Chapter 37
THIRTY-SEVEN
GRAYSON
The tension in Kai’s living room is thick enough to cut with a hunting knife. I pace behind the sofa, unable to stay still as Noah and Holly lay out what they discovered at the springs. With each word, a coil of rage tightens inside of me.
“A bucket laced with heavy metals leaching into every drop of water it collects,” Holly says, her voice clinical despite the fury in her eyes. “Manufactured by Greythorn Industries.”
Noah leans back on the couch. “It can’t be a coincidence.”
I stop pacing, my hand instinctively going to the bandanna covering my scars because it’s always easier to hide than face a terrible truth. The pieces click together in my mind like the assembly of a rifle—precise, mechanical, deadly. “He’s poisoning the town.”
“But why?” Kai asks from his position on the recliner. He’s still pale from the chelation therapy, but insisted on being part of this conversation. “What does he gain?”
The answer comes to me immediately. “Real estate.”
Three pairs of eyes turn to me, waiting for elaboration.
“I overheard him on the phone,” I explain, recalling the conversation I witnessed on Main Street. “He was talking about property values tanking. About buying when prices bottomed out.”
Holly’s eyes widen. “He’s creating a public health crisis to drive down property values.”
“Then he swoops in, buys everything for pennies on the dollar,” Noah continues, connecting the dots. “He’d own the whole town and could do whatever he wants with it. Including sell it off to developers.”
“And by the time anyone discovers the springs aren’t actually contaminated, the deal is already done,” Holly finishes.
“That’s...” Kai struggles to find words. “That’s fucking evil.”
I nod, memories of Ryder from our time overseas flooding back. The casual cruelty. The calculated risks with other people’s lives. “It’s Ryder.”
“We need to go to the police,” Holly says, already reaching for her phone.
I move quickly, placing my hand over hers. “No.”
She looks up at me, confusion evident on her face. “What do you mean, no? He’s poisoning children, Grayson.”
“I know,” I say, keeping my voice level. “Confronting him is dangerous.”
“We have evidence,” Noah argues. “The bucket—“
“Is circumstantial,” I cut in. “Ryder won’t just roll over. Destroy his business and he’ll go scorched earth.”
“So we do nothing?” Holly pulls her hand away, anger flashing in her eyes.
“Didn’t say that.” I meet her gaze steadily. “Let me talk to him first.”
“You?” Noah asks, skepticism clear in his tone.
I nod once. “We have history.”
If anyone will be able to cajole, or threaten, Ryder into doing the right thing, it’s me.
“You’re not going alone,” Holly says firmly. It’s not a request.
It’s tempting to refuse. Ryder is a predictable sort of ruthless and he will lash out if cornered.
“Fine,” I concede. “But you follow my lead.”
Noah starts to protest, but Holly silences him with a look. “When do we go?”
“Now.”
The drive to Fairbanks is quiet. Holly sits beside me in the truck, obviously stewing in her entirely justified combination of anger and determination, while I keep to my typical silence.
“Tell me about Ryder,” she says after we’ve been driving for twenty minutes in silence.
I keep my eyes on the road. “What do you want to know?”
“Anything that might help me understand. I thought he used to be your friend.”
Ryder is definitely not a friend, but somehow more than that and less. Defining our relationship might be the most difficult thing anyone has ever asked of me.
I consider how much to share. My time overseas with Ryder isn’t something I discuss—not with anyone. But Holly isn’t just anyone anymore.
“We served together,” I begin, the words feeling strange in my mouth after years of silence. “Not just in the same unit. We were on a specialized team. Extraction, primarily.”
“Extraction?”
“Getting people out of dangerous situations. Sometimes Americans. Sometimes assets.” I pause, choosing my next words carefully. “Sometimes targets.”
Holly processes this. “You were special forces.”
What we did doesn’t have a name I’m allowed to tell her, but close enough. “Something like that.”
“And Ryder?”
“Was good at his job. He’s the reason I made it back home, dragged me a few miles through the dirt after an IED blew off half my face.”
Holly waits for me to continue, not pushing. I appreciate her patience.
I take a deep breath, trying to find the right words. There are too many details I can’t give her, and even more I don’t know myself. “But when I finally saw him again, something had changed him out there. He came back…ruthless. Fixated. Someone I didn’t recognize.”
“And now he’s poisoning a town for profit,” Holly says, anger threading through her voice.
“Looks that way.”
Greythorn Industries is located in a small and unassuming office building in the center of downtown. Something tells me that the modest location is only temporary as Ryder works toward whatever diabolical goal will take him on to bigger and better things.
We breeze past the unmanned reception desk and take a creaking elevator up to the fourth, and top-most floor. A bare lightbulb flickers before the doors open and I briefly wonder if we’re about to to be stuck inside.
A plastic placard with Ryder’s name is pasted next to a set of double doors. Just before I push them open, I turn to Holly with a warning look. “Let me do the talking.”
She gestures for me to go ahead, mouth in a thin line.
No promises. Got it.
Ryder sits behind a massive and shiny desk that looks brand new.
His back is to a wide glass window featuring distant snow-capped mountains.
The inside of the office is tastefully decorated in shades of black and dark wood.
It has obviously been recently renovated, at odds with the shabbiness of the rest of the building.
I feel like I’ve just entered the lair of the most low-rent Bond villain ever.
“Ghost,” he says, rising from his chair. “What a surprise. And you brought the lovely Holly. To what do I owe this pleasure?”
I meet his gaze steadily. “We need to talk about the springs, Ryder.”
His smile doesn’t falter, but something cold flickers in his eyes. “By all means,” he says, gesturing to the chairs across from his desk. “Let’s talk.”
“We found a bucket, manufactured by your company,” Holly announces, her voice tight with controlled anger.
Ryder leans back in his chair, fingers steepled beneath his chin. He doesn’t look surprised or concerned—just calculating, as always. “Greythorn Industries manufactures lots of things. What’s your point?“
“Well, this particular product might be responsible for poisoning a bunch of children in town,” I inform him. “Is that specific enough for you.”
His eyes narrow. “That’s quite an accusation.”
“The water from the bucket tested positive for dangerous levels of lead even though water from the spring itself tested clean.” I tell him. “Half a dozen children have already gotten sick from heavy metal poisoning. That’s pretty damning evidence.”
“Interesting theory,” Ryder muses. “Though I fail to see how this involves me personally.
“Cut the bullshit,” Holly snaps. “We know what you’re doing.”
Ryder raises an eyebrow. “Do you now?”
“You’re creating a health crisis,” Holly interjects, leaning forward. “To drive down property values so you can buy up land cheaply.”
His eyes narrow. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
When Holly moves toward him, I step in front of her but keep my focus on Ryder. “We’re going to send that bucket off for testing and I’ll bet it comes back laced with heavy metals.”
A muscle clenches in Ryder’s jaw. “And what exactly will you prove, Doctor? That a bucket manufactured by my company contains lead? That someone—unknown—placed it at the springs? At worst, Greythorn Industries faces a civil penalty for a defective product.”
“You poisoned children,” Holly accuses.
“Prove it,” Ryder interrupts, his voice hardening. “Prove intent. Prove I knew about the bucket. Prove I placed it there. You can’t.”
“We’ll leave that for the police to decide,” Holly replies, lifting her chin defiantly.
Ryder leans back in his chair, a cold smile spreading across his face.
“The police? You think this is about one bucket? One small town?” He laughs, the sound hollow and dangerous.
“I’m just a cog in a machine, Doctor. A very large, very powerful machine.
You’re risking more than you think by standing in my way. ”
The hairs on my neck rise. Something about his tone, the casual confidence in his voice, strikes me as familiar. I’ve seen this before—not just arrogance, but the absolute certainty of someone with powerful backing.
“What exactly are you saying?” Holly demands, taking a step forward. “What machine?”
I place my hand on her arm, stopping her. My mind races, connecting dots I should have seen sooner. I never questioned where Ryder got the money to start Greythorn Industries after leaving the service. Never wondered if he actually left our shadowy world of military dealings the way I did.
“It doesn’t matter,” I say firmly, cutting off whatever explanation Ryder was about to give. “The important thing is that we put a stop to this.”
Ryder’s eyes narrow, studying me with renewed interest. “Always the pragmatist, Ghost.” He taps his fingers on the desk, considering us. Then his expression shifts, a calculated smirk replacing his cold anger.
“I’ll tell you what,” he says, focusing on Holly. “I’ll make you a deal, Dr. Chang. You keep my little secret, and I’ll keep yours.”
Holly stiffens beside me. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t play coy,” Ryder says with a dismissive wave. “You’re an omega pretending to be a beta. Did you really think that would stay hidden forever?”
Holly’s face pales, but her voice remains steady. “That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?” Ryder’s smirk widens into something predatory.
“You did a good job hiding your designation, I’ll give you that.
But I know Grayson well enough to have immediately seen something was up.
” He gestures toward me. “There is no way Ghost would be this enamored unless something about you was different, and it didn’t take much digging to find out the truth. ”
My hands clench into fists, rage building in my chest. He’s had someone investigate her, violate her privacy, threaten her career.
Holly remains silent, her expression unreadable.
“No medical record is safe if you’re willing to pay enough for a good hacker,” Ryder continues casually.
“So here’s my proposition: you keep this nasty business about lead and buckets to yourself and not only will I promise that, going forward, the precious little children of Heat Mountain will remain safe, but so will your dirty little secret. ”
Silence falls as she glares at him.
“Fine,” she finally says.
Ryder’s smile widens, victory gleaming in his eyes. “Excellent. I knew you’d be reasonable—“
Holly pulls out her phone and begins dialing.
“What are you doing?” Ryder asks, smile faltering.
Holly holds up a finger, silencing him as the call connects. “Yes, is this the mayor’s office?” she says clearly. “This is Dr. Holly Chang. I’ve found some very concerning evidence at the springs. I believe I know what’s been sickening the town.”
“You bitch!” Ryder lunges across the desk, reaching for Holly.
I move instantly, shoving him back with enough force to send him stumbling against the window behind him.
“Touch her,” I growl, “and I’ll kill you.”
I mean it. The certainty of it flows through me like ice water. If he lays a hand on Holly, nothing will stop me from ending him.
Ryder straightens his suit, his face contorted with rage. “You’re going to regret this. Both of you.”
“Mayor Winters?” Holly continues into the phone, her voice steady despite the confrontation. “Yes, I need to meet with you immediately. It’s about potential heavy metal poisoning from a contaminated bucket I found at the springs.”
“I will destroy you,” Ryder hisses at her. “Your career, your reputation, everything.”
Holly ends the call and meets his gaze without flinching. “You can try.”
I take Holly’s arm, guiding her toward the door. “We’re done here.”
“This isn’t over,” Ryder calls after us. “Not by a long shot.”
In the elevator, Holly finally lets out a shaky breath, the composure she maintained in Ryder’s office cracking slightly.
“He’ll make good on his threat,” I say quietly. “About your designation.”
She nods, her eyes meeting mine. “I know.”
“Your career—“
“There are more important things than my career, Grayson.” Her voice is soft but certain. “Like those children in the hospital. Like this town.”
I study her face, this woman who continues to surprise me with her courage. “You’re remarkable,” I say simply.
A small smile touches her lips. “I’m not the only one.”