by Hinze, Vicki
“I haven’t forgotten. The marriage or death bit.” He swiped at his neck. “You’re as secretive now as you were when you were a kid.”
“I wasn’t secretive.” She returned to her sweeping with the flashlight, mostly to avoid watching him stare at her. “I tried everything in the world to get you to notice me, especially in college.”
He harrumphed. “Oh, I noticed you.”
“You did not.” She spotted a fresh gouge mark on the wall, where it met the floor of the tunnel, examined and then deemed it insignificant. “You looked right through me as if I were standing in a different dimension.”
“I noticed you,” he insisted.
“You avoided me.” Emma hated how hurt she sounded. At the time, it had hurt. Apparently, it still did. That surprised her, and yet it didn’t.
“Of course, I avoided you.” He stopped walking. “You went through guys like they were items on a buffet. Who in their right mind wants to fall for a woman like that?”
Emma couldn’t believe her ears. Could he have noticed her but been protecting himself? It was possible, she supposed. “That’s never been intentional on my part,” she said. “They sought me out.”
“Of course, they did. You were stunning and charming.”
That comment shocked her silent. She couldn’t wrap her head around it.
“And you went through them like they were nothing.”
“That’s rubbish,” she countered, genuinely offended. “They were all something.”
Mason twisted his mouth to the left, clamped his lips together. “Emma, you might be able to tell that to someone else, but I was there. The entire time we were in college, you never dated the same guy longer than two weeks. Not one time.”
Her face burned. He had noticed or he couldn’t know that. She’d love to deny it, claim he was wrong, but she couldn’t. “True, but the reason wasn’t because they were nothing. Of course, they were something. Every one of them.”
Skeptical, Mason stopped and stared at her. “Why did you dump them then?”
A question she’d asked herself at least a million times. “They just weren’t exactly right for me.” She told Mason what she’d told herself. “But in the beginning, I thought every one of them had the potential to be right.”
“Seriously?” Mason’s skepticism deepened. “You’ve dated some bad guys, Emma.”
“Not too bad.” She hadn’t. Well, some had been losers. But most had redeeming qualities…
“And some nut-jobs.”
There had been one or two. She couldn’t dispute that either. But hindsight is always clearer. So is looking at other people from a distance. You don’t get the whole picture. “They seemed okay at the time,” she insisted. “Some just didn’t wear well.” He had her on this one, too. Because she agreed, she couldn’t even really resent it. Not with a clear conscience. “Maybe I didn’t want to be judgmental.”
“Discernment isn’t a flaw.”
Now he was annoying her. “So, I gave them the benefit of doubt, but when I realized they were wrong for me, I ended it. How could that not be the right thing to do? A lot of them were really good guys, just not right for me.”
Mason slid her a deadpan look. “Like I said. Buffet.”
Her temper flared. “Shut up, Mason.” She raised a warning finger. “You’re quizzing me like I’ve committed some crime, but you’re still solo, too. What are you doing wrong?”
“Nothing.” His lips curved and his eyes mocked her. “I choose to be solo.”
“So do I.” She’d ended relationships. A lot of them. And a couple engagements. Those had been her call, and she’d made it.
“You haven’t been solo since puberty.”
Arrogant jerk. “And you know this how?”
No answer. That muscle ticked under his eye and his jaw was tight.
She resisted the urge to stalk off. To say things she knew she would later regret. Things she wouldn’t be able to justify to herself much less to Liz. He sounded awfully sure of himself. Cocky, and certain he knew exactly what . . . The truth hit her hard. “You’ve been keeping tabs on me all this time. Following more than just my career.”
Again, no answer.
“Admit it, Mason. I know I’m right. That muscle in your jaw is ticking double-time. It always did when you were guilty or in denial.”
He sighed. “I don’t keep tabs on you. Your mother and I talk now and then. That’s all. It’s no big deal.”
Her mother? They stayed in touch? That was a huge deal. And the reason Emma knew it was huge happened to be simple. Neither of them ever had mentioned it to her. Not once. “Mom always did like you best.”
He flashed her a grin. “She still does.”
Emma rolled her eyes back in her head and returned to work. The last thing she wanted Mason to know was the reason she went through men like they were items on a buffet. It’d taken her a long time to figure it out herself. In fact, she still wasn’t totally sure she was right.
Mason paused, gripped her arm and dropped his voice. “Shadow ahead. Fifteen feet. Floor.”
Emma swept the area with the flashlight. “It’s a person.”
Together, they moved toward it. She spotted no movement at all. Heard no breathy sounds. “Hang back and alert me if you see or hear anything.”
Mason was already scanning.
Near now, Emma crouched down. “It’s a man wearing an airport security uniform. If he was armed, his weapon is gone.”
Mason moved in a wide circle around her, checking high and low. Spotting nothing, he circled until he could see her face, then stopped. “Is he—”
Emma felt for a pulse. “He’s dead.”
Mason shuffled around to see the man’s face.
“Recognize him?” Emma asked.
“I’ve seen him, but I don’t know his name. He is on John Taylor’s staff.”
A tight spot formed in Emma’s chest. Mason looked a little shell-shocked. She understood that. In his line of work, he didn't see many bodies close up. Had he ever seen one outside of a controlled environment?
“Mason.” Emma kept her voice low, modulated, calm. “Mason?” When he looked at her, she said, “We need to let John Taylor know. Someone who is supposed to be somewhere isn’t. You understand?”
“Yes.” Mason collected himself. “Yes, I understand.”
“Call John Taylor and get him down here.”
Chapter Eleven
Tuesday, December 17th
2120 (9:20 PM)
John Taylor arrived in a dust-spewing cart with “Security Chief” emblazoned on the door.
“Don’t go further down the tunnel,” Emma warned him. “It hasn’t yet been cleared.”
He got out of the cart and joined them, dropping to his haunches. “He’s dead.”
“I’m sorry,” Mason said. “Yes. From the bruising, we think someone approached him from behind. Seems consistent with strangulation.”
“Who is he, and where’s he supposed to be?” Emma asked.
Mason frowned at her. “Give him a second.”
“I might not have a second.”
John Taylor cleared his throat. “Kyle Greer,” he said, looking up at Emma. “He was supposed to be guarding the lab’s rear wall.”
He hadn’t made it there or something had forced him to leave his post. “Was he alone?” Emma asked.
“Yes.” John Taylor swiped at his glasses. “We’re stretched thin, with all the extra people upstairs. I’m recruiting some of the other workers.”
Emma stepped toward John Taylor. “I am really sorry about Kyle,” she said, though her mind was on the unguarded rear lab wall.
“So am I.” He cleared his throat again. “He was my best man.”
“I know it’s hard, but I need you to handle this, John Taylor.”
He nodded. “I got it.”
“I’ll take the wall until you can get a team together to take over.” She swallowed hard. “Whoever killed Kyle is still down h
ere. I have to find him before he finds anyone else.” A chill ran through her body. “Mason stay and help him.”
Emma swung the rifle into her hands, ready to aim and fire, and headed for the wall, moving quickly and silently.
An explosion nearly rocked her off her feet.
Chapter Twelve
Tuesday, December 17th
2207 (10:07 PM)
“Emma?” Mason shouted to her. “Emma, where are you?”
Because he sounded terrified, she didn’t give in to exasperation. By now, whoever set that explosion had to know they were close. She started toward the sound of his voice and footfalls and met up with him running full out toward her. “Stop, Mason. Stop.”
He slid to a halt, the look in his eyes wild. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” He really was terrified. That softened her upset with him.
“What was that?”
“I suspect their backup team has arrived,” she said. “You better go check the lab.”
“David’s got it,” he insisted. “You can’t walk into whatever you’re walking into alone.”
There was no sense arguing with him. She knew that look just as he knew her looks. “Have you learned to shoot?”
“Not yet.”
“Then stay behind me and stick close—and no unnecessary talking.”
He nodded.
At a vee in the tunnel, dust flew, and the wind whipped it into a choking hazard. She paused and pulled her neck scarf up over her face, motioning for Mason to do the same.
Walking was difficult. The force of the wind pushed them back, tugged at their clothes, their eyelids. She shielded as best she could. Still, every step was a struggle, and that was a bad sign for what lay ahead.
When they reached what should be the rear wall of the lab, they stopped. Directly across from it, leading outside, there was an opening. The mountain had been blown away. A gaping hole at least twelve feet in diameter let snow and wind rush into the chamber and right through Emma, chilling her to the bone.
“The lab’s been breached,” Mason said, sounding horrified.
“Stop. Don’t go closer,” Emma said. “At least one charge is still active.”
“Did you hear me?” he asked her. “The lab wall—the HC lab’s been breached.”
“I heard you, Mason.”
Mason whipped out his radio and tried to contact David.
Emma waited a long moment. “Well?”
“No response.”
He looked torn, warring with himself. “I’ve got to get to the lab,” he said. “Don’t go closer until you hear from me.”
She nodded because there was no way he would leave her otherwise. “Armor up before going in. Full protective gear.”
“Right.” He started back, then stopped. “Emma, swear you’ll stay put until I radio you.”
“Would you go?” She avoided answering him. “The kids are in there. Sophia and David.”
Mason turned and ran back down the tunnel, moving much faster running with the brisk wind rather than against it.
Emma watched him until he turned at the vee and disappeared from sight, knowing that might be the last time she ever saw him. Or anyone.
Chapter Thirteen
Tuesday, December 17th
2241 (10:41 PM)
Mason entered the lab and stopped short to keep from running into Sophia and the kids. “What are you doing, Sophia?”
She, Olivia and Jacob were dressed in coats and boots. Panic etched her face. “David won’t come. I don’t want to leave him, but I have to get the children out of here.”
Mason stepped between her and the outer door, blocking her path. “No. You can’t leave.”
Her mouth rounded in an O and she stopped fighting the ties on Jacob’s hat at his chin. “But the lab—it’s contaminated in there, Mason.”
“I know.” Mason acknowledged the truth, meeting and holding her gaze, then lowered his voice. “If you’ve been exposed and you go out there, you’ll spread it to others. You need to stay put until we know exactly what we’re dealing with here.”
Confusion riddled Sophia’s face. Torn, she bit down on her lip and her eyes darted back and forth. “But—”
“I know, Sophia.” Inside, Mason was crushed at having to tell her this. Outwardly, he held it together, certain she already knew exactly what he meant, but she was in denial. She needed time. Unfortunately, they had little of it. “You and the kids need to shower and scrub, then put on protective gear. Gloves, glasses and masks. I’ll grab them for you.”
He locked the outer lab door in case the temptation to flee won the battle with logic, retrieved the gear and then passed her the three sets. “Be sure to wash your hair and then cover it with the scrub cap. Tug it down,” he motioned with his hand, “to cover the openings in your ears.”
The reality of his words sank in deep and Sophia’s face tensed even more. If they had been exposed, the damage was already done. Her eyes shone overly bright. “I understand, Dr. M.”
“Good. Now, get the children into their quarters and get busy. Put everything all of you are wearing into a bio-hazard bag and set it out in the hallway. I’ll take care of it from there.” He glanced at the children and then back at Sophia. “This is very important. None of you must come out here again until either David or I come and get you.”
She nodded.
“Where is David?” His office sat empty.
“In the inner ring.” Sophia’s voice shook, and she blinked hard and fast.
“Don’t worry. He’s suited up, so he’s protected,” Mason reminded her. “You take the children and go on now. Do all I said. The sooner any spores are off of you, the less likely they are to cause a problem.” He smiled for Olivia and Jacob. “Your dad and I will get this mess cleaned up.”
“Uncle M., are we going to die?” Olivia stepped closer to him.
“Someday, yes. We all are, Olivia,” he said in his best matter-of-fact tone. No way did he dare to lie to her. She’d know it and call him on it in a heartbeat. It would be humiliating to be called out by a nine-year-old girl. Worse, he’d break Olivia’s trust. That, he would never willingly do. “But hopefully, that won’t be for a long, long time.” He nodded for them to go. “Hurry now. Use lots of soap, even on your hair. Don’t miss a single spot.”
Jacob jutted out his jaw. “I am not putting Bandit in a bio bag, Dr. M.”
Dr. M, not Uncle M. Jacob meant business. Mason debated. “Then I’m trusting you to give him the best bath he’s ever gotten. It’s not a game, Jacob. This is serious. Do you understand?” Mason hoped he didn’t come to regret that decision.
Jacob nodded. “So we don’t get any germs from him.”
“That’s right.” Mason squatted down to talk eye-to-eye with Jacob. “Can I trust you to do that?”
He nodded. “He’ll shower with me. I’ll scrub him ‘til he’s spotless. I promise.”
“Thank you, Jacob.” Mason straightened.
Sophia pulled the kids to her and they made their way down the hallway to their quarters. When the door shut behind them, Mason swallowed the knot lodged in his throat and walked back toward the outer door where he could see inside the HC lab.
David turned and spotted Mason, standing outside the inner ring. Armored up in protective gear, he stepped over to the glass separating them. His face-shield reflected the overhead lights. David pressed the intercom button. “Stay there, Dr. M.” Hand signaling Mason to stay put, David headed for the decontamination chamber.
A few minutes later, he joined Mason in the outer ring. “We’ve got a problem.””
“I can see that.” Shards of rock littered the inner-ring floor. “Seals are definitely breached.”
“It’s worse than that.” Worry and no small measure of fear dragged lines into David’s face, alongside his mouth. “The glass is cracked on the Plague case. BP7PP, specifically.”
The hair on Mason’s neck stood on end. “How bad is it?”
; The look in David’s eyes went flat. “The container is compromised, and the vial seal is broken.” His voice shook. “It’s loose in there, Dr. M.” He swallowed hard, cast a worried look around. “Where’s my family? Did they get out?”
“They can’t leave, David.” He knew this of course, but his emotions were clouding his judgment. He wanted his family safe. They both did. “They’re in isolation in their quarters. Cleaning up, just in case there’s been seepage into the outer ring.”
David paused to absorb that, then asked, “Did you give Sophia specific instructions?”
“I did, and I gave them all protective gear and instructed them on that, too. I couldn’t demand Jacob dispose of Bandit. I realize it’s a risk, but I thought it worth taking. Jacob stood up for himself, without any input from Olivia. That’s a first.” They had all been working toward that for a long time, and the significance of it wasn’t lost on David, just as it hadn’t been lost on Mason. “He promised to give Bandit a thorough scrubbing.” Mason gave David the details to help give him time to adjust to this news.
He tried, but it was hard. The struggle played out across his face and his mouth settled into a flat, straight line. “It’s one thing for me to be at risk, but Sophia and the kids…” He looked at Mason with haunted eyes. “I thought I was doing the right thing, bringing them here. Keeping them safe from the storm.”
“I know.” Mason could only imagine the turmoil going on inside David, but there was no way to soften the blow. David had seen what these pathogens could do. They both had. Mason’s stomach flipped. “I thought so, too, or I wouldn’t have authorized it.” They both shouldered the blame. He only hoped they wouldn’t also shoulder the guilt.
David rubbed at his forehead. His hand shook and his voice staggered. “That’s not the worst of it.”
