by Opal Carew
Those developments had imbued her with a second round of energy. Enough to let her finish the last few hours of her shift with a spring in her step.
The only troubling aspect of her shift had been the occasional sightings of Harrison, who seemed to have gone into stalker mode. But looking at the bright side of things, at least stalker mode meant he was keeping his distance.
Vigilant as Mick had warned, she carefully scoped out the hospital parking lot before heading to her car. In the early morning hours, there was little activity and the path to her vehicle was well-lit and empty.
With a relieved sigh, she gripped her keys firmly and hurried to her car. As she approached, a big SUV came screeching from the parking lot and jerked to a stop in front of the entrance to the emergency room.
The driver side door on the car flew open and a man came rushing around the front of the car.
His shirt front was covered in blood and as he noticed her, he hurried over and said, “You’ve got to help me. My son had an accident.”
She’d seen parents like this before, eyes wild with concern.
“Calm down, sir,” she said and walked beside him to the back of the car, intent on helping them into the emergency room where someone could take care of them.
“He fell and hit his head. There’s so much blood,” the man said, his actions jerky. Voice tight with emotion.
At the back of the SUV, he pulled open one of the doors and said, “He’s back here. I’m afraid to move him.”
Liliana brushed past the agitated man to get a look at his child, but the rear of the car was empty.
Before she could turn to face the man, a sharp sting came against her arm, and suddenly all her body functions seemed to be scrambled. She battled the sensation, realizing that this might be the man Mick had warned her about.
He was on her immediately, encircling her in his arms, but even in her weakened state, she tried to fight him, rocking back and forth to loosen his grip on her. Slamming her heel into his instep and earning a pained grunt.
Another sharp blast came, this time at the side of her neck. Her body bucked from the force of it and her knees gave way, nearly upending both of them, but she continued to struggle, knowing that one of the hospital security guards was barely yards away at the entrance to the emergency room.
Her assailant cursed at her continued resistance and pounded her body against the back door of the SUV as her vision faded.
Then another jolt of electricity surged through her system and plunged her into total blackness.
* * *
The chirp of his phone roused Mick from the peaceful bliss of her arms. Not an alarm, but a phone call he knew from the ring.
Franklin’s number flashed on the cell phone.
“What’s up?” Mick said sleepily, easing an arm around Caterina’s back to keep her close.
She sighed, laid her thigh over his legs and tucked herself tight against his side, still half-asleep.
“Got some news from a friend down in the Camden PD that you might want to hear.”
Instantly alert, he tried to keep his body neutral, but Caterina must have sensed the change since she sat up so she could watch his face.
With the peace shattered, he sat up in bed also, but once again wrapped his arm around her to urge her close. “Good news, I hope.”
“Maybe,” Franklin said and filled him in on all that he had gotten from his police department informant.
“Thanks. Let me know if anything else comes of it,” he said and hung up.
“Something important?” Caterina asked, glancing up at him, her eyes wide and trusting.
He nodded and filled her in on the news. “The lab boys down in Camden were able to get DNA samples from two different people off the stake that killed Wells.”
“Two?” she asked, scrunching up her brows as she said it. “I remembered two men fighting before I found Dr. Wells. It could be their DNA, so that’s good right?”
He knew for what she hoped – some evidence that would clear her of any wrongdoing and he hated to shatter her hope.
“The lab boys didn’t know what to make of the DNA samples. Too many irregularities which led them to believe the samples were either corrupt or contaminated and therefore unreliable.”
Her shoulders slumped and she seemed to disappear right before his eyes. In a way she had since her upset had triggered another response, this one more immediate than the others before them.
She realized it almost instantly and held up her hands, examining the blue of them against the blue of the sheets. “Corrupt like me. Contaminated like I am.”
He took hold of her hand and cradled her cheek. Gently urged her face upward. “It’s flesh and bone. Nothing more. It’s not who you are inside.”
She sucked in an uncertain breath, her body trembling beneath his touch and suddenly she was back to normal and in control.
“Science sinned against me. Violated me. This isn’t what I am, but if we can’t stop this, what will I become?”
“There’s got to be a way to handle this,” he said, trying to calm her.
“There is no way to stop it, Mick. We can’t stop whatever is going on in my body.”
Surprise filled him that she was talking about a “we” even as worry took root. It was only a matter of time before they would have to administer the inhibitor drug again. Before they would have her suffer through the fevers before undergoing another round of plasmapheresis to cleanse her blood.
But she was right that it wouldn’t stop what was happening in her body. With each cycle of replication, the experimental gene fragments implanted themselves more firmly in her native DNA until . . .
He wouldn’t wonder about that. About what would be the eventual outcome of the constant battle raging between the cells that made her human and those implanted in her by Wardwell.
Instead he pulled her close and whispered, “We will handle this. We will find out what to do.”
She nodded, a small smile coming to her lips with his words, and he bent his head and kissed her.
The chirp of his cell phone registered as he opened his mouth against hers, only this time he sprang into action, grabbing his Glock from the nightstand drawer and racing to his office.
Caterina followed behind him and arrived just in time to see what had tripped the first of the warning alarms.
The video feed on his laptop showed a small bag sitting on the path to his front door.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Don’t know,” he said and rewound the stored video to show the bag flying through the air from a passing car. A big black SUV which was racing away, but the video also showed that Liliana’s car was not parked in front of the house.
Mick replied, “Liliana should have been home from her shift by now.”
He snagged his jeans from the floor, yanked them on, and bolted from the room. She grabbed a robe and slipped it on as she followed him down the stairs. Neither of them stated the obvious – Liliana wasn’t in Mick’s bedroom nor was she anywhere on the main floor of the house.
Mick disarmed the alarm, but before he walked out, he pointed to a round red button on the wall opposite the door. “If anything happens with that bag on the path, you lock up, and hit that panic button.”
Then he tucked his gun into the waistband of his jeans, walked down the path, and picked up the bag.
Chapter 35
Nothing happened. At least not right away.
Caterina watched as Mick opened the bag and then seemed to crumple before her eyes. His shoulders sagged and his head dropped down. He turned and slowly walked back up the path, the bag in his hands. When he entered, he shut the door and reset the alarm calmly, but tension vibrated throughout his body.
“Mick, what happened?” she asked and laid a hand on his arm.
He reached into what appeared to be a plain brown paper bag and extracted a set of keys, a cell phone, and a note.
She didn’t need to guess whose key
s and the cell phone looked familiar. The message on the note was simple, but dangerous: Wait for my call.
“Liliana – “ she began, but he went into action again, rushing up the stairs to his office.
By the time she caught up to him, he had rewound the video to before the moment when the item had flown out of the car. He finally stopped the rewind and played the video.
At first there was nothing, but then the car came into view. It slowed before the house and the driver side window lowered, allowing them a glimpse of Mad Dog.
Mick gazed up at her, anguish on every line of his face. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close. Cradled his head against her and laid her forehead on his.
“We’ll handle this. We’ll figure out what to do,” she said, echoing his earlier words and taking solace in his reply.
“We will.”
* * *
Liliana woke to incomplete darkness and the odors of wet dirt and mildew.
Forcing herself to concentrate only intensified the steady throb in the middle of her skull, but she fought it back. Slowly the shadows took shape. Walls made of either stone or cement were wet with seeping water that puddled here and there on cracked floors littered with sand and debris. Somewhere ahead of her there appeared to be a tunnel of some kind that leaked in indistinct light, allowing her the limited view of where she was being held.
From the tunnel also came the susurrus of distant waves and the occasional raucous cry of a seagull.
She was somewhere near the ocean.
But where?
She wracked her brains for an idea of where there might be tunnels or sufficient mounds of earth to create a holding pen such as the one she was in.
The Highlands? Cheesequake? Sandy Hook? she wondered, but then a figure emerged from the shadows, his silhouette limned by the light from the tunnel.
“About time you woke up,” he said with some irritation and approached her.
She guessed him to be a couple of inches over six foot, as tall as Mick, but not as lean. Mid-thirties with a face which bore signs of a hard life. He had a noticeable scar at the edge of his lip and another which cut across one brow. There were also a number of bruises as well as a relatively fresh scrape across one cheek.
“Mick kicked your ass good, didn’t he?” Liliana said.
He slapped her hard across the face, rocking her head back to rebound against the high back of the chair. Warmth trickled down the side of her mouth and the coppery taste of blood filled her mouth, but she couldn’t do much about wiping it away. Her hands were duct taped to the arms of the chair. She tried to move her legs, but it was impossible. The pressure at her ankles confirmed he had bound her there as well.
“Mouthy for someone in your position,” he said and she detected a nasally tone in his speech. A New Englander she guessed, not that such information was useful. So she asked him, “And what position would that be?”
“Soon to be dead meat, but not before we have some fun.”
He crouched before her and the minimal light in the room glinted off something very shiny and very sharp.
She controlled the urge to flinch as he brought a long thin knife close to her chest. He eased it beneath the edges of her blouse and with a quick flick of his wrist, cut off a button.
She stared straight ahead, refusing to acknowledge his actions, but it was impossible not to feel the release of the fabric as each button popped loose.
The damp air chilled her skin as he pulled apart the edges of her blouse. The knife blade was even colder as he slid it beneath the straps of her bra and sliced through them.
“Beautiful,” he said as he dragged down the bra to expose her breasts.
She focused her gaze on the wall in front of her, but couldn’t control the shudder that shook her body as the chill in the air and coolness of the knife’s metal registered.
“Cold?” he asked and shifted the knife across her skin, but made no other motion to touch her.
“You’re a sick bastard,” she said through gritted teeth.
He leaned close to her, a twisted smile on his face. “Sweetheart, we haven’t even gotten started.”
* * *
Mick knew Mad Dog well enough to know he would run to ground somewhere nearby, unwilling to risk having Liliana out in public for too long. Which meant there were only a few places he might have found to hide out. Somewhere back near Wardwell in the Pine Barrens. Maybe even where Edwards and his partner had taken the remaining gene therapy patients.
There were some other hiding areas by the Twin Lights in the Highlands, as well as more possible locations in Fort Hancock. Even with the many battery areas which had been opened for public tours, there remained a large number of tunnels and ammo storage areas where someone could hide. Unfortunately, they were the more dilapidated areas and risky to navigate due to their deteriorating conditions.
But it was where he might go if he had to keep someone prisoner for any length of time.
Liliana’s cell phone sat on the desk before him. Silent.
Mad Dog was nothing if not predictable. He’d call and offer Liliana in exchange for Caterina. Make him bring Caterina to him and then try to take them all out so he could walk away without leaving behind any witnesses. Afterward and without a care in the world, he’d collect whatever bounty Edwards and his partners had placed on Caterina’s head.
Too bad he intended to mess up Mad Dog’s plans.
He lifted his cell phone and dialed Edwards.
Annoyance filled the other man’s voice as he answered.
“What now, Mr. Carrera? I already told you all that I can.”
“Mad Dog grabbed my sister.”
An exasperated sigh sounded across the line. “As I told you before, I have nothing to do with this Mad Dog fellow.”
Mick didn’t believe that for a moment. “You better pray I find my sister safe and sound, Dr. Edwards.”
He didn’t wait for Edwards’ reply.
When he looked up, Caterina was at the door, worry etched onto her features. “Have you heard anything?”
He shook his head, concern gnawing at him. Mad Dog treated his captives like a cat with a mouse. He liked to play with them first. His gut tightened at the thought of what Mad Dog might be doing with his sister, driving him to his feet.
“I need to find them. I can’t just sit here and do nothing.”
“Mad Dog said to wait for his call.”
“He’s probably hurting her. That’s his M.O.” Mick said, raking an agitated hand through his hair as he paced before her.
Caterina walked to his side and laid a hand on his arm. “He’s got the advantage right now.”
“I think I know where he is,” he said.
“And what will you do? Go off half-cocked? Even if you’re willing to risk your life, what about the innocent people who might be in the way?”
Mick thought about what Mad Dog might be doing to Liliana, but then forced aside such thoughts. He had to keep emotion out of it to stay logical and in control.
“You’re right, Cat. Mad Dog will call when he has everything just like he wants it.”
Caterina embraced him. “I’m sorry. I know this is all my fault.”
He shifted away from her and took hold of both her arms, his touch gentle as he attempted to reassure her. “This is not your fault at all.”
She tapped the center of her chest with her fingers. “He wants me. Just me. I’m willing to go to save Liliana.”
He wagged his head in chastisement. “Do you really think Mad Dog or his bosses will let any of us live?”
With a sad shake of her head, she said, “No. There’s too much money involved to allow that.”
He dug his hand into her hair and cradled the back of her head. “Trust me. I suspect where he might have taken her.”
“When will we go?” she asked, but Mick shook his head.
“It’s full light out. I need cover to approach and have any hope of saving Liliana
. Once it’s dark, I’ll head there.”
“We’ll go together,” she insisted.
“No,” he replied curtly. “The tunnels are risky even during the day. At dark they’re treacherous and I need to have the benefit of surprise on my side.”
Liliana’s cell phone chimed, the ring tone overly loud and excessively cheerful.
As Mick answered, he hit the speaker phone button so Caterina could also hear what Mad Dog had to say.
“You there, Carrera?” Mad Dog asked.
Mick kept his tone neutral as he asked, “Where is she, Mad Dog?”
“I’ve got someone who wants to say hello,” the other man said, but silence followed for long seconds before the muffled noise of what sounded like a slap pierced the quiet.
Mad Dog warned, “Speak up, bitch,” before the sound of another louder slap filled the line.
Mick clenched his fists and Caterina covered his hand with hers, offering support while they waited.
Liliana finally said, “I’m okay, Mick.”
Mad Dog’s harsh chuckle followed. “Bitch is stubborn. She’s just making it harder for herself.”
“You’re a dead man, Mad Dog.”
“Let’s get this dance over with, Carrera. You know what I want. Shaw in exchange for your sister.”
Mick met Caterina’s gaze. Determination filled her features as he said to Mad Dog, “When? Where?”
“Midnight at Fort Hancock. Tunnel off the second set of battery buildings. Follow what’s left of the paths for the old Nike missile tracks until you reach the ammo storage area. We’ll be waiting for you.”
Before Mick could say another word, the line went dead.
Caterina squeezed his hand gently and asked, “Do you think he’s telling the truth?”
“About where he is? It’s where I would go to hide,” he admitted, but quickly added, “But he doesn’t plan on making an exchange. He’ll probably lay out a trap or two somewhere along the tunnels to take us out long before we reach Liliana.”