The Oracle (Fargo Adventures 11)

After a quick lunch at the same establishment that Hank had gone into earlier, the Fargos were ready to hit the road. Sam left to get the truck, while Remi, Hank, and Amal waited near the recovered Land Rover. Remi gripped the keys tight, not taking any chances that the pickpockets might return. Curiously, the street was empty of all but a couple of the boys, who watched them from a distance.

As Sam drove up in the truck, Remi unlocked the driver’s door of the Land Rover. “Let’s hit the road.”

“You sure you don’t want me to drive?” Hank asked. “I know I had a drink, but I’m fine. I was thinking about the books, and Warren, and the embezzlement … I had one shot. That’s it.”

He seemed perfectly sober to Remi, but they were in a foreign country with a rental car. “Why don’t you ride with Sam in the truck,” she said. “It’ll give Amal and me a chance to get all our girl talk out of the way. You boys won’t be bored during dinner. Win-win, right?”

Hank nodded, walking to the truck.

Remi looked at Amal, asking, “Does he typically start drinking this early in the day?”

“Not that I’ve ever noticed,” Amal said. “Then again, the convention was the first time I’ve really spent much time with him outside of the dig site.”

She followed Remi to the car and the two rode in companionable silence. It wasn’t until they reached the open road that the conversation started to flow again. Remi glanced over at her. “I hope you don’t mind my asking, just in case it happens again while we’re out, but about your …”— anxiety attack didn’t seem like the right description—“… exactly what happens to you?”

“I guess the best way to describe it is, I disappear into myself.”

“Is there a medical reason?”

“Depends on which doctor you ask, but the general consensus is that it’s like a mild seizure. It almost feels like my brain is buzzing. Like I’m instantly asleep and I get a flash of a dream, then wake up.”

“Do you remember them?”

“The dreams? Sometimes. Especially if someone reminds me of what I did or said. Apparently, I tend to say a lot.”

“Well, in this case, you were swatting at something while talking about throwing back veils.”

Amal laughed. “I felt like I was in a cloud, a fog, and everyone was gone. I think I was trying to clear it away. Anyway, to answer your question, I don’t think it’s dangerous. Usually my family just makes sure I don’t fall.”

“Sam and I can do that. I promise.”

“Enough about me, how did you and Dr. LaBelle meet?”

“College,” Remi said, and they spent the next part of the trip discussing dorm life. Long after the town of Jalingo had disappeared, the rough paved road turned into a pockmarked ribbon of red dirt, evidence of past flooding having washed the asphalt away. Within minutes, a thin film of dust covered the windshield, making it difficult for Remi to see. She turned on the wipers, then called Sam’s cell phone. “You mind if we switch positions? I’m Braille-driving back here.”

“Something we didn’t think about with a second vehicle. You take the lead. I’ll hang back until you get far enough ahead to keep the dust to a minimum.”

“Thank you, Fargo. Very gentlemanly of you.”

He slowed, allowing her to pass. She drove alongside the truck, doing a double take when she thought she saw someone peeking out from beneath the canvas cargo cover. “Sam, there’s someone hiding in the back of the truck.”

Sam pulled to the side of the road.

Remi parked beside him. “Wait here,” she told Amal, setting the emergency brake, before meeting Sam alongside the truck. She pointed to the canvas covering near the tailgate. When he started to reach for his gun, she waved him off. “I think it’s our pickpocket.”

Sam lifted the corner of the canvas.

Nasha stared out at them, her eyes going wide, her expression one of panic. “You can’t stop,” she said. “What are you doing?”

“What’re we doing?” Sam glanced at Remi, then back at the girl. “I’m asking you the same.”

Hank jumped out of the cab, walking back toward them. “What the …?”

Sam waved for him to be quiet and turned his attention to Nasha. “Why are you hiding in the back of our truck?”

“I want to go with you. Please …”

“You can’t,” Sam said. “You need to be at home, with your parents. Where are they?”