The Devil's Breath by Emily Kimelman

Author:Emily Kimelman
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: mystery, blue, malina, miami, emily kimelman, Dog, everglades, sydney rye, merl, adventure, k9, mulberry, dan
Published: 2014-04-09T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Unhelpful Botanists

Blue and I went down to the lobby and out onto the street. It was hot and a breeze blew down the block, seeming to pick up speed as it rushed between the tall buildings. It was late afternoon, the sun tilted toward the west side of the world. Traffic was beginning to clog the narrow streets as rush hour began. A Lamborghini, yellow and absurd, revved its engine and then shot off down the block, braking hard at the next red light.

I'd neglected to leash Blue and he wandered down the block, sniffing at trees and tires. I followed him, letting my mind wander over the image of the man in the hat. My phone rang and I saw Dan was on the line. "Hey," I said, watching Blue as a mother pushed a stroller by him. She eyed him but didn't look nervous.

"Hey," Dan said. He sounded excited. "I found out that a world-renowned expert on datura teaches at Sloan University right here in Miami."

"Really?" Blue looked up at the tone of my voice and pricked his ears.

"Yes, I was going to head over there tomorrow and see if I could talk to him. Want to come?"

"Yes," I answered. "Where should I meet you?"

#

Traffic was light when I left for the university the next afternoon. During the twenty minute drive I thought over the tapes I'd rewatched, seeing a ton of people who could have been the guy, the one who didn't flinch, but I had no way of knowing. He was just too nondescript.

I parked in the school’s visitors lot. It was a small institution from what I could tell, housed in a complex of low-rise buildings with palm trees and paved paths. Blue and I started toward a board with a map on it when I heard Dan call my name. "Hey," he said as he crossed the parking lot towards us. He looked down at my car. "Nice ride," he said. "Where'd you get that?"

"It's a loaner," I answered.

Dan let it go and we started toward the botanical building. Dan held the door for me and we walked into a carpeted hallway, the air cold, the lights fluorescent. Everything about it cried institution and it made my skin itch. The first door to our right was open, a plaque next to the entrance announced it as the office. The young woman sitting behind the desk smiled. Her medium-length brown hair was pulled back into a pony tail. She wore a sweater over a matching top. I believe that's called a sweater set, I told myself as we approached her. "Hi," she said, "how can I help?"

Dan smiled at her and asked about seeing the professor. On the counter were several pamphlets about the courses offered there. I picked one up and scanned down the list of classes. It might as well have been in Latin. Then I realized it was in Spanish and felt like kind of an idiot. I put it back

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