Release, page 15
Today was one of those quiet days, probably because it was miserably cold, with a sharp breeze that seeped right down to the bones. Neither sunglasses nor falafel had braved the weather, which was probably wise. Harper doubted she’d save a life today.
Mary Lee hummed a song she’d learned in church as she puttered with the flyers. A very large box of condoms in brightly colored wrappers rested in a big round tub they’d bought at a flea market.
Harper tried to read. It wasn’t easy, though, because every few seconds she looked up, sure someone was watching her. Someone from Omicron, who would try to kill her and hit Mary Lee by mistake. When she wasn’t looking up, she was debating the wisdom of working at the clinic at all.
Was it fair to her friends, her colleagues, to put them in such danger? What if Smith hadn’t been the one to die? What if it had been her? Or Seth? Smith could have hurt anyone with that knife of his. And he was nothing compared to Omicron. They were CIA with high-tech weapons and highly trained men. They’d already proven they had no morals. They killed because they could.
She shook the thoughts away, then tried to read again. Three words later, the hair on the back of her neck stood up. She tried not to be obvious about staring, but it was dark and dreary and there were so many shadows.
It was no use. There were too many places a person could hide, especially if they were peering through a high-powered rifle lens. She’d find a replacement. Quit. The problem was she couldn’t even get another job, because that would just shift the danger. How would she survive? No money, no friends, certainly no family to turn to.
She looked down the street to the park bench by the pawnshop. A homeless man huddled there, clutching his shopping cart. Was that her destiny? To live on the streets, afraid every moment for the rest of her life?
She wished Seth were here. No, she hadn’t changed her mind—he was too dangerous to truly want back. But she missed the illusion of safety.
The illusion was really all she required, because, in truth, that was all anyone had. A bus could hit her tomorrow. She could trip and fall and crack her head open. As long as she could clutch the illusion to her chest, she could manage life. It’s what she loved most about the clinic. She’d felt safe there, useful and immune from anything out in the world. How could she give that up? How could she walk away from what had truly given her life meaning?
She wondered what Seth was doing. How much he hated her for throwing him out like that. He must, despite the words on the note. God, sometimes her own capacity to be a bitch shocked her down to her toes.
She had no business treating Seth so poorly. He’d saved her life. He’d saved her nights. He’d been there for her in every respect.
And how had she rewarded him? She’d tossed him out like so much garbage.
It was for the best. Eventually he would have discovered this side of her, and the longer she played the nice doctor, the more hurt he would have been once he realized she wasn’t nice in any way.
It wasn’t all selfishness. She had to believe that.
“Dr. Douglas,” Mary Lee said, “it’s time for lunch. Would you like to go or should I pick it up?”
“What would you prefer?”
“I think a walk would do me good.”
“That’s fine, thanks.”
“I was toying with the notion of a burger. How does that sound?”
“Great.” Harper reached behind her chair for her purse and she pulled out a twenty. “That should take care of everything.”
“You don’t have to do that, you know.”
“It’s my pleasure. Honestly.”
Mary Lee, who was the single mother of four boys, took the bill with a smile and a nod. “Fries?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Caramel milk shake? Thin?”
“You know me too well.”
“I don’t hardly know you at all.” Mary Lee got her small red purse from behind the counter and headed out the back of the booth. She touched Harper’s shoulder with her slender brown hand.
Harper watched her walk down the street, and even the thought of Mary Lee getting hurt was enough to make her sick to her stomach.
She couldn’t ask him to come back. Not ever.
* * * * * *
The plan had been looked at every way from Sunday, and still, Nate wasn’t happy with it. He’d found the perfect lab for Tam’s experiment. It belonged to an insecticide manufacturer, one who also rented it out to local colleges and universities for experiments much like the one Tam planned to run tonight. They had a cloud chamber there, and she’d be able to measure the viability of the antidote after prolonged exposure to air and pollutants. When he’d told her about it, she’d been delighted. But he was less so.
He and Seth had cased the place early this morning, and there was no question the alarm system could be disarmed. What bothered Nate was the location—too close to civilization and traffic for his taste—and the guards that policed the perimeter.
He didn’t want anyone to get hurt. For that to happen, Tam had exactly two hours to complete her tests, and she’d said that would be tight. Very tight. Even worse, when the test was running, there was no way to disguise the noise. If the patrol came by, they were toast.
And then there was the matter of Eli. Vince had been convincing. Nate just hoped the kid knew what the hell he was doing.
“Where’s Seth?”
He turned to Cade, who’d slept a good deal of the morning away. He’d needed it. “He had some errands. I lent him the truck.”
“Okay.” They were in Nate’s place, in what he laughingly referred to as a living room. Most people would call it a closet. “What weapons are we using tonight?”
Nate sat down on the ratty couch. No one knew more about guns than Cade. Tonight would require all the expertise they could get.
* * * * * *
The man’s face was hidden from view by his coat, the hood pulled tightly to obscure his features. Harper put her book down and looked for an easy escape route, but the way the booth was set up, it was awkward. The car was all the way across the parking lot, and she didn’t want to leave the booth with Mary Lee still getting lunch.
With her heart racing and her mouth suddenly dry, she stood as the man got nearer. Something shifted as he crossed the street. She recognized his gait, the broad shoulders. It wasn’t Omicron at all.
Her gaze went to his left side, to his arm, but his hand, his claw, was obscured by his coat. Still, she knew it was Seth.
Anger rose in her so quickly she could hardly breathe. What the hell was he doing here? Hadn’t the clinic been enough for him? Did he have to bring trouble to this place, too?
He walked up to the booth, his gaze moving over her face as if he hardly knew her.
She went to the counter. “What are you doing here?”
He shrugged carelessly, but his eyes were concerned as hell. Worried.
She hated that he wasn’t as scared as she felt. “You have to go.”
“What?”
“Get out. Wasn’t my message clear enough? I don’t want you coming near the clinic or my house or here. Especially not here. Mary Lee is due back any minute.”
“I thought we should talk.”
She closed her eyes, willing her heart to stop beating so fast. “There nothing to say.”
“I can’t even ask what the hell happened? Was it Smith? I didn’t want him to die.”
“But he did. And he almost killed me. What if it hadn’t been an early night? What if…?”
“What if what? It happened. It’s real. So is Omicron. And so is the danger you’re in.”
She shook her head. “No. I was fine until you showed up. No one bothered me. I changed my name, moved to that stupid house. I was fine.”
“What about the nightmares? You think waking up every night in a cold sweat is fine?”
She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Look, just forget it, okay? It’s not personal. You were great, you rocked my world. But I can’t have you here.”
He looked at her with disbelief for a long moment. Then he leaned closer. “Not personal? I don’t think it can get any more personal. We slept together. We’ve been through hell together. What’s more personal than that?”
“How we make it through. I’m not a fighter, Seth. I’m not like you.”
“Bullshit. You’re a warrior if I ever saw one. You use a scalpel instead of a gun, sure, but I’ve been there when it’s been hard. You never flinched.”
“Are you kidding? I can’t move without being scared to death. I might have to quit the only thing that keeps me grounded because I don’t want everyone at the clinic to be killed. I want nothing more than to have it all disappear.”
“Including me.”
She felt an ache bloom in her chest that made it hard to breathe. “Including you.”
“I can help.”
“No, you can’t. You brought death to my door, Seth.”
“Me? You think I wanted any of this? I’d like it all to go away, too. But there’s nothing I can do about how I got here. Only what I’m going to do from this moment on.”
“Right. Because you’re a soldier. I’m not. I never should have been involved in this mess.”
“And the rest of us? You don’t give a damn about Kate or Tam?”
“I barely know them. I barely know you.”
“Tell yourself whatever you need to about the others, but don’t try and tell me you don’t know me.”
“What, we spent a few months together and now we’re soul mates? We didn’t pick each other, Seth. We had no choice.”
“There’s always a choice. Yesterday you made yours. I made mine a long time ago.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. Forget it.”
“What choice did you make?”
“I’m going to fight the war that needs winning.”
“So, I’m a coward.”
“No. You’re just kidding yourself.”
She turned from him. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Mary Lee walking back from the diner, a big paper bag in her arms. Behind Mary Lee she saw a truck, one that looked awfully familiar. “How long have you been here?”
“Does it matter?”
“Yes, it does.”
“Since you set up.”
She turned back to face him. “Why?”
“Because you’re vulnerable here.”
“I’ve been vulnerable since I came back from Kosovo.”
He shrugged again. “It’s just as important to know what wars don’t need fighting,” he said. He looked her in the eyes, and what she saw there made the ache ten times worse. Then he turned and left, moments before Mary Lee walked into the booth.
* * * * * *
The night was more miserable than the day had been, and Nate figured that was one in their favor. With any luck, the security patrol would want to stay in their vehicles with the windows rolled up against the evening chill.
He was at the back door to the lab with Tamara and Eli behind him. All of them were dressed in black, invisible against the night. With Seth’s help, he’d disarmed the alarm system and was now opening the door. If their luck held, all would be quiet. If not…
The door swung open, and he hurried his charges inside. He could tell Eli wanted to rush in but held himself back until Tam entered.
Nate closed and locked the door behind himself, then turned on his flashlight. He knew the building now, all through schematics, though, so he supposed some things had changed. It was a pretty sure bet, however, that no one was going to move the big stuff like the cloud chamber.
With the two of them close on his heels, he went through the offices to the back of the building, where there was a hallway that led to the chamber.
Once there, he turned on the overhead lights. There were no windows in this part of the building, so they were safe from everything but the noise.
Tam got to work instantly. She had a briefcase with her, which she wouldn’t let anyone else touch. She zeroed in on some equipment he couldn’t identify and the computer on the side wall.
All Eli and he could do was wait.
“What’s that?” the reporter asked.
“Don’t know.”
“Does she?”
“Better than anyone on the planet, I’d wager.”
“Wasn’t she one of the scientists who came up with the weapon in the first place?”
Anger surged up inside Nate, but he just breathed for a moment, remembering Eli’s position. “She was in the dark, just like we were. The only reason she’s still alive is that she was smarter than all the rest. She figured out the big picture.”
“She looks awfully young.”
“That’s because she is. Doesn’t mean she’s stupid.” He looked pointedly at Eli. “You’re younger than her by quite a few years.”
“Point taken.”
“I just wonder if you realize what you’re in for.”
“If you’re trying to scare me, don’t bother. Vince did a terrific job.”
Nate smiled. He bet Vince did. “Why are you doing this? You could have just walked away. No one would have known the difference.”
“I would have. Not that I think I’m some kind of hero. I just knew too much, I guess. Baker’s notes were pretty complete.”
“He helped us a lot.”
“I hope I can, too.”
“You wearing that bulletproof vest?”
“Shit, yeah.”
“Good.”
It was difficult not to watch Tam but keep his eyes on the door, to be ready for any of the different warnings that would alert him to get Tam and Eli out as quickly as possible.
She moved with such efficiency it was mesmerizing, but her safety was more important than his viewing pleasure.
Eli had calmed down, which just proved to Nate that he didn’t truly understand the situation. If they were caught, there wasn’t a chance in hell they’d live through the week. Omicron, with its roots in the legitimate CIA, could make them disappear just as they had all the scientists and doctors who’d originally created the chemical agent.
Nate wondered what they called it. VX07? Kosovo Juice? Instant Death?
Tam stepped back to the computer from the chamber and started typing. Engines revved, and before he knew it, a roar had taken over the lab. If security came within two hundred yards, the game was over.
If it was possible, he became even more alert. Nothing could go wrong now, not with the test, not with their plan. They couldn’t be stopped. So much depended on it.
When Nate checked his watch, he was startled to see almost the full two hours had gone by. The chamber engines came to a gasping stop, and when Tam turned away from the computer he knew instantly that her antidote had failed the test.
“Let’s get going,” he said. “Time’s almost up.”
She nodded, her whole body showing her disappointment.
He brought his walkie-talkie up and clicked twice. It was his signal to Seth that they’d be exiting soon. If the coast was clear, Seth would click back.
Tam pulled some papers from the printer, then shut down the computer. Then she fetched some vials from the chamber, put everything neatly away in her case and said, “Let’s go.”
“What happened?” Eli asked.
“It didn’t work.” Tam passed him on her way back to the door.
“What didn’t work about it?”
“We’ll have plenty of time to talk once we’re out of here,” Nate said, herding the kid after Tam. He hadn’t gotten the clicks, which worried him one hell of a lot.
Something had gone wrong. Security had heard the engines, someone had been spotted. Whatever it was, he had to protect Tam and Eli.
They went through the offices once more, and Nate searched the grounds at each window they passed. He saw nothing. No new lights, no cars.
He held his people at the door as he opened it slowly. He heard a gunshot, and then a bullet slammed into the door frame inches from his head.
Nate jerked back, letting the door close, and flattened his body against the wall. He motioned Tam and Eli against the side wall so they’d be protected from whoever opened the door.
He couldn’t hear the shots through the thick metal, but he definitely felt the impact as two more bullets slammed against the outside. He looked at the naked fear on the faces of his charges and grinned to let them know he’d get them out of this. He raised a finger to his lips in the universal symbol of silence, and they both nodded.
Desperately, he clicked the radio again, hoping against hope for a response. Maybe it had been a mistake to leave a one-armed man on watch.
He shook off the doubt. Seth’s eyes were as good as ever, even if his confidence was down.
Nate clipped the radio to his belt and prepared for combat.
Where the hell was Seth?
Chapter 16
Harper had picked up the phone three times now and hadn’t dialed once. She was still trying to process what had happened this morning. Seth had been watching her. Protecting her. Even after all she’d said and done, he’d taken his whole day to sit in a truck and make sure she wasn’t harmed.
At first she’d figured he was doing it for the good of the team, but that didn’t make sense. The team had been told long ago that she manned the booth once a month, and no one had come. Which meant that Seth was there for her.
It was crazy. She wouldn’t have returned the favor. He had to know that. She’d sent him off without a thought to his safety. All she’d cared about was her own little world.
What shook her was that she had no previous experience to help her deal with this. Even her parents had basically abandoned her when she was just a kid. She’d had to learn to take care of herself early and well. The only reason she’d become a doctor was that she’d figured she’d make good money at it—enough to take care of herself by herself.
Seth had no business watching out for her. She’d never asked him to. And she would have resented it if she didn’t know that someone really was out to kill her.
It was only eight. There was still time to call. She picked up the phone again and this time she dialed.
