“They’re all infected with the same evil. That’s what it is. Evil.”
“You didn’t answer my question. Did you ever get back at the ones who did that to you?”
His lips thinned. “I can’t. He never liked me, and he won’t let me near his territory.”
“Coward. You could have used that poison against some of the worst of the worst, but you’re too scared to confront the real bullies in this world. Instead, you chose innocent people—vulnerable people.”
Graham’s eyes darted around, and he glanced at his watch.
“Where’s the antidote?” I pressed. “If you save her life, I’ll tell the higher authority you cooperated.”
“I don’t have it on me. We have to go back to my place.”
I folded my arms. “I don’t believe you.”
He approached the edge, searching for the train at the far end of the tunnel.
“Look, we’re not going back to your place. Either you’re stalling, or you’ve got some elaborate scheme cooked up, and I’m not playing that game. Tell me where the antidote is, and I won’t slice off your toes.”
His eyes dragged over to mine.
A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. “Do you know why they hired me? Because I enjoy doing the dirty work. I’m the monster your bullies have nightmares about. We’ll start with all the small appendages—including the one between your legs. Assuming you still have it. Then the tongue.”
He blinked, mouth parting as panic and despair washed over his features.
I inched toward him. “Tell me where the antidote is. Unlike you, I don’t make empty threats. I’m also not very patient.”
From the distant tunnel, I heard the rumble of the oncoming train. Before I could get an answer out of Graham, he jumped onto the tracks.
My eyes widened. There was no way in hell I’d be able to get him out of there by myself. Graham lay there with his eyes slammed shut, waiting for the train to run over him.
Panicked, I leaned over the tracks and waved my arms frantically to get the conductor’s attention.
“Stop the train!” someone shouted, also waving their arms. Several people joined in as the train rolled by the platform, the brakes screeching.
“Stop, you idiot! Stop!”
The train neared, a woman screamed, and I turned my head away.
When it stopped, I braced myself for a gruesome sight. How the hell was I going to get the antidote now? I peered over the edge.
Graham sat facing the train, his legs apart and a rivulet of blood dribbling from his scalp. “I can’t go to jail,” he babbled. “I’d rather be dead. I won’t get my food; I won’t see anything but bars and walls. Not even television.” He swung his gaze up at me, his eyes pleading. “Let me die. You have the power to do it. Just one shock.” Graham began sobbing like a little boy.
I’d had plenty of men beg for their freedom or even their lives. But not once had anyone ever begged for death.
“Stay where you are,” the conductor said. “We called an ambulance.”
This was my case, and I had to make a decision. Turning him in would open up an investigation, and the higher authority might find out about the kids and what we’d done. I wasn’t worried about the paramedics arriving. Even if they took him to the hospital, Graham couldn’t escape. Not unless he got himself committed, and imprisonment was what he was trying to avoid.
I took out my phone and made a call. “Viktor? I need to ask for a favor.”
Chapter 28
After calling Viktor, Blue sent a text message to Raven, letting her know she was going home. Graham might not have an antidote, and even if he did, he would probably destroy it. What would stop him? A conscience? Apparently he’d lost that a long time ago.
The only place she wanted to be was home. If she was going to die, it wasn’t going to be on a street corner, surrounded by strangers.
After explaining the situation, she expected Shepherd to show up in his Jeep. Instead, the black van appeared, Viktor behind the wheel. Both he and Shepherd rushed out the moment they saw her.
“What can we do?” Viktor asked.
Shepherd felt her pulse. “What are your symptoms? What did he give you?”
“Do you want us to call a Relic?” Viktor asked.
She held up her hand. “Hold on with the interrogation. I have chest discomfort—burning and pressure. It feels like bad indigestion. My head hurts, and my muscles are weak. Also, I can’t shift.”
That shut Viktor right up. He covered his mouth with his hand and stroked his beard, looking to Shepherd to fix the situation.
Shepherd didn’t exactly instill confidence. “You said it was poison?”
“He said the toxin had a cumulative effect, so that’s how he could give smaller doses over a period of time. He tainted a stick of gum I chewed the other day, and tonight I got a large dose mixed in with mustard. I didn’t taste anything different.”
“Did you try vomiting?”
She shook her head.
Shepherd opened his medical bag and took out a syringe and bottle. “This works really fast.”
After he gave her a shot, Blue started feeling queasy. Not wanting to vomit on the street, she moved to get up. As if reading her mind, Matteo helped her stand and hustled her into an alleyway just seconds before she threw up her meal.
It really didn’t get more humiliating than that.
“Let’s get her into the van,” Viktor said as he hooked his arm around her waist. Her feet dragged beneath her, but Matteo and Viktor all but carried her to the back doors, where a small mattress awaited her.
They lifted her in, and she crawled over the makeshift bed and collapsed. Viktor squeezed her ankle and held it long enough that she looked down and met eyes with him. Seeing his cautious gaze made her heart quicken. For a moment she thought he might say something, but instead, he gave her a curt nod and returned to the driver’s seat.
“Feel better?” Shepherd stepped over her and set his bag down. “Still nauseous?”
“No.”
Matteo got in, shut the doors, and sat on one of the benches along the side.
Shepherd knelt above her head and offered her a tiny shot glass. “Drink this.”
“What is it?”
“Activated carbon with a little juice. If there’s any poison left in your stomach, it’ll absorb it.”
Blue gulped down the inky liquid and handed him the glass.
“Try not to puke that up,” he said, no humor in his voice. “I brought a few extra things when you mentioned poison. I ain’t gonna lie to you, honey. Poison isn’t my area. Unless we know what he gave you, there’s not much even an expert can do. Did he tell you anything about it?”
She shook her head. “We think it causes massive clotting and strokes. Wyatt’s ghost said that it wasn’t just his heart. He got a headache and had trouble breathing.”
Shepherd put his rough hand on her forehead, his dark eyes softening. He was such a tough-looking guy with all his muscles and hardened features. Yet something about being a dad had brought out a compassion she’d never seen in him before. “That’s good. That’s something. When we get back, I’ll give you blood thinner, and we’ll go from there.”