Page 25 of A Barista's Guide to Love & Larceny
“Come on,” Max said, a quaver in his voice. “Dani, comeon.”
She glanced over her shoulder to see both him and Oliver already inside the elevator, Max holding the door open. She hesitated for a moment before stepping in after them. Max took his hand away and the door slid shut, but not before Dr. Rodriguez looked back, her gaze meeting Dani’s. It was clear what was written in her eyes:You weren’t supposed to see this.
Then the elevator was moving, and the three of them were quiet for a minute, catching their breath. Oliver was the first to speak.
“So,” they said, their voice low and uneasy, “are you going to tell us what’s really going on, or are we supposed to walk out of here pretending like we never saw anything?”
There was a long, fragile pause. Dani looked over at Max; he was staring straight ahead, face flushed crimson.
“Max,” she said, imagining his name on a cloud of gold. She wasn’t sure if it would make a difference, but they needed him to explain what had just happened—even if she still didn’t feel good about using her ability.
She thought he wasn’t going to reply, but then, in one swift, decisive motion, Max punched the emergency stop button and the elevator came to a grinding halt.
“Okay. Here’s the deal,” he said. A velvety merlot red seeped into Dani’s brain as he faced them; her attempt had worked. The resulting pang of triumph was flanked by guilt. “Shit’s been going down here since before I got hired. They’ve been keeping it covered up, but—but I think the trials for the new product haven’t been going well.”
“Youthink?” Oliver asked incredulously. They were obviously shaken, and Dani could understand why. She didn’t know how long that woman had been taking OneiroLabs’s new product, but if there was even a chance of that happening to Oliver… well, she was terrified on their behalf.
Forcing herself to stay calm, she turned to Max. “What was—what exactly happened to that woman back there?”
Max shook his head. “I’m not sure. All I know is that the product isn’t working the way they wanted it to. They’ve gone through hundreds of trial participants, because they kick people out as soon as they show a negative side effect.” He glanced at Oliver, an unstatedlike you. “They keep trying, but no one’s lasted more than a week without something going wrong.”
“Like losing your shit and attacking everyone,” Dani said.
“Yeah,” Max said. “Like that.”
“Is that going to happen to me?” Oliver asked. They kept their voice steady, but their fingers were trembling.
Max frowned. “You were in the trial weeks ago. You’re not still having symptoms, are you?”
Oliver nodded. “I can’t sleep more than an hour without getting stuck in a horrific nightmare. One time a doctor had to wake me up using magic. So yeah, I don’t sleep much anymore.”
“Holy shit,” Max breathed. “I’m so sorry. That’s not supposed to be happening. Why didn’t you contact us?”
“I did,” Oliver said incredulously. “I got a message back telling me they weren’t responsible for any of it, per the paperwork I signed.”
“I’m guessing their message never made it to you,” Dani said to Max.
“No,” Max said swiftly. “I’ve always assumed that once participants stopped taking the product, everything just went back to normal…” He swallowed. “But like I said, I don’t have high enough clearance for sensitive information like that.”
“So they’re even hiding it from their own employees,” Dani said.
“Sounds like it,” Max said, his initial shock seeming to harden into dull resignation. “Have you tried taking DreamLite?”
“It was the first thing I tried,” Oliver said. “It’s worked for me in the past, but even a double dose couldn’t touch the nightmares I’m having right now.”
“Gods,” Max said.
Oliver turned away, and Dani wished she had some kind of comfort to offer them, but nothing felt like enough.
“Why are they rushing this?” she asked Max instead. “If they know it’s dangerous, why would they still want to launch it so soon?”
“Why do they do anything?” Max asked tiredly. “Money. They’re on the hook for a new product announcement by the end of theyear. If they don’t come up with something big, the usual investors will pull funding.”
“Can’t they just keep making their other stuff for now?” Dani said. “They have a metric shit ton of money.”
“That’s what they want you to think,” Max said with a humorless smile. “But the truth is, all that venture capital they raised during the start-up phase?Gone.They spent a lot on DreamLite and DreamRite, but they blew even more on this building. A skyscraper they don’t use half of, the most expensive security system money can buy, a spa for the execs—it’s all for show, and they have to keep that show running.”
“Are you serious?” Oliver said, turning back. “They messed up my sleep and mylifefor a spa?”
