“Your boss didn’t want the cure,” I said as a statement.
“No, he didn’t. He and those goons he was working with wanted to make sure there would never be a cure.” The woman let out a shaky breath. “Those men came looking for me. I hid while they tore apart my office, taking anything and everything with the formula on it. When I realized what they were doing, I panicked. I knew they wouldn’t be satisfied until they got to Margo so I ran home. I grabbed Margo, and we fled. I went to a police friend, and within hours, they sent a patrol to the company to question my boss. They found him dead with his throat cut and everything in my cubicle on fire.”
“You think it was the same guys?”
She nodded. “There was no one else in the building.”
“So you’re in witsec because you can ID your boss’s killer?”
The woman’s face turned red. “Something like that.”
“I promise that I’m only trying to save lives.”
Margo opened her notebook, and her mother stopped her. “Baby, we don’t know these people.”
“I do,” Margo said, turning to look at me. “I know how it will all turn out, Momma.”
Tawny covered her mouth with her hand. Unshed tears brimmed in her eyes. Slowly she nodded.
Margo opened her book and turned it to show us.
“What am I looking at?” I asked.
“The formula for the water cure.” She tore it out of her book and handed it to me before flipping the book closed.
“Come on, Margo, we’ve got to go,” Tawny prodded as she rested her palms on Margo’s shoulders.
“I need to show them the rest, Momma.”
“Honey, we discussed this,” Tawny said.
Margo flipped through her book and turned it for us to see. “This is the bad man. I saw him in my dreams chasing my momma.”
Tawny’s face drained of color.
Sam’s mouth parted as if he didn’t know what to say.
I recognized the face. I knew that asshole’s name. More importantly, I knew where he lived.
214 Sycamore Street.
“Oh shit,” I whispered, and my gaze shot up to Tawny’s as I took the girl’s book and tore the picture out. I leaned in to whisper, “Who have you shown this too?”
“Just the witness protection agents so they know who to look for should the man discover our location.”
“This guy is a Federal Agent,” I whispered, lowering my voice so the others couldn’t hear. “He’s Homeland Security, so if you want to keep your daughter safe, you keep your head low until I figure all of this out. You need an extra security team, but only from people you trust.”
She nodded, and the panic in her eyes told me she believed me. “Come on, Margo.”
With the marshals surrounding them the pair was guided from the building.
I let out a shaky breath. How were we going to go about accusing an agent with Homeland Security of murder and threats against the nation?
“We have a disease, the cure, and now we know how Margo was involved. The only thing that doesn’t make sense is the hospital,” Sam said.
“The hospital is the how. We still need the when.” I said. “And the guys killing hackers must be the same goons who killed her boss. They know a cure exists, and they’re still looking for it to tie up loose ends as they go.”
Sam clutched his computer tighter against his chest. “They’re never going to quit coming for me, are they?”
“Sure, they will,” I said, wrapping my arm through his. “When they’re dead.”
No way was I letting Homeland take Sam, and no way was I letting anyone kill him. The problem I had was trying to get the killer to show themselves so we knew exactly who we were dealing with. Frustration tightened the tension in my neck. The minute I needed a killer’s blood to induce a violent reaction I could use on these villains; I didn’t have any.
I folded the formula and stuck the piece of paper into my bra.
“You sure it’s safe there?” Sam asked with a nervous chuckle.
“Oh yeah, it’s safe. But now we need to get a copy of the antidote to the CDC for production.”
“They’re going to want to test it. It could take years before they have a working prototype that they’re comfortable with.”
Sam had a point. We didn’t have that kind of time. We shoved out of the garage to find Donna, Pete, and the entourage already in the vehicles with them running. Sam and I hopped in with Donna and Pete.
“You get all the answers you need?” Donna asked.
“Yeah,” I answered, rubbing my temples at the onslaught of a headache.
“You okay?” Donna asked, making Pete turn around to face me.
“You look like you’re going to pass out,” Pete growled.
Sloan appeared in front of me. “You need your medicine, Lucy. That DNA is overloading your brain and one of them has killer tendencies that you’re tapping into.”
“You were forbidden to tell her that,” Martin said, appearing to sit on the center console of the car.
“I get headaches.”
Sam snapped his gaze to me. “Did you bring your medicine?”
“It’s in my bag,” I said and met Pete’s gaze. “I need you to switch seats with Sam and keep me from hurting anyone.”
Donna slammed on the brakes and turned back to stare at me. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“No time to explain,” I growled, holding my head tighter and clenching my eyes closed. I struggled to breathe as the first wave of nausea rolled through me.
A man stood looking in a mirror. I recognized the face immediately. He was one of the donors. His anger was red hot like a poker, strumming through my veins with the need to kill. He stepped out of the bathroom and left the building, walking out into a barn.
The woman in the red dress from the classy apartment was held in chains, slumping from the rafters. Her tear-stained face was covered in dirt. Her hair was matted. Her red satin shoes dangled from her feet.
The donor grabbed her hair and yanked her head back. The woman’s face lifted into view. Her scared eyes widened.
“Lucy, who is it?” Sam asked, but his voice drifted further away as strong arms clamped around my body.
“One of the donors,” I whispered. My throat felt like sandpaper. I leaned into the hold, fighting the urge to get free just as the donor unlocked the chains. The woman dropped to her knees and pulled the tape off her mouth. She scrambled away from my blood donor, her legs and feet barely able to hold her up.
Thrill skirted my spine. Not mine, but the killer’s. He gestured with his gun toward the door. “Run.”
“Oh shit,” I whispered. “I’m going to need my medicine.”
I could feel the killer sucking me in, pulling me toward the need to harm. The need for the kill. The desire tasted thick and sweet, like honey.
Those arms tightened harder against me, and then everything turned black.
Chapter 29
I woke with the sun shining in through the curtains, caressing and heating my face. The lumpy mattress beneath my body was familiar. At least they’d gotten me back to Donna’s house.
I turned my head toward the other bed, expecting to find Sam worried and waiting. I was wrong. “Detective Rowen.”
“Asher,” he reminded me.
I eased into a sitting position and held my shirt open to find the paper in my bra gone.
“Noah’s mother extracted it for Sam. He said it was important,” Asher said.
“It was. It is,” I said, rubbing the blur from my eyes. “What are you doing here? Our ride won’t be here until seven tonight.”
“You missed your ride by two days, Lucy.”
I rubbed my hand over my face. “Sam and Noah and the others must be worried sick.”
“Sam’s gone,” Asher said, putting a bottle of water on the bedside table.
Fear slithered down my spine. “What do you mean, gone?”
“He turned himself i
nto Homeland.”
I slid my legs over the bed and tried to stand, swaying on my feet. “I’m going to kill that kid.”
“Easy,” Asher said, catching me as my legs gave out. He eased me back down onto the bed. “You should probably eat first, and a shower wouldn’t hurt.” Asher chuckled.
“No time,” I said, shoving upright again and using the furniture and wall as my crutch. “I have to get to Sam.”
Asher picked up an envelope and handed it to me. “He left you a message.”
I eased back down and took the envelope, tearing it open.
Sorry I had to leave, Lucy, but you’re my best friend, and I couldn’t let you get in trouble just for helping me. I put the formula in your medicine case and had Donna take a picture and email it to Rowen to pass off to Noah. Noah will know what to do with it.
I left my computer. When you get around Wi-Fi again, the programs should automatically start up and continue to run those letters and numbers found in the Easter egg from the hospital. I hope it helps. You know what they say about keeping your friends close and your enemies closer. I’m turning myself into Homeland. Agent Kent will be hard-pressed to kill me under the watchful eye of his colleagues. This is the only choice. This is the right choice. The only way he can’t claim that I was a terrorist and he had the right to shoot me.”
“I’m going to kill him twice,” I growled before continuing to read.
This will keep the rest of you safe while you figure this out.
If you don’t, just know that I appreciate you being my friend and everything you’ve done. Stay safe, Dr. Red. I love you. You’re my family.”
I lifted my gaze to find Rowen holding my medicine pack between his fingers for me to see. “What’s your drug of choice, Lucy? And why does Sam believe that the drug is life or death?”
I swallowed hard.
“I can help you. We can get you some help,” he said, staring at one of the syringes.
“It’s not what you think,” I said, rubbing my hand over my head. “I need to see Noah. I need to get back so I can figure out how the hell I’m going to break Sam free from Homeland.”
Rowen set the needle back in the case. “You know that’s not possible.”
“I’ve got to try. I can’t leave the kid to rot, not with Kent within reaching distance,” I answered, standing up again, this time with more determination behind my actions. I grabbed some clothes and used the wall to guide my steps to the bathroom. I paused at the door and turned to find Rowen watching me.
“Agent Kent?” Rowen asked.
“He’s a killer with a badge, and I hunt killers, Rowen. Those meds are what keep me from turning into one after I’ve tapped in. Trust me when I tell you that you don’t want to take those away from me.”
Chapter 30
After showering, I returned to the room to find Rowen gone, which was probably for the best. I might have to find my own way back to the watermill, but it was better than having to explain. My mind raced as I packed, trying to figure out how to get Sam out of this hacking mess.
Without a target for the virus, the whole world was a sitting duck, not even knowing that the virus existed, much less that a child had the antidote. The only way to keep everyone safe was to go public. That would be the one thing that Kent and his goons wouldn’t be able to stop. I needed help in a way that Noah would never approve.
Dragging my suitcase down the stairs, I dropped it by the door and went in search of Donna, who was standing in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee. Pete was standing at the opposite counter, and Asher was seated at the kitchen table.
“I should be going,” I said, and all eyes turned on me.
Pete was sporting a shiner, and the butterflies in my stomach morphed into crows.
“Did I do that?” I asked, swallowing hard around the lump in my throat.
“You’ve got a mean right elbow,” he said, and his lips twisted. He gestured to the pencil on the table. “Good thing the kid warned me about your weapon of choice.”
Heat claimed my cheeks as I grabbed the pencil and stuck it behind my ear. “I’m so sorry.”
“No need to dwell on it, Lucy,” Donna said. “You must be starved. Sit while I whip you up something to eat.”
The leaden pit in my gut turned me off on the thought of enjoying a meal while Sam was probably eating slop.
I refused. “I’m fine. I’ll get something on the way. If you could just point me to the nearest airport and give me the number to a cab company or even an Uber.”
They all exchanged looks like they were in on a secret they weren’t ready to share.
“It’s not safe for you to go back just yet,” Donna said, pulling pancake syrup from the fridge and setting it on the table before she grabbed a large mixing bowl.
“I don’t care if it’s safe. I need to get back,” I argued. “Sam needs me, and I need to figure out a way to release the antidote to the public so that if anything happens to him or me, the bad guys won’t win by poisoning and killing an entire population.”
Pete tilted his head. “Come again.”
I ground my molars in frustration and plopped down into a chair at the table. I explained to all of them what was going on and why it was urgent I get back to Sam.
“Are you telling me that he turned himself into Homeland to protect you even knowing the killer worked for the agency?” Pete asked.
“That’s what we do. Noah recruited me like the rest to hunt killers. We’re responsible for getting them off the streets, and we’re damn good at our job. Sam is the IT guy, and he’s now the prime target unless I figure out a way to let the world know that I have the cure and set a trap. That’s why I need to get back.”
Donna stopped stirring the pancake batter and turned to face me. “Noah would never use you as bait.”
“I know. That’s why I need to get back to figure this out. He’d never let me release the antidote either and use it as a bargaining chip, but I intend to shout it to whoever will listen. This secret isn’t dying with Sam and me and it’s not going to be tied up in testing when people could be killed.”
“I think I can help you there,” Rowen said, rising from his seat. “I need to make a call.”
“Why would you help me?” I asked before he left the room.
“I made a promise long ago that I intend to keep.”
“One day, you’re going to have to tell me about that promise.”
Asher’s lips twitched into a smile before he left the room.
An hour and a full plate of pancakes later, Rowen and I stood on the porch as the helicopter hovered before landing.
Buzz smiled as he hopped out with the blades still going. He kept his head down and opened the other door.
Rowen kept his hand on my head, like I needed to be reminded to duck as we approached. He helped me in before climbing in himself while Buzz took my luggage and whisked it away.
I stared at Pete and Donna on the porch. For once, I could see the strong backbone and genes that Noah inherited. It made him more human in my eyes seeing those who raised him. His story and secrets made sense.
Chapter 31
My stomach flipped and flopped as Buzz lowered the helicopter behind a building whose parking lot was lined with motorcycles. Just where the hell was Rowen taking me?
Buzz powered down the rotors then hopped out as Rowen pulled off his headset. He glanced back at me. Something in his gaze had my stomach churning.
“I’d planned to ease you into what you’re about to find out, but there’s no easier way than to just pull the bandage off.”
Sloan and Martin had appeared in the seats next to me during the flight. Martin had a smile that stretched a mile long.
Martin beamed. “Finally.”
“You got a pencil in case I don’t like what’s at the end of this little side trip?”
“You’ll be fine, trust me,” Martin said.
“The last time I trusted you, I was left stranded,” I whispered u
nder my breath.
Rowen pushed the door open, holding out his hand for me to take.
I climbed out and let out a shaky breath, thankful to be back on solid ground. A man inside the building watched us through a streaky window. Tattoos covered one full arm and disappeared beneath his sleeve.
“Don’t let them see your fear and just follow my lead.” Rowan placed his hand on the door and paused to meet my gaze. “And whatever you do, save your questions for when we’re alone.”
The more Rowen spoke, the more the hairs on my neck stood on end. This rabbit hole might swallow me up and make me disappear for good.
Rowen pulled the door open and walked inside, pausing just in the doorway.
Six men were standing around, not including the biggest guy I’d ever seen standing behind the bar, pouring a shot of whiskey.
Two men were seated at the bar. Two others were playing a game of pool, and two were throwing darts.
All eyes turned toward us, and the talking ceased.
Martin stood in front of me with his arms open wide and yelled, “Honey, I’m home.”
Six pairs of eyes slowly slid down my body and back up before they moved to meet Rowen’s in question.
“What’s with the girl? You know the rules,” the guy behind the bar said, tossing a rag over his shoulder before picking up a shot glass and draining it.
“I do. That’s why she’s here,” Rowen said, resting his hand on my back and guiding me toward the bar. “Cross, she’s one of ours.”
The big bear of a guy rested his big beefy hands on the counter and let his gaze slide slowly down my body. “I’ve never seen that body before, and I’d remember. Is she yours?”
“You’d do well to show her some respect, Cross,” Rowen said, pulling out a seat at the bar. “This is Lucy. Steinman’s wife.”
Stein who? Surely he wasn’t talking about Steinbuckle. My deceased husband who I’d stupidly married in Vegas and who’d screwed up doing the annulment papers.
Hacking Justice (Fractured Minds Series Book 5) Page 12
