One Breath Brings Death (An Aaron Jaycynth Mystery--Book 2)

by John Charles

  By the time they reached Andrews, it was after five. Everyone was tired and hungry. "Let's take a few minutes to relieve our bladders and head north," said Aaron as he got out of the car. "We can stop for something to eat on the way."

  Shaun informed his agents and called for backup. He had Joanne pass the GPS coordinates to both agents and the backup team. "We'll get moving in ten minutes." Everyone entered the building knowing what they had to do.

  Chapter 22

  Aaron ran to his lab, his head filled with a sudden fear. He did a quick search for poisonous gas that smells like fresh cut hay. To his amazement, he got thousands of hits - all pointing to the same result. Phosgene gas smells like freshly cut hay, kills anyone who breathes it, and is frequently used in pharmaceutical production. Phosgene was used in trench warfare during World War I by France against Germany. In one article, the author commented about the gas, "One Breath Brings Death!"

  "What are you looking for?" asked Shaun as he entered Aaron's lab.

  Aaron turned in his chair, pointed to his monitor and showed Shaun his search results. "I've had a funny feeling about the gas used in the bombing at Remedcon headquarters. The lead bomb squad tech said it smelled like freshly cut hay."

  Shaun read the screen, turned to Aaron and said, "Do you think the bomber is planning to poison the board?"

  "Every instinct in my body says yes. The gas is used in pharmaceutical production, is deadly when breathed in concentration, and is easy to release."

  Shaun pulled his mobile out and called his office, "Make sure everyone has gas masks and bring one for each of us, too." He turned to Aaron and said, "You have a steel trap in there don't you?" pointing to Aaron's head. "What do you need to bring with us?"

  Aaron had his laptop, mobile, and notepad that he had been jotting notes on since the case began. They joined Natalie and Shaun's two agents in the lobby. After Shaun briefed his agents and Natalie about the possibility of Phosgene gas at the farm, they left the building.

  Shaun took Aaron and Natalie in his SUV. The agents followed in theirs. Aaron punched the coordinates of the farm into Shaun's GPS system as they drove out of London. Aaron had the tracking system provided by MI5 running on his laptop. "Liz is on the move. I bet she couldn't get Ereka on the phone and is now attempting to warn her of our visit."

  Shaun called Joanne and asked her to update the agents and back up teams of the possibility of a heated standoff.

  Aaron kept track of Liz as they made their way to the farm. Shaun and the agents were driving at an extremely fast pace with police lights flashing. Cars and other vehicles moved over to allow them to pass. The speed of the car, gave Aaron a nervous feeling, especially since Shaun was driving on the wrong side of the road - to Aaron's mind.

  About a mile from the farm, they met up with the backup team that had parked in a pull off in the road. "I've never been this far north of London. It's beautiful here," said Aaron as he stretched his legs. He checked both Liz and Ereka's locations and said, "Looks like Liz will get to the farm in about five or ten minutes. I think we want to arrive shortly after she does?" he said to Shaun and the team. "If we arrive before her, we have no way of knowing if she has been part of this bombing spree. All we would have is her telling Ereka of our visit. Arriving after her will allow us to monitor what she tells her partner."

  Shaun agreed with Aaron's logic, gave instructions for his men to approach with caution, "We don't know if she has the Phosgene gas or not. Thus, we all wear gas masks. After what I read on Aaron's monitor, I know I don't want to breathe that stuff." He asked if there were any questions and received one from the backup team. "Are we here to detain or just observe?"

  "We are here to detain, arrest if necessary, and secure any bomb making materials found. We received a subpoena to search the farm while in route, so we are within our rights in any of the above situations. Any other questions?" None was voiced.

  Ten minutes later, they were at the entrance to the farm. Aaron saw a pristine country setting that looked like a painting from a century prior. "Wow, I've seen some wonderful farms in the US, but never one as beautiful as this. How do we approach without letting them know we are here?" he asked Shaun.

  Aaron confirmed that Liz had arrived about five minutes prior. The entry road weaved through trees and pasture. Their four cars drove slowly along the road to a point about a thousand yards from the main house. A barn stood off to the right of the house, several other buildings stood nearby. Everything looked well kept.

  The farm was left to Ereka by her parents upon their deaths. Not wanting to become a farmer, she leased out the property and barn, maintaining sole use of the house and two of the outbuildings. One of the backup team removed a parabolic dish from the car and aimed it at each of the nearby buildings. "They are in the smaller of the outbuildings," he said then added, "And they are arguing over something, too."

  "Are you recording this?" questioned Aaron.

  The agent nodded and said, "Standard practice. We record everything we hear and all of our person to person communications as well." He then attached a radio, mike, and ear bud to Aaron and Natalie, showed them how to use it, and advised Shaun they were ready to proceed.

  As they approached the outbuilding, they could hear the conversation Liz and Ereka were having. They were arguing. Liz was asking Ereka why she had done the three bombings. She didn't like what Ereka was doing and was angry that she was kept in the dark. "I thought we were partners," she said. "What am I supposed to do when you are sent to jail for what you've done?" she shouted. "And now you are planning another one?"

  Ereka's voice seemed muffled as she responded to Liz's questions. "I had no choice. I had to do it or Taylor would continue to get off scot-free. He murdered all those innocent people and doesn't even care."

  "And what does this make you?" shouted Liz. "You have lowered yourself into the same gutter he lives in."

  "No, it's not the same. He will pay for his crimes. The public will know what he has done," said Ereka in response. "You need to get out of here so I can finish what I was doing. This stuff is dangerous and I don't want you hurt."

  "What is this?" questioned Liz.

  "Put that down, Liz. Please put it down gently or it will explode," said Ereka.

  Shaun, Aaron, and the agents had reached the open door to the building where Ereka and Liz were arguing. Aaron had eyes on the two of them, turned to Shaun, and whispered, "Ereka is wearing a gas mask."

  Shaun nodded; signaled his men to move into the building, and led the approach.

  As the MI5 team entered, Shaun yelled, "Ereka Ibbison, you are under arrest. Put your hands on your head and remain still."

  Ereka turned as she heard Shaun yell. "No, you don't understand," she said, muffled by the mask.

  Liz was so startled that she dropped the canister. The seal broke allowing the gas to be released with a loud gushing sound. She was completely encased in a cloud of Phosgene gas. So startled by the situation, she didn't move, just looked at her hands as if wondering why she was no longer holding the canister.

  Liz screamed, rushed to her partner, and picked her up. She ran from the building, not stopped by Shaun or his agents. About 100 feet from the door, she lowered Liz to the grass, cradled her head and cried. "I love you. Please don't leave me."

  One of the agents applied a gas mask to Liz's face and told her to breathe deeply. Cuffed, Ereka watched in despair as the agent attempted to care for her life partner.

  "No time to wait for an ambulance," said the agent. "We need to get her to hospital right now."

  Aaron pulled his mobile out of his pocket and searched for a local hospital. The nearest was over thirty minutes away in a more populated community. Three agents took Liz to the car as Ereka watched, tears streaming from her eyes.

  The backup team closed and locked the door to the outbuilding, placed a call to the hazmat team and stood guard. Aaron, Shaun, Natalie and two additional agents escorted Ereka to MI5 for further questioning.<
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  Chapter 23

  At precisely eight thirty Sunday morning, uniformed officers and MI5 agents rang the doorbells of Gillert Taylor and each of the Remedcon directors' homes.

  Less than half an hour later, Gillert was led from his home, hands cuffed behind his back. He said nothing as he was charged with the deaths of the twelve trial subjects, obstructing an investigation, fraud, conspiracy, and other equally heinous crimes while Darcey and their two children watched.

  Each director was charged as a co-conspirator in the twelve deaths, fraud, and other crimes.

  Ian and Claire Fachan were seen checking out of the hotel flanked by two men dressed in black suits, never to be seen or heard from again.

  The concentrated dosage of Phosgene gas proved lethal to Liz, who passed away during the night, alone in her bed. Ereka sat in a trance like state in her jail cell knowing exactly when her life partner breathed her last breath.

  Not wanting to be reminded of the case any further, Aaron removed the pictures from his white board, washed it clean, and moved it back to its normal place against the far wall of his lab. Just as he finished filing the case folder away, he received a text from Justin. I know it's Sunday, but wondering if you will be at a club tonight.

  He looked at the message for several minutes. It had been a hard week and he certainly could use a diversion, but it was Sunday night and he swore off clubbing on work nights. No, it's been a long hard week. I'm still at work. Going home shortly

  A minute passed when his mobile signaled another text from Justin. K

  Aaron's lab was spotless, papers filed, desk cleaned, work table cleaned, everything in its place when he closed the lights, locked the door, and set the alarm. He walked the five miles to his bedsit, stopping for takeout, though not really hungry.

  The only light in his bedsit came from the screensaver on Aaron's laptop. He sat on the lone chair with his head resting against the wall behind him, when he received a text and heard the buzzer signaling someone was at the front door to the building.

  The text from Justin read, I'm downstairs - let me up.

  Aaron buzzed him in, held the door open and watched as Justin climbed the stairs to his bedsit. Once inside, Justin immediately stripped his clothes off. Before he could kneel at Aaron's feet, he was pulled into a bone-crushing hug.

  Aaron leaned his head down and nuzzled Justin's hair, inhaling the freshly washed scent of mountain breeze shampoo. He held Justin for several minutes allowing his heart, body, and mind to regain composure. When released from the hug, Justin looked up to find Aaron staring down at him. With a sudden force, Aaron pushed Justin to his knees, pulled his face into his crotch, and said, "Good boy."

  A personal message from the author:

  I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading One Breath Brings Death.

  Like most authors, I depend on feedback from my readers. In fact, I love hearing from you about my stories. Now that you finished reading this book, please post a review on the site where you purchased this e-book.

  Your Review and Comments give others, who may want to read this book, insight that only other readers can give.

  Some questions I pose to you are:

  What did you like about One Breath Brings Death?

  Did the plot keep you interested and involved?

  How did you relate to the characters and their journeys?

  Will you read additional books from this author?

  Feel free to add any other comments that you think might be pertinent

  to the next reader.

  Thanks for your time,

  John

  Other John Charles Books you may enjoy

  (Click the title for more information)

  Scorned and Abandoned

  (An Aaron Jaycynth Mystery)

  Blackmail: Boardroom To Bedroom

  In Death He Lives