Closer: Bay City Paranormal Investigation, Book 4

stared into Bo’s eyes, his stomach churning. “What exactly are you saying?”
Bo frowned, looking as if he were trying to think of how to explain himself. “After that juvenile bit me back in November, my blood grew out an unidentified organism, remember?”
“Yeah. The same bug showed up in the thing’s teeth.”
“Along with an unknown inorganic chemical.” Bo’s hand tightened around Sam’s. “I think that chemical’s been lying dormant in my body all this time, and something about the fort activated it.”
Something cold squirmed in Sam’s belly. “What makes you think that? And what does it mean?”
The corners of Bo’s mouth lifted, as if he knew Sam had begun to figure it out. “First of all, the way my leg acted around the closed portal at Sunset Lodge tells me something in the wound must’ve been reacting to the residual energy of the portal. The chemical from the juvenile’s teeth is the most logical possibility, especially since the organism was no longer there when they rechecked for it. The chemical is from the same world the portals link to. That means it’s based on the same chemistry and physical properties as that world. So it seems reasonable to think it might react in some way to the energy left over from a sealed portal.”
“Makes sense.”
“Yes. The rest is pure speculation, but…” Bo glanced toward the closed door of his room. “Ever since the first time I went to Fort Medina, I haven’t been myself. I didn’t see it then, but I do now. I understand why Dean believed I might’ve been addicted to drugs, because that’s exactly how I was acting. And he was right, in a way.”
“Do you mean you think that chemical is addictive?”
“Not exactly.” Bo shifted in bed, grimacing with the movement. “Ever since that first night at Fort Medina, I felt this irresistible pull toward the place. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I felt like I’d do anything to be there, even though I couldn’t have given you a reason for it if you’d asked me. Addiction is a good analogy for how I felt.”
Sam’s mouth fell open as the memory of his recent nightmares hit him like a hammer. In his mind’s eye, he saw the thread of glowing energy leading from the sentient blackness, through the empty cold of another dimension to his own world. At the same time, he remembered the strange sensation of something other looking out of Bo’s eyes, and realized with a sickening jolt what it meant.
“Oh, my God. Those things used that chemical to draw you to the fort and track you. Then once they had you pinpointed, then they opened a portal and…” Sam trailed off, not wanting to consider why the fucking monsters had targeted Bo. “Shit.”
“Yeah.” Bo’s solemn gaze held Sam’s. “I think the chemical may have bonded with the primitive parts of my brain—the same parts that activate to allow you to manipulate portals—and allowed those things to enter my mind in a limited way. Once the chemical was activated and they were able to get into my head, all they had to do was nudge me toward the fort by ‘addicting’ me to it, for lack of a better phrase.”
It made a horrible sort of sense. A hard chill raced up Sam’s spine. “But they’re gone now, right? They’re gone from your head?”
“Yes. At least I assume so. I feel back to normal now.”
Sam licked his lips. His fingers gripped Bo’s tighter. “If that chemical’s still in your body, then this could happen again.”
Bo didn’t say anything, but the fear in his eyes said it all. Dread knotted Sam’s stomach.
“Dr. Curran was here earlier,” Bo said after a silent moment.
“When? I thought you said you just woke up.”
“I did. I went back to sleep for a while after he left.”
“What did he say?” Sam asked, thinking of the doctor’s conversation with him and Dean the night before.
“He asked me if I was taking any drugs. Said my tox screen was negative, but something was interfering with the meds they gave me during surgery. I told him I took some valerian root to help me sleep.” Bo’s lips curved into a faint smile. “I have no idea if valerian would actually interact with any of the drugs they gave me, but he didn’t seem to know either, so I suppose it doesn’t matter. In any case, he said that definitely wouldn’t have caused a seizure, or the fever I had, which means I’m in for more tests before they’ll let me go.”
“What sort of tests?”
“MRI of my brain. EEG. Blood and body