"Again, believe it, Edward. And if there were papers, why would he leave them to me? I haven't seen the inside of a lab since med school," she said, trying to throw him off the scent. "A shame, with a mind like yours. Plus in a teaching hospital such as this one, it's only a matter of time before you'll have to consider some kind of research."

Melissa hadn't forgotten that eventually she'd have to do more in order to move up the line. But for now, the only experiments she was interested in were her father's. "I'm glad you think I have a fine mind, Edward, although it didn't seem that way in the hall a few minutes ago," she said, trying to turn the conversation away from additional questions about her father.

"I'm sorry about pulling rank on you out there in the hallway. Most of my anger was with Nurse Martinez. She's a meddling sort, isn't she?" Edward's disdain for her friend was clear. Not to mention worrisome if he had any suspicions about Sara and her father. She only hoped Sara would take to heart her earlier admonitions.

"Apology accepted. As for Sara, she means well. However, seeing that you're concerned, I will speak to her about her involvement with the patients."

Edward nodded, seemingly satisfied with Melissa's concession. He rose from the desk with stiff and almost lethargic movements.

"Are you okay, Edward?"

"Just a touch of age, my dear. No need to worry." With a dismissive wave of his hand, he continued to the door, but paused for a moment before leaving. "If you ever decide to resume your father's work, I'd be delighted to a.s.sist."

Melissa forced a smile to her lips. "If I find anything about it, I'll be sure to let you know. As for working together, it would be a delight."

Edward's clear blue-eyed gaze was a.s.sessing for a moment. Then he stepped from her office, closing the door behind him.

Shifting to the side of her desk, Melissa picked up the phone and dialed Ryder. When he answered, she said, "We need to talk tonight."

"Diana isn't available."

"I know. She's meeting the M.E.-"

"And Detective Daly about the suspect in your break-in."

There was that hint of anger in Ryder's voice again at the mention of the NYPD officer. She worried about whatever was going on between Diana and the detective that troubled Ryder so much. But she was even more worried that what she was about to suggest to Ryder would violate Diana's trust in her.

I can count on you, Diana had said earlier that night. But Diana would probably not approve of what Melissa thought they had to do next. "Diana's being absent might be for the better, Ryder," Melissa said and waited anxiously for his reply.

"Just remember that whatever we decide is something we're all going to have to live with. In my case, for a very long time."

"I know, Ryder, and believe me, I wouldn't be thinking about this if it wasn't necessary."

His tired and almost defeated sigh came across the line. "I hope you're right."

Chapter 18.

L ying, meddling b.i.t.c.h.

She knew more about her father's experiments than she was letting on.

The last lab rat was near the end of its life. Its red blood count was well beyond acceptable limits, literally choking all the blood vessels and organs with the imbalance. Destroying the necessary white blood cells and platelets that kept a body running. Soon the hemorrhaging would begin, followed by a slow and likely painful death.

Nothing had stopped the relentless onslaught of the red blood cells, which had been altered by the Danvers cell strain. Yet Danvers himself had been able to control the multiplication of the cells. Well, at least early on.

One set of rats had almost supernatural healing powers and strength beyond that of their uninoculated counterparts. And they'd lived long beyond the span of regular rats and of the rats stolen from Danvers's lab. Rats that Danvers had likely been using as control samples.

A step was missing-the process Danvers had used to maintain the superrat specimens. Whatever it was had not been revealed in the journal stolen from Danvers's lab nor in the incredibly boring memoir taken from Melissa's office.

Judging from her unconvincing act this afternoon, Melissa was well aware that she had important information about her father's experiments and the source of the cell strain.

There would be no more waiting now. No time to dawdle. Otherwise, the illness would be too far along to allow for a possible cure. The Danvers cell strain could only do so much and maybe there had been too much delay already.

Action had to be taken immediately.

"The toxicology reports on both the overdose victims confirms that it was heroin, but synthetic and very potent. Very designer."

Diana paced back and forth in the kitchen, obviously unnerved by her earlier visit to the morgue.

"How designer?" Ryder asked.

"M.E. wouldn't put it in writing, but as far as he's concerned, this heroin wasn't designed to be sold on the street. It was intended to kill. There's only a handful of black ops organizations who'd do that," she answered.

"Like the NSA?" Sebastian asked, raising one eyebrow to emphasize his point.

Diana shrugged. "Possibly. Could be a rogue, as well."

Melissa finally piped in. "It seems careless to get rid of two people so close together both in time and location. It was bound to raise suspicions."

"If Peter hadn't asked around, no one would have looked for another body. The first case was in Westchester and not within the NYPD's jurisdiction," Diana explained.

Melissa shot Sebastian an uneasy look. "So does this help us at all?"

Diana's full lips thinned into a tight line and she let out an exasperated sigh. "There's no other forensics to tie the murders together.

Although the tox reports should be enough. The only other thing-Sloan worked for the NSA from sometime in 1999 to September of 2003."

Ryder leaned forward. "That's just one month before Melissa's parents were killed."

"Too close for coincidence," Sebastian said with a nod.

"But we have nothing from Forensics for probable cause-"

"Which means what? That we sit around and wait for another body to turn up? Maybe one of us?" Melissa asked angrily. She strode to the kitchen island, where she gripped the edges of the counter tightly. Her shoulders rose as she took in a deep breath. "We have to do something. We can't just wait for something else to happen."

Sebastian watched as Diana walked over to Melissa and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I've asked Peter to go out on a limb for me-He's agreed to put a tail on Sloan. See what he's up to and where he goes."

"If Sloan finds out he's being tailed-" Ryder said.

"Your detective friend could be in a lot of trouble. Sloan's a respected department head at one of New York's premier hospitals and if he's the killer..." Sebastian's voice trailed off.

"But it's all we have right now, isn't it?" Melissa said sharply. "And it's not much." Dejection colored her tones, and Sebastian could understand why. Her parents and two others were dead and she was still not remotely close to finding out whether Sloan was responsible.

"We'll have something soon." Ryder glanced at Diana, who added, "I have someone trying to get more information on Sloan. It may take just a little more time."

A little more time being a luxury Sebastian didn't think they had.

Sebastian gripped the metal railing of the balcony, his knuckles white. He had a h.e.l.l of a choice to make-betray his sister or fail the woman who was coming to mean so much to him.

A soft footfall from behind alerted him that he was no longer alone.

"Sebastian?" Melissa asked, her voice low and hesitant.

"This is not a good time, Melissa." Definitely not a good time, he thought. His father would have expected him to crawl away and hide when faced with a tough decision. Maybe his father had been right to say that Sebastian's games and computers were an escape from the harsh realities of life. In his games, Sebastian could control everything and always make it end the way he wanted.

But this wasn't a game. It was real life and no matter what he decided, nothing would ever be right again.

"I just wanted to say..." There was a long and tremulous sigh as she paused.

Sebastian turned to face her. He had no doubt she was as troubled as he. The strain showed on her face, paler than usual. Her blue eyes were that stormy gray of turbulence. "What can you say that will make whatever I decide right?"

She flinched, almost as if he had struck her. "I just wanted to say that no matter what you decide, I will understand."

Sebastian looked away and expelled a harsh laugh. In his entire life, no one had ever understood. Not his mother. Definitely not his father. And as for the sister he loved and admired almost more than anyone else-she would never understand.

"If I say no-"

She took a step closer and laid the tips of her fingers on his lips. "We'll find some other way of getting the information about Sloan."

He examined her face, searching it carefully but could find nothing that contradicted what she was saying. Her understanding brought a mixture of relief and sorrow. The one person who seemingly could accept what he did, he might have to disillusion.

"What if we can't? What then?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we can draw him out somehow." "No way, no how. If Sloan's the man, he's killed at least twice. If Diana confirms that these other two deaths are related, there's no way I'm willing to let you take that risk."

"I'm a big girl, Sebastian. I can deal."

Laughing curtly, he said, "You can deal with a multiple murderer? He's one of the men in black. The bogeymen that make people go away without anyone knowing about it." He emphasized that point by moving his hands like a magician doing a trick.

"I have Ryder to watch my back, and you."

He realized she was totally serious. She had unquestioned faith in him. Which scared the s.h.i.t out of him.

Closing the distance between them, he embraced her tightly, but what could he say?

"Will you stay tonight?" she asked, the side of her face buried against the spot directly above his heart.

Did she hear the way the beat stopped, then started once more, faster than before? Did she know that with those few words, she had made him hers?

"Yes," he answered.

She stepped away from him. She was smiling broadly and her eyes had turned a rich blue with bits of aquamarine. Her happy eyes. He took her hand when she offered it and followed her into the apartment.

Chapter 19.

S ebastian doubted there was anything better in life than sleeping in late with a beautiful woman. Possibly the night they had spent together. Being with Melissa had been an amazing experience.

But last night had been about more.

After leaving the balcony, they'd gone to her room where she'd locked the door and slowly undressed him. When he would have done the same for her, she said, "Not this time. This time, I want the pleasure to be all yours."

She explored his body and found those spots that made him shake. Brought him to the edge with her lips and hands, taking him into her mouth and making him so hard it almost hurt.

The pleasure that had followed had been even better. She'd undressed for him, urged him on with her soft cries and the words of love she murmured as they came together.

Afterward, he'd held her and they'd fallen asleep, but during the night they'd roused, made love again. He'd been able to see the first streaks of sun coming through the window that faced the East River. He'd forced himself to get some rest then, knowing that they only had a few more hours to sleep.

He'd have to call a friend to help him crack the NSA as soon as they were out of bed. He only hoped what information he got would be worth Diana's justifiable wrath. She'd made her position quite clear.

Unfortunately, he had no choice but to ignore it.

"Where are we going?" Melissa asked as she glanced around at the run-down buildings that lined the cobblestoned street on Manhattan's Lower East Side. "To see a friend," was all Sebastian said until they reached one multicolored and partially rusted steel door in what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse. Then he cupped her cheek and said, "Just go with the flow. He's a little odd. Thinks he's unearthed some kind of conspiracy and that the government is out to get him."

Sebastian banged on the door's dented metal surface. There was a sudden crackle of noise and a tinny voice spewed from a weather-scarred intercom on the inside frame of the door. "Reyes. What are you doing bringing a narc with you?"

Sebastian glanced over his shoulder at her and rolled his eyes. Turning back to the door, he pulled his black leather duster tight around him. "She's not a narc. She's a friend. Are you going to open the door or are you going to let the Feds keep on snapping my picture while I freeze my a.s.s off out here?"

The door opened, but just enough for her and Sebastian to ease through. It was dark inside and before her eyes had adjusted to the dim light, the door slammed behind her, followed by the snick of multiple locks closing.

Someone stepped away from the door and stood before them. Short and stout, with thin, shoulder-length hair that could have been either dirty blond or light brown. It was so lank with grease that it would take a washing or two to determine its true color.

His eyes were a bright hazel and inquisitive. He scrutinized everything about her until he finally addressed Sebastian. "She's uptight, but a true believer. Hot. Is she yours?"

She figured his a.n.a.lysis could have been worse, and yet his att.i.tude annoyed her. "No one owns me, little man."

"s.p.u.n.k, too. You're a lucky man, Reyes," he said, as if she wasn't even standing there.

About to say something else, she stopped when Sebastian slipped his arm around her waist and squeezed gently, reminding her that they needed this little gnome's a.s.sistance. She kept quiet.

"Lenny, I need to get into the NSA," Sebastian said.