With my head fully turned into his neck, my nose pressed against his skin, I spoke softly. “Whisper something in my ear, then count to five and pull me out of the room. Try to look around like you’re guilty.”
I could feel his heartbeat against my face, matching my own racing pulse. His breath was deliberate and feathery against my skin as he whispered, “I could stare into your eyes all night, but your lips make me forget my own name.”
Five seconds felt like an eternity with his mouth hovering over my neck, but as Ryder pulled me, I scrambled to keep up, all the while casting quick glances side to side. I was sure we had convinced Harrison and Calhoun, as well as any other person that was watching, that we were sneaking off to some romantic destination.
Ryder did not drop my hand once we were in the hall, but instead he pulled me to the elevator. He pressed the button for the twenty-fifth floor, and the doors pulled shut. The floor lurched beneath me, and I gripped Ryder’s arm for support. Elevators and my vertigo did not mix well.
“Records are kept at the end of this hall, but I’m not sure how we are going to get through the door. I might remember an override code, but—”
As he spoke, I quickly removed the card from where I had placed it and held it between my two fingers. The look he shot me was pure disbelief.
“Was that why you started flirting with Calhoun?”
The doors opened, and we stepped out. The main hall lights were off, and I pulled the penlight from my clutch and turned it on. We removed our masks and stuffed them behind a potted plant in the corner. I followed Ryder carefully down a maze of hallways, none of which had any security cameras that I could see.
“The records room is the only room on this floor worth watching,” Ryder explained, “and even then, most people look up information digitally. They have a guard dedicated to this floor, but it’s not like they get much activity up here.”
After a couple more hallways, I swore I heard someone behind us. I clicked off the light and heard Ryder collide with a wall.
“Lindy, that was not very kind,” he whispered tersely through a couple groans.
“Shhh,” I scolded.
Then I saw it. A flashlight beam just behind us, circling through the same labyrinth we were in.
“Someone is coming,” I hissed.
Ryder’s stride lengthened, but in his haste, he took a wrong turn. A wall loomed in front of me. There were office doors on both sides with locks, and no time to pick them. The flashlight beam bounced off the corner behind us and shone down our hallway like a ghoul that had spotted us and would return to tell its master. I could barely see Ryder’s face in the dim light, but I could identify the fear in his features.
Taking me by the shoulders, he pinned me to the wall and stepped close. If his goal were to hide, surely he didn’t think the corner would suffice.
His palms cupped my face, and he said, “Just trust me, okay?”
He closed the distance between us until our faces were nearly resting against each other. His breath was warm and deliberate against my cheek as we pressed into that tiny corner.
The flashlight beam swept from one side to the other almost as if it had its own identity, like a searchlight on a prison yard. It fell on us faster than I expected.
“Hey!” the guard yelled. “You can’t be up here.”
In the backlighting of the single beam, I could barely make out Ryder’s features. He still held my face in his hands, and his words were soft but insistent.
“Duck your head. Stay behind me.”
“Hey! I’m talking to you! Turn around and put your hands up.”
Panic gripped my chest. Did Ryder have a plan or was he just winging it? Over his shoulder I could see only a beam of light as the guard jogged toward us, shouting orders as he closed the distance. Ryder spun on his heel, careful to keep me pressed behind him.
“Ernie, is that you?” he asked, shielding his eyes from the blinding light.
The light stopped short then flashed directly at Ryder’s face. I ducked behind him to shield my identity and escape the white hot brightness.
“Ryder Harrison?”
“Yeah, man. It’s me.” Ryder moved beyond me, but I stayed right where I was, hoping my trust was in the right man.
“It’s good to see you, but you know you can’t be up here. How did you do it anyway? The elevator is coded.”
Ryder’s laugh was easy, even if it was false. “You know how my dad gets when he drinks. It’s not like he would notice the key card was gone.”
The laughter that exploded out of Ernie, the security guard, was positively wicked. “Some things never change, right?”
Ryder’s hand clapped against Ernie’s shoulder good-naturedly. “I know it’s restricted, but I can’t get on the roof anymore and,” he dropped his voice slightly, “I’m kinda working on something here, ya know?”
Ernie glanced beyond Ryder in my direction, but thankfully did not blind me with the flashlight.
“Ten minutes okay? When I come back around, you’ve got to be somewhere else.”
Ryder’s hand came up defensively. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
By the time Ryder had rejoined me, Ernie was around another corner, and we were alone again. It did not take long for Ryder to find the turn he had missed, and he located the records room with ease. There was no key pad at the door, but the door was locked. I ran my gloved hand along the doorjamb and felt the carpet. No wires. The door was not likely alarmed. Craning my neck to see, I slipped my hand into my bodice and removed the lock-picking kit that I had stuffed there.
Ignoring Ryder’s wide eyes, I went to work on the lock. With the correct tools, I was inside in less than thirty seconds. As I turned the handle and ushered Ryder inside, he watched me in awe.
“I don’t know whether to be afraid or impressed.”
I shrugged. “I’ll take either.”
It was Ryder’s turn to take the lead again. “What drug do you need?”
“Sodexus.”
It was obvious that he had been in the file room countless times as he weaved through the maze of steel cabinets. The metal file creaked as he yanked it open and let his fingers locate the file I was looking for. When he removed the manila file holder, it was empty.
“This happens sometimes when someone needs the data for a study. Is there anyone else you need to look at?”
I listed off the medications Kip had told me about, and one by one we checked them off, empty file after empty file. Ryder’s expression told me that we had surpassed unusual, and we were headed for can’t possibly be a coincidence.
“There’s a sign-out log. It might be happenstance that they’re all missing,” he said.
Even as he led the way, I could see a change in his demeanor. When I told him about this ordeal, he thought I was crazy, straining at gnats. But the missing files had created a spark of doubt in his mind. With my penlight to illuminate the page, he found the individual who had checked out the missing files.
“Jace Mosler.” Ryder said the name like it should mean something to me. It did not, but his mind was already unraveling the mystery. “He’s the assistant to the CEO of Pharmaco, or I guess I should say he was. If I caught the job description well enough, it’s the job Calhoun wants me to take.”
“What is the significance? What good would it do to have the hard copies of these files? What exactly is in these files?” I asked.
“Testing reports, drug trials, side effects, things like that. All information that came straight from the chemists who created and tested the drugs.” The implications began to dawn on Ryder. “Digital copies are easier to manipulate, but the hard copies could take longer.”
“So where is Jace’s office? How do we get in there?”
“We don’t,” Ryder corrected. “All the offices on the thirtieth floor are key-card and personal-pin locked. Even you can’t get around it, Lindy.”
Frustration seeped in my veins. “But if we can’t get ou
r hands on those papers before they’re altered, the proof of the real drug will be gone.”
Ryder snapped the binder shut and replaced it on the shelf where he had found it. He checked his watch in the dim light and motioned for the door. “They’ll be looking for us soon, and if Ernie finds us in here, I won’t be able to talk my way out.”
Even as I followed him through the endless halls of white, I felt defeated. The enemy had won. At least for the time being.
Chapter 16
Just before we re-entered the party, masks refastened once more, Ryder stopped me. “You don’t look like you’ve been on a romantic rendezvous.” He pulled a couple strands of my hair free to hang haphazardly and ruffled the sides.
“Now me,” he instructed.
I doubted my ability to deconstruct any part of his gelled coif, so instead I reapplied my lipstick and left a mark of my red lips just below his earlobe. With my thumb I rubbed over the stain as if we had tried to hide it. With his bowtie slightly askew, and while refastening his jacket, we entered the party once more.
We were spotted quickly by Calhoun, who, when he thought I wouldn’t see, raised his glass in congratulations to Ryder. Ryder nodded subtly to keep up appearances.
His breath was warm against my ear as he whispered, “He’s coming this way. Are you sure you can get this back to him?” I felt the hard edges of the security card slip into my gloved hand.
“Do you really need to ask?” My eyes scanned the immediate area for some sort of tool. “Get us some champagne,” I instructed.
Calhoun’s gait was slow and deliberate, and his shoulders slumped slightly, signs of being a bit more than buzzed.
“Lindsey,” he said as he arrived at my side while Ryder was getting our drinks. “I was beginning to think you had left without saying goodbye.”
Ryder’s pace increased as he saw Gary’s proximity. I smiled warmly at the intoxicated man. “Leave without a goodbye? I’d miss that trademark praise of yours, Gary.”
The champagne flute slipped into my hand as Ryder returned. Gary barely noticed Ryder’s presence.
“Would you dance with me, Miss Jacobs?”
In a very forward move, his hand slithered around my waist and gripped the beading of my bodice. The idea of being in his drunken grasp for more time than I absolutely had to be repulsed me. Instead, I let his heaviness throw me off balance. The champagne flute and its contents splashed down the front of his tux. He staggered back, suddenly sobered by the liquid that dripped from his body.
“Oh, Mr. Calhoun,” I gushed, snagging a towel from a nearby caterer. I slipped the card under the towel and began dabbing and rubbing the fabric over his damp chest. “Oh, I am such a klutz,” I bemoaned. The card slipped into his pocket just as Gary pressed me away from his body. My appeal had vanished the second I soaked him.
“It’s fine, Miss Jacobs,” he snapped, “but if you’ll excuse me, I need to clean up.”
We allowed his exit, and Ryder drained his entire glass in one gulp. As he motioned for two more, he said, “That wasn’t your cleanest con, you know. He thought you spilled that on him to avoid the dance.”
“As long as he doesn’t know the real reason. That’s all that matters.”
Ryder took two flutes from the tray. “I’m glad he left. I hate the way he looks at you.”
He tried to hand me a flute, but I declined.
“Come on,” he pressed. “It’s the good stuff.”
“I don’t drink,” I informed him.
“Ever?”
“Never,” I confirmed. “I am dizzy without alcohol. I don’t see the point. Besides, I try not to do anything that will dull my senses. But you go ahead. I don’t mind.”
Ryder frowned at the glasses in his hand. “Well, now I feel like a drunk.”
He set them on a nearby table. “If you don’t drink, I won’t either.”
“Ever?” I challenged.
His smile tightened as he thought about it. “I’ll try.”
He suddenly weaved his fingers into mine, catching me by surprise. “What now?”
I had to sift through my nerves to find my voice again. “Now we make our exit.”
We almost made it from the room, but Charles Harrison caught Ryder’s arm as we were about to leave. His voice was insistent as he asked, “Lindsey, can I borrow my son for a moment?”
I waited for Ryder’s nod of permission and then took a few steps away. Harrison pulled Ryder even farther from me and just out of my hearing range. His motions were angry and insistent, while Ryder’s vision dropped to the floor. I could see him faintly nod as his father railed on him. This had been his lot for years, I realized. Survive the lecture, and try harder to please him the next time around. Even with his newfound freedom, it was hard for him not to slip into old habits. I felt a twinge of guilt for putting him back in the same room with his father. The feeling only grew as we returned our masks, found the car, and headed back in silence.
**********
I pretended to sleep for much of the car ride. It was easier than enduring the venom that seeped from Ryder’s pores. I asked what his father had talked with him about before we left the city, but all he would say was, “Duty.” After that he was as closed off as a steel wall. It cut at me, so I faked sleep, at least until I could feel the tension dissipate from his body.
The low boom of his voice called to free me of my charade, like when I was a kid and Eleanor would call “olly olly oxen free” to get me out of my best hiding spots.
“You can stop pretending, Lindy. I’m feeling better.”
I did not bother denying it. It seemed he had been lied to most of his life. He did not need it from me.
“I thought you needed some space.” Even in the dark, I recognized the signs and shapes of home. It would not be long until I was through my door.
“I’m sorry. He does that to me. Always has. He can’t leave well enough alone. I swear he has to control everything.” Tension crept into the edges of his voice. Just the thought of his father brought it all back.
I considered reaching out to take his hand, confident that physical touch could calm him, but I didn’t want to send the wrong message.
“It’s going to be hard working at Pharmaco. It’s way more likely that I’ll run into him now. I might have to stay with him to cut down the commute.”
“Wait, what?” I asked, completely thrown. “You turned down the job.”
He did not look at me. “I’m taking the job. Then I’ll be positioned to see firsthand the proof you need.”
My driveway crackled under his car’s wheels. My front porch light beckoned to me, but I was not ready to allow his sacrifice.
“No. That’s too dangerous. I’ll find another way.”
“What is it with you and help? Let me do this. Jace was obviously fired because he would not, or better yet could not doctor the papers the way they wanted. I can make copies of the originals before they are changed, and you will have hard evidence. Isn’t that what you want?” He shifted the car into park and faced me, eyes blazing.
“I want you safe. I don’t even know what I am looking for on that paperwork. I’ll go after it through another route—”
“Exactly,” he interrupted, “you need me to understand the medical terms and testing samples. I’m doing this, Lindy.”
I opened the door and stepped out. My dress pooled around my feet as I tried to make a dramatic exit. The fabric hobbled me, becoming more entangled as I tried to pick up speed.
The driver-side door opened and closed, and I heard Ryder’s shoes crunch the gravel as he jogged toward me. His hand caught my arm, and he spun me to face him.
Frustrated by my dress and his desire to sacrifice himself, I snapped, “I don’t need you anymore. Just leave me alone.”
Shadows from the front porch light played with the emotions on his face, making it harder to read than it had been in the mask.
“I’m not going anywhere. You keep pulling me into this, and
now you have a partner whether you like it or not.”
“I’m trying to keep you safe. I know it would be easier with your help, but I don’t want you to get hurt.”
The half-grin that pushed up one of his cheeks was anything but happy. “You’re being selfless again, like with your relationship rule?” His other hand took my other arm, pinning me in place. “You know, you might be the most selfish person I have ever met.”
“Selfish?” I asked in disbelief. “How can I be selfish when I am taking on all the risk and trying to spare you?”
A breeze tickled my skin, catching the few hairs that were loose and pulling them over my shoulder. The stars were out, though dimmed by the porch light, and the moon barely crested the trees. But all I could see, all I could feel, was his indignant stare.
“You won’t let anyone help you, and that’s selfish. You won’t let anyone love you. That’s selfish. When you fall apart, when your disease has its way, you will need someone, someone who cares about you enough to see past the damage and find you in the wreckage. But you are too self-absorbed to see any of that.”
His tone softened. “Your pride will kill you before the disease ever gets a chance.”
My plan was to fight back, to argue and dismiss his ideas with as much animosity as I could. I knew with the right attack, he would turn away in disgust, and I would never hear from him again. If I could only hurt him enough that he could no longer see me in a romanticized light then our connection would be severed. That was the plan, but his plan was faster.
Ryder’s hand moved from my arm to the back of my neck, softly cradling my head as he bent low to press his lips into mine. Blood rushed to my lips, burning under the attention he gave them. His other arm wrapped my arm around his neck, pulling me closer to him and drowning me in affection I had deprived myself of for so long.
Caskets & Conspiracies Page 17