Page 71 of Cole

So she forced herself to nod, to show some semblance of agreement even as her mind raced through possibilities for escape.

Penson leaned forward, his expression becoming more serious. "Now then. Let's talk about what you know, and more importantly, who you've told."

32

Charles Penson stood and moved closer, taking the chair close to Janice. Not too close, she noted. Not close enough that I could kick him! "I know you've been documenting contamination in the watershed. I know you've collected samples. What I need to know is who you've shared this information with. The university? Federal agencies? Private environmental groups?"

Janice refused to respond.

"Come now, Dr. Lynch. We both know how this works." Penson's voice remained pleasant, conversational, but something cold flickered in his eyes. "You've been interfering with a very lucrative operation. That interference has costs… financial, political, personal costs. I need to understand the scope of the problem so I can address it appropriately."

He wanted to know how much damage control he needed to do. Wanted to know who else needed to be threatened, bribed, or silenced.

Janice's mind raced back to the samples, safely en route to her parents' lab. To the photographs stored in the cloud, accessible from anywhere. To the reports she'd already filed, the evidence already documented.

Even if Penson made her disappear, the truth would come out. Her work would matter. The animals she'd been fighting for would have justice. That knowledge gave her strength. She just had to hold on until Cole arrived.

Penson leaned forward, his expression becoming more serious. "Now then. Let's talk about what you know, and more importantly, who you've told."

Janice knew this was the moment that mattered. She needed to be smart, needed to buy time without giving him anything useful. Her mind raced, calculating her approach. She could play dumb, pretend she didn't understand what he was asking. But Penson already knew she'd been researching the watershed, and lying about that would only make him angry.

She could refuse to answer entirely. But silence might convince him she was more of a threat than she actually was, might make him decide she needed to disappear immediately.

Or she could talk. Keep him engaged, keep him listening, buy herself time for Cole to realize something was wrong and come looking.

"I've been documenting wildlife patterns," Janice said, her voice hoarse from the earlier attempted screams. "Tracking animal populations and their behavioral changes in response to environmental factors."

"Environmental factors." Penson's smile was thin. “What kind of environmental factors?”

"I'm a wildlife veterinarian," Janice continued, forcing herself to meet his eyes steadily. "My research focuses on how animals adapt to changing conditions in their habitat. The focus is on how climate change affects animal behavior and population dynamics."

She was stalling, hoping it worked. Her training had taught her to be precise in her observations and document everything methodically. Now she used that same skill to talk in circles, hopefully buying time for Cole to realize she was missing.

"The animals in this watershed have shown interesting adaptive behaviors," she continued, warming to her subject despite the terror still coursing through her veins. "For instance, the moose populations have been moving to higher elevations, which initially seemed consistent with temperature changes. But their migration patterns don't align with typical climate-driven movement."

Penson's expression shifted, and he blinked. "Dr. Lynch⁠—"

"And the fish and bird populations…" Janice interrupted, not letting him derail her. "Typically, I don’t study the waterlife or fowls, other than for the animals that eat from the water, such as bears and certain birds that obtain their food source from the fish. You'd expect to see certain species thriving in cold-water environments like this. But I've observed significant die-offs in areas where the water chemistry shows elevated levels of⁠—"

"I know what you've observed." Penson cut her off sharply. "What I want to know is what you've done with those observations. Who have you reported to? What agencies have you contacted?"

Janice forced herself to stay calm, to keep her voice measured and professional. "My research is contracted through the university. All my findings are documented and submitted through proper academic channels. The grant funding requires regular progress reports, peer review of methodology, and⁠—"

"The university isn't a concern," Penson said dismissively with a wave of his hand. "I've already handled that situation. What I need to know is whether you've gone outside those channels. Federal agencies? Environmental groups? The media?"

So he'd pressured the university. Janice had suspected as much, but hearing him confirm it so casually made her blood boil. She fought to keep the anger out of her voice.

"As a researcher, my primary obligation is to the scientific process," she said carefully. "Documenting changes in animal populations and ecosystem health is foundational work. The animals I've been monitoring, such as the lynx, caribou, fox, and deer, to name a few… they're all indicator species. Their health tells us about the overall wellness of the environment."

"I don't need a lecture on ecology," Penson snapped.

"But that's what I do," Janice insisted, leaning forward slightly, still biding for time. "I watch animals. I document their behavior. I try to understand how environmental changes affect their survival." She paused, then added with careful emphasis, "Climate change is the primary driver of ecosystem disruption in Alaska. Rising temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, earlier spring thaws—all of it impacts wildlife."

She was burying the lead, hiding evidence of contamination under layers of legitimate climate research. If she could make him think she was just another scientist studying global warming, maybe he'd decide she wasn't worth the risk of silencing.

But Penson wasn't stupid. "Climate change," he repeated flatly. "That's your story? You just happened to be documenting climate impacts in the exact watershed where my mining operation is located?"

"I didn't choose the location," Janice said, which was technically true. "The grant specified this particular area because it's been under-studied and represents an important transitional zone between different ecological regions. The research protocols were established before I ever arrived."