Never Let Go

by Cynthia Eden

  Consideringly, Wright followed Sawyer’s stare.

  Landon flushed. “What? What? He’s accusing me? Me?”

  “You were the one going room to room, conducting the search, weren’t you? You had access to the full facility.” He shrugged once more, and the chains clinked. “I didn’t.”

  Landon surged toward him. Sawyer let the bastard come at him. Come closer. Come…Sawyer lifted his foot up and slammed it into Landon’s stomach. Landon’s pain-filled grunt filled the air right before the doctor thudded onto the floor.

  The guy didn’t leap back to his feet.

  Sawyer stared at Wright. “Am I heading out on the mission or not?”

  Wright smiled at him. “You absolutely are. I count on you to lead these missions. There’s a reason you were the first subject into the program. You are the best.” He inclined his head. “But this time, you’ll be going out without your wing man.”

  Sawyer didn’t let his expression change.

  “Gonna keep Subject Two here for this one. Gonna keep half the team. I don’t think you need them. I want to see what you can do on your own.”

  Bullshit. You think if you have half my team here, you can control me. The damn thing was…the bastard was right. “Get the cuffs off,” Sawyer gritted.

  Landon was slowly rising.

  “You heard the man,” Wright said with a wave of his hand. “We don’t have time to waste.”

  ***

  They were going on a mission. There was a dead body in the lab, a killer on the loose, and Wright was still sending out his team of super soldiers. The world had gone absolutely mad, and Elizabeth didn’t know how to stop the insanity.

  “You’re the one he likes.”

  Her head shot up. She’d just entered the small exam room—under Wright’s orders. He wanted her to examine the team of three men before they left on their mission.

  Subject Five sat on the exam table. Bryce King. His blond hair was pushed back from his face, and a faint smile tugged at his lips.

  “Our fearless leader,” he added when she just stood there. “One. You’re the lady he likes.”

  She gripped the clipboard tighter in her hand. “I think you’re mistaken.”

  A guard was in the room with her. He stood to the side, silent, watchful, and armed. Her gaze darted to him.

  Five laughed. “I’m not mistaken about anything. One didn’t like the way I was looking at you in the training room, so he took my ass down.” Another laugh, a warm rumble. “Marked you as his. Told me to keep my hands off.”

  She could feel heat staining her cheeks. “I’m his doctor. I’m a doctor for you all.” She moved closer to the exam table. Elizabeth put down the clipboard and lifted her stethoscope.

  He caught her wrist, curling his fingers around her and stilling the movement. “Is that true?” His gaze dipped over her. “Are you for us all?”

  She didn’t like his touch. Didn’t like the way his voice had just turned cold. And she’d seen the flash of something ugly in his eyes.

  But he smiled and his thumb stroked her skin. “I think there’s a lot to learn from you.”

  Her shoulders locked. “Get your hand off me.”

  He immediately freed her. “Sorry, Dr. Parker.”

  The guard had stepped forward. Elizabeth gave a short, hard shake of her head. “We’re fine.”

  “Better than fine,” Five murmured. “As if I’d ever do anything to hurt what was his.”

  She checked his vitals. Touched him for only the barest of moments. Like Sawyer, his skin was warmer than normal, his heart-rate accelerated. She knew his senses were stronger, his reflexes sharper. And she wondered about his strength. Wondered about the secrets he might be keeping.

  That Sawyer might be keeping.

  “Are you afraid of us?”

  Her gaze rose to meet his.

  “The guards are. That fellow in the corner is about to shit himself because he hates to be in a room with me.” Five flashed his smile. “When you’re treated like a monster for so long, you start to feel like one.”

  She stared into his eyes, trying to see beneath his mask.

  “But I guess you know all about monsters. After all, you made us, right?”

  Elizabeth swallowed. “We’re done with the exam. You checked out fine.” Though she still couldn’t believe they were heading on the mission. After last night, the murdered man…

  “You didn’t answer my question, Dr. Parker.” Five tilted his head as he put his shirt on. “Are you afraid of us?”

  A short rap sounded on her door.

  “Ah, next patient.” He jumped off the table and his body brushed against hers. Immediately, Elizabeth stepped back.

  His eyes narrowed, just the tiniest bit.

  The door opened. Her head turned, and she found Sawyer standing there. He filled the doorway with his broad shoulders. He was dressed in black, just like Five. Just like the guards. The clothes stretched over his muscled form. His face was expressionless, but his gaze was stormy. Filled with so many emotions.

  Five laughed. “Don’t worry. I kept my hands off.” He gave a little salute to Sawyer and headed for the door. “I’ll wait for you at mission prep.”

  Another guard stood in the hallway, and when Five left, the guard followed him.

  Elizabeth swallowed and motioned toward the table. “Just, um, take off your shirt, and I’ll begin the exam.”

  Eyes on her, he yanked the shirt over his head and tossed it onto a nearby table. Then he stalked straight toward her, moving with a controlled, dangerous grace. Her stare jerked toward the guard who still waited in the corner of the room. He was there for her protection. Only…

  “Three of us are going on the mission.” A low hum of anger slid through Sawyer’s words. “Fucking three. We need the whole team, but Wright is holding them back.”

  For once, she didn’t blame Wright. They needed to find out what was happening in Lazarus. Letting the whole team of super soldiers out at the same time? Not such a good idea.

  He sat on the table. She took his temperature, checked his pupil response, put the stethoscope over his heart…

  And he watched her. Watched her with a stare that seemed to burn her skin. Watched her with a gaze that saw straight into her. Her fingers were trembling. Her knees wanted to shake. There were a thousand things that she wanted to say to Sawyer, but Elizabeth didn’t speak at all.

  Her fingers lingered against his muscled chest as she listened to his heartbeat. They’d made love hours before.

  Not love. It isn’t love, Elizabeth. This man—he doesn’t know you. He isn’t the same. You had sex. Sex with a man you aren’t sure if you can truly trust. Guilt and pain had driven her to find him. And now—now she didn’t know what to do next.

  “He’s keeping the others as insurance. To make sure we don’t step out of line.”

  She removed the stethoscope and stepped back.

  Sawyer lifted the leg of his pants, revealing his right ankle, and the metal band that circled his skin. “Like we can just walk away when we have these on us. They track us, everywhere that we go. Only Landon can get them off us. He’s got a program on his laptop—he has to type in a code to put these things on us and then to get them off. Even has to scan his right index fingerprint in order to get the program to open. Talk about freaking overkill.”

  She didn’t know specific details about this mission. For a moment, it almost felt as if she were in the past. He was leaving on a mission. And she—she was trying to keep her emotions locked up.

  Sawyer shoved away from the table. His body brushed against hers. But, unlike when Five had gotten too close, she didn’t retreat. She stood right there because she was so desperate to be with the man she remembered.

  “Don’t be here when we come back.” Sawyer’s words were a bare breath of sound against her ear. A low whisper she couldn’t even be certain that she’d heard.

  Then he was nodding and striding away from her. Not glancing over his
shoulder, not acknowledging her at all.

  A shiver slid over Elizabeth’s skin.

  Don’t be here when we come back. His words had felt like a threat.

  Maybe because…they were.

  ***

  Landon glared as the team loaded up. Sawyer gave the bastard a go-to-hell grin. General Jamison was already barking orders, telling the men to move out. A chopper waited for them on the helipad. They were on the very surface of the Lazarus facility—on top of a damn mountain—and the world stretched below them.

  “Looks like someone will miss us while we’re gone,” Three said. Three—tall, lean, with eyes that were nearly black and always cold. Three was absolutely lethal in the field, a sniper who could take out anyone with no hesitation. The guy didn’t joke as a rule, but his lips were curled as he stared at Landon.

  “Not like we’ll be gone long enough for him to miss us.” Five checked his weapon. “We get the kill done, and then we’ll be back to home, sweet home.”

  “Load up!” General Jamison shouted.

  Sawyer jumped into the chopper with the others. As the bird rose into the air, the wind battered back on the helipad. Landon stood there, still glaring up at them, but he wasn’t alone. Wright had joined him. Wright was smiling as the chopper lifted off.

  Is the plan still a go? Three’s voice slid through Sawyer’s head.

  The plan. Shit. Too late to turn back now. Yes.

  He had the fast impression of satisfaction from Three. Three…the fellow wasn’t much for conversation. More like the silent and deadly type.

  The chopper flew fast away from the helipad. The whoop, whoop, whoop of the blades droned steadily overhead. Sawyer glanced down at the land below him. Red. The mountains and the rocks were so red there. They were close to Sedona. Not too close, though. Didn’t want any tourists stumbling into their realm by mistake. Oh, no, couldn’t have that.

  Your doc is afraid of us. Five’s voice filled Sawyer’s head.

  Sawyer’s head turned until he was staring at Five’s profile.

  When she touched me, she was shaking.

  Sawyer kept staring at the fellow.

  Slowly, Five’s head turned until their eyes met. Do you like it when she’s afraid?

  No, he fucking didn’t like it.

  Five’s mouth hitched just the faintest bit. Because I do.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Don’t be here when we come back.

  Sawyer’s words kept replaying in Elizabeth’s head, and, yeah, they were freaking her the hell out. But then, the dead body was also freaking her out.

  “I’ll take care of the guard,” Wright was saying. The body of Hugh Cleston had been zipped back up. “Despite what Dr. Meyer said before, there is no need for either of you to perform any sort of exam on the remains.” His stare darted to Elizabeth and Cecelia. Wright had brought in a team, and they were currently wheeling Hugh out of the lab, and, presumably, away from Lazarus. “Don’t you all worry.”

  “A little late for that,” Cecelia retorted, her hands going to her hips. “A man has been murdered. Tell me that we’re going to have justice for him, tell me that you aren’t just going to leave us down here with a killer—”

  Wright waved his team on, and they pushed the body out of the lab. Then Wright turned, a congenial mask on his face, as he peered at Cecelia. “Dr. Gregory, you know I admire your work.”

  She stiffened. “Do you?”

  “You like to explore the darkness in the human mind. You like to see what makes men into monsters.”

  “I try to stop men from becoming monsters. Men and women. That’s what I do.”

  “You study killers. Actually, you made killers your life’s work.”

  “I made stopping killers my life’s work. You lied to me. You told me that I would be making a difference here, that I would be helping these men—”

  “You are doing all of that.”

  Cecelia took a step toward him. “You neglected to give me all the necessary information on my subjects. You didn’t tell me that they were dead men.”

  Wright’s gaze slid to Elizabeth. Hardened. Then he focused once more on Cecelia. “They were only dead for a small amount of time. And they are obviously very much alive now.” He rolled back his shoulders. “These men have far exceeded my expectations. The things they can do—absolutely outstanding. They will change the face of warfare. They will change the world.” He nodded. “I am beyond satisfied with the progress here, and it’s time we expanded our experimentation.”

  He had to be joking.

  Or else he was just insane. “A man is dead.” Elizabeth’s voice shook but she didn’t care. “And someone in this facility killed him. Stabbed him, thirteen times. Your test subjects have been coming and going as they please while they are here. One of them is quite possibly the killer and—”

  “The test subjects didn’t kill that guard. Someone else did.”

  He sounded so very certain. He was also very wrong. “You don’t know that,” Elizabeth argued. “You don’t—”

  “I know exactly where the subjects are, at every moment of every day.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Just as I know that, last night, Subject One was in your quarters, Dr. Parker. He was alone with you for fifteen minutes. And yet you told no one about that encounter.”

  She felt her face ice.

  “Obviously, you didn’t think One was a threat. You didn’t think he was such a terrible killer, or you wouldn’t have kept his secret.”

  How did he know? “Are you…do you have a camera in my room?” The bastard. He had cameras everywhere. Sweet hell, had he watched her and Sawyer together? The ice in her face gave way to heat.

  “Of course, I don’t have a camera in your room.” He laughed. “However, I do have a tracking device implanted in all of the subjects.”

  Her jaw dropped. No, that didn’t make any sense. If he had implanted tracking devices then why…“The ankle band—”

  He put a finger to his lips. “Our little secret, ladies, but that band isn’t for tracking. I tell the men it is, of course, but it’s actually an explosive. While conducting these initial tests, I had to be certain the men would act…appropriately…in the outside world. If they step out of line, if I deem them a threat in any way, I can trigger the device. And the threat they pose would be eliminated.” Now he snapped his fingers. “Just like that.”

  Elizabeth could only shake her head.

  Cecelia had gone silent.

  “The tracking device is implanted on each subject in a different location. Hidden under an old scar. Because of their lifestyles, the men all have scars, so concealment was easy enough. Through the trackers, I monitor the subjects, twenty-four seven. I’ve known for a while that they have been able to slip from their rooms and explore the Lazarus facility.”

  “You knew and you didn’t stop them?” Cecelia blurted, breaking her silence.

  “I thought you wanted them to have more freedom.” He lifted a brow. “Isn’t that what your reports have been saying, Dr. Gregory?”

  Her jaw hardened. “That was before we found a dead body—”

  “The subjects didn’t kill that guard. I monitored their trackers. None of them were near that stairwell.” He shrugged one shoulder. “So that means the guard was killed by someone else here, obviously. I don’t think anyone snuck into the facility. I think the killer is here, an employee. A doctor. Another guard. An individual who works for Lazarus. I believe it was someone who wants the Lazarus secrets and was caught in the act of trying to steal intel. That individual turned on the guard. Now we have to clean up the killer’s mess.”

  He spoke so easily. As if the murder of a man had been an inconvenience. And it wasn’t about cleaning up after the killer. It was about stopping him.

  “Don’t worry,” Wright assured them. “I will find the individual responsible. But in the mean-time, Project Lazarus will proceed as planned.”

  “These men—they are dangerous!” Cecelia’s voice r
ose. “You know one of them has been coming into my room, and you didn’t say a thing—”

  He turned toward her. “Ah, yes, sorry, that brings me to a bit of bad news. Lazarus will continue as planned, but I’m afraid you will not be the psychiatrist working with the subjects.”

  “What?”

  “None of the subjects ever entered your room. Their trackers show that. I can’t find any indication that anyone was there. I’m afraid that working down here isn’t good for you, Dr. Gregory. Despite the esteem I hold for you, well, I’m afraid you just aren’t the right fit for Lazarus. I think the facility and the people here…perhaps old memories are being stirred up too much for you.”

  “Someone was in my room! He was watching me.”

  “None of our test subjects were in your room. And I’m sorry…” Wright sighed. “I just can’t trust your judgment any longer.”

  Elizabeth moved to stand at Cecelia’s side. “You just said someone was trying to steal intel. Maybe that person—the person who killed the guard—maybe he was the one in Cecelia’s room. Maybe—”

  “All of Dr. Gregory’s notes and her files are kept in her office, not her private quarters. If someone wanted access to her files, the thief would go there. Not her bedroom.” He shook his head. “No, all signs point to Dr. Gregory having…a bit of an episode.” He tucked in his chin and stared at Cecelia a bit sadly. “And that’s the story that will spread, Dr. Gregory, if you mention this facility to anyone. The world will know that you are suffering from a psychotic break. That you never quite got over your past. It will be unfortunate, but that’s the way life works.”

  “You sonofabitch!” Cecelia lunged at him, but Elizabeth caught the other woman and pulled her back. “You’re blackmailing me!”

  “I’m telling you that your services are no longer needed. Your judgment is off when it comes to these men. You think they’re psychologically unstable, but from where I stand, you’re the one with the issues, doctor. You’re jumping at shadows and at ghosts that aren’t there.”

  “Someone was there!”

  “Collect your belongings. You’ll be leaving the facility this morning.” Now he pointed at Elizabeth. “I should send you with her. After your…rendezvous with Subject One, I should make you leave the facility. You’re endangering—”