The moment the Suburban came to a stop, he hopped out to hold the door for Lily. He offered his hand. She took it and jumped to the ground.

      Suddenly she was surrounded by a group of men that Pete seemed to know. Security.

      “See you, big guy,” Pete said, tussling with the shepherd for a minute.

      Winston growled to show his displeasure until Lily turned to hug him. He settled down immediately, to Pete’s chagrin.

      They moved off, one of the security detail staying with Winston, Zolly in the lead. Once inside the library, he would discreetly move away, the other security scattering to keep their eyes on the boss and his companion.

      Lily looked around. Pete was right, she’d spent hundreds and hundreds of hours in the library. It looked the same, and yet it looked different. Possibly it was the shrubs and the trees on the outside. Maybe it was the ivy growing up the brick walls. She shivered when she entered the quiet building. How young the students looked, bent over tables, books open in front of them. A long time ago she had looked just like them. Once she had loved this place. So long ago. She sniffed the familiar smell of books, waxed floors, and dust on the windowsills. A lifetime ago, just for fun, she’d traced her name in the dust on one of the windowsills. For one wild moment she felt like doing it again. That, she told herself, would be regressing, and she really needed to move forward.

      To Lily’s surprise, no one so much as looked at either her or Pete. All this macho security, and none of the students cared about Pete Kelly. Shrugging, she followed Pete to the computer area. He logged them both on, then nodded to the newspapers, indicating Lily should go through them. She moved off to the side of the long table to spread out the papers. Nothing on page one. That was strange. Normally the media ran with anything involving children. She quickly scanned the rest of the papers to find the story relegated to page two in most of them. Beyond strange. Two young boys gone missing, eleven others dead, and it was on page two! She stared down at a small picture of the two missing boys. No mention of parents.

      Lily leaned over and whispered her findings to Pete. “Page two?” he hissed. Pete frowned. “I bet the FBI put a lid on it. That’s the only thing that makes sense to me.”

      “Yes, page two. No mention of parents. Two boys missing, and it’s four lines. Two very, very small pictures of the missing boys. I don’t get it. Have you had any luck?”

      “About the same as you. It was a massacre, and they’re playing it down for some reason. I suppose it could have something to do with the missing boys, but I don’t understand what it could be. No, it’s got to be the FBI in charge. They like to be in control and keep things close to the vest. They aren’t saying if the shooter was one of the kids or a stranger. Maybe a disgruntled staff member. If it’s not the FBI, then there must be some big money involved in the academy to keep it this buttoned-up. Let’s see if we can find out who owns the California Academy of Higher Learning. I’m not hopeful we’re going to find out anything since we don’t have the proper software. I’m going outside to call my office. See what you can find out about the working staff.”

      Lily nodded as she flexed her fingers. While she wasn’t as proficient on the computer as she knew Pete was, she knew her way around the Internet.

      An hour later Lily sat back in disgust. So much for her computer expertise. Other than the names of some of the staff, she was unable to come up with telephone numbers or addresses. She didn’t discount the fact that maybe the staff lived at the academy since it seemed to be a boarding school of sorts, and from what she’d been able to gather, the students lived there, too. She was about to get up to search for Pete when she saw him striding toward her. She threw her hands up to indicate she’d had no luck.

      “Marty’s on it. So, if you’re up to it, let’s hit the town hall and see who owns what. As in the clinic and the academy. We’ll probably come up dry, but what the hell, it beats standing around here sucking our thumbs. My notebook is on the way. One of my guys will pick it up when the flight gets in. I want to find a TV, too. You okay with this, Lily?”

      “I’m okay with it. Let’s do it.” But she wasn’t okay with it, and she knew it. She wished Winston was with her, so she could hug him, and she didn’t know why she suddenly felt the need to have someone close to her even if it was an animal.

      Thirty minutes later, Pete and Lily entered the hall of records.

      “It smells almost like the library, but I can also smell coffee brewing somewhere,” Lily said.

      She was struck again at how young everyone looked. It was obvious that those with the gray hair, glasses, and potbellies were the ones in charge. All of the others looked like part-time Berkeley students. Everyone looked harried, and the lines for assistance were out the door. Both Lily and Pete patiently waited their turn.

      Two hours later, the couple looked at one another in disgust.

      “Corporations within corporations, holding companies within holding companies,” Pete said. “Everything is over the top and out the kazoo. We need a map just to follow all the companies involved in that academy and the clinics. In the end, it will be some group of wealthy investors offshore or someone in Switzerland behind it all. It must be a bigger cash cow than I first thought.” He shrugged.

      Lily’s heart fluttered in her chest. She could tell Pete was starting to get angry. Her voice was a bare squeak when she said, “For someone to go to all that trouble… They must be hiding something, and for some reason I don’t think it’s just money. That’s my take on it anyway.”

      “I’ll put Marty on it. He’s better than a junkyard dog. The guy never gives up until he has the answer he’s looking for. If anyone can find a bona fide name or legitimate corporation, it’s Marty. I say we cruise by the clinic. We might as well get everything that we can done while we’re here. I’m all for going in and announcing myself and rattling some chains. What’s your feeling, Lily?”

      Her feeling was she wanted to run like hell. “Let’s do it, 8446!” Good Lord, how brave that sounded.

      “Oh, my God, you remembered my donor number?”

      “Yep! And mine is 1114. Do you think we might be expunged from their records by now? It was all a long time ago.”

      “Trust me, we’re in their archives somewhere,” Pete said, his voice sounding ominous.

      Yes, the big guy standing next to her was definitely getting angrier by the moment.

      Lily leaned in closer to Pete and whispered, “What about Zolly and your other security? What are they going to think?”

      Pete shrugged. “They’re paid by PAK Industries to protect me, not to think about where I go and what I do. They all signed confidentiality agreements.” He shrugged again, then laughed uproariously when he said, “By six o’clock tonight everyone at PAK Industries will know the boss went to a sperm bank with some chick.”

      In spite of herself, Lily laughed. “When we get there, what are we going to do?”

      “Be brazen as hell and go for the gusto. I know that was my kid we saw on television. And if we can find him, DNA will prove it. Just so you know, Lily, I don’t plan to hide behind anonymity. At this stage of my life, I don’t care if the world finds out I sold my sperm to get an education. That kid is what’s important. You’re a woman, so it’s different for you. You deal with children in a sense. Am I off the mark here?” he asked anxiously, his eyes sparking dangerously.

      This was her out if she wanted out. Did she? Part of her said yes, and part of her said no. She had to stop this ridiculous waffling. She squeezed Pete’s arm and smiled. “No anonymity for me either. Right now the only important thing on our agenda is the two boys.” Suddenly, Lily felt like a hundred-pound weight had been taken off her shoulders.

      They were back in the Suburban, with Winston doing his best to get between them. He was like a puppy as he vied for attention

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