“You’re right about some of it, but not all. Come on, Hi.” He tugged on the handle again. “Don’t make me take this door off its track.”
The latch clicked and the Occupied sign switched to Unoccupied. He pulled the door aside. Heidi stood there, her cheeks dry but her eyes red.
He took her hand and backed into the galley area. There was no privacy for a chat like this. They either did it here or at their seats.
Heidi leaned against the floor to ceiling cabinet and he braced his hand on the wall, caging her there with his body.
Where did he start?
“Marrying you wasn’t being nice. It was selfish. I knew that you were leaving. You were going to go to a fancy school and leave me behind. I didn’t want to lose you. Which is why I never reached out. You couldn’t leave me if you couldn’t talk to me.”
“What?” Heidi’s mouth worked silently. Deep lines furrowed her brow and her lashes worked in double-time. “That’s—that—”
“That’s stupid? I know.” He was well aware of his convoluted thinking where she was concerned. “I thought about you every day. I still do. I had to give you space. You needed to focus on school, not me. I guess that became my standard.”
On the surface, people had remarked about how unstable Heidi was, what a wild child she could be. What the peanut gallery hadn’t known was that they were a lot alike. Adam was just better at hiding his crazy.
“I did come to see you once after I got back. I told myself not to, but the next thing I knew, I was on the road driving north. I was...damaged. I got to the school with no idea how to find you. Did you know that was how I found out you changed your name? The registrar was about to kick me out when I figured, what the hell, why not try my name?”
Adam shook his head. He must have terrified that poor woman. He’d been in his truck for days, probably hadn’t showered or shaved.
“I picked up some flowers before I went by your room, but you were already gone. Someone said you were outside, and they were right. You were out in the grass, on a blanket with a study group, I guess. I’d never seen you smile that much. You were...happy. And showing up like that, I was a reminder of everything you’d gotten free from.”
“You gave the flowers to Lucy, the girl across the hall from me. She said some guy had given them to her. She’d thought he’d been dumped.” Heidi’s eyes were wide, her skin pale.
“I decided then to give you the space to be who you wanted to be. I knew I wasn’t good for you then, not the way I was, so I left. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do, but...” He swallowed and glanced away. That was one of the worst deployments he’d had. The people they’d lost were his friends, guys he’d known since SEAL training.
“I didn’t want space. I’ve never wanted space.” Heidi flattened her hand against his chest but didn’t push him away.
He stared into her stormy gaze. This whole time they’d been doing what they thought the other wanted. They’d put themselves through hell because they were bound to suffer alone, and all this time they could have been together. It seemed as though he were standing on a precipice, the toes of his boots hanging off the ledge, his body ready to pitch over the edge into something new and more than a little scary.
“Excuse me?” A flight attendant gestured at the aisle behind her. “I need to ask you to please be seated.”
“Sorry, sure,” Heidi mumbled.
Adam caught her hand as it slid down his chest and wrapped his fingers around her palm. She glanced up at him once, as though she were making sure he was really there, before they made the short walk back to their seats. Once they’d crawled over their row mate and were buckled back in, they lapsed into silence. The plane shuddered and rocked. The pilot made a brief announcement about turbulence, but Heidi didn’t say another word to him.
They had a lot to think about. So many missed opportunities.
“What now?” he asked.
“I don’t honestly know.” She turned her face and studied him. “We’re two different people. What we want might not work out.”
Adam reached over and took her hand. He hadn’t thought he’d be free to do that without a fight ever again. She squeezed him and leaned her head against his shoulder.
“Let’s take care of India first, then we can take some time and figure it out,” he said.
His words were a lie.
Now that he understood Heidi’s methods he wasn’t going to let her retreat again. He was going to bore his way into her life, and this time he wasn’t leaving.
5.
SUNDAY. BUENOS AIRES, Argentina.
Léo placed the laptop on the tail gate of the truck and opened it. They needed every job, even this small one, to go perfectly. No more fuck ups. No disasters to clean up, No bodies to hide.
“Here you can see our projected spread of the virus.” He gestured to the map.
“You can’t track it real time?” The client leaned forward and squinted at the display.
“No, this is merely a representation of the virus’ rate of infection.”
“I want proof. Show me this is going to work.” The man straightened and leveled a glare at Léo.
“Your main competition, Thiago, he has a thing for the ladies, doesn’t he?” Léo reached over and tapped the keys. He’d organized infecting vectors so much he could do it in his sleep. With only minimal research, he could pinpoint how and where to distribute the disease. The boss had taught him well.
“Everyone knows that.”
“Early this morning, three of Thiago’s lady friends were returning to their respective homes. My team ensured each woman was a vector for the contagion. If they continue to stick to their schedule, which you provided, they will entertain Thiago again tonight and tomorrow before he rotates to his next set of girls. Now, this virus starts out as nothing more than a little chest congestion. Thiago and his friends aren’t going to think a lot of it, not with the way they smoke. However, in three days they’ll begin hallucinating. In four days their lungs will begin to fill with blood and other fluid, suffocating them to death.”
For the purpose of dramatics, Léo tabbed to a picture of their final test subject. It took some finesse to get a virus that would allow a vector to spread the disease for a window without being too obvious. The key to this was that the mortality rate would eventually kill it off as those affected were quarantined and died.
“Shit, man.” The client glanced away. “All that from three girls?”
“No. They are merely our guarantee to you that this will kill Thiago and his leadership, thereby clearing the way for you to take over his territory. We have set up vectors at key gathering places where Thiago’s men hang out. By the time Thiago’s people are dead, people will welcome their new protector with open arms.”
“For what I’m paying you, this better work.”
“It will.” Léo smiled all the while the skin between his shoulder blades itched. “Pleasure doing business with you. My associates will remain here with you, monitoring the spread. Remember, there is no cure for this, so keep your people clear of the area.”
Léo turned on his heel and nodded at the two techs who would remain behind to nurture their outbreak. Sometimes they picked the wrong vector, or they had an unexpected variable. Man made outbreaks were not an exact science. Yet. But they were close.
He got in the waiting car. No sooner than his feet were in than Crane took off.
“Tell Julie to stay on them for a while,” Léo said.
“She’s got a spot.”
“How is the lab?” Léo asked.
“Settling in as we speak.”
Léo held his breath for a few blocks, peering around corners as they sped toward the airport. Julie was there to take the customer out if anything happened, but if Léo died there was no bringing him back. Once he was certain the client wasn’t pulling anything funny, he grabbed his phone off the seat.
There were a few texts updating him about the status of the new location for t
he South American lab. The move was for the best. The factory was a good facility, but too remote. They’d had to haul a lot of freight there to keep day-to-day operations going smoothly, and a site that far out raised questions. The new, urban center would hide them nicely while keeping the team close to supplies and travel routes into the US.
He still didn’t know anything about the East Coast job if the boss would need to move manpower to the US or what.
When the boss stopped talking to everyone, that was when Léo worried the most. He’d hoped that when the boss came to him about wanting Heidi Novak, they’d made progress. The last person the boss had focused on, Laranya, had nearly destroyed them all. Bringing Léo in on the plan was a marker of progress with the boss.
But this silence worried Léo. The boss had a few screws knocked loose, and they were getting looser every year. Léo could manage him, knew how to coax him back to reality, but only if they were in contact. Being cut off like this spelled disaster.
What if he went after Heidi? What then?
The woman knew they had connections to the CDC, but if she figured out how deeply those ties went, what then?
“What’s the company chatter? Did Julie mention anything?” Léo knew Crane was plugged into the employees better than Léo was. They’d talk to Crane where they wouldn’t say a peep to Léo.
“A lot of people want to know why we don’t finish the quarantine.” Crane eased to a stop at an intersection. His eyes went to Léo’s in the mirror.
“By a lot of people I’m guessing you want to know?”
Crane didn’t answer.
Léo had to spin this.
The reality was that the boss had insisted on starting the India lab and through Léo’s process of stepping in to assist and build their vaccine line of business, the boss had become focused on another potential rescue.
Laranya.
But she hadn’t wanted to be saved.
It was the first time the boss had targeted someone who hadn’t already expressed the desire to be liberated from their abusers. Léo wasn’t even positive Laranya was mistreated by her father. In the end, she’d done her best to burn down everything around her and nearly started an epidemic the likes of which would spread. Usually they took care of these situations with fire, but Laranya had them by the balls. They couldn’t tie that loose end off and Léo would not work on a cure for what ailed her.
There weren’t many who knew about the stalemate, but the whispers were beginning.
“What do all of our stories have in common?” Léo had to get ahead of this.
“The boss.”
“And what did the boss do for us all?”
“He rescued us. But the quarantine...”
“He’s rescued them, too.” Léo stared at the back of Crane’s head and willed him to grasp the vision. To believe in the boss with all his fanatical passion. “Which means we will honor his wishes because those people are now our brothers and sisters. Understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
Crane nodded and kept his eyes on the road.
Every loyal person to the boss had a story, a reason why they were here. The boss was their savior, the person who’d liberated them when no one else would. His methods weren’t typical, and he didn’t know what mercy was, but he had a code that everyone under their umbrella lived by.
Léo worried that Heidi Novak, like Laranya before her, would threaten that. He could understand why the boss was smitten with her. An internet search yielded all the markers of the boss’ type. And yet, she wasn’t like them. She hadn’t wanted to be rescued or brought into the fold. She’d destroy them if they allowed her to, and then where would everyone be?
This was an alarming trend the boss had begun.
Léo couldn’t leave this up to chance. He needed more direction. They had to take action. This couldn’t be allowed to play out.
He punched his boss’ contact and pressed the phone to his ear.
It went straight to voicemail.
Fuck.
He ended the call.
It was a standard rule to not leave the boss messages.
Now what?
They had no one in India that he was aware of. Who was the boss tasking for this job? Léo and the boss had butted heads a few times. Léo’s best interest was always focused on the boss, while many of the new people were enamored with the work. That perspective had caused a few clashes as of late. What if the boss was using someone else? What if Léo was going to be replaced by someone who didn’t ask questions or challenge the boss?
Léo needed to know.
He scrolled to a seldom used contact and hit the dial button.
“Hello?”
“Doctor Williams—”
“What are you calling me for?” the man asked. “Nice work in Egypt, by the way. Glad to see you’re migrating away from the sample set.”
“Parle français.” Léo trusted Crane with everything—except what was in the best interest of the boss.
“This is not a good time,” Williams said in French.
“I need to know how the boss is doing. Is he well?” Léo stared out the window at the passing city.
“Well enough,” Williams said slowly.
“How is he really doing? Work aside, tell me.” Léo was fairly certain they were the only two people who cared about the boss as a person and not a cause. They’d been with him for so long, way before the others.
“He’s focusing again.”
“What on?”
“The woman.”
Heidi Novak.
Why did the boss care so much about her? It couldn’t be work related. Her story was old. The boss couldn’t save her from anyone, so what was the draw?
“I need to talk to him,” Léo said.
“Not possible.”
“You know what’s at stake if he’s this hyper focused on a person. What it cost us last time.”
“It’s not possible because the boss is on a plane. He’s headed to India.” Voices called out in the background. “I’ve got to go. The boss say’s it’s handled, but...”
“But someone needs to be in India to manage him if things don’t go well.”
“I’m afraid so.”
“I have to go. Do what’s best for the boss.” Williams ended the call.
Léo leaned back and closed his eyes.
If he went to India, he would not be present to handle the conference call and coordination with their East Coast client. Given the radio silence on that front, Léo feared that job was dead. Which left them with a lot of people and resources on the ground with nothing to do.
Léo could always follow orders and remain where he was. But he’d been through enough of these hyper focus spells to know what came next. The boss would lose sight of the bigger plan because some lost soul needed saving. Léo had always known there would be a day when one of the boss obsessions would put everyone at risk. Léo couldn’t give two fucks about anyone but the boss which meant Doctor Novak had to die.
“Call Julie. Tell her to meet us at the airport,” Léo said.
He was going to India. Someone had to handle this.
ADAM PEERED THROUGH the seats to where Heidi and John sat with their heads together. She’d assured him when she didn’t want to swap seats that the friendship was just that. It didn’t help his overpowering sense to rip something to bits and bang his chest.
“If looks could kill...” Riley smacked his gum.
“Be less obnoxious.” Adam directed his focus to the print out of Indian road signs. He needed to be prepared to drive, and that took study.
“Grant is always telling be to be less obnoxious. Do you have any tips?”
“Go fuck yourself, Riley.”
“That bathroom line is too long.” Instead Riley tapped at his phone screen, a grin spreading across his face.
Adam glanced at the guy.
Riley wanted him to ask.
Adam didn’t care.
He stared ahead, at Heidi once
more, and caught her eye. She smiled, briefly, then turned back to her conversation.
“Have you met Megan?” Riley asked.
“Nope.”
“You should. She’s a real sweet talker. Gets under Grant’s skin like you wouldn’t believe.”
“I’m not interested.” Adam turned the page. “How much coffee did you have?”
“Too much. I wasn’t saying you should be interested in Megan. I get the feeling that lady could take on our whole team.”
“Have you looked at any of this?” Adam knew they’d need two vehicles for gear and people.
“A little, yeah.”
“Look some more.” Adam thrust the packet at Riley.
“Where’s all this going, do you think?”
Adam stared at the back of John’s head for a moment.
He didn’t know, and he didn’t like it.
“Can I ask you a question?” Riley flipped through the in-flight magazine.
“What, Riley? What?”
“Why’d you get married in the first place?”
Cold fingers slid down Adam’s spine. He turned his head and stared at Riley’s profile, but the other man continued to flip through the magazine.
Adam’s real reasons, the ones deep down that he’d never admitted to anyone, were selfish. And they’d lost him the love of his life.
“It’s none of your fucking business,” he said.
“Well, it’s why we’re here, ain’t it?” Riley finally tilted his head and peered at Adam.
“You don’t know a God damn thing, Smith.”
“Maybe not, but you’ve been a pain in the ass to deal with since we left. At first I wondered if there was bad blood between you two, but now...” Riley shrugged. “Seems like two people with as much history as you have deserve another chance.”
Adam wanted another chance. Desperately. But he wasn’t sure it would work out, regardless of his feelings. They’d lost too much time and the wounds went deep.
MONDAY. MUMBAI, INDIA.
Heidi was physically and emotionally exhausted. After the leg from Lima to Madrid, she and Adam hadn’t talked much, probably because he’d used his quota of words for the week in one conversation. Things had felt easier between them, more like they used to. He’d stuck by her side and she’d fallen asleep leaning against him or holding his hand a few times. If it weren’t for the plane bit, she could have forgotten they weren’t back in his parent’s basement.
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