hide had file clerks that didn’t get all their work finished by the end of the day.
He crossed to the desk. Emily had emptied a folder onto its scarred wooden surface and was looking through papers. “This one was labeled Lockdown, Inc.,” she said.
Excitement coursed through Zack as he pulled the flashlight from his coat and shone it on the file.After reaching dead end after dead end, he had thought the excursion hopeless. Hopefully this would prove him wrong.
“Looks like someone’s notes. Some scientist or researcher.” Emily lowered herself into the desk chair. “They’re in order by the date in the upper right-hand corner of the page. See?”
“Keep going.” Zack’s heart had begun to pound.
“They mention ‘mortality rate’ here.” She set her finger against the handwritten notes. “‘Subcutaneous hemorrhage. Severe irritation of mucous membranes.’”
“Hell.”
“What’s RZ-902?”
At the mention of RZ-902, Zack could feel sweat breaking out beneath his arms. “I believe you just found what we were looking for.”
Nudging her aside, he looked down at the notes and began to read. Dread built inside him at the words scrawled on the page.
The testing phase of RZ-902 is more successful than planned. Mortality rate stands at 98.1 percent. Fatal outcome from the moment of introduction is 4.2 minutes. It is the opinion of the study that RZ-902 is ready for mass production, the first phase of which will take less than two weeks, depending on delivery of supplies. The final product will be ready for market by the end of the month.
Zack almost couldn’t comprehend what he was reading. He’d seen a lot of horrific things in the years he’d worked for MIDNIGHT. He’d met morethan his share of ruthless human beings, men and women who would stoop to any level for money or power or some combination of the two. But in all his years of working undercover he’d never encountered true evil.
Until now.
“Zack, what is it?”
He didn’t even realize he was leaning heavily against the desk. That he was breathing heavily. And shaken to his core. He raised his gaze to Emily’s. He wondered how such a good woman could be tangled up in such a god-awful mess. Then he remembered he was the one who’d dragged her into this. That now it was up to him to keep her safe.
The same way you kept Alisa safe?
“We’ve got to get out of here,” he said.
“What are you talking about? We’ve just found what we’ve been looking—”
“Don’t ask any more questions. Let’s go.”
“Zack, you’re scaring me.”
Without looking at her or speaking he began gathering the papers as quickly as he could, grabbing the ones he thought would be most useful, leaving the rest.
“My God, you’re shaking.” She touched his arm, drawing his gaze. “Talk to me? What is this?”
“RZ-902,” he said, grinding out the words. “They’ve finished the testing. Weeks ahead of schedule.”
“What does that mean exactly?”
“That means that Lockdown, Inc. and Signal Research and Development stand to make a hell of a lot of money from anyone willing to pay the price. Terrorists. Dictators. Any demented son of a bitch who wants to wipe out a city anywhere in the world will be able to do that if he gets his hands on this poison.”
“My God.” She blanched. “What do we do now?”
“I’m going to grab as many of these notes as I can carry, then we’ve got to get you out of here.”
“Zack, we have to stop this. I’m not leaving until—”
In an instant he had her against the desk, his hands wrapped around her arms, his face inches from hers. “You’re not going to do a damn thing. This is my mission. My problem. As of now you’re out of it.”
“I’m going to finish this.”
“We’re going to walk out of here, then I’m taking you to the police.”
“How do you know the police aren’t in on this?”
Zack stared at her, knowing he was making a fatal mistake. Knowing he was acting on
He crossed to the desk. Emily had emptied a folder onto its scarred wooden surface and was looking through papers. “This one was labeled Lockdown, Inc.,” she said.
Excitement coursed through Zack as he pulled the flashlight from his coat and shone it on the file.After reaching dead end after dead end, he had thought the excursion hopeless. Hopefully this would prove him wrong.
“Looks like someone’s notes. Some scientist or researcher.” Emily lowered herself into the desk chair. “They’re in order by the date in the upper right-hand corner of the page. See?”
“Keep going.” Zack’s heart had begun to pound.
“They mention ‘mortality rate’ here.” She set her finger against the handwritten notes. “‘Subcutaneous hemorrhage. Severe irritation of mucous membranes.’”
“Hell.”
“What’s RZ-902?”
At the mention of RZ-902, Zack could feel sweat breaking out beneath his arms. “I believe you just found what we were looking for.”
Nudging her aside, he looked down at the notes and began to read. Dread built inside him at the words scrawled on the page.
The testing phase of RZ-902 is more successful than planned. Mortality rate stands at 98.1 percent. Fatal outcome from the moment of introduction is 4.2 minutes. It is the opinion of the study that RZ-902 is ready for mass production, the first phase of which will take less than two weeks, depending on delivery of supplies. The final product will be ready for market by the end of the month.
Zack almost couldn’t comprehend what he was reading. He’d seen a lot of horrific things in the years he’d worked for MIDNIGHT. He’d met morethan his share of ruthless human beings, men and women who would stoop to any level for money or power or some combination of the two. But in all his years of working undercover he’d never encountered true evil.
Until now.
“Zack, what is it?”
He didn’t even realize he was leaning heavily against the desk. That he was breathing heavily. And shaken to his core. He raised his gaze to Emily’s. He wondered how such a good woman could be tangled up in such a god-awful mess. Then he remembered he was the one who’d dragged her into this. That now it was up to him to keep her safe.
The same way you kept Alisa safe?
“We’ve got to get out of here,” he said.
“What are you talking about? We’ve just found what we’ve been looking—”
“Don’t ask any more questions. Let’s go.”
“Zack, you’re scaring me.”
Without looking at her or speaking he began gathering the papers as quickly as he could, grabbing the ones he thought would be most useful, leaving the rest.
“My God, you’re shaking.” She touched his arm, drawing his gaze. “Talk to me? What is this?”
“RZ-902,” he said, grinding out the words. “They’ve finished the testing. Weeks ahead of schedule.”
“What does that mean exactly?”
“That means that Lockdown, Inc. and Signal Research and Development stand to make a hell of a lot of money from anyone willing to pay the price. Terrorists. Dictators. Any demented son of a bitch who wants to wipe out a city anywhere in the world will be able to do that if he gets his hands on this poison.”
“My God.” She blanched. “What do we do now?”
“I’m going to grab as many of these notes as I can carry, then we’ve got to get you out of here.”
“Zack, we have to stop this. I’m not leaving until—”
In an instant he had her against the desk, his hands wrapped around her arms, his face inches from hers. “You’re not going to do a damn thing. This is my mission. My problem. As of now you’re out of it.”
“I’m going to finish this.”
“We’re going to walk out of here, then I’m taking you to the police.”
“How do you know the police aren’t in on this?”
Zack stared at her, knowing he was making a fatal mistake. Knowing he was acting on
Similar Books
