The Extinction Series | Book 6 | Primordial Earth 6

soon,” Kat said.
“You won’t stay for tea?” he asked.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t. I need to find Callum,” she said, taking her leave.
The meeting Lee spoke about was unknown to her which meant it was a council meeting, not a general one. Unfortunately, she did not know where the council convened for their meetings. It involved various citizens of Prime city and could be held anywhere. Finally, she admitted defeat and returned to the hotel. She’d scarcely entered its confines when Sandi rushed toward her. “There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you!”
“What’s wrong?” Kat asked, Callum forgotten for the moment.
“Look who came back,” Sandi said, pointing to a familiar figure.
“Paul? What are you doing here? What happened? Is something wrong?” she asked, her mind running a mile a minute. “What about the expedition to Vancouver?”
“Slow down,” Sandi said. “He just got here, and he hasn’t had a chance to talk.”
“Are the others here as well?” Kat said.
“It’s just me and a friend,” Paul said.
“A friend? What friend?” Kat asked.
“Let’s go somewhere private, shall we? Like your office,” Sandi said. She took Kat’s elbow and coaxed her down the hall. “Paul can fill us in there. You shouldn’t expose yourself to sick patients, anyway.”
Kat pulled her elbow free from Sandi’s grip. “Wait a minute. What did you hear?”
Sandi grinned. “I might have heard a rumor confirming what you told me in the bathroom the other day.”
“A rumor,” Kat exclaimed. “I should’ve known. Nothing stays a secret in this place for long.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Sandi said, unrepentant. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks, but keep it to yourself for now,” Kat said. “I want to tell Callum first, and I don’t want him to hear it from anyone else.”
Sandi placed her finger on her lips. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
Kat snorted. “It’s not you I’m worried about.”
“I’ll pass the word down the line. No one will spill the beans to Callum, I promise,” Sandi said.
“Fine. Let’s go to my office,” Kat said, leading the way. She opened the door and stopped, surprised to see a stranger lounging in a chair. “Who are you?”
The woman stood up and stuck out her hand. “Casey Hargitt, at your service.”
“This is the friend I was talking about,” Paul explained. “She flew me here from Kalama.”
Kat sat down behind her desk and waited until the others were seated as well before she prompted, “Let’s hear it then. I confess I’m dying of curiosity.”
Paul cleared his throat. “The mission to Vancouver started out as planned. We traveled by boat to Kalama, anchoring offshore for the night. That’s when it all went wrong.”
“What happened?” Kat said, almost too scared to ask.
“A Spinosaurus attacked us. It wrecked the boat. We tried to fight it off, but nothing stopped it, not even Jessica’s rifle slugs.”
Kat placed one hand across her mouth, horrified. “My God.”
Sandi mirrored her shock, her expression pale and drawn. “That’s awful.”
Paul nodded. “In the end, it was Brittany who saved us.”
“Brittany?” Sandi repeated.
“She grabbed Tony’s flare gun and fired a shot into the sky. It distracted the creature long enough for her to fire a second shot into its mouth.”
“Its mouth?” Kat said, visualizing the scene. “That was brave of her.”
“Uh-huh. The flare must’ve done a lot of damage because the beast retreated and died not long after that.”
“Is she okay?” Sandi asked.
Paul swallowed. “She didn’t make it.”
“What?” Sandi cried.
“Before the Spinosaurus fled, it swept her overboard with its tail. She seemed fine, at first. But it turned out she had internal injuries. There was nothing anyone could do.”
“No, it can’t be,” Sandi said, bursting into tears. “Not Brittany. She’s my friend. We’ve known each other since we were kids!”
Paul gathered Sandi into his arms and attempted to soothe her. “I’m sorry, Sandi. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not right,” Sandi said, shaking her head. “I should’ve been there. Why wasn’t I there?”
Kat blinked back tears of her own, shocked to the core. “Take her home, Paul. She needs you now.”
“What about the rest of the story?” Paul asked.
“It can wait,” Kat said.
“I can fill her in,” Casey said, raising a hand. “It’s the least I can do.”
“Thanks,” Paul said, leading the hysterical Sandi away.
Once they were gone, Casey turned to Kat. “It’s a tragedy. From what I hear, Brittany was both young and bright.”
“That she was,” Kat said, letting out a shuddering breath. “The news will devastate her mother.”
“My condolences.”
“Please, excuse me for a moment,” Kat said, fleeing the room. She ran toward the bathroom where she threw up, this time from sheer anguish. Afterward, she splashed her face with cold water. Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she composed herself. This is not the time to fall apart. I have to stay strong.
She walked back into the hallway and flagged down an orderly. “Jesse, right?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I need you to do me a favor.”
“Anything, ma’am.”
“Find Callum MacNamara and tell him to meet me at my office,” Kat said. “Tell him to bring Ric and Olivia as well. It’s an emergency.”
“Right away, ma’am.”
“Thank you.” Kat returned to the office, greeting Casey with a wan smile. “I’m sorry about that. Please, continue.”
Casey filled her in on the rest of the events: The group’s decision to continue to Vancouver overland, and her own reason for coming to Prime. She finished by saying, “It isn’t much. We don’t stock a lot of medical supplies on a mission, but I brought along what I could. It should be enough to save a few lives, at least.” She indicated several large duffle bags on the floor. “Everything’s in there.”
Kat inspected the bags and clasped Casey’s hand. “You don’t know what this means to us. Things have been rough around here.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more,” Casey said, with a regretful shake of her head.
“Would you mind sticking around for longer?” Kat asked. “I’ve asked a few people to join us. We have some things to discuss, and I’d like you to be present.”
“Of course. I don’t mind at all,” Casey said.
While they waited