"The Lycan gene has actually been known about for years in genetic research circles," Quent said. "That is, they know about the gene as a unique sequence of junk DNA, not w
hat it represents."
"I guess somebody knows something now, or I wouldn't be in this mess," Chloe said. "What do we do next?"
The three of them sat quietly for a moment. Jackson spoke first.
"So, the next step is to figure it out. We lay everything we have out on the floor and look at the pieces. Like a giant jigsaw puzzle." Jackson smiled encouragingly at the two of them.
"You know, I always hated those as a kid," Chloe said sadly as she reached for her bag with the file.
"Unfortunately, me too," Jackson replied, the smile turning into a rueful grin. "I was always missing a piece."
Chloe dropped to the floor, pulling out the pieces of the puzzle she had so far. There was the medical file stolen from the base, the suspicious letter from her brother, the notebook full of the addresses and dates of her brother's deployments and assignments, as well as a picture of her brother. Together the three of them stared at the pieces of paper on the floor, but nothing made sense. Theory after theory was tossed out, but each one became more incredulous than the last.
"Well, as much fun as this is, I have a job that I need to return to." Quent rose from the floor, stretching his arms up over his head. He bent down and put his hand on Chloe's shoulder. "Keep at it. I'm sure you'll come up with something."
She nodded back at him, her mind still going over the pieces and trying to put them back together. Jackson rose smoothly from the floor to walk Quent out. Jackson opened the door as Quent stepped out into the icy wind.
"You'll keep her safe?" Quent made sure that he made eye contact with Jackson.
"That's a stupid question," he whispered. "You seem to know how I feel about her better than I do."
A hint of a smile tugged at Quent's lips. "I'm going to go dig around in some files and pick some colleagues' brains. Maybe I can come up with something."
"Good luck, sir," Jackson said as he closed the door against the chill. Chloe looked up and out the window to see her mentor get into his car and drive away. After a moment, Jackson returned to the floor to sit with her and stare at the puzzle before them.
Chapter 15
Now that they were alone, Chloe couldn't distract herself from him. There was a tightness in the pit of her stomach that she knew only he could satisfy. Fragments from the dream kept popping into her head. The way he tasted. The heat of his skin. It made it hard to concentrate with him sitting within arms' reach.
"So, you're a werewolf. How long have you known?" the words sounded even stupider than they did in her head as soon as they were out. She blushed slightly, hoping to get him talking to distract her from the memory of the dream.
"Not long. I had my first, what did Quent call it? My first change last year in Afghanistan. It wasn't exactly a pleasant experience." Jackson tightened slightly, keeping his eyes on the papers scattered across the floor.
"Oh. I'm sorry." Chloe suddenly felt incredibly foolish. She knew she should have started the conversation with something safer, like religion or national politics.
"Actually, until today, I didn't know there were any others like me out there." Jackson reached for the suspicious letter, holding it up to the weak yellow glow of the overhead light. He turned and smiled at her. "Quent was my first werewolf, too."
Chloe giggled. "I have to admit, I am never going to see him as a boring professor ever again. It is going to make lectures that much more interesting."
Jackson set the piece of paper back down on the floor and sighed. "I'm not making any discoveries. You down to take a break?"
Chloe stretched her head from side to side, trying to loosen the muscles in her neck. She was frustrated with the process. She knew everything was there, but she just couldn't see it. Maybe a little breather was what she needed.
"Sure," she said, flashing him a grin. "What'd you have in mind?"
Jackson rummaged around in his jacket pocket and pulled out a worn deck of cards. "You play poker?"
"My brother tried to teach me once. He got frustrated when I told him aces should always win. Do you know how to play gin rummy?"
Jackson nodded and together they stood and went to the small table in the corner of the room. It was a small, round wooden table with just the two threadbare chairs. The way it was positioned in the corner, they had to sit next to one another, or move the table. Chloe was glad when Jackson made no move to pull the table out.
"Do you always carry a pack of cards around with you? Chloe asked as the two sat down. Under the small table, their knees touched gently. Neither one of them shifted. Chloe felt a surge of electricity flooding into her at the small point of contact. She could only imagine how wonderful it would feel to have more than just their knees touching. Get it together, she told herself as Jackson began to dole out the cards.
"Yeah. It's a habit I picked up on my first deployment. You never know when you'll have some downtime," Jackson picked up his cards and began sorting them in his hand.
Chloe reached for her cards and froze. In the middle of the table was a spider. It stared up at her with six eyes, each one daring her to go for the cards. She could swear the evil creature was grinning at her, fangs dripping with poison.