Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 99132 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 496(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 330(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99132 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 496(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 330(@300wpm)
He barked out a laugh. “You look shocked about that.”
“I don’t understand love like this,” she said honestly.
“Don’t need to. Just feel it and enjoy. And let me be me while I let you be you.”
That appeared to be a fair request. “What if those two realities conflict?”
“Then we’ll work it out. And how we’re going to do so in this situation is that Tso and I are accompanying you and Walter to the building where somebody shot at you the other day. We’ll stay out of the way unless I need to get in the way.”
She’d already gotten two people shot, one dead, and she didn’t want to lose the captain. “We’re parking in the underground garage and going right up to the offices. We’ll stay away from windows.”
“Good plan. Walter is driving and you’re sitting between me and Tso in the back seat on the way there.” He glanced down at his watch. “I’ll grab Tso. It’s time to go.”
Laurel watched him walk by the conference room windows to the hallway, a mite nonplussed.
She was his reason?
Chapter 29
The security scanner buzzed with mechanical indifference as Laurel stepped into the marble-and-steel lobby of Oakridge Solutions after the guard had read the warrant and buzzed them up. She noted the scent first. Industrial-grade cleaner, faint traces of ethanol, and something organic. Not unusual for a biotech company.
Walter Smudgeon stood beside her, taller, broader, and already shifting his weight like he wanted to start knocking on doors. “Last time we were here, that sniper nearly got you.”
Huck and Officer Tso stood behind them, looking like badass bodyguards. Tso was younger than Huck with angled features and dark hair. He’d moved to Washington State recently from Arizona and appeared to be in good shape.
“I know,” she said softly, the skin on her neck prickling. They’d parked in the underground parking area and then taken the elevator to this floor. Even so, she scanned the entire area around them and was well prepared to stay away from windows.
They didn’t wait long.
Dr. Bertra Yannish carried an air of importance this time. Wearing a lab coat with a sleek navy blouse beneath, she approached at a controlled pace. High heels, midrange designer. Minimal makeup. Calculated professionalism. “I understand you have a warrant.”
Laurel nodded and handed it over. “Federal search warrant for full access to Oakridge Solutions’ research labs and all supporting documentation in digital and hard copy.” She smiled. “Walter and I are just the first wave. An FBI Evidence Response Team should be arriving within the hour to catalog the specimens and all data. We’re here for a quick look and also to interview you as the new acting director, Dr. Yannish.” A fact the guard had told Laurel.
“Please call me Bertra. I insist.” Bertra skimmed the first few lines, her expression remaining neutral. “I’m more than happy to show you around.” Her gaze lifted, and her eyes narrowed as she took in Huck and Tso. “Do you still have a sniper trying to kill you?”
“Yes,” Laurel said.
Bertra’s nostrils flared. “Then I object to this. Dr. Sandoval was my friend, and now he’s dead. I don’t want to join him.”
Walter stepped in. “Just show us the labs. We don’t need to be near any windows.”
“The warrant is for the FBI and not Fish and Wildlife.” Bertra glanced at Huck’s jacket. “You two can stay here, and I promise we’ll avoid all windows. I’d very much like to remain alive.”
“We’ll keep you safe,” Walter promised.
Bertra looked him over, a little too slowly to be entirely clinical. “You weren’t here last time, were you?”
“I was,” Walter said, blinking. “I was the one who tackled Laurel to the floor.”
Bertra’s lips curled just slightly. “You do seem . . . protective.”
Walter opened his mouth and then shut it. “I—uh—well, that’s sort of the job.”
Bertra’s smile widened, but only for a moment. “Lucky Laurel.”
Laurel didn’t react. She turned and motioned forward. “Let’s go.”
Bertra turned to lead the way. Instead of taking them to the corporate offices like last time, they walked in silence down a corridor lined with locked doors. Laurel noted the badge scanner on each entry that required the key card plus biometric for the main labs. Clean tech, state-of-the-art. Oakridge Solutions was well-funded.
Inside the primary lab, sterile light reflected off steel countertops and glass storage cases. Laurel counted three fume hoods and two refrigerated storage units in use. The walls held framed posters of chemical maps with one featuring a taxane derivative. She paused. “You’re using yew tree extract.”
Bertra glanced over. “Yes. We utilize a modified taxane compound in very small doses, which we acquire legally through sustainable harvest partners.” She gestured toward a file drawer. “We can provide documentation.”
Laurel nodded once. “Taxanes are cytotoxic. What’s the purpose here?”
“Tau protein stabilization. It’s shown potential in slowing cognitive deterioration—particularly in early-stage Alzheimer’s and other tauopathies.”