Page 65 of Broken Wheels

The first thing he did was make a list, so he wouldn’t forget anything. He started with Tanner’s name, then added in the names of the other basement-dwellers that he could remember, although he couldn’t swear to some of them with any degree of accuracy. There were times—not often, but they happened—where he’d get a flash of someone and try to match the face with a name. He was rarely successful. The other guys had been okay, but mostly they were aloof. Then again, the government didn’t expect them to become friends. In fact, they’d actively railed against it.

Those guys were all as young as I was, full of themselves, and sure they couldn’t get caught.

Except someone had caught them, and they’d made the same choice as Josh. Working for the government instead of a spell in prison seemed like a no-brainer.

He opened the files he’d… emancipated and scanned the research notes, pulling out names of people he’d forgotten and adding them to his master list. Josh might not remember people well, but data? That he could usually recall with pretty good accuracy.

He skimmed the paperwork, jotting down any names that popped up, even if it was only a first name or an obvious pseudonym. As he continued to make notes, patterns began to emerge. Someone with the moniker of “AS” appeared more than anyone else in the paperwork.

AS is asking for the latest results. Move the basement-dwellers faster. AS is not a patient person.

AS checked in today. He seemed pleased with the results of the test, but he wants the results checked again to eliminate any anomalies. He’s currently looking for another site for the next round of testing.

AS has found a site. A town roughly the size of our last test zone, but with a higher concentration of subjects. He wants us ready to go in three months. It will be tough, but the basement-dwellers have been making great strides. AS said that if they continue to perform, maybe he’ll have jobs for them in the future.

Josh slumped in his chair. It still horrified him that they’d used the guys—used Josh—to kill more and more people. The only thing that had kept him sane was they’d performed their other “experiment” before Josh came on board, so he wasn’t responsible for those deaths.

But you are now, aren’t you?

No. He was not going to slip back into that mindset. Dixon had been right. He needed to use his anger to push forward. Falling into a depression again served no purpose other than letting the person in charge—whomever that might be—get away with yet more atrocities.

The door opened, and Dixon stepped into the room, accompanied by the amazing aroma of apples, cinnamon, sugar, and coffee.

Okay, maybe being taken care of wasn’t so bad after all.

Dixon stared at him. “Hey, you’re up.” Then he frowned. “Now, why are you up?”

Josh stuck out his lower lip and fluttered his eyes. “Because the bed was cold and lonely.”

Dixon burst out laughing. “You’re a really bad scammer, you know that?” He put the plate on the table, and Josh’s mouth watered at the sight of the golden-brown pastry. He loved apple fritters with a passion. Dixon sidled up to sit next to him. “What are you working on?” he chuckled. “And why are you working on it naked?”

“Hey, don’t get ideas.” Josh’s ass needed a little respite before he let Dixon anywhere near it. “This is important.” He turned the pad in Dixon’s direction. “I knew the gist of the paperwork I liberated, but I’d never actually gone through it with a fine-toothed comb. I’m doing that now, and making notes on any common themes that turn up.” He pointed at the screen. “Such as this. AS gets mentioned a lot, but who is AS? And why are they after these results?” Josh peered at the pad. “I’m going to go through the rest, to see if ‘AS’ pops up anywhere else. It’s a long shot, but right now, I don’t have enough actual data to formulate a decent hypothesis.”

And he needed to be right. This wasn’t something where he could test a theory, then test it again and again. He needed to be sure his information was accurate, because they had to stop this psychotic bastard from hurting anyone else.

Josh wasn’t about to let anyone else die because of his past.

Chapter 20

Dix watched Doc, in awe at his concentration and discipline. Hours ago, he’d started going through the files he had on a drive somewhere, and other than switching off his hourly alarm, he hadn’t moved an inch. The muttering was in evidence, as usual, and he seemed to be on autopilot as he sipped from the bottomless mug of coffee Dix provided him. Dix hadn’t known Doc was capable of such laser-focus, and it was pretty damn impressive.

It was also oddly hot.

Dix had to fight the urge to slide under the table, drag down Doc’s zipper, reach in to pull out his cock, and suck him off. However, he knew what Doc was doing was vitally important—to all of them.

Later. It can wait.

“Another name,” Doc murmured.

Dix snapped out of his carnal musings. “What was that?”

“There are too many names.” Doc’s attention was centered on his pad.

Dix waited, but the comments appeared to have dried up. “Doc?”

Crickets.

“Doc!”