Page 33 of Benny

He could hear the concern in her voice. More than that, the genuine care.

“Better. I slept really well, and I feel good.”

He was about to add that they probably needed to talk about what had happened between them last night, but she broke in with another question.

“Do you remember what you dreamed last night? It might be important.”

Benny searched his memory, then shook his head. “No. No details.” He frowned, trying to grab hold of something already slipping away. “I know there was a woman, though. A doctor.”

“Her name is most likely Katrina Overlander. Or at least that’s what the memo said. The guy she reported to was a full-bird colonel, a doctor named Isaac Hayes.”

Benny snorted in response. “Like the singer?”

Jordan looked puzzled and he had a brief flash of knowing. She’d grown up on old-school Latin music her grandmother loved, not soul or the blues or rock. Had probably never seen the man on TV or in the movies, hadn’t watched South Park. “Never mind. Go on.”

“Anyway, Davenport never gave us more than that memo, but they seem to be the main players. I’ll bet you’re remembering her. From what you said during your nightmare, it’s clear that she knew about us, and used it against you.” Her tone was past angry, she was furious on his behalf.

“Bitch. She’d better hope I never get my hands on her.” She took a breath, flattened her hands, which had curled into fists.

Her fierceness was shocking and arousing at the same time, and a puzzle piece inside him clicked into place. He couldn’t put a name to it, but felt it nonetheless.

Before he could say anything in response, their cells chimed with an incoming message.

Team meeting in thirty minutes. A link followed the message, directing them to a secure video link site.

“Well, I guess we’ll see if he’s got any additional info on them, or if we need to ask,” she pushed away from the table. “I’m going to grab a shower before we get started,” she said.

Benny watched her walk away again, and this time it wasn’t the past he reached for, but the reality of her beneath him last night. The depth of her fury, and he felt a spark begin to kindle.

Chapter Ten

They jumped on the link a few minutes early, each with a cup of coffee and a notepad at hand. When Devin activated the call, they saw that most of the team had assembled in the penthouse, which made sense with the crazy security measures in place. Only the two of them and Cali were remotely logged in, and she was in uniform, sitting in the front seat of her Jeep.

“Let’s jump right in.” Their display split with one side showing the thumbnails of the participants and the other an official photo. The man in it was distinguished looking, with a mane of dark hair with silvering temples and an arresting face. He projected an aura of authority even through the picture. “Dr. (Colonel) Isaac Hayes. Currently one of the team leads at DARPA. Their systems are locked down, even to me and the people I know, so I wasn’t able to ascertain much. What they do is obviously classified for a reason.”

Benny studied the man’s photo. “Anything?” Jordan asked, her eyes on the laptop.

“He doesn’t feel familiar to me,” Benny said. “I had a nightmare last night about a woman though.”

The screen changed and Benny recoiled from it as if the woman in the photo had reached out and slapped him. It was her. Those colorless eyes in a pale, sharp face, black hair pulled back in a ruthless bun.

Everything in him went into panic mode. His heartrate shot through the roof as his mouth went dry and his breathing went short. The world around him started to go gray.

Jordan pushed his chair back and then shoved his head between his legs. “Breathe, Benny. Just breathe, okay? She’s not here right now. It’s just me and Spot, okay. I’ve got you, Benito.” Just like yesterday, she brought him back with words and touch, caressing his shoulders, the nape of his neck, his arms. “Try to remember the weekend we spent on the lake,” she murmured. “How we both sucked so much at fishing that we finally gave up and drove to the little diner for dinner.” Her voice was soft, and while he didn’t remember the outing, he felt the familiarity of it deep in his bones.

Long moments passed as he came back to himself, and when he finally sat up, his face was flushed with embarrassment. “Sorry about that,” he said, his voice a rasp.

Jordan stood and grabbed him a bottle of water, then when she sat again, kept a hand on his shoulder. Her touch tethered him, grounded him.

“That’s her, obviously,” he said and felt his embarrassment abate at the look of compassion on their faces. But Devin and Cali were looking at him and Jordan, how close they were, the intimacy of their interaction, with scrutiny. Because he didn’t feel like diving into that particular pool right now, he faced his own personal boogeyman. “What can you tell us about her?”

Dev looked like he wanted to argue for a second, then spoke. “Dr. Katrina Overlander. Harvard educated, dual specialties in molecular genetics and biomedical engineering. Post doctorate work in regenerative medicine and viral-vector gene therapy. Other than an impressive CV, her sheet is short and succinct. If we didn’t know she was involved via the memo Davenport leaked to us, I’d never be able to tie her to anything to do with this. And now that we know the adversary,” he said, “I’d like to lay out a plan.

“While Davenport is holding his information close to the vest, we can use the contacts we have to bring Hayes and Overlander’s crimes against us to the right authorities. If that happens to pull Davenport in as well, I don’t really care. Even if he didn’t directly participate in what happened to Benny, he tolerated what they did to him. Because he saved Tate, I’ll give him the wiggle room of not naming him directly. The rest is up to him.

“We have enough evidence to go to the OSI and the FBI, so it doesn’t get buried by either agency, without letting them know about Benny’s resurrection. You’ll be our ace in the hole, but only used if necessary. I’ve compiled everything in an identical file that has a kill switch of sorts. If one of us doesn’t update it on a recurring schedule, then the whole thing is sent to the New York Times, the LA Times, the Dallas Morning News, the Guardian and the BBC. I’ll make it clear that we want the two of them punished appropriately, that the project needs to be destroyed, and that we demand to be left alone. Forever.”

Benny sat back, fully recovered now. Jordan removed her hand and he missed the warmth, the comfort of it, immediately. Dev’s plan made sense, and using the BBC and the Guardian meant that it would become worldwide news, instead of something that could be suppressed stateside in the interests of national security. It worked. And once those two were no longer a threat, he could start to consider what to do with the rest of this new life.