What Hides Inside: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 2

is my very good friend Dr. Laura Trent. Laura, this is Sam Raintree and Dr. Bo Broussard.”
Laura came forward with one slender hand outstretched. “It’s very nice to meet you both. Dr. Broussard, how’s that bite doing?”
“Call me Bo,” he said, smiling as he shook her hand. “It’s doing okay now, thanks.”
“Does it seem to be healing normally?” Laura gave him an apologetic look. “Sorry if this sounds nosy. Professional interest, you know.”
“I understand completely.” Hobbling over to the table, Bo eased himself onto a tall stool. “It’s healing well, I think. There’s no sign of infection at this point, and I’m feeling back to normal other than being just a bit tired.”
“That’s good.” Opening a file that lay on the table, Laura shuffled through the papers and pulled out a sheaf of notes and several photos. “I’d like to explain to you all what I found.”
“We’re all ears.” Andre leaned his elbows on the table, gaze fixed on the doctor. “What was that thing, and how did it make Bo so sick so fast?”
Sam slipped an arm around Bo’s shoulders. The reminder of what had happened brought out Sam’s protective instincts toward Bo.
Laura tapped a short fingernail on the tabletop. “I don’t know what it is.”
“What do you mean?” David asked. “You told Dean you had information for us.”
Dean smacked David’s arm. “Be nice.”
Laughing, Laura brushed a dark blonde curl out of her eyes. “It’s fine, Dean. David, I have what I think is some very interesting information for you. I don’t know what this thing is because it’s a completely new species. Or rather, one that’s previously unknown to science.”
“Oh.” Shooting an apologetic look at Dean, David leaned a hip against the table. “Go ahead, Doctor.”
“First of all,” Laura continued, “I was unable to perform an autopsy. The creature doesn’t seem to have internal organs. Either that, or I was unable to access them using traditional techniques. It’s difficult to explain.”
“What about lab results?” Cecile wondered. “Were you able to learn anything from those?”
Laura nodded. “Yes. The animal’s teeth secrete a substance containing both a microbe and an inorganic chemical. I was unable to positively identify either. Whatever the chemical is, it seemed to work as an adjunct to the microbe. The microbe alone died out quickly in culture, but when we added the chemical, it practically exploded out of the dish. It completely used up the growth medium within a few minutes.”
Bo blinked. “Dr. Shore told me my blood cultures grew out some kind of unknown organism. They sent it to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.”
Laura gave him a solemn look. “You’re very lucky to be alive, Bo.”
“So why am I alive?” Resting his head against Sam’s side, Bo wound the end of his braid through his fingers. “By the sound of it, I should be dead. I almost was. So why aren’t I?”
Flipping through the stack of papers, Laura dug one out and scanned it. “I’m not entirely sure, to tell you the truth. I repeated the culture yesterday. The microbe alone behaved in exactly the same way as before, dying within a few hours of being planted in the growth medium. But this time, when we put it in culture along with the chemical, nothing happened. No growth whatsoever. When I checked it again first thing this morning, all traces of the microbe were gone.”
“What happened to it?” David asked.
“I don’t know for sure,” Laura admitted. “But it seems as though the microbe has a limited lifespan. Almost as if it contains a genetic off switch. Either that, or the chemical acts as both an on and an off switch, if that makes sense.”
“So basically, the only reason the infection didn’t kill Bo was that it switched itself off for some reason before he died.” Sam clutched Bo closer. “Christ.”
Andre frowned. “I’m glad it switched off, but why did it? Any ideas?”
“None at all. Hopefully I’ll be able to learn more with further tests.” Picking up the stack of photos, Laura handed them to Bo. “Those are the pictures I took while attempting an autopsy. Anything jump out at you?”
Bo examined the photos one by one. In the silence, Sam could hear the sounds of students exiting another classroom, talking and laughing as they walked past Dr. Trent’s room. It seemed odd that others went about their normal lives, utterly unaware of the nightmares lurking on the far side