Penumbra (Spook Squad 3)

“If you want us to actually solve the crime, then yes, that would be a good idea.”

A small smile stretched her too-perfect lips, but there was little amusement in her cold gray eyes. She reached to her left and pressed a button on the intercom. “Security will escort you there. Please feel free to come back if you have any further questions.”

Gabriel rose. “We will need to see the security tapes from last night.”

“Of course. They’ll be available by the time you finish in the lab.”

“And we will need to question the guards who were on last night.”

She nodded. “They’re off duty, but a list of names and addresses will be provided.”

This whole situation just wasn’t sitting right. This was a top-secret facility, one with tight military ties. No matter how seriously they wanted the crime solved, the director was being entirely too helpful.

No, whatever they wanted, it had something to do with Sam, not with solving this crime. But why was Sam so important to them?

“We’ll see you afterward, then,” Gabriel said, and followed Illie from the room.

As promised, a second security guard waited for them beyond the office doors. He led them back into the antiseptic white corridors and down a series of ramps.

Gabriel glanced at the ceiling. Cameras tracked their movements, but as far as he could tell, there were no voice recorders attached.

“Opinion?” he said softly. As an empath, Illie was able to read and define emotions to such a degree that he could practically tell what a person was thinking.

Illie cast a wary look at the security officer in front of them, then met Gabriel’s gaze. “That woman was lying through her back teeth,” he muttered. “She has another agenda entirely.”

That much he’d already guessed. “Did any particular statement stand out?”

Illie frowned. “Yeah. The bit about it not being important whether your partner was male or female.”

Because they wanted Sam, not Illie. But why? What had they intended to do once they’d gotten her here? Not even the military could think they could kidnap an SIU agent and get away with it.

“Who was your partner before me?” Illie asked.

“She’s not important right now.” But even as he said the words, he knew it for a lie. Sam was important.

But he’d been through hell once with the death of Andrea, who’d been not only his childhood sweetheart but both his lover and his partner, and that, more than anything, strengthened his resolve to remain alone whenever it started slipping.

He blew out a breath and added, “Did you detect any lies when Douglass spoke about the break-in?”

“No, that much was true.” Illie studied him thoughtfully. “You have unresolved issues with your former partner, haven’t you?”

“I told you, it’s not important.” And certainly it wasn’t anything he intended to discuss with a man who’d been his partner for precisely an hour and a half.

Illie raised a skeptical eyebrow, but amusement danced in his eyes. “Maybe I’ll have to get a second opinion on that.”

Gabriel found himself clenching his fist again. “Let sleeping dogs lie, Illie.”

The younger man studied him a minute longer, then smiled slightly. Surprisingly, he made no further comment. Though, as an empath, he would know when to push—and when to stop.

They continued on. The white corridor seemed to stretch on without end. The itch at the back of Gabriel’s neck grew.

He tapped the security officer on the shoulder. “Where the hell is this lab? Siberia?”

The man shrugged. “It’s one of the outer labs. We’re accessing it through the underground tunnel system.”

They finally approached another doorway. The guard swept his pass card through the slot and the metal door slid aside to reveal a pale green corridor. Several doors led off it, though they were all currently closed. Windows lined one wall, and through them they could see several white-coated technicians going about their business.

The guard continued on, but Illie nudged Gabriel’s arm and pointed toward the lab. “They seem okay to you?”