Disruptor (8 page)

“And do what? Where will you go? Do you have
any money? Do you even have ID? How are you planning to hide from
those people?”

All damn good questions, and she had no
answers. The weight of that reality pressed down on her. Enhanced
strength, endurance, hearing and vision, plus other things she’d
barely used – but it did her little good if all she could do was
hide out in abandoned buildings, having to steal to eat. And now
she’d made herself the target of violent, dangerous criminals, on
top of the high likelihood that the lab was searching for her.

She had to get out of Point Sable. Nothing
else mattered, not right now. She had to leave, and she had to do
it before anyone traced her to an innocent man’s door.

“I appreciate your concern,” she said. “I
really do. But you know I have to get out of here, as soon as
possible.”

“I know.”

“If they find me with you, they’ll kill you
too. They won’t care about your family name or your trust fund.
They’ll put a bullet in your head and step over your body to get to
me.”

The bright blue of his eyes darkened to a
stormy twilight. “Look, I’m not going to pretend to be some kind of
badass. You’ve got the market cornered on that.” He chuckled
self-consciously and pushed his glasses up. “There are other things
I can do to help you. You saved my life, Dani. I owe you. Let me
repay that debt.”

How could anybody think this guy was just
some airhead trust fund douchebro? She sat back in her chair and
regarded him for a long moment. “The clothes are great.” She
smiled. “A pair of good boots to go with them would be great,
too.”

Red stained his cheeks briefly. “I can get
you boots. I was thinking a new identity, too. Seed money. Whatever
else you need to get somewhere safe, where whoever all you’re
running from can’t find you.”

Definitely smart, as well as pretty. “What
makes you think I’m running from more than just the Russians?”

“You took my phone when I videoed you. You
didn’t want that footage seen online. Not much of a leap from there
to the idea that you were already on the run.”

“The press makes you out to be a dumb, rich
pretty boy. What are you hiding, Kevin Moynihan?”

He tipped his head up and took a deep breath.
“I don’t know.”

Not the cavalier answer she’d expected. She
didn’t know what to make of him, and she couldn’t remember the last
time she’d been so curious about someone.

Kevin shook his head then grinned. “It’s true
I am rich and pretty.” He laughed. “Look, I’ve got a contact I want
to talk to about getting a new identity for you. This isn’t
something I know a lot about, but I trust this person. Stay here,
and get some rest while I’m gone.”

“I can’t stay more than a day or two. I
shouldn’t even stay that long.”

“Just long enough to get you a new identity.
Let your bruises heal. I can see about getting you to a doctor
privately if you need one.”

“No.” No more doctors, no more tests.

Kevin stood and picked up his coffee cup. “I
don’t know how that’s possible but okay.” He carried his cup into
the kitchen.

When he returned, she said, “Are you going to
ask how?” How it was possible she wasn’t badly hurt, how it was
possible she’d taken on so many at once and came out alive? Twice.
She couldn’t tell him. The truth was too dangerous, maybe the only
thing more dangerous than the Russian gangsters who were probably
searching all over the South Side for her.

He was slow to respond. “I want to know. If
you’re comfortable telling me. It’s not a condition of my helping
you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“I didn’t think that,” she said. “You took a
huge risk, bringing me here. The more you help me, the bigger the
risk. Maybe you could tell me why you’re willing to do that,
because it’s not just because I saved your life.”

“To be honest, I’m still trying to figure
that one out.” He glanced at his watch. “I need to meet my contact.
Help yourself to anything in the kitchen. Sleep. Watch TV. Read.
Whatever you want. Just…stay inside. Please.”

“Don’t worry. I may be a badass but I’m not
taking off barefoot.”

“I’ll bring you back some shoes this time,
promise.”

“Hey, how’d you know what size clothes to get
me?”

Kevin gave her a playful look. “I took art
classes for the nude models, remember?”

A guy like him probably had no trouble
finding women, either. “Do I need to come up with a cover story in
case your girlfriend comes over?” Too late, she realized what that
sounded like.

“No girlfriend right now.” Only a hint of
smugness colored his voice.

“Boyfriend?”

He winked. “There was that one time in
college.”

That made for a nice mental image. Heat
flushed her face and she hoped to God he didn’t notice her
reaction.

He strode to the desk and gathered keys and a
cell phone then found a notepad and pen and scribbled on it. He
brought her the note. “Here’s my number if you need it.”

“What happened to the phone I stole from
you?”

“I destroyed that, too. Use the landline if
you need to call. Be back later.”

He trusted her enough to leave her alone in
his magnificent apartment, which made him either an idiot and
damned sure of her. The place was full of any number of things she
could steal and sell. Probably had some cash tucked away, if she
looked hard enough. But he was just going to leave and trust that
she, and all of his belongings, would still be here when he got
back.

Dani scrambled out of her chair and caught up
with him. “Thank you. For everything.”

Kevin nodded, an unexpected intensity in his
electric blue eyes. He raised his forearm, hand hovering inches
from her elbow. But he didn’t close the distance, as if sensing her
trepidation. “Get some rest.”

Then he was gone. She thought about checking
out the fridge, despite how much she’d eaten earlier. Another cup
of coffee, maybe read the rest of that newspaper, if she could find
it. Pick out a book, or maybe just sit and stare out the window at
the city in all its daytime splendor. Ultimately she decided to
take his advice, went back up to the guest room, and slept.

The Old Corinth neighborhood in the West Side
of Point Sable might as well have been called HipsterTown.
Gentrification, hot yoga, organic markets, and vintage shops
defined the area. A few tech start-ups could be found, companies
still too small to afford offices downtown. Kevin parked across the
street from the tiny headquarters of a game and app company and
crossed against the light to meet his college friend.

Zoe Linwood waited for him outside a coffee
shop with a cup in each hand. Kevin kissed her cheek in greeting
and took the offered café mocha. They talked for several minutes,
exchanging news since they’d seen each other last. After some brief
hesitation, Kevin told her what he wanted.

Zoe pushed a lock of her dark blue bob behind
her ear. “You’re shitting me, right? I haven’t done something like
that in years.”

“But you’ve still got the contacts, right?”
He cocked his head and grinned. “I know you do for at least some of
your old college financing methods.”

She pursed her lips. “Exotic hallucinogens
are one thing. Something that might attract the attention of
Homeland Security, that’s a different thing altogether. The deep
web’s a little more complicated to navigate since the feds did
their drug crackdown. People are more cautious. Things are more
expensive.”

“You know money is no object for me. Can you
do it?”

Zoe stared at the plastic lid of her coffee
cup for a long moment. “I don’t want the details. But if I knew the
details, would I be willing to take the risk?”

Kevin debated how much to tell her. He
trusted her, or he never would have come to her for this. But he
wasn’t just risking himself, he was taking a risk on Dani’s behalf
as well. “The person I’m trying to help, she saved my life.”

“Then she’s good people in my book. But I am
going to charge you a twenty percent facilitation fee.”

Kevin smiled with relief. “I’d expect nothing
less.”

“Get me a couple of good pictures, head
shots, and the details she wants. Name, birth date and place, all
the usual stuff. I’ll call you and ask you out to coffee and you
bring the stuff. Do not email me, do not leave voice mails talking
about this.”

“Relax. I remember the drill.”

“This isn’t a fake ID bumping up your age by
a few years so you can buy tequila. You’re asking for a totally new
identity.”

“She’s in trouble, and I owe her.”

Zoe nodded. “Okay. I just want you to know
this isn’t a small thing you’re asking for. And that it’s a good
thing you’re loaded, because this is not going to be cheap.”

“I’ll pay whatever it takes. You know
that.”

Zoe threw away her cup in a nearby trash can.
“So did you lie to the cops about what happened that night in
Cabrini, or is something else going on?”

“I thought you didn’t want details.”

“Ha. I don’t. I gotta get back, I’m on a
deadline. I’ll call soon.” She stood on tiptoe and embraced
him.

He kissed her cheek again and spoke into her
ear. “Thank you for not asking a lot of questions.”

“Just don’t get in over your head, okay?” She
stepped back and met his gaze.

Kevin placed a hand on his chest and gave her
his best insouciant smile. “Hey, would I do that?”

Zoe raised her eyebrows. “Is she
beautiful?”

He thought of how much he’d struggled to keep
his eyes on her face when he’d walked in on her wearing only a
towel. Of the lump that formed in his throat when he saw her
studying his painting. Dani wasn’t simply beautiful, she was
breathtaking. And she would leave his life as suddenly as she’d
entered it.

His silence was all the answer Zoe needed.
“Oh God. Just be careful. People who need a totally new identity,
they may not be bad people, but they’re into some bad shit. Please
look out for yourself.”

“I will. Thank you.”

She went back to work. Kevin returned to his
car. He had some shopping to do. While he looked at boots and
sneakers and a pair of black stilettos it would be completely
inappropriate to buy for his guest, he thought about why he was
going to so much trouble.

Yes, Dani had saved his life. He did feel
like he owed her. But she was at the very least a witness to a
crime, if not the perpetrator of what happened in Lincoln Heights.
If she had done that…if she had taken on a group of Russian
gangsters and walked away alive, how the hell had she done it? She
wasn’t some pixie waif. The sight of her in a towel had confirmed
that. Defined muscle like a swimmer or a gymnast gave her body the
kind of solidity that the models and society girls he was used to
didn’t have. It didn’t take away from her femininity one bit,
either.

But surely even with muscles like that, she
hadn’t been able to do what the newspaper claimed happened in that
house. Right? No one person, male or female, could do that.

The bruises all over her arms and legs told
another story. So did what he hadn’t quite seen the night she’d
saved him from attack.

It was easier to think of her as a beautiful
woman, one he’d wanted to impress with the fancy brunch and the
offer of unconditional assistance. Admitting she was dangerous was
admitting that he had probably done a deeply stupid thing by
bringing her to his home.

And that she could potentially be dangerous
to him.

The quiet voice of a scared young girl
slipped into Dani’s dreams. Over and over she dreamed of running,
the same stretch of dark road, the double rhythm of her feet on the
pavement and the pounding thud of her heartbeat in her ears. Dani
ran toward darkness, not caring what was in front of her. Nothing
could be as bad as what was behind her.

The girl’s voice grew louder, more
insistent.

Don’t leave me.

Don’t leave me.

Don’t leave me.

Dani left her, too scared to go back.

The asphalt turned to hot black glue beneath
her sneakers, pulling her down. She fought against it and kept
running. Tree limbs stretched and plucked at her hair, her clothes.
A hand grasped at her back, yanking on the material of her
hoodie.

She got away from it all, except for the
voice. The voice followed Dani wherever she went. The streets, the
lab, and now this nebulous freedom. It haunted her, the ghost of
her greatest shame.

Now that ghostly voice became a shriek and
cold hands wrapped around her neck. Dani thrashed against the hold
but the hands only squeezed tighter. He had her and he wouldn’t let
her go.

Don’t you leave me with him!

Dani screamed and launched off the bed. Put
her hands around his neck, squeezed his fucking throat until his
breath came in sputters and gasps. Let him beg for a change.

“Dani, it’s me.”

His fingers pried at her hands, his skin
warm. Her heart thundered, or maybe it was his she could hear.

“Please. You were screaming.” He tried to
buck her off but she kept him nearly immobile. “Dani, it’s
Kevin.”

The haze from her nightmare lifted. Her
vision adjusted to the darkness of the room. Horrified, she
released him and bolted away, huddling against the wall.

Kevin sat up, rubbing his throat with one
hand. He coughed. “Are you okay?”

She’d nearly choked him to death, and he was
asking if
she
was okay? “I’m sorry.” Burning shame,
something she was all too familiar with, filled her with nausea.
“So sorry.”

“I’m fine.” He coughed again. “Jesus, you’re
strong.”

Too strong. God, she could have killed him.
She had no business being around people if she couldn’t control
herself. Hadn’t her actions in the Russian mob hangout proven that?
She’d killed, injured, burned the damn place to the ground. All
because she couldn’t control herself and the anger that was there,
ready to strike.