Acceptable Risk

by Lynette Eason

“They know I’m alive but in danger. I sent them to London to stay with my sister-in-law until I could figure out how to bring down the company.”

  The detectives exchanged a look. “Why do you want to bring it down?” Elliott asked.

  “Because it killed my son.”

  Silence fell, then Elliott cleared his throat. “Can you give us some details?”

  “Terry, my son, was in Kabul. He was Army. A little over a year ago, insurgents bombed an orphanage and he was part of the rescue crew.” Tears pooled in his eyes and he blinked them away. “It nearly destroyed him. Fortunately for him, the psychiatrist there recognized his pain, put him on some medication, and sent him home.” He cleared his throat. “By the time he got home, he was doing so much better. It was wonderful and amazing. My wife and I decided it was safe to take a weekend vacation, and when we came home, we found Terry hanging by the neck in the garage.”

  Caden closed his eyes. Then opened them. “My brother committed suicide when he jumped off the roof of the hospital where he was a psych patient. Brianne Davis, another psych patient who served in Kabul, shot herself. Helen Craft, a doctor in Kabul, jumped from her apartment window. What in the name of all that’s sacred is going on?”

  “It’s the drug,” Max said. “And I helped create it.”

  Heather let out a low gasp and Caden shot her a warning look. She bit her lip and sat back in her chair.

  Max pressed his lips together, then said, “The company is marketing it as a PTSD drug, and they’re working the numbers so that the FDA will approve it.”

  “Then why would you send Wilmont to Brianne’s house with more of it?” Caden asked.

  “Because it’s a tricky drug—and it’s not fully developed. I saw them bring Brianne in. She was wounded in action and wound up here at the VA hospital. She was Terry’s best friend—and probably more. I think he loved her.” He sniffed and looked away for a moment. “I’d never met her in person before, but we’d FaceTimed several times a week. She was always with Terry before he was discharged and sent home.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Caden murmured.

  “When I saw Brianne, I slipped in to visit her when she was finally alone. She was in a really bad place emotionally. Two days later, she was doing well. I knew they were giving her the drug. I told her not to stop taking it, no matter what happened.”

  “Why?” Elliott asked.

  “Because it’s highly addictive. I won’t bore you with the details of the ingredients, but even one pill will hook you, and if you stop taking it, the suicidal tendencies go up exponentially.”

  Caden rubbed his chin and glanced at Elliott, who nodded for Caden to continue. “One pill?”

  “Just one.”

  Elliott shot a look at Heather. “Is that possible?”

  She nodded. “Very.”

  The detective grunted and turned back to Max. “What happens if you take more than one pill?”

  “At the same time? Paranoia, uncontrollable impulses like violence mixed with massive confusion about why you’re doing what you’re doing. And yet you’re unable to help yourself.” He shuddered. “It’s horrible. It’s absolutely beyond anything I’ve ever seen. It’s why I sent the pills to Brianne. I wanted her to continue taking them for now until I could figure out a way to get to her and help her get off of them. I would have taken them to her myself, but I was afraid someone would recognize me, so I asked Sam to do it for me.”

  “Is there a way to get off of them without suffering the suicidal ideations?”

  “No.” Max’s shoulders slumped. “No, there’s not. At least not in all of the studies that have been done. I know they were asking for volunteers for the study and they would give the vets the medication and then, in a secure environment, stop the meds and see what happened. Each and every time, the participants went downhill within hours of missing the next dose.”

  Caden nodded. “One more thing, please.”

  Max sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Sure.”

  “Sam Wilmont took two of those pills you meant for Brianne.”

  Max’s eyes widened. “What?”

  “He was a drug addict. Granted, a recovering one, but I guess the pills were too much temptation for him. He thought they were painkillers and popped two of them, thinking Brianne would never notice.”

  “Oh no.” The man raked a hand over his head. “Oh no. Is he okay?”

  Caden explained the incident with Sarah, and Max gulped. “That sounds about right.”

  “He says he doesn’t remember any of it.”

  “No, he probably doesn’t.”

  “A sniper and quick-acting officers managed to save the day, but here’s the thing. Wilmont took two of those pills, wigged out like you say he would, but then woke up from surgery fine—albeit missing a few hours of memory. However, he has no suicidal inclinations. Just a lot of remorse for his actions—that he doesn’t remember.”

  Max paced in the cramped area. “I don’t understand. That doesn’t make sense. How could that be? Withdrawing from one pill would be bad enough, but two? No, he would have done anything to end whatever was going on in his head. He definitely would have tried to find a way to kill himself.”

  “Do you have proof of any of this?” Elliott asked. “That there are people manufacturing this drug, giving it to unsuspecting vets, then falsifying the results?”

  “No.” Max pulled to a stop and met each agent’s eyes one by one. “And that’s why I’m a dead man living in a hospital, who was praying I wouldn’t get caught before I could find that proof.”

  Trailed by Asher and Travis, Gavin and Sarah strode down the now familiar hallway while Sarah texted Caden that they were there. She looked up from her phone. “He said to meet him in front of the second-floor conference room.”

  Five minutes later, Caden stepped out of the room, pulling the door shut behind him. “The detectives are just finishing up questioning Max and will escort him to a safe house while they investigate his story further. What did you have?”

  Sarah shook her head and pulled the sleeves of her sweatshirt over her hands. “This is going to take longer than a step-out-of-the-room conversation. We need a place to sit down so I can show you some stuff.” She gestured to the manila envelope.

  Caden raised a brow. “All right. Hang tight for a few minutes and let me see what I can arrange.” He disappeared back into the room, only to reemerge thirty seconds later. “Looks like they’ve got what they need and will be leaving shortly. Can you give us five minutes?”

  “Of course,” Sarah said.

  Gavin’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen and frowned. And hung up on the caller.

  “You need to get that?” Sarah asked.

  “I’ll call him back in a few minutes.”

  His phone buzzed again. Again, he disconnected the call.

  “All of your workers are hanging out around us. How in the world can a business survive that?”

  He smiled and glanced at Travis. “I’m just following orders.”

  Travis nodded. “Don’t worry. It’s all under control. I promise.”

  She studied him for a moment. “If you say so.”

  Gavin’s phone vibrated for the third time. This time, a text. He glanced at the screen.

  Call me ASAP.

  From the general.

  The door opened. “I’m just going to stay here and return the call while you talk to Caden,” Gavin said. “You don’t need me for that.”

  Sarah nodded and slipped into the room, followed by Asher.

  Travis held back. “Anything you need me to do?”

  “Just keep an eye on her. No one gets close to her, got it?”

  “Got it.”

  Gavin pressed the button that would return the general’s call. Halfway through the first ring, the man answered. “Don’t—”

  A scuffle? Something in the background.

  “General Denning?”

  “I should have known you wouldn’t cooperate.”

/>   Gavin straightened, his heart picking up speed. “Hello?”

  “Put it on FaceTime.” Gavin didn’t recognize the voice but obeyed.

  The screen popped up and Gavin blew out a low breath. “Oh boy.”

  The general sat tied to a wooden chair in front of a black tarp. The concrete floor looked new—or immaculately maintained—with no cracks. And that was it. No windows, no doors, no signs, no glass or mirrors to catch a reflection, nothing. “What do you want?”

  “You.”

  He blinked, expecting to hear Sarah’s name. Which, of course, he’d laugh in the man’s face. Or ear. “I’m sorry. What?”

  “You. And you know the drill. You come alone. Any cops, yadda yadda, Lewis dies.”

  “Where?”

  He gave him an address.

  “What do I need to bring?”

  “Just you. Stay on the line. Keep the camera on your face until you’re in your car.”

  “Gavin?”

  He stilled at the sound of his name, then turned. Asher stood in the door of the conference room.

  “Yeah?”

  “Everything all right?”

  “I might be a few minutes. I’ve got a client on the line who I need to deal with.”

  “Anything I can help you with?”

  “No, Mr. Hahn and I have it covered.”

  Asher paused. “All right, if you’re sure. Holler if I can help.”

  “Will do.”

  Asher stepped back into the room and shut the door.

  “You handled that well,” the voice said. “Now go. The general’s life depends on your cooperation.”

  “I’m going.” Gavin made his way back to the elevator, knowing the man on the phone was watching his every move. He walked outside the hospital and headed for his truck. Asher and Travis would be with Sarah, and that’s all that mattered at the moment. He’d find a way to leave some kind of trail.

  He clicked the remote unlock. “Get in the passenger side.” Gavin paused and walked around the front of the truck, scanning the area, seeing nothing. He reached for the door just as the door of the car next to him opened. A spritz of liquid in his face sent him stumbling backward. A curse from a man in a ski mask.

  Darkness closing in.

  His thoughts went to Sarah. God, protect her.

  And the lights winked out.

  CHAPTER

  TWENTY-THREE

  Sarah let Caden examine the contents of the envelope in silence. He cleared his throat several times during the process, and her own had gone tight as she watched him. “What do you think?” she asked when he finally looked up.

  He pressed thumb and forefinger to his eyes, then dropped his hand. “I think Dustin was onto something. We need to find every person named on this list and get them into protective custody immediately. I can start working on that.” He tapped a text to someone and then set his phone back on the table. “I also want to bring in Richard Kilgore and start questioning him. Find out who the other man was in the hallway that night.” Caden paused and sighed, reached out to cover Sarah’s hand with his. “I’m sorry I didn’t do more when you were asking. I’m sorry I didn’t put more effort into finding Brianne when you asked. If I had, she might still be alive.”

  The deep remorse and regret in his words singed her. “You didn’t know. Neither of us did.”

  “You knew something was wrong. I should have trusted you, trusted those uncanny instincts of yours.” He squeezed her fingers. “I won’t make that mistake again.”

  “Thank you,” she said, her voice husky with emotion.

  “We can’t help the ones who’ve already paid with their lives, but we can stop this drug trial and bring down the ones killing them.”

  “And get justice for Dustin.”

  “And the others. Yeah.” He stood. “I’ve got some phone calls to make. I want Kilgore—”

  “And that nurse, Donna—I don’t know her last name—”

  “—and Nurse Donna, in an interrogation room ASAP.”

  “They’re here in the hospital,” Sarah said.

  “We’ll get them.”

  Asher had been listening, his gaze snapping back and forth between them. He slapped a hand to the table and Sarah jumped. Caden’s brow rose and Travis flinched. “Dude, what’s that about?”

  “Something’s wrong,” Asher said.

  She exchanged a look with Caden, who’d narrowed his eyes. “What are you talking about?” he asked.

  “Gavin. He was on the phone when I asked him if everything was all right. He said it was a client, a Mr. Hahn. The name rang a bell but has been bugging me. Mr. Hahn died about six months ago.” He pulled his phone from his pocket and punched the screen, held it to his ear a few seconds, then lowered it and tried again. He finally met Sarah’s gaze, then moved to Caden’s. “His number is going straight to voice mail.”

  “He’d never turn his phone off or let the battery die,” Sarah said. “Not with everything going on.”

  “You guys locate Gavin,” Caden said. “I’m going to work on things from this end.” He paused. “If you need help with Gavin, let me know.”

  Caden made arrangements for hospital security to pick up the doctor and the nurse and bring them to the conference room for questioning. “They’re going to kick us out of here and lock the doors behind us, thanks to all the problems we bring every time we enter the place.”

  With a heart that beat too fast, Sarah crossed her arms. Was Gavin really in trouble or had his phone simply died? She supposed it was possible. Then again why would he give Asher the name of a dead client? It had to be a signal that all wasn’t right.

  When the security officer arrived, he came empty-handed. “I can’t find the doctor or the nurse,” he said. “Dr. Kilgore never showed up for work, and the nurse, Donna Hayden, left about an hour ago, saying she had some kind of family emergency.”

  Caden’s jaw hardened. “Great. All right. Can you stay here while I make a call? I’m going to need one more thing.”

  “Sure.”

  Caden called Elliott and brought him up-to-date—and told him he would be searching for Gavin. When he hung up, he turned to the officer. “I need security footage from the hallway.” The man opened the cover on his iPad and tapped the screen. Sarah watched over his shoulder. “There,” she pointed, “that’s him talking to someone on the phone.”

  “Now, he’s walking,” Asher said. “Can we follow him?”

  “Of course.” More tapping. Then Gavin paused, turned slightly and his phone came into clear view on the iPad.

  “Smart,” Caden grunted. “He’s using the cameras in the hallway, trying to clue us in.” He pointed. “Can you zoom in on the picture on his phone? He’s FaceTiming someone.”

  The guard zoomed. Sarah gasped and Caden stilled.

  “That’s the general,” Sarah said. She looked up. “That’s our father tied up to a chair.” Her heart pounded. She stared back at the screen. He looked so . . . helpless. Powerless. In any other situation, she might have taken pleasure in seeing him like that. But not this. Out of anger, she might have secretly wished for him to die, but now faced with the real possibility of it happening, she went weak with regret. Fear for him covered her. Along with the deep desire to make things right with him.

  “And, if I’m not mistaken,” Travis said, “whoever’s on the other end of that call is using the general to lure Gavin to wherever he is.”

  The security guard tapped the screen and the outside cameras came on. “It looked like he went out the east wing of the hospital. If that’s the case . . . there.” He zoomed in to see Gavin walking toward his red truck in the distance. He glanced around, then his gaze went back to his phone. At the truck, he stopped, then walked around to the passenger side.

  Sarah squinted. “What’s he doing? Wait, did someone just come up behind him?”

  “Yeah.” She continued to watch. Then the truck drove off.

  “Whoever’s driving that truck knew the angle o
f the camera,” Caden said. “He told him to go around to the passenger side. And that’s all I can see before he drove away.”

  “But—” Sarah sputtered, “what does he want with Gavin? I thought they were after me.”

  “That was the assumption,” Travis said.

  “I’m confused, but it doesn’t matter. All that matters is finding Gavin and the general.”

  “We can do that,” Asher said.

  Travis nodded. “If he’s in his truck, we can track him.”

  “How?” Sarah asked.

  “We have GPS trackers in all of our vehicles.” Asher pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen. “Give me a minute.” In less than that, he looked up at Travis. “You stay with Sarah. I’ll go find Gavin.”

  “Alone?” Sarah asked.

  “No,” Caden said, “definitely not alone. I’ve got some friends I can call on for help. Give me the GPS data. I can follow him as he’s traveling.”

  Asher did and Caden got back on his phone. Sarah’s pulse pounded. What was going on? Fear chugged through her. Oh, please, God, don’t let them die.

  Gavin stirred and groaned. His head pounded and nausea swirled. He hoped the cops got the truck that hit him.

  Oh wait.

  No truck.

  Someone had spritzed him with a face full of chloroform.

  Awareness returned slowly, but with each passing second, his brain cleared and he knew he was in trouble as pain in every part of his body made its presence known. Taking inventory, he noted his hands tied together behind his back.

  And his feet.

  And his hands tied to the rope around his ankles. His muscles screamed and his heart thudded.

  Think. Think. There was a way out of this. There had to be, because Sarah needed him. And he needed her.

  A groan to his left compelled him to roll. The general was still tied to the chair . . . waking from unconsciousness? Had he been drugged as well? Ignoring the pain of his cramped muscles, Gavin scooted on knees and shoulders, pushing his way like an arthritic inchworm over to the general’s side.

  “Sir?” he whispered.

  Another groan.

  Gavin bumped the chair with his shoulder. Hard, but not hard enough to knock it over. “Come on, man, wake up.” The general blinked once, twice. “That’s it. Wake up and tell me who did this.”