Lancelot's Lady (54 page)

Exhausted and emotionally drained, she fell asleep on the couch, dreaming of her father—young and full of life. In her dream, he feigned annoyance when she beat him and his poker buddies one night, even though she knew he was secretly proud. Then the dream flashed to the night she had invited her parents for dinner in her small one-bedroom apartment. Her father had teased her about her hockey puck Yorkshire puddings. He called them
doorstoppers
.

In her sleep, she smiled.

Until the brash ringing of the telephone jolted her awake.

"
Y-yeah?
"

"
Delly?
"

She sat up immediately, gripping the phone tightly.

"
Professor Schroeder? How did—
"

"
Delly, I don
'
t…time. You need…follow your heart. And remember, leave no stone…care…Bio-Tec.
"

"
Professor, I can barely hear you! I already went to Bio-Tec. They don
'
t know anything.
"

"
Go back! Take care again—
"

The line went dead.

Spurred by panic, she dropped the phone, snatched up a notepad and scribbled Schroeder
'
s words on an empty page.

Damn!
She had to pay Bio-Tec another visit in the morning. And sure as hell, Edward Moran—with his slimy wet lips—would be there to greet her.

Edward slammed an angry fist down on the desk.

"
Where the hell are they, you sonofabitch?
"

It was early morning and he was in the main NB Lab, typing furiously at the keyboard in front of him. The monitor kept flashing him the same message.

No such files exist!

It had been seven years since Lawrence Hawthorne went missing and was presumed dead. In that time, Edward had taken over most of Lawrence
'
s research, but he was positive there was more. He suspected that the man had enlisted the aid of an encryption expert, encoded his files so that they were virtually invisible. But they were there. Somewhere. It was only a matter of time before he found them.

Hawthorne had been researching something big before he disappeared. And someone else obviously knew about it. Four years ago, the NB Lab was broken into and tossed. Whoever was responsible for the break-in walked away with a number of files, notebooks…and Hawthorne
'
s laptop.

"
Looking for something in particular?
"

Edward cast a sharp look at a white-smocked doctor standing in one corner juggling test tubes.
"
Pardon me, Jake?
"

The doctor edged closer while Edward tapped the keyboard and hastily exited from the lab directory.

"
Just wondering if you were looking for something specific.
"

"
I
'
d appreciate it if you would finish doing whatever it is that you were doing and leave me to my work.
"
Insolent ass!

Edward struggled to remember the doctor
'
s surname. Nothing came to mind. Jake whatever-his-name-was had been with Bio-Tec for almost ten years, just two years less than he had, but they had never worked together. When the board had voted for a new CEO after Lawrence
'
s disappearance, Jake had come in a close second, but Edward
'
s seniority had won out in the end.

Edward hid a furtive smile.

The lab exuded power and success with its state-of-the-art equipment and leading technology. Countless lab workers surrounded him, busily nattering to each other about test results. To Edward, it sounded like some kind of classified code operated by a secret club.

My invitation must have gotten lost in the mail.

As CEO of a leading corporation like Bio-Tec, he basked in the glory of astounding discoveries and technological advances that only
his
research team had accomplished. As far as he was concerned, he
was
Bio-Tec Canada. The many doctors and experts were simply the mice in his lab, running the maze and searching for results. He was the one handing them the reward for work well done. Of course, he
'
d dip into those rewards too—whenever he could get away with it.

He strode past Jake. His eyes narrowed when he saw the doctor cast a hasty look toward the main computer terminal. The last thing he needed was Jake snooping around in the files.

Relax. He
'
s a doctor, not a computer whiz.

Reluctantly, Edward strolled through the automated doors. He was about to head for his office when his pager beeped. Perturbed by the message, he swore loudly and hurried toward the main reception area.

He saw Delila before she noticed him.

Lawrence Hawthorne had created a real beauty, but there was something about the woman that Edward didn
'
t like. Not only was her confidence intimidating, she was also seemingly immune to his charm.

What in blazes does she want now?

He caught the glimmer of fury in her blue eyes as they fastened on him. His tongue flicked over his mouth, this time from sheer nervousness. He
'
d have to be very careful around her.

"
Did you forget something yesterday?
"

"
I have a few more questions, Mr. Moran. Your office?
"

Edward did not like her curt manner one bit. He stomped into his office, huffing indignantly. Then he closed the door behind them and got right down to business.

"
While I can appreciate that you
'
re having difficulty accepting your father
'
s death, I hope you can appreciate that I
'
m a very busy man. We
'
re in the middle of a huge research proj—
"

"
I
'
m not here to talk about your research. I want to know where my dad
'
s files are.
"

He couldn
'
t believe the woman
'
s audacity.

"
That
'
s Bio-Tec
'
s property! Anything your father did here we own. You should know that.
"

"
It might be the only way I
'
ll find him.
"

What could he possibly say to get her off his back and off Bio-Tec grounds?

He stood abruptly.
"
Follow me.
"

When they reached the NB Lab, he swiped a small card through a keypad, pushed a button and beckoned her inside. He took her arm, steered her toward the main computer terminal.

"
This is where your father worked seven years ago. A lot has changed since then.
"

Shit!
Jake—the obnoxious moron—was sitting at the monitor, with his back to them.

Edward paused.
"
The lab was broken into a few years ago. Most of your father
'
s stuff was stolen. His files were deleted.
"

The woman eyed him suspiciously but said nothing.

"
Of course I knew you wouldn
'
t believe me so I brought you here to show you. Once I do, I expect you to stop coming here. Do you understand, Miss Hawthorne?
"

"
Oh, I understand perfectly.
"

The intensity of her glare burned a hole through his skull, and he was the first to look away.

Del battled a multitude of thoughts, furious at Edward Moran
'
s demeanor. Her father
'
s files may have been deleted, but Schroeder had tried to tell her that there was
something
at Bio-Tec. All she had to do was find out what.

Moran tapped the shoulder of the doctor sitting at the computer, then he leaned down slightly and said something, motioning the man to stay seated.

"
Delila Hawthorne, this is Jake. He
'
ll be happy to show you the folder that your father used.
"

When the man in the chair turned, she found herself ogling the attractive blue-eyed doctor from Riverview. Schroeder
'
s specialist.

Mr. Tall, Dark and Oh-So-Sexy.

She struggled to catch her breath.
Oh crap!

The man appeared equally as stunned.
"
We
'
ve met. Well, sort of.
"
He held out a hand.
"
Jake Kerrigan, scientist and doctor. How are you doing today?
"

She slipped her hand in his, then pulled back quickly, feeling a bit lightheaded from the electrifying contact.
"
I
'
m fine.
"

"
Yes, you are,
"
the doctor said boldly.
"
Grab a chair.
"

"
Thank you, Dr. Kerrigan.
"

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she paused.

Kerrigan.
Why did that sound so familiar?

In the hospital, Schroeder
'
s doctor had never mentioned the specialist
'
s name. She was sure of it.

"
What kind of specialist are you exactly?
"

A smile formed on the man
'
s lips.
"
I specialize in youth. Actually, in layman
'
s terms, I
'
m researching the aging process and aging diseases such as Progeria. We
'
ve made some fascinating discoveries in the past ten years.
"

"
Is that why you went to see Arnold Schroeder?
"

"
I
'
ve run some tests on your…friend.
"

"
Professor Schroeder was my dad
'
s friend. And my mentor.
"

There was a look of surprise on the doctor
'
s face.
"
You
'
re an anthropologist? I never would have guessed.
"

Behind her, Moran let out an impatient huff.

She clasped her hands tightly.
"
Dr. Kerrigan…
"

There it was again, that faint recognition.

"
Jake,
"
he insisted.
"
I
'
m not one for formalities.
"

My mother would hate you then.

Del saw Moran move closer, until his vast stomach pressed against the mahogany desk. He observed every move Jake made on the computer. When the doctor made a data entry error and had to backtrack, Moran
'
s beady eyes flicked him a look of disdain.

"
I
'
ll leave you two at it then,
"
he said after a while.
"
Remember what I said, Delila. I don
'
t expect to see you back here again.
"

He made his way toward the doors.

As far as she was concerned, Edward Moran hadn
'
t left soon enough. Something about the man made her feel as though an army of fire ants were crawling over her body.

"
There you go,
"
Jake said, angling the monitor toward her.

He pulled up a folder labeled with her father
'
s name.

It was empty. Nothing. Not one file.

Moran was right. Someone had deleted all her father
'
s work.

But why?

She stared at the screen, willing it to change.

"
Can you do a search? See if he had files stored someplace else?
"

"
Let
'
s see what comes up if I search for one of your father
'
s research topics.
"
He glanced up from the keyboard.
"
Do you prefer Miss Hawthorne or Delila?
"