Chapter 38
Robyn
Carla looks up from her screen as I approach. She has a Diet Coke next to her keyboard.
She smiles at me.
“Have you seen Ridge?” I ask her.
“Not in the last few hours. He was in the hangar earlier. He was asking me questions yesterday about restricted areas in the hangar. I think his interest was surrounding drug protocols.” She shrugs.
“I’m not entirely sure. He asked me for a printout of who has access to the surgical storage facility that services both the hangar and the main wing.
He headed back toward the hangar. He might still be there. ”
“Okay, thanks. I’m going to head over there to check in on the patient. I’ll check if he needs anything else while I am there.”
“You do that, Doc.” She winks at me.
We both know full well that I’m going to check on Ridge. My patient is just an excuse. Dr. Jenkins will have everything under control.
I go to the hangar with Smoke following me.
The doors open at the lower level. The temperature drops a few degrees as I step through into the large space.
The chest-laceration shifter is in his bay at the far end, monitors beeping at a soft rhythm. He’s still in the induced coma, with Lena at his side, making notes on his chart.
I scan the rest of the bay as I walk over, but don’t see Ridge.
“Hey,” Lena says as I approach. “Did you come to look in on Screech?”
“I did, indeed. How are the stitches holding?”
“They’re healing nicely.”
I pick up his chart, scanning it quickly. “It’s looking good. Have you seen the commander?”
“Haven’t seen him in a while. Sorry.” She shakes her head.
I nod, even though my stomach has dipped a little.
“His vitals have been steady,” Lena says. “Dr. Jenkins is around if you need her. I think she said she was going to be in the back office.”
“Thanks, Lena.”
I put the chart down and head over to the office, doing my best to look like I had a reason for coming down here other than chasing a male.
Dr. Jenkins is at the small desk inside, eating a sandwich one-handed while she scrolls through something on her tablet. She looks up when I knock on the open door.
“Hi, Robyn. Come on in.” She pulls out the second chair with her foot.
“I won’t stay. I’m just doing a sweep of the floor.” I lean against the frame instead. “How’s our chest case?”
She smiles around her last bite and swallows. “Doing much better than I expected. Vitals are rock-solid. Drains are looking good. Honestly, I think Dr. Patel is going to want him to attempt a shift later when he gets here.”
“That’s great news.”
I let my eyes track the hangar again, but Ridge isn’t here.
“Have you seen the commander, by any chance?” I keep my tone light. “I had a quick question for him.”
Jenkins frowns and looks up at the ceiling for a second. “I saw him earlier. Around lunchtime. I haven’t seen him since. I’m not even sure if he’s still in the building.”
“Okay. Thanks.” I turn to go.
“Was it something I can help with?”
I turn back. “Oh, no. It was about the security review. I’ll catch up with him tomorrow.”
“Okay, then.” She smiles at me.
I step out of the office and make my way out of the hangar. I’m not needed here. I push back through the double doors and take the stairs up. My legs are heavier than they were on the way down.
The corridor on my floor is quiet. Carla is on the phone when I pass her desk. I look at my watch and note that it is almost time to leave for the day.
I really hope to see Ridge later.
I’m going to tell him how I feel about him.
I won’t talk myself out of it, no matter how loudly the voice in my head tries to. I won’t dress it up or soften it. I’ll tell him I have feelings for him. Just lay it all out there.
I can’t be a chicken. I need to face it. If he walks away, then it’s on him. If I let him walk away without saying anything, I’ll never know what might have been.
He first has to walk through my door. I pray he does.
Ridge
I pace the length of the small conference room from the door to the window and back again. I’ve been doing this for over two hours now.
I can’t sit.
All I can do is wait, and I’m not the most patient person.
I had my meeting with Reed. The forensics team has the logged evidence. After handing it all in, I gave my statement, and now I’m waiting to hear while they process everything.
I check my phone again. There’s nothing from Flint. I shove it back into my pocket and turn for another lap.
My dragon is restless under my skin. He has been all day. He wants me to go to Robyn. He wants me to protect her. He doesn’t like what I did, and that makes two of us. The fact that it was the only move I had doesn’t make it sit any better.
I stop in front of the window. The courtyard below is empty except for two males in uniform walking toward the main building.
I sit and then stand again right away and start pacing. It’s the only thing that keeps me halfway to calm.
The door opens behind me, and I turn.
Reed steps in and shuts it behind her. She’s frowning deeply and even sighs. She pulls out a chair from the long conference table, but she doesn’t sit. She just rests her hand on the back of it.
“What did they find?” I ask.
“I think you should sit down, Ridge.”
“I’d rather stand.”
“Fine.” She lets out a slow breath. “I’ll give you what we have. The burner is clean of prints.”
“Okay.” I nod. “That’s good, isn’t it?”
“The messages on it, however, are signed off by name. Multiple texts going back and forth with a number we’ve already flagged as Mainland-affiliated. Every outgoing message ends with ‘Dr. Keller.’”
I stare at her.
“How convenient and how damned stupid,” I say. “Why would she, or any asset for that matter, sign their own name? They wouldn’t. It’s planted to make her look guilty.”
“Once again, it’s too neat. I will agree.”
“Is the Council aware that a burner was found in an area that thirteen staff have access to, including Robyn? One of them could have planted it,” I say, almost to myself.
“We don’t know that,” Reed says. “Everything points to Dr. Keller being dirty. You can’t go making unsubstantiated claims.”
“Agreed, but it needs to be investigated.”
“I’m giving you the facts as we have them, Ridge.” Her voice is even. “I’m not telling you what to think about them. I’m telling you what’s there.”
I rub a hand over my jaw. “What about the documents in the bathroom?”
“There are two sets of prints on those. Dr. Keller’s as well as her PA, Carla Andrews.”
“Carla handled them, too?”
“It stands to reason Dr. Keller would have asked her PA to fetch the printouts at some point. That’s what a PA does.” Reed shrugs. “The printouts were found in Dr. Keller’s private bathroom, and therefore, they are strongly linked to Keller.”
I plant both hands on the back of the chair opposite hers and lean forward.
“Listen, Councilor. Dr. Keller doesn’t lock her office during the day.
She is in and out of the room. Anyone with access to her floor could have planted that pouch.
This feels like the same setup as Magma.
It’s the same MO. The whole thing feels manufactured.
It stinks to high heaven, if you ask me. ”
Reed’s mouth flattens.
“Vector wants me to arrest Dr. Keller on suspicion of treason. The Council has signed off on it. It’s too risky to leave her in that role. She can do too much damage if she is an asset, and right now everything is pointing in that direction.”
There it is.
My chest constricts.
“I might be able to prove her innocence.” I keep my voice level. “Please. I need a little more time. I’m waiting for some important evidence.”
“What evidence?”
“I would rather not say. Not yet,” I quickly add.
“Ridge.” Her tone sharpens. “If we’re going to stall, I will need to take Vector something. I’ll need hard evidence.”
“Give me five minutes,” I say. “I need to make a quick call.”
She looks at me for a long beat. Whatever is on my face must tip the scale, because she gives me a short nod.
“You have it.”
“Thank you.”
She moves to the door. “If you come back with nothing, I’m getting a team together to bring Dr. Keller in. We can’t sit on this. There’s too much at stake.”
“Understood.”
She steps out and pulls the door shut behind her. I’m dialing before it closes.
“Please tell me you have something,” I say as soon as Flint picks up.
“I do.”
The relief drops through me. I drag the air back into my lungs and brace a hand on the edge of the table.
“Thank fuck.”
“I know who the mystery female is. I just need to verify it’s her, and then I’ll send you everything,” Flint says.
“Who is it?” I frown.
“I’m about to meet with Rachael Da Silver to confirm. I’m confident we’ve got the right person. I don’t want to say until I know for sure.”
“Okay. Okay, but please hurry. Reed has given me five minutes, and that was three minutes ago. They’re going to arrest Robyn if I don’t give them something concrete.”
“Listen, Ridge. I have to warn you. You’re not going to like it.”
I straighten up.
“Do I know this person?”
“I’ll call you in a couple of minutes.” The line goes dead.
I give a growl of frustration and start pacing.