Razor's Edge (31 page)

“Our options are dwindling by the moment,” she said. “We can kill him and remove all traces of evidence from his body that he was ever here, but that won't be easy. Fire or acid are the only options.”

“How will they know it's him if they can't ID the body?”

“That is a problem. Which leaves our other option.”

“Which is?” he asked.

“We finish his transition now. We use him to draw this woman out, and we eliminate her as a threat.”

“He's not ready. He hasn't even finished the psychological conditioning yet.”

“I've been toying with a new method. Something from Dr. Leeson's journal. He stated that it was fast and effective.”

“Then why haven't you used it before?”

“Because it also has a fifty percent fatality rate. It's hard enough to find our subjects. Killing them needlessly seemed wasteful.”

“If it works, then what?”

“He'll be complete and under our control.”

“And if it doesn't work?”

“He'll be dead.” She rose from her desk and picked up the worn leather-bound journal. Her tone became distracted, as though she were already working in her mind. She waved a bony hand as she passed him. “I suggest you procure a vat of acid, just in case.”

 

 

It had been too quiet for too long inside the MCC. Tanner kept close tabs on Roxanne, watching her for signs that the blow to her head or side had been more serious than she let on. If he had to, he'd drag her to a hospital kicking and screaming.

He went to the door where Reid was standing guard. “How much longer do we wait?”

“As long as it takes,” said Reid.

“I'm worried about Razor. I think she needs to see a doctor.”

“She's tough. She's been through worse than this.”

Anger uncurled inside Tanner, both at the thought of Roxanne suffering as well as how flippant Reid was being about it. “How can you say that so casually?”

Reid looked away from the road and met Tanner's gaze. He was angry, too. His voice shook with it. “Because I'm not fucking her. Not sleeping with your coworkers tends to give you clarity of thought. You should try it.”

“I'm not going to talk to you about this. It was a mistake to even ask for you to come—”

“Well, I'm here, so deal.”

Reid's phone vibrated. He read the text message. “Clay says we're clear. He has wheels and will meet us back at the motel.”

“We should get moving, then.”

A ragged, strangled scream shook the walls of the MCC. Both men raced toward the noise, but Roxanne got there first. She ripped the door open and jumped up the stairs. Tanner was right behind her.

The prisoner was on the floor, tape still clinging to his body. Gage was over him, pressing rhythmically on his chest. He bent and breathed into the man's mouth.

“What happened?” asked Roxanne.

Tanner pushed past her and took over chest compressions.

Gage breathed into the man's mouth again. “Seizure.”

“Did you do this to him?” demanded Reid.

“No. Drive to a hospital.”

“I'll get the door,” said Roxanne; then she left.

Tanner met Gage's gaze between breaths. “What did he say?”

“Not much.”

“Did he know where Jake was?”

Gage nodded.

“Did he tell you?”

“He said Dr. Stynger has him, and when she's done with him, he'll kill us all.”

Roxanne had jumped aboard in time to hear that, which was something Tanner had hoped to avoid.

“I'm sure he was just blowing smoke up your ass,” said Tanner, hoping to keep Roxanne from jumping to conclusions.

“No,” said Gage. “He wasn't.”

They kept working on him for forty minutes as Reid drove toward the nearest hospital, which was more than an hour away. Tanner had unintentionally broken at least two of his ribs, and he still hadn't taken a single breath on his own.

“We're twenty minutes away from a hospital,” said Roxanne. “How's he doing?”

“Dead,” said Gage; then he breathed into the man's mouth again.

Her voice was strained with fear. “He can't be. He's the only one who can get us to Jake.”

Tanner was drenched in sweat, and his upper body burned from keeping up the exertion of CPR. He knew his efforts were futile, but he kept pumping the man's heart, anyway. He couldn't stand to let her down, even though he knew it was inevitable. “I'm sorry, Razor. I think Gage is right.”

“You're tired. Let me take a turn.”

Tanner backed away to give her room. Her jaw was set and her posture determined. If she could bring him back to life through sheer force of will, he'd be up and walking around before they reached the hospital.

They kept working on him, and Tanner had to lock his fingers together to keep from reaching for her. This man was their only lead, and as soon as she accepted that he was gone, she was going to be devastated.

“We'll find another way,” he promised her, hoping to ease the blow. “This man is not the only one who knew where Jake is.”

“Don't talk like he's dead. I'm not giving up yet.”

“When we get there,” said Reid, “I'll stay and answer questions. You three need to meet up with Clay and keep looking. I'm sure the police will be involved and it'll take a while. We can't all be trapped there.”

“It'll look like we're running,” said Tanner.

“I'll cover for you. You'll have to be questioned, but at least I can buy you some more time to look for Jake.”

“I'll stay, too,” said Gage between breaths.

Reid let out an amused grunt. “They're going to have fun getting answers out of you.”

Gage shrugged.

Tanner moved to the front where only Reid could hear him. “Maybe we all should stay. It's going to look like we're covering something up.”

“We could be here for hours. Days. Do you really think Razor is going to hang out that long?”

“Maybe she should. This is getting way too dangerous.”

“Welcome to the job.”

“Gage and I can go look for Jake. You and Razor can stay.”

Reid shot his brother a scalding look. “You know damn well she won't go for that. She'll slip off when we're not looking and be out there alone. Is that what you want?”

He was right. Roxanne would do whatever it took to find Jake. If Tanner wasn't there to watch her back, it wouldn't stop her. “I'll stay with her.”

Reid nodded. “We'll try to keep your names out of it. Work fast, though. I don't know how long we'll be able to hold them off.”

They pulled up to the emergency room doors, and Reid ran in and got help. It didn't take long for the hospital staff to take over and load him onto a gurney.

Roxanne hid in the bathroom, while Tanner stayed in front and drove off as soon as everyone went inside. The police would be here soon, and they needed to be gone before that happened.

She slid into the passenger seat, and even with only his peripheral vision, he could see her slumped, defeated posture.

He wanted to reach over and comfort her, but the space was too wide. He gripped the wheel tighter, instead. “We're going back to the motel to get my truck. Clay is going to meet up with us there. We'll retrace our steps and find someplace to start looking again.”

“I'm going to call Payton and see if they got any leads from the man who attacked us at the storage unit.”

“Let me know what you find out.”

She nodded, but he could tell from her lack of enthusiasm that she didn't have any more hope than he did that the news would be good.

 

 

Jake woke to pain. It throbbed through his veins like ice, freezing him from the inside out. He was shivering, and he couldn't figure out where he was. A huge sun glowed overhead, sending spikes of agony through his eyes. Tears streamed down his temples. He was lying down. His arms and legs wouldn't move. He could feel cold metal buckles against his skin.

A gloved hand moved the sun, and he realized it was some kind of light, like the one at the dentist's office. People gathered around his bed, surgical masks hiding their faces.

He tried to speak, but there was something in his mouth—in his throat. He could feel the plastic tube against his teeth. They'd shoved it down his throat.

Panic tore at him, compelling him to fight for his freedom.

“He's awake,” said a man.

“It's too soon,” replied a woman. He knew that voice. He hated that voice. “Sedate him.”

“He's already had too much.”

Irritation tightened her words. “I'll do it myself. Then we'll turn him over. We're running out of time.”

Seconds later, lethargy fell over him, washing away his panic. His eyes closed, and his will to fight disappeared.

 

 

Payton couldn't eat—not after what he'd learned today—so he had General Robert Norwood meet him at home. He didn't trust the man enough to take him down to his secure basement where he was certain no bugs or parabolic mics could pick up their conversation. No one knew about his hidey-hole, and he liked it that way.

“Wine?” he offered as Bob sank onto his couch with a sigh of weariness.

“Whiskey.”

Payton nodded and fetched them each a drink. They were both going to need it.

Bob leaned back. “We picked up Sergeant Evans today.”

The name didn't ring a bell. “Sergeant Evans?”

“The soldier in the hospital. Or at least he used to be a soldier. He left around the same time Jake Staite did. They were in the same unit.”

Payton's stomach sank a bit lower. “I got his medical records. There were several chemicals in his system they couldn't identify.”

“I'm assuming you could.”

He nodded, emptied his glass, and poured another. He waited for the burn to subside before he spoke. “They're not identical to the Threshold Project, but close enough that I'm convinced.”

“Convinced of what? Exactly?”

“Norma Stynger is still alive.”

“So you're sure.”

“Between Staite's journal and the chemicals in Evans's system, I think it foolish to ignore the obvious.”

“Damn it, Payton! Haven't we ruined enough lives? We haven't even finished cleaning up our mess, and now someone else is adding to it.”

“There's more,” said Payton.

“Hell,” spat Bob. “Might as well pile it all on. I won't be sleeping for a week, anyway.”

“It seems that Clay Marshall is degrading. Fast.”

Bob scrubbed his face with his hands, suddenly seeming ten years older. “I had high hopes for that boy. He was such a fighter, even back then.”

“I'm going to continue to monitor him, but the signs are bad.”

“I'll take care of it,” said Bob. “You shouldn't have to deal with someone you've gotten so close to.”

“No. He's my responsibility. If he has to be stopped, I'll be the one to do it. I owe him at least that much.”

“Hell, we owe him more than that, but a quick, easy death before he can hurt someone he loves is all we have to offer, it seems.” He got up and poured himself another glass. “While we're at it, I've got my own bad news to share. Adam Brink has disappeared, but not before he found another three people on the List and abducted them.”

“Any idea where he took them?”

Bob shook his head. He had more gray hair now than a year ago, but then, so did Payton. They were getting old. It was time for them to be retiring from this business to let the next generation take over and do a better job. But they'd screwed that up. The next generation had been their victim, and neither one of them could justify the selfishness of walking away. “None. He's got to have resources. No one man could do what he does and leave no trace.”

Weariness weighed down on Payton. He let out a long sigh, wishing he could take back his mistakes—at least the big ones. “We need to address the most immediate problems first. Starting with finding and eliminating Stynger.”

“Don't you have people searching for Staite?”

“I do, but it's not going well. And now there's a body in a morgue in New Mexico that is going to raise a lot of questions.”

“Why's that?”

“One of my men was questioning him when he just . . . died. Gage didn't do anything to him.”

“Are you sure?” asked Bob. “Things can get hairy in the heat of the moment.”

“Not with Gage. That man is as calm and methodical as they come. He's one of the few successes the Threshold Project had.”

“So far. When they turn, they turn fast.”

“You don't have to remind me. I live with these people. I'm careful.”

“So why are you worried about this body?”

“Because if he has the drugs in his system that I think he will, it's not going to take long for someone to connect the dots. The last thing we need is a multistate investigation. Media coverage. We don't want to do anything to trigger the memories of the few that have been lucky enough to find normal lives.”

“I agree. I'll take care of getting the body.”

“How?”

“Let me worry about that. You need to figure out what you want me to with the body once I have it.”

Payton was tempted to have him burn it, but who knows what they might be able to learn from it. “Bring it back. I'll convince Dr. Vaughn to do an autopsy.”