Dangerous in Motion (Aegis Group Alpha Team, #4)

by Sidney Bristol

The job was done.

  A large man shoved Heidi to the ground. There would be no second, lucky shot.

  Léo opened the door to the stairwell and held the door.

  Within moments the Sorkin building would be a hotbed of police activity as the incident was handled by the local authorities. The question Léo had to wonder was, would the virologist and her friends flee or remain on site?

  Léo needed to get a handle on this, which meant he had to have Doctor Novak.

  8.

  TUESDAY. SORKIN PHARMACEUTICAL, Mumbai, India.

  By the time they reached the lobby Adam had most of the blood off Heidi’s face and arms. Her black t-shirt hid the rest.

  “Everything is going to be okay. Deep breath,” Adam muttered to her.

  The local police weren’t equipped to deal with questioning non-native speakers, not with a murder investigation going on. If it weren’t for Heidi hyperventilating Adam was fairly certain they’d have been shooed away immediately.

  Kyle glared daggers at him. Adam got it. They knew they were connected. It was obvious to their team. But the truth was no one else could see the connection. The best thing to do was to follow their main rule, play within the bounds of the law. They’d had a series of jobs that pushed those limits, but deep down, they weren’t mercenaries. They didn’t break laws. They worked with them.

  The building lobby was crowded with people, most of them from the executive floor. Their shell-shocked expressions were understandable. This sort of crime wasn’t normal.

  They walked out the front door with Heidi between him and Kyle.

  “Zain, talk to me,” Kyle said. They’d gone radio silent once they knew the emergency services were on their way to the scene.

  “I’ve got nothing for you. Get out of the city, find some place and lie low. I’m working on Reddy’s hard drive now and finding out more about his daughter.” Zain’s tone remained level and calm.

  Heidi turned her face toward him, the arm around his waist tightening.

  She was still in shock. Soon enough she’d come to, and then he didn’t know how she’d react. After she’d seen her parents she’d freaked out, which was understandable. That was a much gorier situation than what they’d just witnessed, but it could bring back that period of her life and all the horrors she’d witnessed that day.

  Riley and Grant stood on the curb in front of the SUVs with Cindy.

  “What happened in there?” Grant demanded.

  “We have to go. Now,” Kyle barked at them.

  Riley reacted immediately, going straight to the driver’s side of one of the vehicles and getting in.

  “I want to know what happened.” Grant was the leader of Lepta Team. He wasn’t used to taking orders while on an op, he gave them.

  “Not now. Get in,” Adam said. They didn’t have time for Kyle and Grant to butt heads.

  “But—John. He’s in the store.” Cindy blinked at Heidi. “What happened? Are you okay?”

  Adam side stepped the group, taking Heidi with him. He guided her into the back of the other SUV then started the engine.

  “Where the fuck is John?” Kyle asked.

  “In there.” Cindy pointed at a bustling shop across from them.

  “Get him, then get out of here.” Kyle got into the passenger seat.

  “I thought you talked to the cops. What’s wrong?” Grant wasn’t budging.

  “What do I do?” Cindy asked.

  “Get in,” Adam barked.

  Cindy climbed in next to Heidi. Before the doors had even shut Adam reversed out of the parking spot, cutting off traffic.

  “I see John,” Kyle said. “Grant has him.”

  “What the hell just happened?” Cindy demanded.

  “Mr. Reddy. He’s d-dead.” Heidi’s teeth chattered.

  Adam didn’t think either Grant or Kyle wanted to alarm the clients with the truth of what had really just happened.

  Someone had killed their contact with them in the room. It wasn’t a coincidence. It was a message.

  We’re five steps ahead of you. We can take care of you when we want.

  Adam glanced in the rearview. Cindy placed her hand on Heidi’s shoulder.

  “Is he really dead?” Cindy’s eyes grew wide. “Grant said someone was shot, he didn’t...”

  Adam turned his focus to the road. The person who’d shot and killed Mr. Reddy knew how to operate. It was hard to see this incident as random. More than likely it was directly related to why they were here. Whoever was making these custom order diseases didn’t want anyone talking. How had anyone known they would be here? That was what really concerned Adam.

  “What was John doing?” Adam asked.

  “Getting a drink,” Cindy said.

  “There was water in the SUV.”

  “He’s diabetic. He needed juice, or something.”

  “Shit,” Kyle muttered. “This is the kind of thing that would be nice to know.”

  “How was I supposed to know you were going to get a man killed? What happened?”

  “Later.” Kyle turned toward Adam. “We can’t go near the Basu’s. They can’t be connected to this.”

  “I’m booking you a private residence for the night,” Zain said, finally speaking up. “Until we know what this Reddy guy had, I want you to stay put. Whoever the sniper is working with might have wanted to use this to flush you out. Moving now only draws attention to you.”

  “Agreed,” Adam said.

  Plus, he wanted time with Heidi. The others didn’t know. They couldn’t understand what today could do to her. The damage it might have done. Heidi was one of the most resilient, capable women he’d ever met, but she was human.

  They’d been set up. Adam knew it in his gut. It was too coincidental that they’d make the connection to Sorkin and as soon as they showed up to ask questions, the guy in charge died. With them in the room. Someone was pulling the strings.

  He glanced in the rearview mirror at Heidi and Cindy.

  How much did he want to bet she was involved in this?

  They’d kidnapped her and kept her with every intention of holding her for who knew how long. What did Heidi know? Did she realize she knew something more valuable than what she’d shared with them?

  “Sending the address to you now,” Zain said.

  “What’s our plan?” Adam asked.

  “We need to talk.” Kyle glanced at him.

  Yeah, Adam was worried about that.

  The drive to the safe house took most of an hour. Heidi grew quiet and Adam hated every minute he couldn’t sit next to her. Even when they pulled into the modern home-for-rent Kyle assigned Adam to evaluating the property, identifying weaknesses in the security, where they’d need to set up cameras.

  He hated not having the rest of their team. This wasn’t usually his job, but with Kyle and Grant still working out the command dynamic, that meant Adam and Riley got the short end of the stick. By the time Adam finished setting up the external security, all he wanted to do was put his hands on Heidi and reassure her everything would be fine.

  “Hey, help me with these real quick?” Riley called out.

  Adam grit his teeth and joined the other man in the garage. They were a team. He couldn’t back down his responsibilities. If he did that left Heidi in potential physical danger.

  “Stay here for a second.” Riley blocked Adam’s ability to grab the end of a crate.

  He frowned at the other man.

  “Just—trust me?” Riley held up his hands.

  Adam tilted his head. The door leading into the house was open and he could make out voices. Two, male voices.

  “We don’t have time for this,” Adam said.

  “I know Grant is about as pleasant as a prickly pear, but he’s trying to do this job.” Riley didn’t budge.

  “What’s going on?” Adam was usually the one that sat back and took the temperature of the team, but he as all kinds of distracted.

  “Grant thinks Kyle shouldn’t be on thi
s job.” Riley pitched his voice low and tilted his head.

  Adam could read between the lines. He knew better than anyone the stress Kyle was under with his father’s declining health. Did Grant or Riley know that going on jobs like this was what kept Kyle sane? That his old man was an asshole?

  “Zain put Kyle in charge. I do what Kyle says.” Adam reached around behind Riley and pulled the case out.

  Second guessing each other wouldn’t make them a stronger team. It meant losing time and creating a weakness. This wasn’t just some client who’d hired them, it was Adam’s wife.

  Riley and Adam hauled three of the crates through the house and into the dining area. They could hear Grant and Kyle’s raised voices. The clients were nowhere to be seen, but they had to hear this. Heidi had to hear this. And it didn’t appear to be close to ending.

  Adam followed the voices to a set of frosted glass double doors. He pulled the door open and stepped inside.

  Grant stood on one end of the sleek desk and Kyle the other. Kyle’s face was red, and he’d shoved his hands through his hair a few too many times.

  “Shut up,” Adam yelled over them.

  Both men blinked at him.

  For a moment the silence was deafening.

  Yeah, Adam was happier following orders than giving them, but there was a line.

  “Before either of you say another God damn word, listen to me. My wife is in this house. She just saw a man’s brains blown out. You will keep your voices down or I will shut you up, understand?”

  Grant pivoted toward Adam, his gaze narrowing.

  “All due respect—”

  “You will shut your fucking mouth or I will do it for you.” Adam took a step toward Grant. “She already saw her parents kill each other, now this. The last thing she needs is you two banging your chests about who is in charge. Zain put Kyle in charge. I trust Kyle with my wife—not you. That is not an assessment of your skill. I don’t know you. Got it?”

  Grant took a step back, the muscles at his jaw flexing. He no doubt had plenty he wanted to say, but Adam didn’t have to listen. Grant wasn’t in charge. It wasn’t his call. And at this point, Heidi had to come first. She was the one they were there for.

  TUESDAY. SAFE HOUSE, Mumbai, India.

  Heidi stared at the red dot on her arm.

  She didn’t remember getting bit by a mosquito. The area was red, but not swollen or warm. She wasn’t fighting the urge to itch the spot. All of those were good signs.

  They really needed to be careful. Mosquito born illnesses were a serious problem in some parts of the country, she just didn’t know which. She’d never imagined coming to India. Most of her work was in South and North America.

  She squinted at the spot again.

  Was the bump getting bigger?

  It was hard to tell.

  Heidi pulled her shirt off and dropped it on the floor.

  Shit.

  She traced a red line across her stomach. It wasn’t a scratch or anything she’d done to herself. It was blood. And not hers.

  While at the Sorkin building Adam had wiped her arms, hands and face clean. She didn’t recall much else. The whole thing from the window cracking to Adam hauling her out of the office was a blur. She swallowed and rubbed at the streak.

  Though Adam had knelt over her, she’d still seen Mr. Reddy sprawled on the carpet.

  She closed her eyes and tried to shove the memory away. All that did was make room for more horrific ones. Of her parents. Their lifeless bodies. The living room.

  “No, no, no.” Heidi cradled her head and squeezed her eyes shut.

  She could smell the room as though she were still standing in it. Stale beer. The metallic scent of blood. The many layers of death.

  Heidi forced herself to open her eyes, and cringed, half expecting to see the living room complete with blood and gore staining the furniture, carpet and walls.

  Instead she stared at her room. The empty room.

  It pitched from side to side, causing her stomach to tighten.

  She turned and braced her hands on a dresser, sucking down a deep breath.

  A third face joined her parents. Their lifeless eyes stared at nothing. Their limbs laying at awkward angles, giving them the appearance of broken marionettes instead of people.

  Heidi shook her head, but the image was stuck. Bits of memory tickled the back of her mind, opening doors she’d rather have left shut.

  What was it her father had said earlier that day?

  It used to haunt her...

  He’d asked if she was together with Adam again. Lying about it seemed silly. Besides, when she slipped out before dinner with him it would be obvious.

  Dad had looked at her, laughed and said, “You’re just like me.”

  Heidi hadn’t given it much thought at the time. It wasn’t until a few weeks later when the reality of her parent’s death sank in that those words began to keep her up at night. Even though she’d seen the scene with her own eyes, she hadn’t understood it. He’d needed the detectives to lay it out for her.

  Mom’s letter and suitcase were evidence that she was trying to talk herself into leaving again. That wasn’t anything new. Mom did this at least once a year, but this time must have been different.

  From the placement of the bags and the glass, Mom must have come downstairs with a bottle of booze and her suitcase. Dad would have been sitting in the living room. The coroner said Dad had a head wound and there was a lot of his blood on the glass. It wouldn’t be the first time Mom had hit him with a bottle and drawn blood. Bottles were regular weapons in their house. Maybe Mom had really meant to leave this time. Perhaps that was it. She’d confronted him, because Mom had to have the last word, and he reacted based on his feelings.

  Ballistics told the rest of the story. Dad had shot first with the pistol he kept on the side table next to his chair. The bullet merely nicked Mom, which was when she had to have gone for the shotgun on the wall rack. Dad kept everything loaded and ready. Mom had shot Dad three times, and he’d shot her once. During the course of the shooting, they’d flung furniture, whatever they could grab. In the end, Mom died from a bullet to the head, while Dad chose to end his own life.

  Heidi was like him. That was what her parents had always said. She loved too deeply. Her actions were almost always fueled by her feelings. When it came to Adam, her reactions were based in emotions.

  Was her father right?

  Was she just like him?

  Were Adam’s exits from her life like Mom trying—and failing—to leave?

  She needed to wash the blood off.

  Heidi walked into the small bathroom attached to the room Cindy had escorted her to. She and John had been here for a while. They’d talked but Heidi couldn’t remember about what. It was all fuzzy and distant.

  It didn’t matter.

  She needed to clean up. Dad would walk around with whatever he’d spilled on himself all day. Heidi didn’t want to be like him. She wanted to be different. She couldn’t leave blood on herself.

  Heidi grabbed a rag and soaked it in cold water.

  A rhythmic drum beat began pounding on her temples and her mouth was dry. It was late afternoon. The sun was baking the house. That was why it was so hot. It had to be. The cool water would feel good, help clear her mind of the terrors that haunted her. She had to get clean first.

  She scrubbed at the streak across her stomach and the dots on her chest.

  Mr. Reddy was a desperate man doing a bad thing to save the ones he loved. He hadn’t set out to do evil, but evil had saved his company. For a while at least. Heidi wasn’t sure her father would have done something like that for her unless he got something in return. Then again, Dad had never liked to expend much effort. That wasn’t like her, was it? What kind of effort had she put into her relationship with Adam?

  Heidi squeezed her eyes shut.

  No. No, don’t go there.

  What about his daughter? Mr. Reddy had told them about his daughte
r.

  Laranya.

  The woman was missing, along with her family. How many people did that entail? The daughter, a partner, children? What about them? Kyle hadn’t been able to tell her much, but it wasn’t going to be good.

  Was Laranya another victim like her? Was this what would have happened to Heidi if she hadn’t gotten away?

  She dropped the rag into the sink and braced her hands on the counter.

  It was far too easy to picture a small child in one of Léo’s containment units. She didn’t doubt that he’d use a child if it fit his needs. And someone she worked with, someone she trusted, worked with him.

  She didn’t understand how that could happen. When she’d signed on as an intern with the CDC, she’d been excited about making a positive change. Helping people in a way that mattered. Taking that position had breathed life into her soul. The happiness she’d found at college had dried up without Adam, and she’d become lonely and miserable. Ever since then she’d made the CDC her life, but it couldn’t love her back. The job couldn’t go home with her at the end of the day and comfort her.

  But what if this was better for them? What if she only brought pain and suffering to Adam’s life?

  Her parents were great examples that sometimes love wasn’t enough. Their love had destroyed each other. Did she want that for her and Adam?

  Mr. Reddy and Heidi weren’t that dissimilar. They did bad things for what they thought were good reasons. His daughter might be dead. Heidi could still make a bad decision that would risk Adam’s life, not to mention she herself might be dangerous if her father was to be believed.

  On the off chance Mr. Reddy’s daughter wasn’t dead, what would happen to her now?

  This was all Heidi’s fault. From the situation with Adam to this. It was on her shoulders.

  She needed to find Mr. Reddy’s daughter. That was all there was to it. If she found the girl and her family, maybe it would right a little of Heidi’s wrongs. Adam—he deserved something better than her crazy ass.

  The bedroom door creaked open.

  She leaned back and caught sight of Adam’s profile.

  God, she loved him. And she wanted to strangle him.

  “We need to find Mr. Reddy’s daughter. You can do that, can’t you?” She walked toward Adam. His frown was more pronounced and his eyes wide.