What Remains_Mutation (7 page)

Cogan had explained the dynamics encompassing the compound before leaving their barracks—the agreement of four members to any family unit. How the increased number of men had posed certain conflict until they’d decided to join forces. She’d been hesitant at first, wondering if it’d some kind of ruse, but as she’d made her way along the grounds to the meeting, she’d seen the apparent success of the complex. And with humanity on the brink of extinction, she guessed that any compromise that made a society harmonious was worth a shot.

She glanced at Cogan, Sully and Jake. They stood just off to her left, talking quietly with one of the other men. She vaguely remembered waking in the night, heart racing, her pulse pounding in her head. She’d staggered into the main room, Sully and Jake in tow and had all but fallen into Cogan’s arms. The men had assured her she was safe then asked her to trust them.

Trust.

Them.

Three men she didn’t even know.

Yet, she had. Did. Then she’d fallen asleep wedged between them, waking several hours later still entwined. They’d been casual, acting as if it’d been nothing more than an innocent interaction, but that’s not how it felt. How
she
felt. She’d been off her game since they’d shown up at that creek, the near-death encounter a prime example of how strongly they affected her. Hell, in all her years as an operative, she’d never risked her own life for someone other than her mark. Yet, she’d taken a knife for Cogan without even knowing his name.

Harper firmed her jaw. Now wasn’t the time to let her emotions rule her judgment. She was outnumbered, outgunned, standing in a room full of people who might very well be the enemy, and all she could think about was how warm and soft Cogan’s lips had been when she’d asked him to kiss her in the Hummer. Or how safe she’d felt in Jake’s arms when he’d intervened during her attempted escape. Then there’d been the way Sully had rubbed her calves, the sensuous swirl of his hands practically making her purr.

Fuck!

She took a calming breath, stiffening when the talking stopped and all eyes once again focused on her. She’d agreed not to bring any weapons, aware that any other course would only increase the tension and uncertainty already surrounding her. Besides, there were plenty of objects she could use to defend herself. The chair beside her. The various beakers and instruments lining the counter. She didn’t need a blade to kill. It just made things easier.

The man Cogan had been whispering to waved at her. “Welcome. Harper, right?”

She nodded. “Rawlings.”

He smiled. “I’m Barrett. This is Colby, and I believe you already met Darcy and Abby, though you might not remember. You weren’t looking so good back then.”

She allowed her gaze to linger on each person in turn, finally giving the group a curt nod. “I remember.” She focused on the lady. “They tell me you’re the resident doctor. I don’t believe I thanked you for stitching up my shoulder.”

Abby smiled. “You got hurt saving one of our own. Seemed only right to return the favor.”

“Either way, thank you.”

Barrett motioned to the seat beside her. “Cogan tells me you’re feeling better, though you still look like a bloody ghost. Why don’t you sit? Relax.”

She laughed, gazing around the room. “Sit? In a chair with my back to the room’s only door fronted by six, heavily armed soldiers? Thanks, but I think I’ll stand.”

A smile curled Barrett’s mouth as he looked at Cogan. “Shit, mate, you certainly know how to pick them. And don’t think I didn’t notice how she didn’t include the three of you in that statement.” Some of the tension dissipated as he leaned against the counter, one hand resting on Abby’s hip. “Trust me, Harper. If we were a threat to you, you wouldn’t be breathing.”

“You all use that word a lot. I’ve discovered trust is easily misplaced these days.” She ran a hand through her hair, eyeing each man in turn, but her gut wasn’t telling her they were lying to her. She cursed under her breath. “You’re right. You could have let me die, and you didn’t. That’s more kindness than I’ve been shown in a long time. It should count for something.”

She moved over to the chair, sitting despite the sudden clenching in her stomach. It went against every instinct to set herself up as an easy target, but she knew someone had to make the first move. And in hindsight, they already had when they’d saved her ass.

She released an audible breath. “Better?”

Barrett laughed. “Honey, I have no doubts you’re just as deadly sitting as you were standing. But we appreciate the gesture.” He motioned to Cogan and his crew. “You boys can stand down, too. We just want to talk to the lady.”

Harper glanced at them. Somehow, she’d missed the way they’d edged closer to her, separating themselves from the other two groups. An unspoken statement that they’d already chosen a side. Hers. A new feeling sizzled to life, one that made the room spin, making her thankful she’d accepted the damn chair. Jake snagged her gaze, giving her a wink as he, Cogan and Sully relaxed slightly, leaning against the wall behind them. Barrett smiled his apparent thanks when the man they’d called Kace the other day pushed through the gathering.

He covered half the distance between them, crossing his arms on his chest. “Can we just forgo the pleasantries and get down to what’s really important? I don’t care if you’re some super soldier or an international spy. What I want to know is who the hell that man was you were traveling with, and what he was the key to?”

The guy she suspected to be Kace’s brother sighed, shaking his head as he joined Kace, patting the man on the shoulder. “You’ll have to forgive my brother Kace. His brilliance sometimes overshadows his tact. I’m Rhys. This is Emersyn and Hunter.”

“You were in here the other day.”

Rhys’ lips twitched. “Impressive. I was certain you were going to fall flat on your face.”

“I would have, given enough time.” She motioned to Kace. “Cogan said you had a serum. Are you a doctor?”

“Biochemist. Now can we get back to the questions?”

Harper fisted her hands, pushing off the chair before making her way over to the table. A sheet still covered Lelin’s body, and she pulled it back to gaze down at the man who’d made her life a living hell. Who’d made the world one. His skin was an eerie shade of gray, the bloody mark on his neck tinged a deep black. She stared at the long laceration between his eyes, noting how the edges still looked sharp. Of all the possible scenarios, she’d never imagined she’d end up killing the bastard. Not after all she’d endured.

She looked away, allowing the sheet to fall from her grasp. It made an odd whispering sound as it pooled over the body, the noise openly mocking her. She’d failed.

A hand touched hers and she glanced up, pinned by the deep brown of Cogan’s eyes. The man seemed more than concerned, his brow crinkled into a deep vee. The visible display humbled her, and she gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile as she raised her chin, facing the waiting crowd. Regardless of the outcome, they deserved to know the truth. However dismal it was.

Barrett moved ahead, pointing at the corpse. “I can see the look on your face, but I’m pretty damn sure that national security isn’t much of a concern anymore. If you know something that might save us—”

“Save us?” She laughed at the thought, though it was anything but funny. “I just sentenced everyone to death. Or maybe I just sealed it, but either way, I killed whatever chance at survival we had left when I put a knife in that bastard’s head.” She kicked at the floor, her shoulders drooping as she faced the reality of that one action. The price of not getting up quick enough after taking the knife to her shoulder. The cost of being weak. “One fucking job. Keep him alive long enough to make him reverse this. Somehow force him to undo what he did. And I blew it.”

Barrett frowned. “You’re not really making sense. Who was that guy?”

She swallowed past the lump in her throat, wishing she could lie if only to save what little pride she had left. “His name was Dr. Lelin Granger. And he was this world’s last hope.”

Chapter Five

Sully stared at Harper, his protective instincts hitting high alert. There was no mistaking the broken quality to her voice, or the way her shoulders hunched in shame. It didn’t seem to matter that they’d been the cause of her actions—the reason she’d had to kill the man—only that she’d seemingly failed. He moved forward when Kace hissed out a breath.

The man darted over to the gurney, yanking back the cover as he stared at the dead man’s face. Disbelief shaped his features when he finally turned to Harper, his lips slightly parted. “His last name’s Granger? As in the Lelin Granger who rewrote everything we know about parasitic infection? The man’s been underground for years. Shit, I thought he’d died long ago. He’s a fucking legend!”

Harper scowled at Kace. “The man was insane. That’s the only thing I know for certain.”

Kace shook his head, running his fingers through his hair. “You do realize that Granger may have been the only man on the face of the planet that could have turned this thing around, right? And you let him get bitten?”

Sully moved, slipping between Kace and Harper when the other man took a calculated step forward. Cogan and Jake followed suit, stopping when they flanked her. Emersyn reacted in kind, but Rhys held her back, watching but not interfering.

Kace growled, turning to storm across the room before facing them again. “What the fuck, Sully? Do you have any idea how important that man was?”

Sully held his ground. “What I know is that you’re blaming someone whose actions were the direct result of
us
fucking up, not to mention the fact the asshole wasn’t even human when Harper killed him…to save Cogan’s life. Again.”

Kace glanced at the man in question, hissing out a breath as he appeared to release some of his anger. He kicked at the floor, stuffing his hands in his pocket with enough force one of the seams ripped. “I apologize for the outburst. I’m just…frustrated.”

Harper huffed, pushing her way through Cogan and Jake, signaling Sully to stand down. “No one knows the price of that hit more than me.”

Sully grabbed her arm, forcing her to look at him. “You took a knife to the shoulder to save someone you didn’t even know rather than kill Lelin outright. I think that tells us all
we
need to know.”

She shook her head, shame once again hunching her shoulders. “It was my fault. I’d been guarding the bastard for years. Spent the last three months traipsing his ass across the damn countryside searching for somewhere to hide him. It’s not like he hadn’t tried to kill me before. I should have been three moves ahead of him. But when he grabbed Cogan… I just reacted. And after everything the bastard had done, I couldn’t let him claim another innocent life.”

Sully gave her a shake when she went to look away. “I don’t understand. Why the hell would he try to kill you if you were the only reason he was still alive? And what had he done?”

She sighed, leaning against Jake when the man moved in behind her. She looked lost. Defeated.

Her gaze rose to his before snagging Kace’s. “I know that once upon a time, Lelin Granger must have been a brilliant scientist. But trust me when I tell you, he wasn’t the man you think he was. Not anymore.” She took what looked like a fortifying breath. “He was a monster.”

Rhys moved beside his brother. “Monster? How?”

“Who the hell do you think created this damn infection? Lelin wasn’t interested in stopping it. He was trying to enhance it.”

Sully stared at Harper, ears ringing, breath lodged in his chest as he tried to process what she’d said. After all the speculation, the guessing, she’d confirmed his worst fears. A man had caused the infection. It’d been deliberate. Gray dots swam at the edges of his vision as acid churned in his gut. He shifted his gaze to Cogan and Jake, but they seemed as stunned as him, simply darting their focus from Harper to the dead man and back.

Kace recovered first. “Lelin Granger engineered this? Are you certain?”

Sadness flickered in her eyes as she nodded. “I’m sorry.”

Kace pursed his lips, staring at the floor as he slowly walked over to the counter. Emersyn joined him, moving into his arms when he opened them, her head resting against his chest. Sully bit back a curse. This was seriously fucked up. He stepped closer to Harper when Barrett swore, striding across the room.

He fisted his hands at his side, glancing at Cogan and Jake before settling his gaze on Harper. “Who the hell are you, lady?”

She studied the man, slowly scanning the room as if deciding what to say when she finally focused on Lelin’s corpse over her shoulder. “Does it matter? Nothing will bring the bastard back. Not even his bloody little parasites.”

Cogan cupped her elbow, drawing her gaze. “It might help us understand if you start at the beginning.” He gave her a smile. “Rhys seems to think you’re an assassin.”

Harper glanced at the man in question then back to each of them. “What do you three think?”

Cogan’s smile widened. “You’ve definitely got double O written all over you, sweetheart.”

She laughed, an easy, lilting tone that sent curls of heat flashing across Sully’s skin. Fuck, nothing but the sound of her voice and he got tunnel vision, his thoughts focused on making her laugh again.

Harper gave Cogan’s hand a squeeze as some of the tension seemed to ease. “Close, but not quite.” She sighed, releasing a weary breath. “Sorry to disappoint you, Rhys, but I’m not an assassin. I was MI6. I started as a linguistic specialist, though it didn’t take long for my superiors to realize I excelled in other, more physical areas. I made the transition into a covert operative fairly quickly and spent several years running missions throughout Europe.”

Barrett groaned. “Great. You guys go looking for Gunner and bring back Jason Bourne.”

She scoffed. “Don’t be an ass. My specialty was actually keeping targets alive, not killing them.” She glanced at the sheet again. “Though you’d never know it from this mission.”