Pitt kept his eyes on the erratic freeway drivers. “It has to be the water samples. Those two had a similar look and vibe, and I couldn’t help thinking he was the guy who tried to kill Al and me in Suchitoto. I think the FedEx boxes held the remaining samples. They probably took Dr. Nakamura’s laptop to capture his test results.”
“What could be so important about those samples?”
Pitt shook his head. “I don’t know. Whoever they are, they may have been tracking you.”
Elise shuddered. “Horrible people. I hope they are satisfied now, if that’s what they were after.”
“Dr. Nakamura had all of the reservoir samples?”
“Yes.”
“And there’s no other means of duplicating them?”
“With the destruction of the dam, any tainted water has likely been washed away.” She stared out the side window as they skirted the Potomac River. “I can request some additional samples be taken from the reservoir. That might take a few weeks. If the source is still active, there’s a chance the results could be duplicated.”
She thought a moment. “Wait! Our clothes. Have you had the ones you wore in the lake laundered?”
Pitt nodded.
“Mine were discarded at the hospital. But not my shoes.” She pointed to an exit sign for Arlington, Virginia. “Could you take me by my apartment? When I went into the water I was wearing some trail runners, which should be absorbent. It’s possible a residue or bacteria might be identifiable on the material. I’d like to have them tested.”
Pitt smiled. “Better your gym shoes than mine . . . Tell me where to go.”
He followed her guidance to a red brick garden apartment near Arlington Cemetery and accompanied her to the unit. “You should pack a few overnight things,” he said as he waited in the living room. She returned a few minutes later with a small suitcase. And a sullen face.
“Did you find the shoes?” Pitt asked, taking her suitcase and carrying it to the Jeep.
“They’re bagged up inside.” She looked at him nervously. “I think someone was in my apartment. I can’t tell for sure. A few things seem out of place. Could it be my imagination?”
“Maybe, but more likely it’s good intuition. That’s why we’re going to move you somewhere safe.”
At NUMA headquarters, they found Gunn in Pitt’s office, talking with an FBI agent.
“You two seem to be a recipe for trouble,” Gunn said. He introduced them to the agent, a broad-shouldered man named Ross.
“I’ll be your liaison during the investigation,” Ross said. “I’ve made arrangements for the young lady to stay at a secure town house in Georgetown for as long as necessary.”
“Thank you,” Elise said. “I think someone may have already broken into my apartment. Do you know if the Maryland campus police caught the two intruders in Dr. Nakamura’s office?”
“No word yet,” Ross said. “After the explosion, there was a good deal of confusion around the Public Health building. Campus security video should prove helpful.”
He turned to Pitt. “The explosion was centered in Dr. Nakamura’s office. Is that where you found him?”
“Yes,” Pitt said. “I suspect they tried to make it look like an accident to hide his murder. We happened to traipse in at the wrong time.”
Ross set up a small audio recording device. “Can I capture your immediate recollections of what happened? We’ll need to take full statements as well, at your convenience.”
Pitt and Elise provided a capsule of the events at the university. But Elise soon grew quiet and slumped in her seat. Ross turned off the recorder. “How about I take you to your safe house now?”
“I’d like that. One thing first.” She opened her suitcase and handed Pitt her bag of shoes. “Can you send them to Dr. Susan Montgomery, head of the Environmental Health Laboratory at the CDC in Atlanta?”
“Certainly. Is she the same scientist Nakamura was sending the water samples to?”
Elise nodded.
“Then I think I have her address.” He gave Elise a hug. “Try and get some rest.”
“Thank you, Dirk.” Her eyes glistened with exhaustion.
Gunn and Pitt escorted them to the elevator, then returned to Pitt’s office.
“Poor girl looks like she’s been through the wringer,” Gunn said.
“She wasn’t expecting the Cerrón Grande incident to follow her to Washington. Neither was I.”
“It’s clear someone didn’t want those water samples identified and was willing to kill to prevent it.”
“In two countries. I think we’ve got a potential motive, at least, for the murder of the aid team in El Salvador.”