Circe's Recruits 1: Roane by Marie Harte Page B

past twenty-eight years. The key to all his hard work: Caitlyn Chase.
    He’d been impressed by her father, Lieutenant Brendan Chase, from the moment they’d met. Hence, a standard physical for the young soldier had turned into so much more.
    Brendan was an all-American: intelligent, athletic, with the drive and skill to become a commanding general had he lived long enough.
    His wife, Colleen, had been as charismatic and talented, with a beauty that took his breath away. She and Brendan had created a wonderful child in their son, Robert.
    Wonderful, but average. Normal. When Colleen gave birth to Caitlyn, however, they’d achieved perfection.
    The boy hadn’t shown any signs of effect from the Circe serum, or EP12, as Elliot liked to call it. Probably because when he’d been conceived, Brendan and Colleen hadn’t accepted a high enough dose to fully mutate their DNA. Three more years of medical experimentation had proven that Brendan had what it took. EP12 liked his genes, so much so that they turned Brendan into a fighting machine and made his daughter into something else. The beginning of a new era.
    Colleen Chase showed little change that Elliot could see. Though he’d found Colleen attractive, Elliot had never been able to determine if her appeal to the opposite sex was enhanced by the serum or was a result of her natural genetics.
    Brendan showed superior strength and agility thanks to EP12, but he hadn’t gained the intuitive foresight that continued to save Circe’s Recruits time and time again. Certainly the stalwart lieutenant had misread the situation when his car had been forced off that cliff, killing him, his wife, and his son.
    “You wanted me?” Sabrina Torrence’s stiff posture told him she hadn’t appreciated being disturbed.
    “I need you to run more tests on the blood samples I gave you this morning.”
    “I’m in the middle of another project.”
    “This is more important. From what you’ve reported, our subject --”
    “I already told you. Her results match the toxin levels in Caitlyn Chase’s sample.” Elliot frowned. “That can’t be right.”
    “It is. I’ll run the test again, but be prepared for the same results.” She left on that note.
    Short and to the point.
    Though Elliot didn’t appreciate the way Torrence talked to him, he had no fault with her scientific process. Torrence had a genius IQ and wielded it with blade-sharp precision.
    Once a corpsman in the Navy, she’d served her time as a mere phlebotomist.
    Elliot had seen the potential in her for so much more.
    Like a sponge, Torrence absorbed everything he put in front of her. He liked the fact that she wasn’t a doctor, but a peon without a degree or specialization other than drawing blood, which anyone could do. He sniffed, reminding himself how very common she actually was.
    If she wasn’t so damned smart and vital to his new labs, he’d give her to McKinley. But Torrence knew what he needed practically before he needed it -- with the exception of those damned blood tests today. He’d be foolish to let her go, even if she did have a tendency to forget her place in the organization.
    Not to mention she ran her section of the lab with an efficiency that put all the others -- those with doctorates and advanced degrees -- to shame. He had half a mind to put her in charge of the subbasement level, if only to see how she’d handle the unwilling patients.
    “Want me to correct her attitude, Dr. Pearl?” Elliot glanced up to see McKinley watching him. Those eerie yellow eyes never blinked.
    Elliot’s skin crawled, though he refused to show it. McKinley had been his first successful Circ after the initial batch went crazy -- with the exception of Evan’s squad. Three years ago, McKinley had appeared and protected him against the real power behind the new Project Dawn. Day in and day out, McKinley remained close by, a comforting presence when the CEO arrived, a threatening blanket when he stood in the darkness,