Page 83 of Master of Chaos
“Yeah, I said the same to Red.”
We turned away from each other, each pulling out our phones. Red picked right up. “Did you find something?”
“We found a file, with Reggie’s name, and lots of documents. Records of shipments of medicine to the Cascade Clinic?—”
“And the medicine? Is there a file with the compound itself?”
“Rose is studying it now,” I said.
“My God, Shane.” Her voice wobbled.
“I know,” I said. “I feel the same way. Maybe we lucked out. Maybe we got this licked. If we can get Reggie off the firing range, we can take this fucker down. And after that…” My voice trailed off.
“Yes? And after that?” she prompted.
I felt a pang of nervous doubt. “We shouldn’t tempt the gods,” I said. “I guess afterward will take care of itself. As long as my afterward has you in it. And I mean, forever. Until the sun supernovas. If you’re willing, of course.”
She let out a joyful sniffle. “Count me in,” she said. “Willing doesn’t even begin to describe it.”
I walked over to the window, trying to get out of earshot of the rest of the room’s occupants. “Red,” I said, my voice low. “I’ve never said this to anyone, in my life, except for my family, but I?—”
“Don’t feel like you have to say it just because I broke you out of that place,” she said. “That was pure self-interest on my part. I needed help for Reggie.”
“I’ll be grateful if I damn well please. And I’ll fall in love with you for whatever damn reason I want. You can’t dictate that, Red.”
“Um. Okay.” There was a whisper of laughter in her soft voice. “If you say so. Look, we’ll have to argue about why we’re in love some other time, because?—”
“So you’re in love with me, too?” I blurted. “Damn, that’s a relief.”
She laughed under her breath. “I can’t think of any other explanation for this incredible feeling,” she said. “But we can analyze our tender emotions later, because one of Reggie’s doctors is signaling that he needs to talk to me, okay?”
“Call me back after?” I asked. “I want to continue this conversation. It was going to really interesting places.”
“Sure thing,” she said. “I love hearing your voice. I want to go those places, too. And I want to hear all about everything that Rose finds. Talk to you in a few.”
We closed the call, and I turned to see the hidden smiles, the twinkling gazes that flicked away.
“What?” I demanded. “What’s all the smirking about?”
“I could have told you she was in love with you,” Frey said. “If you’d asked me. Might have saved you a little suspense. But it’s good to keep a man on his toes.”
“Is that a fact?” Jed complained. “Always the toes. My poor, aching toes.”
At that moment that I registered the tone of Rose’s voice. No longer happy and excited. It sounded confused. Apprehensive.
“… strangest ingredients,” she was saying to Ethan. “This can’t be right.”
“What can’t be right?” he asked.
Everyone had tuned in at this point. We clustered around the computer to hear better.
“The ingredients. They make no sense,” she said, frowning. “It’s pharmaceutical gobbledygook. Formulas of common over-the-counter drugs, painkillers, constipation relievers, blood thinners, beta-blockers, antacids and anti-inflammatories, all tossed together. Plus random stuff like baking soda and rubbing alcohol. It’s a big, poisonous nothing-burger. As if someone were pranking you.”
“Oh shit,” Freya whispered.
“Only one reason anyone would do that,” Ethan said. “Move over, Rose.”
She slid swiftly away. As Ethan rolled into place in front of the screen, it turned a luminous green color, and files began to scroll all their own, faster and faster.