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a breath, forcing himself to calm down as his voice developed a shrill tone.
    “Well now, Sheriff, no need to get all riled up. I am just trying to be discreet; for Mr. Doyle’s sake, of course.” Hudson slapped his forehead, his frustration doing a slow simmer.
    “Roger, can you please just give me the results? Paleeease?”
    “Okay Sheriff Hudson, if you insist. Don’t forget to tell Mr. Doyle about my concern for discretion.” Hudson rolled his eyes, closing them painfully, wondering when this would end.
    “The substance you sent me is organic. I found a system of three types of cells in what I can only conclude is a type of plasma. But there seems to be an absence of white cells. You cannot survive without white blood cells. They fight infection in anything alive. And I am unable to identify the three types of cells present. They do not exist in any species on this planet. Yet, they are definitely organic. Yes, yes, an organic life form of some type; all very confounding, but not the most amazing discovery. By the way, did you see the creature that provided the sample?” Ignoring the question, Hudson’s attention perked up measurably.
    “Roger. What exactly did you find?” Lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, Roger continued.
    “ It had bugs. ” Roger said it like he just uncovered the Holy Grail, his breath resounding loudly through the wires.
    “What do you mean bugs? That’s no big deal.”
    “On the contrary, Sheriff; the bugs were no ordinary bug. They looked like tiny red polliwogs. You know … before they turn into frogs? They are, or I should correctly say were , complete organisms, that actually propelled themselves in the plasma.”
    “Roger, could you make this more to the point? What do you mean were ?”
    “As I said, they propelled themselves. Yes, yes! Right out of my office. They are gone, all of them. They rose up from the sample under the microscope, attracting each other like a magnet, and then went flying out my open window. They appeared to swell as they converged, I don’t understand why. They were almost microscopic, how could they enlarge like that? When I reexamined the sample, the only thing left was a smeary residue.” Hudson did not know what to think. He felt calm yet his heart thumped wildly. What the heck did all this mean?
    “Sheriff; are you there?”
    “Yes, Roger. Thanks for your help.” Hudson prepared to hang up, ignoring the last of Roger’s words.
    “The creature, Sheriff; what about the creature? Did you—?” Silence descended as Hudson replaced the telephone, Roger completely forgotten. He sat at his worn desk trying to make sense of the recent events. Two missing bodies … Eli’s mysterious death by fire, sinister holes at both scenes and now the baffling, yet ominous, laboratory results. The time had come to inform Robert. He wondered if he could get away with a phone call instead of a command performance. Drumming his fingers restlessly on his desk, he made an easy decision.
    With the telephone in his hand, he dialed Robert’s number, hoping the party line was clear. He wanted to get this over with. Thankfully, Robert picked up. Updating him on the investigation didn’t take long. The news about the laboratory results produced an unexpected reaction.
    “Did I tell you to mess around with that hole? And what makes you think they are related? Big deal. I do not want to hear any more about Netty, her infernal pet and their tails or these damnable holes . Do you understand me? ”
    “Robert, you need to calm down and listen to me.”
    “I don’t think I heard you correctly, Hudson. Are you trying to tell me how to behave?” The sheriff felt the ice in Robert’s voice seep its pernicious fingers right to his stomach. He needed to tread carefully.
    “Robert, I understand you just fine. Let me check one more thing. Remember Netty’s young drifter?”
    “I have no idea what you are talking about.” Losing his temper, Hudson let Robert have it.
    “I know exactly what you did to that innocent kid, Robert. You did not have to do it like that, just to get him out of the way. You had other options. You always take the easy way out. Do you think I don’t know everything that happens in the jail? Or exactly who is on your payroll?”
    “Well now Hudson, looks like you have a bee in your bonnet so why don’t you just spill what is on your mind.” Robert’s demeanor changed so quickly Hudson’s radar went on high alert.
    “We