Edge of Sanity: An Edge Novel

by Shannon K. Butcher

  Make it look like an accident. That’s what the man he’d met by the fountain had said.

  Clay flipped to the last page, which consisted of a single photocopied picture in black-and-white—a photo of his target, the man he was supposed to kill tonight.

  It was Payton Bainbridge.

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Mira woke up in a hospital room, too dizzy and confused to figure out how she’d gotten there. An IV bag hung to her left, but her clothes were still on. If she’d had some kind of accident, wouldn’t she have been in a gown?

  She pushed her head up, hoping that would make it stop spinning.

  Adam sat in a chair at the foot of the bed, watching her.

  Everything that had happened slammed back into her with enough force to steal her breath away. She’d met him for dinner. He’d nearly charmed her pants off. Then she got so tired.

  “You drugged me,” she croaked at him.

  He stood, the movement a masterpiece of smooth power. “I had no choice, and for that, I apologize.”dth>

  She backed away from him as much as the bed and her sloppy head would allow. “Why am I not raped or dead? Why drug me for no reason?”

  “I assure you there was a reason.”

  As her mind began to clear, she noticed the smaller details. The room had no TV, no phone. There was a camera mounted in one corner of the ceiling. The window on the adjacent wall did not overlook a parking lot or even a hallway bustling with medical staff. Instead, it showed a lab of some kind, filled with white-coated workers. She recognized a couple of the people, though she couldn’t remember any names.

  Anxiety began to creep in. “What is this place?”

  “You’re agitated. Please, just lie back down.”

  Adam took a step forward, but she pointed her finger at him. “Stay away from me. I don’t know who you really are, but if you come any closer, I’ll scream.”

  He stopped halfway to the bed. “This is your father’s facility.”

  “My father?”

  Sirens and warning bells went off in her head. Full-blown panic was only seconds away. She had to get out of here. Now.

  Mira yanked the IV from her vein, ignoring the blood that welled up. She flung her legs off the side of the bed and tried to stand.

  Her legs wouldn’t support her weight. She started to crumple to the ground. Adam was at her side faster than she could blink. He pinned her against his body, mocking her for every naughty little fantasy she’d had about him.

  She couldn’t believe how easily he’d fooled her. Handsome, charming, flirtatious. That’s all it took for her to turn stupid and forget that it was suspicious that a man like him would want to have anything to do with the queen of the nerds.

  Mira tried to free herself from his grip, but he was too strong and she was too dizzy. He controlled her flailing hands easily, pressing his thumb against her vein to stop the bleeding.

  “Let me go,” she growled at him.

  “As soon as you stop bleeding. You’re in no shape to be on your feet for another hour at least. The fluids were meant to help flush out your system.”

  “If I have to crawl to get out of here, I will.”

  At that moment, Mira’s father, Dr. Richard Sage, walked through the door. He stared at her with the same expression of supreme disappointment that he always wore. Only this time, there was something else in his face—a kind of smug excitement, as if he’d won some contest she couldn’t understand.

  Suddenly, Adam seemed the lesser of two evils.

  Without effort or permission, Adam lifted her back onto the bed with one arm. He kept his thumb on her wound and shifted slightly so that he was between her and her father.

  If Richard noticed, he gave no indie ges Tencation that Mira could see. Then again, she wasn’t exactly at the top of her game.

  “What do you want?” she demanded. “Why am I here?”

  “Because Adam is a genius. He saw the obvious solution to my problem. If I hadn’t been so busy lately, perhaps I’d have seen it myself.”

  “I don’t give a shit about your fucking problems,” said Mira, knowing he’d hate the vulgar language.

  His mouth turned down in a frown of distaste. “Really, Mira. What would your mother say if she could hear you now?”

  “She’d tell me to kick you in the balls, you heartless asshat.”

  Richard looked at Adam with apology in his tone. “You should not have had to put up with her behavior. It’s truly shameful.”

  Adam’s body vibrated with a silent growl. “She is certainly nothing like her father.”

  “Your job here is done,” said Richard. He pulled an envelope from his pocket. “Your payment, as promised.”

  Adam went still. She couldn’t even feel the pulse of his thumb against her skin, as if his heart had stopped beating for a second.

  He stared at the white envelope as if it held the secret to the universe, but he didn’t move to reach for it. Instead, he slowly lifted his thumb to see if she’d stopped bleeding. She had, and only when he saw that did he reach out.

  The envelope went inside his shirt, like he needed to hold it close to his heart.

  “You may leave now,” said Richard.

  Adam squared his shoulders and seemed to grow even taller. “I think I’ll stay. See how this plays out.”

  “It’s none of your concern.”

  “Call it curiosity, then.”

  “I would have thought you’d be anxious to scamper off for your family reunion.”

  “It’s waited decades. It can wait a few more hours.”

  Mira had no idea what was going on, but she used the opportunity to look around for some kind of weapon. The only thing she could find was a plastic pitcher of water next to an empty cup. It wasn’t much, but it was all she had to work with.

  Pretending she was going to pour herself a drink, she picked it up. At the last second, she flung the ice water at Adam’s head and darted for the door.

  Her father grabbed at the back of her shirt, slowing her for a split second. The fabric popped from his grip, and she was free.

  She ran down the hall, her stocking-clad feet slipping precariously on the slick tile floor. Panic pounded through her veins. Her blood pressure skyrocketed. She felt blood drip from her hand.

  This building was bigger than she’d thought. She had nghtize="-1o idea which way to go. Finally, her head cleared enough for her to start looking for exit signs.

  She hit a stairwell door, and the only way to go was up. She’d made it all the way to the landing before a team of security guards stopped her cold.

  They shoved her against the wall, grabbed her arms, and pinned them roughly behind her. Her shoulders burned, and a terrified gasp of pain erupted from her lips.

  The two guards holding her face-first against the wall seemed to evaporate in a series of short, deep grunts. She turned around to see where they’d gone and saw Adam standing over their bodies, his hands fisted as if ready to throw another punch. He was soaked from his hair down, dripping with the water she’d doused him with.

  He took her by the arm, and his touch was so careful compared to that of the other two men that she was too shocked for a second to fight. But then that shock dissipated and she tried to wrench her arm from his hold.

  “Let me go,” she screamed at him.

  He moved faster than she could see, and somehow she was plastered against his body, with her hands trapped between them. Her feet barely touched the floor. Her blood smeared over his pristine white shirt, blooming out in a watery mix of orangey pink.

  It struck her that this was the second shirt of his she’d ruined.

  “If you try to fight your way out of here, one of those guards may decide to shoot you down. I won’t let that happen.”

  “Then why bring me here to begin with?”

  “I needed something your father had. It wasn’t supposed to be personal.” He set her down and started walking again.

  She tried to d
rag her feet, but he kept going, and she simply slipped over the tile, moving along with him. “When someone drugs and abducts me, I’d say it’s pretty fucking personal.”

  He stopped and looked down at her. His pale gray eyes were bright with fury. “I don’t want this any more than you do. Believe me.”

  She snorted at him. “Yeah, that’ll happen.”

  Mira’s father rounded the corner with two burly guards flanking him. “Put her in room twelve.”

  “Not until she stops bleeding,” said Adam.

  “It’s a tiny hole. She’s not going to bleed to death.”

  Adam said nothing, merely stared back. The two guards behind her father paled. Richard’s mouth tightened in frustration. “Fine. Cover the pinhole if you must, but then leave. You’re only causing trouble.”

  “I’ll leave when she does.”

  “That was not our deal,” said Richard, his tone one of quiet warning.

  “Consider me bonus security, then.”

  Richard shook his head andk hnt siz waved a hand in irritation. “Bring her along. I have a first aid kit in my office. We’ll deal with the mess she made, and then she can make that call.”

  “What call?” asked Mira, feeling a whole new layer of panic settle over her.

  Her father said nothing as he turned and started walking away. His guards waited expectantly for her to follow.

  Adam propelled her forward, leaned down close to her ear, and whispered, “Do as he says and I will get you out of here alive.”

  * * *

  Clay sat in stunned silence as he stared at the photo of Payton. “What the hell?”

  “They want you to kill Payton? Why?”

  “I have no idea, but it sure puts a new spin on things.”

  “In what way?”

  “Sage is using me to get these files. The price for the files is Payton’s head. If the people involved in all of this mind-control bullshit want him dead, then he’s working against them in some way.”

  “He knows what happened. He was involved. He said he was trying to set things right. Maybe they want him dead to keep him from going to the authorities.”

  Clay shook his head, trying to jostle his brain enough to shake things into place. “There has to be something I’m missing that would help all of this make sense. Maybe something in those photos?”

  “We can go through them again. Maybe the man you talked to is in one of them, and now that we know what he looks like, we’ll recognize him.”

  “I don’t know how that will help, but it’s worth a shot.”

  “We could always go with our original plan,” said Leigh. “Find Payton. Ask him nicely to pose for some gruesome fake death shots.”

  Clay shook his head. “It won’t work.”

  “Why not?”

  “I thought all they’d ask for was photographic proof of a kill. Since there was nothing in the instructions about that, then they’re going to be waiting for news reports or some other form of independent confirmation. I can’t fake that.”

  “Payton has powerful friends. Maybe he can.”

  “Or maybe he’ll refuse and we’ll never get our hands on those files.”

  “We have to trust him,” said Leigh. “I know that’s not your strong suit, but he’s the only ally we’ve got right now. If he is involved in all of this, then he’ll want those files as much as we do.”

  “For some nefarious purpose, no doubt.”

  “You don’t know that. So far he’s kept you safe.”

  “By risking your life.”

  “No, by giving me a chance to help Garrett. If this works out, I’ll never be able to repay him.”

  Clay rubbed his eyes, feeling the beginnings of a headache form just out of reach. “I’m out of better ideas. I guess we call him.”

  Leigh turned the phone on and held it out to Clay. The last thing he wanted to do was talk to the man who was at least partially responsible for fucking him over, but he didn’t see any other options.

  “We need to meet,” said Clay as soon as Payton answered.

  “You left. I found no sign of Dr. Sage, so I came home to tell you. I’ve been trying to reach you for hours.”

  “The phone was off so no one could find us. Especially you.”

  “I see.” Disappointment hung on the words.

  “Listen, Payton. I don’t trust you. I’ll never trust you again. But I also don’t want to see you dead, which is exactly where things are headed. Something big has come up. We need to meet.”

  “Name the place. I’ll leave immediately.”

  They made plans to meet in the alley behind an aging strip mall that had been slowly abandoned over the years. No one had bothered with upkeep, leaving plenty of shadows where lightbulbs had blown out. The back wall had been tagged with graffiti until it was a colorful mural of gang signs and adolescent boredom.

  Payton pulled in, killing his headlights as he made the turn.

  Leigh grabbed Clay’s hand. It had been the first time she’d touched him since they’d left the motel. Until now, he hadn’t realized just how cold he’d grown without the contact of her skin on his.

  “Let me go talk to him,” she said. “You’re too angry with him.”

  “Like hell. I don’t trust him, so I’m sure as hell not going to sit here while you go out there. Who knows what he’ll do?”

  “He won’t do anything. He needs us.”

  As they argued, Payton had come closer. Clay felt the back of his neck tighten. He pulled his weapon and held it on his lap.

  “See?” said Leigh, nodding at the gun. “You’re too angry.”

  “This isn’t angry. This is careful.”

  Payton passed his window and pulled on the handle of the back door. Clay unlocked it and turned in his seat so that he wouldn’t have his back to the man.

  “What happened?” asked Payton.

  Rather than respond, Clay tossed the stapled trio of pages at him. Payton glanced through them, flipped to his photo. Rather than surprise, all Clay could see in the man’s face was anger.

  “If I kill you, they’ll give me some filesive me fiprise, alwhich is apparently what Sage has tasked me to find, at least in part.”

  “Any idea what’s in the files?” asked Payton.

  “None. You?”

  “Could be anything, but if Sage is after the information, it’s either incriminating or something he needs to continue his research.”

  “Could it be a cure?” asked Leigh.

  Payton’s mouth tightened. “Perhaps.” He looked right into Clay’s eyes. “Are you going to kill me?”

  “No,” said Leigh as if the mere thought disgusted her.

  Clay said. “I haven’t decided yet.”

  Payton merely nodded, leaning back in the seat, relaxed, as if they weren’t discussing his murder. “If I were you, I’d have already pulled the trigger.”

  “No one is killing anyone,” said Leigh. “We’ll find another way.”

  The prepaid cell rang, vibrating in the cup holder where Clay had set it earlier. Leigh jumped.

  “I should have turned it off.” He reached for the phone to do so, but Leigh took it from him.

  “You can’t answer that. We don’t know who it is.”

  “I wasn’t going to answer it.”

  She looked at the screen, frowning. “It’s Mira.”

  “Maybe she can help us track down the people who want Payton dead.”

  Leigh pressed the TALK button. “Hi, Mira.”

  Clay watched as her eyes grew wide and she started to shake. Her knuckles went white as she gripped the phone harder. When she spoke, her voice quivered with horror. “Mira?”

  “What is it?” asked Clay, barely resisting the urge to rip the phone away from her.

  Leigh ignored him and went quiet. “I understand. Two hours. We won’t be late. Just don’t hurt her. Please.” She jerked and stared at the phone as if it might grow fangs. “They have Mira. If we don’t get those files in two hou
rs, they’re going to hurt her.”

  A huge surge of fury ripped through Clay, shredding him as it went.

  Payton shoved his way out of the backseat and pulled Clay’s door open. He eyed the weapon in Clay’s lap. “Do it now. Call the news stations and report the body. Whoever sent the kill order will know I’m dead within the hour. That will give you time to get the files and get to Mira.”

  Clay didn’t want to kill Payton, but with Mira at stake, there was no question about whether he’d do it.

  He got out of the car to kill the man who had been more like a father to him than anyone else alive. At least now he knew where Payton’s loyalties lay. He mi ies sizeght have been a heartless bastard who ruined lives, but if he was willing to give his up to save Mira, then as far as Clay was concerned, Payton was a fucking hero.

  Clay lifted his weapon and aimed at Payton’s head.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Clay wasn’t joking. He really was going to kill Payton.

  It took Leigh a moment to muddle through her shock over hearing Mira’s frightened voice, followed by the rough orders of a man willing to hurt her. But as soon as she started thinking clearly again, she realized that she was about to witness a murder.

  She flung herself out of the car and stepped right in front of Clay’s gun.

  He jerked the barrel up, rage twisting his mouth. “Get out of the way, Leigh. This has to happen.”

  “No. It doesn’t. The two of you can’t jump straight to murder without even taking five minutes to think of other options.”

  “I don’t need five minutes,” said Payton. “I’ve been dealing with danger for most of my life. I’ve already run through the options. So has Clay. This is the only thing that makes sense. At least this way my death will mean something.”

  “He’s right, Leigh. If you don’t want to see what’s going to happen, then close your eyes.”

  “No. I’ve spent my life healing people. I’m not going to stand by while a good man dies.”

  “I’m not a good man.”

  Leigh turned to Payton, searching for some way to talk sense into him. “We have two hours before they’ll call back with instructions on where to meet to make the exchange. We have time to find the people who have the files and take them.”