Gabriel took a deep breath and lowered the gun. A glance at the clock revealed that it was only four in the morning. He couldn’t have been asleep for more than an hour. After getting off the phone, he’d hidden in the guest room, thinking about what Justin had said. Yes, he had an exit strategy for when it came time to leave the business, but things were damned complicated and in truth, he’d never really expected to live long enough to actually use it.
But living with Justin over the past three weeks had made him want things like a normal life. And in the center of that normal life was Justin’s goofy grin and annoying little quirks that just made everything so much better.
It was dangerous to want things, though. And wanting Justin put him in incredible danger.
Sighing, Gabriel grabbed a pair of sleep pants out of the dresser and pulled them on before finding Justin in the kitchen. The man was brewing a pot of coffee. He stood stiffly with his arms folded over his chest, glaring at the coffee maker as it if had somehow pissed him off. Even angry with bulging muscles, there was something adorable about him, with his sleep-tousled hair standing up in all directions and his bleary eyes. He looked warm and snuggly, and Gabriel was sure that if he wrapped his arms around him, he’d feel it too. Of course, there was a good chance that Justin would slug him if Gabriel tried it. The mercenary had every right to be pissed at Gabriel.
“Brianna?” Gabriel asked when he didn’t see Justin’s phone.
“She’s calling back in ten minutes. Told her I needed coffee before she started spouting all her medical nonsense at me.”
Gabriel grunted and slid into one of the breakfast bar chairs as he watched Justin. The man was too stiff. Hurting. And he couldn’t let that continue.
“My life is complicated, Justin,” Gabriel started hesitantly.
Justin narrowed his eyes and looked at him like he was a fucking idiot.
Gabriel sighed. It was a bad start. Justin’s life was probably complicated as well. “Five years ago, they killed my partner because he was gay. They tortured him and killed him.”
Some of the anger left Justin’s face, and he turned to look at him, but Gabriel found that he could no longer hold Justin’s gaze, so he stared down at the marble counter.
“Partner in your work…or partner as in—”
“Both, actually.” Gabriel swallowed hard. He’d never spoken about Ivan to anyone. “I think he knew they were close. He sent me away for a day to case a target. When I got back, he was dead…but we kept a video camera in our rooms for security. I saw everything they did to him.”
“G…”
Gabriel shook his head to stop any kind words from Justin’s lips. He had to get this out or he never would. “I knew they’d be after me next, so I faked my death, went underground for a year. When I resurfaced, I had a new look, new name. I was out for me. But there are some people who know I’m still alive. Some want me dead for what I know. Others just want me dead because I’m a fag.” He paused, tracing the tip of his finger along a white vein within the marble. “I have an exit strategy, but I never really thought I’d live long enough to implement it. Never thought I’d find a reason to.”
When he finally lifted his eyes to Justin, it was to find that the anger was gone, but it had been replaced with sadness. “I understand.”
“Thank you.”
They stared at each other for several seconds without saying a word. And there was so much more that Gabriel wanted to say to him, but he just didn’t know where to start, and he didn’t dare make promises he couldn’t keep. It wasn’t fair to either of them.
Justin’s cell ringing broke the moment, and he cursed.
“Answer the phone, and I’ll finish making the coffee,” Gabriel said, sliding out of his chair. He started to walk past Justin when he was grabbed. His chest slammed against Justin’s bare chest and sweet lips brushed against his jaw, making his sigh.
“Keep thinking about what I said. We don’t have to stick with this life,” Justin whispered. Then he let go of Gabriel and stepped back to answer the phone.
Gabriel stumbled almost dreamlike to the cabinet and pulled down two mugs. He then walked to the refrigerator and pulled out the milk. Justin liked a spoonful of sugar and a heavy splash of cream. He quickly made his own, which was just a light splash of cream, and brought both mugs over to the breakfast bar.
“Bri, it’s four in the morning. Tell me this is a good call,” Justin growled. He accepted the mug of coffee from Gabriel with a wink, the playful side of Justin back.
“Acute glomerulonephritis!” she shouted back at him in the most joyous voice, like she was wishing them both “Merry Christmas!”
“Oh God, Bri! English!” Justin groaned.
“Acute renal failure.”
“Pretend I didn’t take any biology in high school,” Justin said.
“Do you know what a fucking kidney is, Justin?” Brianna snapped, and Gabriel had to press his lips together to keep from laughing out loud.
“Yes, kidney sounds familiar. I’ve got two of them.”
There was a loud sigh through the phone’s speaker. “Yes, most people have two, and you can actually survive just fine on one. Acute renal failure is when they both fail at the same time. Not incredibly common. Usually a person loses just one and the other compensates. But there are diseases and infections that can cause acute renal failure.”
“Or drugs?” Gabriel added.
“Yes! Like this nasty son of a bitch.”
“That’s its scientific name,” Justin said to Gabriel in a stage whisper.
“The job of the kidney is to filter waste chemicals and fluids from the blood and transfer them to the bladder. Acute glomerulonephritis is when the filtration system within the kidney stops working. At that point, chemicals build up in the blood and can kill you. If you catch it fast enough, you can do emergency dialysis.”
“So, why didn’t they do that with the patients to save their lives?”
There was a long pause and then Brianna softly sighed. “It’s hard to say since I don’t have a lot of time to dig on the other patients, but it looks like there’s a critical tipping point with this drug. These people go along fine until they reach a certain dosage when combined with their body weight, or possibly it’s being stored in cells that we aren’t seeing. But when it reaches that point, it’s critical. The kidneys go into almost instant meltdown and then take other organs, like the heart, with them.”
“And you’re sure it was the drug that killed them? Not the cancer they were being treated for.”
“Oh, hell yeah. Definitely the drug. Justin, you guys can’t let this shit get approved. There might be something there in the future with this, but not in its current form. They need to study every inch of these poor patients and figure this shit out. The drug is deadly.”
“Bri, sweetie, I need this all written up in proper doctor lingo. We gotta convince the world you’re right,” Justin said, leaning close to where the phone was sitting on the counter.
“Already done. I emailed it to you. I’ve also sent my notes on to the FDA advisory committee and the University of Cincinnati that was helping with the study. That’s a good school, and they will not want their name pulled through the mud with this shit.”
“You’re an angel.”
“Not at all, but it’s nice that you think that.”
“Get some sleep, sweetie. You’ve saved a lot of people.”
Justin hung up the phone and threw up his arms like he was signaling for a goal. “We got it.”
“That’s step one,” Gabriel conceded.
“That’s a big step.”
He nodded, grinning at his partner. “True. We just need to figure out who buried that data from the FDA.”
Justin dropped his arms and walked around to stand in front of Gabriel. “That’s tonight. Come on. It’s four in the morning. Let’s get some sleep.”
Gabriel lifted both eyebrows at him. “In the same bed?”
“Crazy
idea, I know. But yes.”
“Just sleep?”
Justin reached down and grabbed his hand, twining their fingers together. Gabriel looked down at where their hands were joined. The sight and feel never ceased to make his heart skip a beat. It was something he was sure he would never get accustomed to, but he would really like to give it a try.
Giving his hand a little tug, Justin drew Gabriel back toward the stairs. “If you’re lucky, maybe I’ll wake you up with a nice surprise.”
Chapter Eighteen
Justin flexed his right hand where it rested on the passenger side door of the truck, while Gabriel paused at the main gate to Iaso’s complex. He would have preferred to drive, but as much as he hated to admit it, this part of the operation was Gabriel’s. He had to relax and let the man do his job so he could focus on his: taking down the security system.
Gabriel had perfectly handled acquiring a truck, the keycards, and the uniforms, while Justin had studied the blueprints and what he could find on the security system. The landscaper had access to the company’s wifi, which had allowed Justin to get in and sneak around for a bit, but he didn’t find what he was looking for. They needed to get into the offices of Elba and Hamilton. If they didn’t find what they needed in those offices, then they’d go to their homes.
When the gate lifted, allowing the truck in, Gabriel looked over at Justin and smirked before he pressed the gas pedal, moving them forward.
“I can hear you grinding your teeth,” Gabriel teased.
“I’m not grinding my teeth. I’m fine.”
Gabriel snorted. “This has been my life for the past three weeks while I waited for you to hack into shit.”
“Oh, screw you! You got laid too.”
“Mmmm….and fed. I’m thinking I should have put in a request for a celebratory dinner after we were done. Maybe that beef bourguignon you mastered.”
“Only if I get to fuck you against the counter while it’s cooking.”
“Done!” Gabriel declared with a laugh.
Justin rolled his eyes and sighed, but it was to cover up his smile. “This is why I don’t work with a fucking partner. You can’t sneak when you’ve got a goddamn hard-on.”
Gabriel pulled the truck into an open spot near the entrance of the building and put it into park. Iaso’s complex had two buildings and a separate parking garage. The eight-story glass building held most of the corporate offices for sales, marketing, and management, while the smaller three-story building was mostly laboratories. From the notes they could find from the builder, both Elba and Hamilton had offices in the corporate building. Elba was on the sixth floor, while Hamilton was up on eight.
“Ready?” Gabriel asked. The laughter and teasing were gone from his expression, and Justin found himself looking into the cold, distant face of the man he’d met for the first time more than three weeks earlier. He was still handsome and intriguing, but Justin found himself surprised at how much Gabriel had changed before his eyes in such a short time span. He needed the laughter and frustration and all the other emotions that Justin coaxed out of him. They both needed it.
But the first step to get back there was finishing this contract at long last.
“Let’s do it.”
They both climbed out of the truck and grabbed some watering cans and a large bag that looked as if it contained some other plant care supplies. Weapons were stashed on their bodies, but Justin was also carrying his own laptop and a few other useful gadgets that might come in handy if he struggled to take down the security system. Worst case scenario, he was pretty sure he could just knock out the power and they’d finish with a smash and grab from the two offices.
Their keycards worked on the front door and they stepped into a posh lobby of polished marble, shining steel, and cold glass. The two-story opening likely shone during the day with sunlight glinting off all the surfaces. In the center of the room was a softly splashing fountain that would have only added to the lightness. There was an overwhelming opulence to the place that reminded Justin more of some five-star hotels he’d stayed in on occasion when they fit the role he was playing. This lobby didn’t make him think of a pharmaceutical company, but then he’d not spent a lot of time digging around the healthcare industry other than making trouble in hospitals.
As they entered the building, they made a point of checking and watering the various ferns, palms, and flowers that decorated the space. They waved to the security guard at the side desk, receiving a small nod from the man before he returned his attention to his phone again. If they were lucky, all the guards roaming around the building would be as diligent, but Justin wasn’t counting on it.
When they reached the door leading deeper into the building, Gabriel unlocked it and motioned for Justin to precede him. “Are you ready?”
“Left. Three offices. Another left,” Justin replied, repeating the directions to the security room that Gabriel had been sure to drill into his brain for the past two days.
“Don’t be slow,” Gabriel said with a smirk. He then backed up, allowing the glass door to shut and separate them. Gabriel was to use the elevator to go straight to the eighth floor and Hamilton’s office. When he reached the office in approximately two minutes, Justin was to have the security room under his control and the security system down or the power supply shut down so they couldn’t be recorded. If it was the latter, Justin then had to take care of the remaining security guard on the first floor.
They stared at each other for a heartbeat, but it felt like longer. This was the most dangerous part of their entire undertaking. They had no earwigs or other forms of communication. They couldn’t risk phones or even walkie-talkies to warn each other for fear of whatever surveillance the company had set up would pick up on it. Each had to perform their assigned task to perfection and then escape before time was up. If one was injured, the other would not know it until it was too late.
Please let him be safe.
Justin knew Gabriel had likely survived multiple scenarios that were far more dangerous, but he couldn’t stop the thought from passing through his brain. He nodded once and then continued down the corridor alone.
The first floor had several offices along the outer wall while the interior appeared to be an old-fashioned cubicle farm. It looked like it might be some sort of call center for possibly customer service. The cubes all looked relatively uniform with their waist-high walls and bland, light gray desks. Occasionally he might see a splash of color from a calendar or a birthday card, but it was largely an ocean of monotony. He couldn’t understand how more people didn’t go absolutely postal after working a lifetime in this vast wasteland of boring.
Of course, he was confident that not many people would have preferred his life’s pursuit of car chases, explosions, shoot outs, and sketchy meetings in bars and lonely cabins in the middle of nowhere. But then, to each his own.
After the third office, he reached a cross-section where the row of cubicles opened into an aisle on his right and a new hallway to his left. He took the hallway, passing the restrooms on the right, until he reached a door on the left marked “security.” How convenient!
He knocked on the door and then switched his watering pail from his right hand to his left. As the door opened to reveal a stern-looking man with a buzzcut and grizzled features, he palmed his stun gun from his pocket.
“There’s nothing to water in here,” the guard barked as soon as he got a look at Justin’s uniform. He was closing the door again when Justin stepped forward, blocking the path of the door.
“What—”
He didn’t get any further. Justin thrust the stun gun into his gut and pressed the button, delivering intolerable pain to the man. The guard cried out and dropped to the ground, twitching and jerking in agony.
“What the fuck! John?” called a panicked second voice.
Fuck indeed. They’d not planned on there being a second person within the security room. He wasn’t positive there was enough of a charge to take
down a second large man. When he’d tried out this new model of flashlight and stun gun combo, he’d only used it on one person before charging again.
As the second guard stepped over to his coworker, Justin brought the watering can down hard on his head and then delivered a second hard blow to his temple, using the base of the stun gun. The man staggered backward into the room, but he wasn’t out. Justin rushed him. Grabbing a handful of his uniform, he swung him around and slammed him head first into the door. It wasn’t pretty, and the thud was louder than he’d wanted, but the man went down to the ground, unconscious.
Justin turned toward the various monitors and quickly located the guard stationed in the lobby. He was still staring down at his phone. Apparently, there was some damn good soundproofing for the call center, because the man apparently hadn’t heard a thing.
Digging in his bag of tricks, he quickly wrapped blindfolds around each man and then secured their arms and legs with zip ties.
Without even looking at his watch, he knew he was running late. The second guard had cost him precious seconds. He should have already started taking down the security system, because Gabriel should already be reaching the top floor. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
He dropped into one of the chairs positioned in front of the keyboard. There were six monitors spread out before him, flashing different parts of the surrounding grounds, the parking garage, and various parts of the building. The only thing he didn’t see were the labs in the other building, but he was willing to guess that the laboratory building had its own separate security system. And he was really praying they didn’t have to go over there, because he was pretty damn sure they wouldn’t get out alive. Now that the guards were tied up, he guessed they had a matter of minutes before someone checked in with the security room, and he couldn’t count on faking his way through that encounter.
Gritting his teeth, he forced his brain back to the task at hand. He knew computer programs, and he was damn good with security systems. He’d designed a few over the years and the majority were incredibly similar in how they were laid out. The first task was to shut down all forms of recording and erase everything that had been stored already that day. Both he and Gabriel were wearing gloves and now the video cameras had lost their images. If they were lucky enough to get out alive, there was currently no trace of who they were.
The Exit Strategy Bundle Page 20