I found two bottles of pills in the fridge with a label that had no batch code. All drugs had batch codes and they coordinated with files. But the bottles had simple orange labels with the name CONNOR.
I yanked the pill bottles out and took them to Deck who nodded then put them in his bag. Then I walked over to Kai and put my hand on his chest. “Do you know anything about my father? Why Daniel would say that?”
“Yes.” He kept his eyes on me as a wave of dread hit me.
My knees weakened and I became lightheaded. It wasn’t good. Oh, God, there was something wrong with my dad. “Kai—”
“London, it’s not my place to tell you. It’s your father’s. If I need to, I will, but right now”—he cupped the back of my neck and squeezed—“I need you here, with me. Okay?”
He was right. If the news was bad, now wasn’t the time to—
My eye caught the red flashing light on the code box beside the door. “Kai! The door.” He turned to where I was looking.
“Deck,” Kai said as he grabbed my hand and headed for the door.
That was all he had to say and Deck went for Georgie. “Babe. Need to go.”
I punched in the code on the door, but it buzzed and wouldn’t open. “It’s locked. Security can lock the doors if there is a breach.” Oh, God, we had to find my dad and get out of here.
I heard Deck arguing with Georgie as she typed furiously on the computer while Kai took out his knife and jammed it into the top of the black code box, cracking it open.
The cover fell to the floor and he yanked a bunch of wires out and then sifted through them.
“Georgie. Now,” Deck ordered.
“I got it. Shit, I need to delete…. Done.” Deck yanked her away from the computer as Kai cut two wires and the doors slid open. But it wasn’t because Kai cut the right wires; it was because my father overrode security and opened it.
“Dad?”
“London.” He stepped forward to hug me when Kai blocked him by moving in front, his hand on my wrist so I couldn’t go near him. “I’m not going to hurt her.”
“Kai?” I tried to move past him, but he tilted his head to look at me, eyes glaring in warning, a warning I couldn’t ignore.
I peered past him to my father and knew something was wrong, not just the concern etched on his pale face, but how sick he looked. Black lines were heavy under his eyes and he appeared ten years older than the last time I’d seen him.
He was sick. And it was serious. My throat tightened as tears welled and a crushing pain latched onto my chest, making my stomach lurch. “Oh, God, Dad,” I choked.
“Kai, please,” my dad begged. “I’d never hurt her.”
“You understand why I’ll not take your word on that,” Kai replied. “Considering.”
My dad peered down the corridor, his feet shifting, uneasy and anxious. “Daniel called me. I was in the car leaving, but… when he said she was here… I had to see her again.” He looked at me. “Honey, oh, God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know what else to do.”
His eyes filled with tears and anguish pulled at his weary face. “I know, Dad.” I did. This wasn’t his fault. He’d have done anything to try to protect me.
“I refused to continue making the drug for them, but after the fire….” His head dropped forward.
I turned to Kai, my hand on his arm. He nodded and let me go. I ran into my father’s arms and held him tight. “I don’t blame you, Dad.”
I’d never seen my father cry, even after my mother died. I suspected he did, but he never let me see him break down like he did now and it broke my heart. Why him? He was a good, brilliant man. Why did they have to pick him? But if not him, then it may have been some other scientist with a family.
I heard Deck and Kai quietly talking, but I didn’t pay attention to what was being said. I squeezed my dad to me, wanting to take away all the guilt he carried with him.
“We need to go, London.” Kai gently put his hand on my shoulder then pulled me back so I was up against his chest then his palm slid over my hip to lay flat on my lower back. “And you need to come with us,” he said to my dad.
“They’ll send someone after you if I do,” he argued. “It’s better I stay.”
“Dad. No.”
Kai shook his head. “You’re coming.” He grabbed my dad’s arm and we started down the hall.
I heard Deck on the headset to Vic, and Kai was asking my dad questions about the drug as he hurried to the door that led to the tunnels.