9. Reath
9
REATH
M y car tires screeched as I sped toward Tulane.
Frankie was in trouble.
I felt it in my bones.
I’d already alerted campus security, but I had no idea how long it would take them to respond.
I sped around a car, pushing my SUV for more speed. Then I took the corner into the university fast. It was only a minute until I screeched to a stop outside the lab building and ran toward the door.
It was locked. There was no one sitting in the reception area. Shit . It was Saturday, so I guessed there weren’t many people on campus. I glanced at the scanner on the door, but I didn’t have a pass.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out a thin, well-worn case. Opening it, I quickly pulled out my lockpicks. The old lock on the door only took me twenty seconds to pick.
I charged inside. I ignored the elevators and took the stairs. I raced up them two at a time. At the top, I pulled my Glock 19 from its holster.
Quickly, I moved down the hall, my senses on high alert.
I didn’t hear a sound.
I passed the first lab. It was empty.
Then I reached Frankie’s lab. The door was open, and I peered inside.
My chest locked. Items and glass were smashed on the floor, and I saw fluid dripping off a workbench.
Fuck .
I swung in and skirted the first bench. Where the hell was Frankie?
There was no sign of an intruder, but someone had been here. I kept moving, and then I froze.
There was blood smeared on the floor.
Fuck. Fuck .
I dodged around the workbench and hurried toward the storage room.
“Reath?” Frankie walked out.
She wore dark jeans and a green-flecked sweater. There was blood sliding down the side of her head and matted in her dark hair.
“ Frankie .” She was alive. Relief hit me like a sucker punch. “Are you okay?”
A sob escaped her, and she took two steps toward me.
I reached out and hugged her, pulling her to my chest. She was so small. She seemed taller when she was sassing me.
“I’m okay.” She grabbed me and held on tight. Her voice was shaky.
I ran a hand up her back.
“The guy ran off,” she said. “But he took my laptop.”
I pulled back. “You confronted him?”
“He would have found me, anyway. He was taking my laptop, my research. No way I could let that happen!”
I touched her head where she was bleeding. “And this?”
“Well, he really wanted my laptop. We kind of played tug of war over it.” Her nose wrinkled. “He won.”
I gritted my teeth together, anger building. “He had a gun, Frankie.”
“I didn’t think he’d actually risk shooting me.” She looked around. “I couldn’t let him take my work, Reath. This is my project. It’s important. It will help so many lives.”
I shook her gently. “It was a bad choice.”
She shoved against my chest. “I couldn’t just hide in the corner.”
“Yes, you could. To stay alive.”
“I’m fine, except he shoved me into a workbench.” She gingerly touched her head.
I growled. Stubborn, independent… I grabbed her arms.
Her face lifted and our gazes locked. I felt that pulse between us. The same as the first night we’d met at Wildfire.
This time, it was amplified by a whole lot of anger and frustration.
And fear.
My fear that she’d been hurt or worse.
“ Reath .” My name was a soft whisper on her lips.
I pulled her closer and our mouths met.
Then I stopped thinking and kissed her. Our tongues stroked, and she moaned. I plundered her mouth, wanting to taste her, wanting to know that she was all right.
With a groan, I hauled her closer so I could kiss her more deeply. She nipped my bottom lip, and I growled.
When we broke apart, we were both panting, and I wanted more. Much, much more.
But I could hear footsteps running down the hall. I pulled back just as campus security arrived.
“Secure the scene,” I ordered. “She was attacked, and her laptop was stolen.”
The man and the woman in guard uniforms glanced around, then nodded.
Frankie shivered.
I pulled her under my arm. “You need to get the police to check for prints,” I told the guards.
The older man nodded, then looked at Frankie. “That head doesn’t look good, Ms. Parker.”
“I’ll take her to get treated,” I told them.
The female guard looked at Frankie. “We’re required to report this to DARPA. Will you take care of that, Ms. Parker?”
“Yes,” she answered.
I stiffened. “DARPA?”
She nodded. “They’re funding my project.”
She hadn’t mentioned that little tidbit, and that changed everything. I gritted my teeth. “I think we need to have a discussion.”
She bit her lip, but my gaze went to the blood matted into her hair. And the way she was shivering. She was in shock, and we needed to get the head wound treated.
I gently maneuvered her out of the lab. She was quiet all the way to my car.
“What is this car? I’ve never seen one like it before.” Her voice was monotone, and I didn’t think she really cared about my car.
“It’s a Lotus Eletre. It’s electric.”
“Nice.”
Once I got her settled in the passenger seat, I turned up the heat and pulled out onto the street.
I headed back toward the city.
Frankie finally stirred. “You missed the turn to my place.”
“We aren’t going to your place. We’re going to mine.”
“Reath, I just want to go home.”
“Not until I’m sure you’re safe.”
She shivered again.
“I owe it to Jack,” I said.
“Right. For Jack.” She looked out the window.
“You didn’t tell me your project was funded by the military.”
“It didn’t come up. I wasn’t keeping it a secret.”
“Well, I’m not a man who likes not having all the relevant information. I need to know everything so I can keep you safe.”
She lifted her chin. “That’s not your job.”
“It is now.”
“Because of Jack.”
I hadn’t thought of Jack once as I’d raced to get to her. The thought made my gut tighten.
“We’re going to my place, and I’ll take care of your wound. Then you’re going to tell me everything about your project.” I met her blue gaze. “And Frankie, I mean everything .”