“How?” Owen asked. “The bombs have been set throughout the country. How can you possibly give the agent to everyone in the country?”
Mark shoved himself away from the chair and paces the room. He dragged his hand through his hair again and again, looking at us and then back to his feet.
“Mark. What is it?” I ask.
“I just don’t know what to think any more.”
We waited. Mark paced, hunched, like he had the world’s weight on his shoulders.
“The research ye showed me.” He pointed to a file on the floor. “Ye were right, every victim had L08 in their system.” He kicked a box across the room, making Mendel bark.
“Mark?” I asked.
“It’s my research. L08 is mine.”
“You said that back at the house. Whoever stole Levins’ research must have stolen yours too.”
“No.”
Owen stepped forward again. “What do you mean, no?”
“L08 is designed to saturate into a patient’s body. I designed it tae recognise specific genes, or more to the point, faulty genes. It spreads through the body and stays there.”
“Doing what?”
“At the moment, nothin’. I’m still workin’ on it. If I can get it to work, it’ll force faulty genes to function correctly.”
“So what you’re saying is?” Owen urged.
Mark stared at us, helplessly. “I’ve been working with samples from the bombin’ victims all year. I’ve done every test imaginable on them, trying to find a way to stop the toxin.” He stepped forward. Desperate. “Roz, my L08 wasnae in any of those samples. I would’ve recognised it instantly if it was.”
“What are you saying?” I asked, grasping to keep up.
“The neutralising agent, the one that’s going to be given to literally everybody? Levins and I created it in the lab together from the same samples.”
His face was panicked, waiting for us to understand. He huffed in frustration and picked up the file.
“Your evidence, the presence of L08, that’s the real target. Levins and I have been makin’ an agent which won’t match. We’ve been workin’ from the wrong specimens. Don’t you see?”
“See what?” Owen asked.
“Levins’ agent is goin’ to be delivered through his delivery system? My work shows up in the official samples but not the ones where I would see it? Can’t you see? It’s all his work. He provided the samples I’ve been workin’ on all this time. He’s the only person who could access ma work and provide false samples. You have tae believe me; my work doesnae fit with this. It can’t work that way.”
He looked at me pleading, waiting for me to understand, to believe him.
“Do you understand?”
I shook my head. “Not completely.” I admitted.
He rushed over and gripped my hands. “Ma work, it’s all about gene sequencin’. I tell the defective gene to act in order with its correct sequence. But, it’s not finished. My L08 is still dormant. Don’t you see? It cannae do what the toxin’s doin’.”
“But, it’s in all the victims?” Owen said.
Mark huffed in frustration. “It is, which means someone has distributed my L08 to intended victims.”
“Why? What’s the point, if it doesn’t work yet?” I asked.
Mark stared into space, his face white. “Because, there’s nothin’ else like it. I invented it; I manipulated it into bein’ a harmless agent. I’m the only one who had access to it.” He gripped my hands harder, pleading. “Because, it’s the perfect targetin’ agent.”
Owen flinched. “Targeting? The delivery system?”
Mark nodded. “Ye want a delivery system tae only target specific people? Ye want a guarantee that it won’t affect you? Ye send it to infect L08, the genetic manipulation agent which works by saturatin’ the body. Maximum results.”
“Mark, the delivery system is targeting your research, to deliver a deadly toxin? What does that mean?”
“It can only mean one thing: it’s Levins. He’s the bomber!”
The three of us stood in shock. I watched Mark, unable to speak. He was shaking, his hands balling into fists. Owen rushed over to his bag and ripped out his laptop. He began pattering on the keys, leaving mark and I stood alone.
“Mark,” I whispered. “I know it looks bad, but don’t forget, his lab was broken into. His research was stolen. The bomber is just using his research.”
He was already shaking his head as I spoke. “No, the thief only took his delivery research. We knew they were using the delivery system tae target victims. But, the different toxin samples, targetin’ my L08? Only he could do that.”
“Couldn’t someone else have done it with his delivery system?”
“No, he hadnae even published a paper on it yet. The delivery system an’ the toxin work in massively different ways. No one person could use both together without years of study, let alone understand ma work too. They’re two different specialities. It has to be him, there’s nobody else who could program them both.”
He sank into his chair, holding his head in his hands. My heart sank to see him so defeated.
“All this time, he’s had me researchin’ the delivery system, findin’ a way to draw in the toxin. Not once did I consider what it was targetin’, how it was developed. If I had stopped to think, noticed the replacement samples; if I had stopped and seen it for what it was I could’ve stopped him.”
“Mark, why didn’t you tell anyone about this?” I asked.
He looked at me like I had slapped him. “Ye think I knew? How could I know? He’s had us rushed off our feet perfectin’ the diversion agent while he’s been away helpin’ the police. If ye hadnae made me stop and think about it, I don’t know when I would’ve realised. How was I supposed to know the victims had been exposed to my research? I never saw any official reports.”
He stared at Mendel, rolling in the middle of the room for attention.
“All I’ve done is work on drawin’ in the toxin before the delivery system takes hold. I never had time to think about its development.”
“But, you’re sure its Levins?” I asked.
“The toxin’s so damn convoluted; no-one without Levins’ level of genetic understandin’ could even begin to understand it. Even then, they’d need years to follow his research. He really is the lead in the field.”
His voice shrank, cowering under the realisation of his plight.
“He’s setting me up for the fall. He’s framing me for mass murder.”
I knelt by his feet, gripping his hands. “We won’t let that happen. Mark, we’re with you.”
He grimaced back, unable to force a smile.
“There’s nothing on his computer to prove this.” Owen said.
I pulled Mark to his feet and held his hand across the room. I could feel the tremble in his fingers as he peered over Owen’s shoulder.
“That’s Levins research. How did you get that on here?”
“I just hacked it.” Owen said, confidently. “And don’t look at me like that. If we want to stop the bomber, we need to find the truth.”
“Well, ye won’t find anythin’ that way,” Mark said.
“Why’s that?” Owen asked.
“Because, ever since the break in, Levins has kept his computer isolated and offline.” He laughed aloud. “Good cover for changing his routine, I suppose. Bloody fake break in. The guys a genius. You must have just broken into one of the lab computers.”
“Then we need to get in there and look at his computer. It may tell us where he’s going to target next.”
* * *
The three of us hurried through the campus with a feeling of dread. All this time the bomber had been right under our noses. He’d purposely steered me into suspecting Mark, setting the bombs specifically when Mark didn’t have an alibi. I realised now, every time we had spoken, he had pulled my strings, turning me like a marionette, exactly where he needed me to be. He had used me, just like he was
using Mark.
I grabbed Mark’s hand and squeezed, a silent gesture of hope. He squeezed back, without a smile. A group of student passed us, cheering loudly. I shrugged at Owen, guessing they were celebrating a win for one of the many sports teams. It was a strange feeling to be surrounded by so much activity, yet feel so dangerously isolated.
“Mark McKnight.” A male voice shouted, from across the path.
We looked passed the roaring group of students to see them. Four identically dressed security guards. Each of them holding their telescopic metal sticks at the ready.
I pulled Mark closer, holding him still. “What do they want with you?”
“I guess they’ve been followin’ the same clues as you. They think I’m the bomber.”
He pulled his arm free from my grasp and took a step forward. He raised his arms in surrender.
I twisted to my left to see a second group of guards.
“Over here too,” Owen whispered, from my right. We were surrounded.
The group of passing students stopped to watch. Two guards from the front group moved forward, while the outer two groups circled around. They were corralling him, weapons held aloft, ready to strike.
I felt my hands shake as anger filled my vision. “It wasn’t Mark. You’re arresting the wrong man.”
Mark twisted his head to see me out of the corner of his eye. “Dinnae worry about me. Get the proof ye need. It’s the only way to stop him. But Roz, be careful…”
The air was forced from his lungs as the two approaching guards pounced. They shoved him to the ground, twisting him so his face was pressed against the gravel path. A guard put his knee between his shoulder blades, grinding it until Mark growled in pain.
“Stop it. You’re hurting him,” I shouted. “He’s not the bomber, he’s being set up.”
The guard grinned as he looked down at my restrained friend. “Please tell me you’re going to resist?” Mark shook his shoulders, a feeble effort to dislodge the guard. “Good.” He raised his fist and brought it down on Mark’s head with sickening force.
The thump echoed through my ears like it had injured me too. I stumbled back into Owen as Mark’s head slumped to the side, his eyes closed. The guards laughed as they each surrounded Mark’s limp body. I watched as the four men took a limb each and yanked him from the ground.
“Where are you taking him?” I shouted. Owen held me back as I fought to get to him. “I told you, it wasn’t him. Let him go!”
They ignored me. With Mark hoisted under their arms, they carried him through the crowd toward one of the new buildings. I watched them retreat across the grass toward an elongated streak of light. My fury blazed as they disappeared into the building, greeted by the smirking face of Llamp. She held the door open, welcoming Mark’s captures like heroes.
Levins had convinced her too.
I span on the spot and gripped Owen’s jacket. “We have to do something. We can’t let Levins get away with this.”
“We won’t. But, we can’t do anything from here.”
He grabbed my hand and pulled me into a sprint. We ploughed through the milling students, not caring to apologise.
Levins had planned this, knowing when Mark would be arrested. He knew how far the police had progressed in their investigation, probably pushed them in the wrong direction, like he had me. Everything he had planned, each bomb, each scene, was an act which was leading to this. I knew, with sickening dread, this was Levins’ plan. And this, was the lull before his storm.
He was about to strike.
We were out of time.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
We burst through the door just as Bree and Ash were about to leave.
“We were just about to go look for you.” Bree said, closing the door behind us. “We couldn’t… what’s wrong?”
I handed Owen the phone. “Get Jay and Fern over here. Bree, is Warwick upstairs?” I asked, whilst rushing passed them to the living room. I flicked on the computers and stood waiting for them to hum to life.
Ash took my hand from behind. “Roz, what’s happened? Are you okay?”
I stepped into him and put my arm around his waist, not looking away from the flickering screens.
“It’s Mark. We talked to him and were about to go to the Lab to gather evidence when he was taken by the guards.” I hammered on the enter key on the computer, willing it to load. “He didn’t do it, Ash. Mark said none of the samples he’s been working from had his L08 in them. But, the bomber’s using Mark’s work alongside Levins’, so it should’ve been there. They’re using his work as the target for the delivery system. Ash, there’s only one person who gave Mark those samples to work from. Only one person the bomber could be.”
“Who?”
“ Levins! He developed the delivery system. He developed the toxin. And, he’s using Mark’s work as a target. He’s the only one who had access to Mark’s work and the only one who had a chance to learn and understand it.”
“Couldn’t it be Mark using Levins’ work?” Ash asked.
“I honestly don’t think Mark could’ve done it. The different levels of genetics, the use of experimental theories? He’s only twenty three; he couldn’t possibly have had time in his life to learn all those skills. Honestly Ash, you didn’t see him. It wasn’t him. It must be Levins. He’s the one who’s been sending Mark on errands whenever a bomb hits. He’s the one who fully understands both the delivery system and toxin. And, I know he understands Mark’s research, even though he says he doesn’t. I can’t think of anyone else it can be. I just can’t believe how long it has taken me to realise.”
“But why?” Bree asked. “I thought he was a good guy. He helped me when I was drugged. He’s been helping you figure out who the bomber is. Now you’re saying it was him all along?”
Owen took my place banging the side of the computer. “We’ll know for certain when we get into his computer.” He typed on the keyboard frantically. “Someone’s had this. It was fine before we left.”
“We didn’t touch it,” Bree said.
We all turned as footsteps thundered down the stairs. Warwick and Fern entered the room. Warwick was pulling a jumper over his shirt.
“Sorry,” Fern said, “I was in the middle of something.” I looked to Warwick who shrugged with a smirk.
I grabbed Owen’s arm and pulled him from the computer. His face was contorted in fury.
“Someone’s knackered my computer. The whole fecking thing is corrupted.”
“You’ll fix it. Right now we need to get to work.” I said, sorry to belittle his frustration.
“But who, Roz? Who could’ve gotten in here unseen and knackered this specific computer? None of the others are touched. They knew to target this one.”
We both turned to Warwick and Fern.
Fern looked to her shoes. “Sorry, we were a little busy.
“Oh, for god’s sake,” Bree mumbled.
Warwick dislodged himself from Fern’s side. “I didn’t hear anyone. If they broke in, they did it quietly.”
“Do you think he knows? You think Levins did this?” Ash asked.
I nodded. “He does seem to be one step ahead of us.” I grabbed a pen drive and threw it to Owen. “We need to get to the lab now and get the evidence. He’s obviously close to his final plan if Mark’s been arrested. If we’re going to find evidence, now’s the time. If we don’t stop him now, he’ll be setting the next one.”
I stepped away from Ash and faced my team. My friends.
“The facts are that Mark’s taking the blame and Levins is still free to kill more people. Llamp is convinced, and by the amount of guards who arrested him, it’s fair to say the authorities are convinced it’s Mark too. We’re the only ones who know the truth. We’re the ones who need to stop him”
I looked to each of my friends in turn, my heart heavy for putting such pressure on them, for choosing such a dangerous and daunting task. I was about to send them up against a man who enjoyed killing, en
joyed to experiment with suffering, with death. I held my hands behind my back and prayed that this wouldn’t be the last time I saw them.
“It looks like he knows were on to him, but we can’t quit. Too many lives are at stake. We get in, get the information, and leave. Simple grab and run. Everyone ready?”
“Not without me.” The door opened and Jay entered. “Thought we might need these.” He threw down a huge black bag in the centre of the room. “If we’re going in, we’re going in prepared.”
“What is it?” Ash asked.
“A bit of everything a good spy needs. Body armour, microphones, and a few extras.”
He opened the bag and pulled out seven large black wrapped bundles. He passed one to each of us.
“Get changed. He’s ready, we need to be too.”
“How do you know he’s ready?” I asked, as I took my heavy bundle.
Jay grinned. “Saw him. The cameras around the campus are still up and running. When I heard what you guys were saying in Mark’s house, I switched to them to see if I could find him.”
Owen punched his shoulder playfully. “You were watching through the cameras in Mark’s house? Did you capture anything suspicious there too?”
“No. I agree with you guys. He’s been set up. But Levins, he knew,” Jay grimaced.
“He knew?” I asked.
“As soon as you guys started talking about him, he sort of erupted. He was walking through campus when I saw him. He was fine one minute, then suddenly ran flat out to the labs. Next minute, I saw him running from building to building with a phone in his hand. A moment later the guards arrive and he points in your direction. I watched them as they took Mark.”
“Guys, he reacted the moment Mark figured it out. You know what that means?”
I ran my hand through my mess of hair. “It means, he had Mark’s house bugged too. And, if he had Mark’s house bugged, he could have anywhere bugged.”
Bree jumped up and began searching the living room. “He’s listening to us?”
“No,” Jay answered. “I check this place every day. Those bugs haven’t been replaced.”
Trials in Walls of Ivy (Triskelion Trilogy Book 1) Page 24
