Chapter 1
Rushmoor Facility, Augusta, Maine, late August
Chairman’s office

"Charlene, please, we already talked about this,” Melcome Ryan, chairman of a famous psychiatric facility in Maine sighed, “you know I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t had to. I need someone I trust on this.” He looked up to his niece.

Taking in the scent of citrus polish with a deep breath Charlene Ryan closed her icy blue eyes, “Fine.” Then she turned away from his desk without further comment and walked out on him.

Long strides carried her gracefully over the white marble floor, her high heels making the only sound in the empty hallway.
She entered her own office, two floors above her uncle’s in the administration building. She paced in front of her desk, trying to decide what to do.

Officially, she was the Facility’s spokeswoman but unfortunately, she had showed great talent in tracking down escapees should that ever happen. So far, it only happened twice but her uncle and the board where very satisfied on how smooth and out of public eye she had solved their problem. Their patient was back locked up and in doctor’s care in less than 24 hours and everybody was happy.

Except for the patient who didn’t belong there in the first place but his wife had decided that she enjoyed spending his money and had arranged together with her lawyer that it was even easier while he was certifiably insane.

Ryan often asked herself why she played their game. When she had found out that something was wrong with this case she had started digging. And she didn’t like what she found.

When she had started working for her uncle, she was sure she did the right thing. She thought the Facility kept the world safe from those they housed and watched. The Facility was divided into two separate sections, a psychosomatic clinic and a forensic psychiatry. They helped celebrities cure their addicts and house dangerous, convicted criminals. Some people might call them psychopaths or plain monsters.

Until she found out that not all of the patients were really ill, or even fairly judged. But some people paid a lot of cash to keep them locked up out of their way, children to lock up their parent to get access to the family wealth, companies to get rid of business competition or to keep corporate secrets truly secret. Even the government “parked” unwanted witnesses at the Facility. Ryan had seen it all.

Now Ryan was disgusted and was trying to decide how to leave. She knew that no one with her level of knowledge had ever quit successfully.

Not too long ago they hosted a high profile manager who wanted to tell all the dirty secrets about his company. Some people didn’t like that idea and he had ended up locked up and tranquilized for weeks until the medications drove him to kill himself. It was strange how much people believe when doctors tell them their loved ones had a nervous breakdown or something like that even without a history or mental malfunctions. As long as they were doctors, it was like they were untouchable. And the Facility had a whole staff of doctors on their payroll.

Running a well manicured hand through her long dark, auburn hair she leaned back on her glass desk, placing her hands flat on the surface.

"Why me?" Ryan sighed.

+++

Between Augusta and Waterville, Maine, same day

Tony Minetti got out of his business car, a fairly new black Chrysler Pacifica, and stretched his limbs. It was a bit colder here than in town, he thought, and pulled the collar of his dark blue wool coat up. The bright blue sky and the beautiful red colour of the falling leaves were a clear sign summer was finally giving way to autumn.

His destination was about seventy miles outside of Augusta and if he hadn't known the way by heart, he would have never found the lonely ranch house in the middle of nowhere.

Tony had served in law enforcement for over twenty years, six of those as the leader of a special crime unit. His Italian heritage was obvious based on his handsome looks and charm.

A golden-retriever-mix came running, greeting Tony cheerfully with a waggin tail and excited barking

"Good boy, Jerry!" Tony bent down to scratch his friend behind the ears. "Where's your mommy?" he asked, and Jerry took off running towards the barn.

Following him, Tony dusted off his black pants and peeked into the barn.

"Sam?" he shouted and waited for any sign that his former co-worker was inside."Over here," replied a smooth voice, and Tony followed it.Samantha Hayes grinned at her mentor and long time friend, welcoming him in a strong hug. "I didn't know you were coming to visit." "I've missed you, Sam." Tony stepped back and took a good look at his friend. Sam looked better. Her blond mane looked wild and natural, her skin wasn't as pale as when she quit, and she had gained back a few pounds, which suited her really well.Meanwhile Sam observed him as well. Sam knew him well enough to know he needed to tell her something uncomfortable. There were dark circles under his sparkling brown eyes, and the frown on his face seemed never to completely disappear. "How have you been, Sam?" he asked when they walked towards the house."I'm doing well." Sam sighed. "Jerry and I like it here, right boy?" Sam patted him, and he barked back as if he understood her."I can see that. And I'm glad." They shared a smile and walked up the two steps to the porch. Holding the screen door open for Jerry and Tony, Sam entered her kitchen after them.

It had been eleven months now since Sam had quit her job with the force, sold her house, and moved out here. Fourteen months since the brutal killing of her younger brother. Fourteen months that she tried to sleep without nightmares. It was getting better, though. While she was out here, without any radio or television, her only connection to the outside world her laptop, she had been able to balance her own state of mind, and finally accept there was nothing she could or would have done differently.After earning her Doctorate and joining the police force, she had rented a flat that she shared with her brother who was still in college. Life was good.

+++

But it hadn’t been always like that. Especially that one day in December.

Sam remembered the day like it had been yesterday. She had been sitting in her office late at night, studying a report of their latest case when Tony stood in her door

"Something has happened to Angus." Tony said, with a pained expression on his face.

The wounds on her heart were just now closing and Sam could feel the mental scars daily. One of their bigger collars had been a successful manager, Ernesto Vega, who had raped three hookers and killed one before he was caught by Sam’s team. The media loved the case and it was all over the news. The reporters made her look like a hero and she couldn’t prevent being on the news and in the newspapers. Against her advice, the judge let Mr. Vega be released on a $500,000 bail, even though Sam’s profile stated that he was a ticking bomb ready to go off at any time.What nobody could forecast was that he was after Sam personally. Even though Tony had ordered surveillance, with prior consultation of the State attorney, Mr. Vega managed to slip away. They found out later that Mr. Vega had hired a private investigator to gather information about Sam. Information he used to find Angus on his way home from college. Vega had awaited him in a park that he daily crossed on his way home, and what had followed wasn’t pretty. Even the coroner had looked pale when they took the body to the morgue.“The beast is dead” was the headline to go with the picture on the front page of the newspaper that showed Sam with her gun, standing over Vega’s dead body. It had taken Sam and Tony’s team over two months to track Vega down after the murder. Two months in which Sam had spent every waking hour at the office, compiling a new profile while the rest of the team had followed every piece of forensic trace evidence they could find.The worst part was that Vega had made this his personal vendetta. Even from hiding, he kept sending Sam personal stuff from her brother. The cruellest “present” was an audio recording from the crime. Hearing her little brother, her only family, plead for his life, still made Sam still physical.

+++

Augusta

Adrian Bloom, former inmate at the Facility, opened the motel room door and entered the cheap looking place. He put his small duffel bag on the single bed and closed the blinds after peering out. Satisfied that nobody was following him, he smiled, wrinkles showing on his otherwise boyish looking face. In the small bathroom, he let some water run over his hands and splashed his face and neck before he stuck his whole head under the spray. Grabbing a white towel he dried his face and some of his short blond hair before he looked at himself in the old mirror over the sink.

"Two down, only a few more to go." He said to himself and went back to his duffel bag. Unpacking a handwritten list of names, he scratched off the second in line.

Rushmoor Facility, 4th floor

There was a knock on the door but Ryan could care less. Taking another sip of her scotch; redundant she closed her eyes and wished whoever it was would just disappear.

"Miss Ryan." Someone asked, and opened the black door with the metal handle a bit. "Miss Ryan, can I come in?" the man with spiky blond hair asked shyly, and gulped when he met her cold stare.

"Now that your head's already in my office, why not bring the rest in?" Ryan put her glass down and watched him.

" I’m Calvin Rogers, your uncle assigned me to help you track down Adrian Bloom." Calvin stuttered and gulped when Ryan eyed him up and down.

Perusing him silently, Ryan took in the worn sweatshirt and his baggy pants. He didn't look like the typical buttoned down employee at the Facility with his punk hairstyle and hip hop clothes. She was pleased to note his tolerable taste in aftershave and use of deodorant, because he wasn't only nervous, he was sweating as well.

"You're Calvin, the network guy, aren't you?" she asked coolly, and he nodded nervously. “Yes, I’m the administrator.”

"I want you to bring me all the surveillance footage starting one week ago until last night. I want Adrian Bloom’s room, and the hallway, as well as every other way he might have taken to escape."

"Ok." Calvin nodded again.

"You can go." Ryan said and raised an eyebrow when he didn't move.

"Geek." Ryan stared for a moment at the door Calvin had closed behind him. She didn’t know if she should be amused or annoyed. Couldn’t her uncle have found her less young and less inexperienced? She swung her chair around and pursed her lips in thought. She tapped her keyboard, turning off the screen saver, and then accessed the employee database. ‘Hmmm… Rogers… Rogers…’ She found his file, and started reading.”

It seemed he had been working for the Facility for a couple of months now and was a genius, or that's what his profile said. "Well," she thought, "let's see if that's true. I can use all the help I can get. At least I can try to be nice to him before I find out he's as idiotic as the rest of the folks here.” Pulling up Adrian Blooms file, Ryan started her assignment.

Adrian Bloom had been brought to various psychiatric facilities over the years since he was six. With parents unknown he grew up as an orphan. Adrian was a real nutcase as far as she could tell, but she wasn’t a doctor. Two little kids who were in the same orphanage were found dead under suspicious circumstances and it later turned out that Adrian wasn’t as innocent as he looked. Youth welfare sent him from one psychiatric facility to another and wherever he went, people got hurt or worst. He always picked the weakest and even at his young age, he methodically mentally destroyed them. His odyssey ended when he was brought to the facility.

Reading further, Ryan took another sip of her scotch. The picture in his file was dated two months back, and while his age was twenty-four at that time, he looked no older than sixteen. His hair was a bit too long and falling in his face, which was a bit too round for his age. Only his eyes showed he was not a kid anymore. They held such hatred in a photo; Ryan wondered how they looked in person.

With a wry grin Ryan downed the rest of the alcohol. "I'm gonna find out soon enough."

+++

Sam's house

"Sam, I need your help." Tony held the mug with hot coffee in both of his big hands, and kept his eyes on the blonde.

He knew he had promised not to talk to her about work. He knew she had said finding the killer of Angus, her little brother was the last thing she would do for the police.

Writing books and selling articles to forensic and medical magazines brought in enough money for her to get by. That and her brother’s life insurance she had purchased for him when she started on the job.

But he had no other choice. His back was against the wall, and she was the only person who could help him.

"Tony," Sam sighed. "I can't," she whispered and tilted her head forwards, the blond locks she kept tucking back behind her ears falling in her face.

+++

Pushing her hair back with both hands, Sam rested her elbows on the table and eyed her friend.

"I'm sorry." She said, and he laughed.

"I should be the one saying I'm sorry. Sam, I wouldn't ask you if I knew another way." If it wasn’t for Tony, Sam doubted she would have survived the months after Angus death. He and his family had done everything to not let her slip.

"Is it about the Chief?" Sam had read in the online news that he had been murdered.

"Yes," Tony pulled a couple of photos out of the pockets of his coat which was resting on the chair beside him.

They had been making small talk and eating apple pie until Sam had finally asked what really brought him here.

Handing the pictures to Sam, he watched as she eyed them, afraid to touch them as if they would bite her. She spread them out on the table barely touching them.

They showed an older man with bald head, laying face down on his desk, a bullet hole in his temple. The other pictures were similar. A gun was below the chair, and it looked a great deal like suicide.

"And this was a reporter from the local newspaper." Tony spread out more pictures, showing another man, laying face down on a desk in which looked like an office. "This happened last night." Tony crossed his arms on the table.

"And the new provisional Chief is stressed out already." He took a deep breath and waited for Sam to say something.

"Somebody was very angry." Sam said, still focused on the pictures and then looked at Tony with big blue eyes. She'd been teased in school about her eyes, they always said she looked like a deer caught in the headlights all the time. Now the same boys who had taunted her would give an arm to go out with her.

"First we thought Chief Nevill had problems and shot himself, but interviews with his wife and the people from his office didn't give us one clue why he would have done that."

Sam looked at the photos more closely. His office was large and it looked expensive. On the large desk sat a computer flat screen with keyboard and mouse, a pencil holder with what looked like very exclusive pens and a telephone. That was it.

The reporter's desk was a mess. While it was way too small anyway, it was stuffed with all kind of papers, magazines, and a huge 17" monitor. The keyboard must have been buried under a stack of papers somewhere and the receiver of the phone hung to the floor.

"Did you check the incoming and outgoing calls?" Sam asked and Tony nodded.

"We're still at it. Someone manipulated the records."

“Good.” Sam replied absently while her mind focused on every detail on the photo. “Did you bring a personal item?”

Tony hesitated for a moment before he pulled a wallet from his jacket and handed it to Sam. “It’s Nevill’s.”

Sam watched it for a moment and mentally prepared for what could happen. Reaching out, she took it between her palms and closed her eyes.

It didn’t always work, but sometimes she could pick up feelings, see pictures of the crime. Sometimes it was just unimportant personal stuff she saw about the victims or the attacker, but sometimes she could even see how the crime happened.

It was emotionally draining, and it exhausted her quickly, but she believed it was her responsibility to use her gift to help those who couldn’t help themselves anymore, until Angus died. She had tried to read, to see anything but all the personal items she touched were filled with her own memories. Her own family and she wasn’t able to help solve the murder. All she could rely on was her professional training.

Tony watched as her eyes moved behind closed lids. When Sam opened them again she looked disoriented for a moment and dropped the wallet.

Rushmoor Facility, Technical Department, Level 2

Calvin was still pulling all the data together that Ryan had requested, when he felt a presence behind him. His office was in one of the lowest and least frequented parts of the Facility and he couldn't help but be creeped out from time to time. Slowly turning his head he let his eyes wander up long legs and a very short mini, a blood red blouse to the piercing eyes of Ryan.

"Do you have anything for me yet?" she didn't feel the need to comment on his half drooling, half frightened look and leaned onto his desk.

"Ah, yes." he stuttered, "but I'm still trying to find the tapes from the last surveillance camera."

"Good. How long will it take?" Ryan crossed her arms over her chest and enjoyed the affect she was having on the poor tech.

"I'd say ten minutes normally, but it looks like someone altered the data," he said, a little unsure of how she would react. He had heard many scary rumours about the niece of the chairman of the Company. She seemed to eat techs for breakfast and was known for firing sorry asses on a regular basis. Actually, not firing but demoting even lower on the food chain in the Facility.

"What exactly do you mean by altered?" Ryan pushed away from the desk and bent down to take a look at the data herself.

"Well, all the tapes are saved on a special server and categorized. It wasn't hard to find the ones from the hallway and such, but it seems there never was a camera in Adrian's room."

"Which is very unusual." Ryan finished the sentence for him.

"Yes, and I found something suspicious." He pointed at a few marks and explained how there were traces of deleted or moved data.

"Can you recover them?" Ryan asked, looking him directly in the eyes and making him feel extremely uncomfortable. Calvin was a very private person and not very social. That's why he was glad to be offered this job. It required almost no people contact and he could do what he was best at, work the computers. But Ryan seemed to enjoy invading his personal space and making him squirm.

"Yes," he gulped, "but it will take a while." He added very quietly.

"When you have it, call me." Ryan handed him a business card and walked out.

Reading the card, it had only her name and a cell phone number. Frowning, Calvin tucked the card into his shirt pocket and continued working. "Well, my head's still where it's supposed to be," he chuckled nervously, and hoped it would remain that way.

+++

Sam's kitchen, late afternoon

"There's something more." Sam spoke quietly, and more to herself than to Tony, who eyed her curiously. "Let me see the file?" she asked him directly and he nodded.

Tony handed it over and wasn't sure if he should be happy he could get her involved or ashamed because he had broken his promise.

"I'll go and make some more coffee, and then I’ll take a look." Sam smiled warmly and they both got up. Jerry didn't quite know who to follow so he wiggled his tail and lay back down.

Tony stood by and watched as Sam made another pot of coffee. She hadn’t mentioned yet what she’d seen, and he didn’t push. He knew that she needed time to put into words what her mind saw.

+++

Augusta, same time

Exciting her sleek green Jaguar XK, Ryan took the elevator up to the penthouse. Throwing her keys on the counter, she put her purse down and pulled her gun and holster from the small of her back. Checking her answering machine, she was not surprised to see there were no calls waiting for her. Working long hours like she did, didn't lead to a very active social life. Not that she wanted one right now anyway.

She found it extremely difficult to meet new people anyway, since she was always suspicious that they were just wanted to know her to get to the Facility or her families wealth. The last time she was seriously involved with anyone, her uncle didn’t approve at all and while she thought it was none of his business, the love of her life was gone from one day to the other. She always suspected her uncle and a lot of money had something to do with it but she could never prove any of it.

Twenty minutes later she exited her bathroom dressed in a stark white terrycloth robe and sat down on her king size bed.

Why was she there? And what was she doing anyway?

"What would you have done, Dad?" she talked to the single photo on her dresser. It showed a handsome young man carrying a young girl piggyback.

Ryan sighed heavily and decided she better get a bite to eat before she passed out from hunger.

+++

Sam's place

"That stuff's great!" Tony had accepted Sam's offer to stay and have dinner with her. She had also offered to work with him, but not to join the force again. Agreeing that it was a one time freelance job, Tony was more than glad to accept her offer.

Tony knew that it was a huge step for Sam, but neither commented on it because that's how Sam liked it. He also knew that if he didn’t solve this case, he’d move down the career ladder quite a few steps. And he knew he was too old to go back on patrol.

"My neighbour brought me over some fresh chicken and the vegetables are from my own garden." Sam enjoyed the company and was glad to have someone to talk to, other than Jerry, for a change. She didn't regret moving out in the country, but from time to time it was nice to see a friendly face. And Tony was someone she trusted completely with no hesitation.

He had taken her under his wing when she first started working as a profiler, and they had become friends quickly. Tony could see that Sam had a very special ability to capture the mind and thoughts of suspects, and also that she paid a high price for it. So, he made sure she got enough time off after a case to chill out and regain her balance.

"I will phone Mrs. Richardson later and ask her to watch my place until I get back." The blonde took a bite from her bread and threw a glance towards the file that rested on the counter now.

"What is it, Sam?" the older agent followed her gaze.

"I wish I knew." Sam shook her head “It’s almost 100% sure that Chief Nevill pulled the trigger himself, as did Mr Saunders, the reporter. But it’s like I can see a shadow behind them that’s urging them on. I can’t see a face or hear a voice, but there’s someone else there.”

+++

Ryan's apartment, around midnight

"What?" Ryan barked, grabbing her phone which had awoken her from where she had fallen asleep on the sofa.

"Miss Ryan, it's me, Calvin." The tech started, and cursed for calling her so late. "I found something you should take a look at." He was getting more and more nervous because she wasn’t saying anything.

"I'll be right there." Was her only reply before she hung up.

"Ok." Calvin mumbled and hung up the phone. Hearing a noise behind him he jumped up, only to find the room empty as it was before.

"Geez! This place gives me the creeps!" he sat back down, waiting for Ryan.

He remembered his first day at the Facility like it was yesterday, and it actually wasn’t all that long ago.

At twenty-four Calvin had graduated from MIT and was not even sure what he was going to do with his degrees in system analysis, communication systems and hardware design.

That same day two guys in suits had showed up at his apartment and handed him an envelope with a personal invitation to work for the Facility. Reading their job offer and what they were about to pay him, he’d been more than happy to accompany them for an immediate interview.

The Facility and the surrounding gardens were huge and he was more than impressed. Being led through a side entrance which was bigger than his whole apartment building he didn’t get to see any of the medical parts of the Facility but he was told in the interview later that he wouldn’t be in contact with any of the patients. His job was support and maintenance of the intranet and databases.

Hours later he had signed a working contract with a huge grin on his face.

Calvin was still pacing in front of his terminal, glancing towards the door every few seconds when the door finally slid open and Ryan entered, her long coat floating behind her as she walked.

"Thank God you're here!" he made a step towards her, and then thought better of it and sat down in front of his monitor. "You really need to see this." He hit a few keys, and before Ryan could say anything a black and white scene came into view.

Two heavy looking men stood by and held a screaming and raging Adrian to the floor while a man clad in white, probably a doctor, injected something in his throbbing vein.

Adrian shouted some more and then fell limp. When he did, the two men picked him up and carried him out of his room. Then the monitor went black.

"Where did you find that and when was it taken?" Ryan turned from where she was standing behind Calvin and leaned on his desk now, crossing her arms over her chest and making the black leather of her coat squeak.

"That's where it gets even stranger." The tech called up another data sheet, pointing at the screen. "They say it was taken after his escape. And that's not Adrian's room. This one isn't even labelled. I can't tell you where it is."

"That can't be true. Why did he send me to find him when he was in this building?" Ryan tapped her fingers on her chin. "Can it have been manipulated somehow?" she asked him.

"Course it can. It's digital. I tried to go and find the original saved file from the server but that has been deleted. I only found this one on the backup because we had a server crash the other day and some things haven't been restored yet." Calvin tried not to trip over his own tongue.

"So whoever deleted the original file did that sometime around the time that server crashed," Ryan said what they were both thinking. "Is it possible to track down from where it was deleted? And if there was more to the file?"

"I'm afraid the chances are very slim, but I will keep trying. As for the file, yes, the log says it's supposed to have four more minutes and there is a second part which I wasn't able to restore yet." Calvin flinched and prepared himself for some yelling, or something similar, but Ryan merely growled and paced the same rounds he had just ten minutes ago.

"If it was really taken after my uncle says he fled, it means he was kidnapped with the help of some of our own folks." Ryan glanced to Calvin who nodded. "Or whoever was on the tape let him escape."

"Now the question is, did my dear uncle know or not."

"Will you go talk to him?" the tech cleared his voice and asked.

"Not yet. I want to find out who those men on the tape are first. Can you give me some screenshots?" the brunette asked and shortly after the printer came to life.

Grabbing the prints, Ryan started walking towards the door. "You can go home now. Get some sleep and meet me here at 7 am." Ryan glanced back over her shoulder and saw how the tension fell visibly off Calvin's shoulders.

+++

Backyard of Sam's house, same night

"I can see now why you love it so much here." Tony watched the tiny sparks of the fire they had made in the back yard rise high with the wind and then go out. It was a cool and fresh autumn evening and they sat near the fire on a tree trunk, each holding a glass of red wine, the bottle resting on another heavy log. Sam had provided them both with a nice thick blanket and they just sat there talking about this and that.

"So Claire is happy in Boston?" Sam pulled the blanket a little tighter and tried not to spill her wine in the process.

"She's thrilled!" Tony beamed. "At first she wasn't really sure if she would like it." He smiled at the memories of his daughter packing all her belongings together and stuffing them into box after box. The day the movers arrived, he had found her sitting in her now empty room deep in thought.

Taking a seat next to her on the floor in front of the bed he had smiled and took her small hand in his big one.

"Dad, am I really doing the right thing?" she had asked, looking at him with the dark brown eyes people said she got from her father.

"Of course you are," He had assured her gently. "And sooner than you think, you'll have all forgotten about us and will be engrossed in history and art."

But she was still looking sceptical.

"What's it you always wanted to do as long as you can remember?" He asked, raising his eyebrows. "Deep down in here you know it, right?" he pointed at his own heart and his daughter smiled.

Yes, going to college was what she had dreamed of for so long. Now she was offered a place at one of the best universities and even got a scholarship.

Sighing she got up and held her hand out for her dad.

"You're right, Dad. Let's get moving." She laughed. "I want that lunch you promised me and mom and then you can take me to the airport."

"She's like you, you know?" Sam gently bumped their shoulders together. "From time to time you need a kick in the right direction." They smiled and Tony didn't protest.

Sam had been a great help during the time his marriage with Rita was on the verge of breaking up. But instead of pitying him, Sam had sat him down one night when she couldn't take his poor looks anymore and they had a heart to heart talk which made him realize what he needed to do to make both himself and Rita happy again.

Sam spent many evenings with the Minetti family. Rita was a lovely woman and Claire loved asking Sam stuff about their job because her father never said a thing.

+++

Rushmoor Facility, Technical Level 2

The next morning, 7:00 am sharp, Calvin logged onto the system and just was about to take a sip of much needed coffee when the door slid open. Just by the sound of high heels he knew who it was without turning around. Accidentally he spilled some coffee on his shirt and flinched when the hot liquid burned his chest.

Ryan just rolled her eyes and laid her coat over a nearby chair and sat in the one next to Calvin who tried his best to dry the once white shirt with Kleenex.

"Damn!" he cursed and threw the wet paper balls in the nearest basket. "Can I get you one?" the tech asked on his way to the machine in the hallway.

"Espresso." was the slightly annoyed reply.

"Not a morning person either." Calvin mumbled when he placed the cups and pressed the buttons. That machine was the only good thing about his job lately, he sighed.

+++

Sam's place, early morning

"Thank you so much Mrs. Richardson." Sam gave the older lady a firm handshake.

Jerry had grumbled when Sam tossed and turned in her bed that night. The pictures from the two murders had played over and over in her head. It was always the same. A couple of nights she would wake up in cold sweat. Later on, she’d just see frequent pictures now and then until it all faded away.

"Don't mention it, dear! It's no big deal for me and Howard to drop by your farm a couple of times. And I told you already, it's Marge!" Mrs. Richardson took the offered key and put it in the pocket of her well worn corduroys. "You just go and don't worry. Have a good time in town." The eyes of the seventy something lady were sparkling with life and very generous. Her face looked old, but not tired by any means. Sam had liked them instantly when they had dropped by the week she had moved in. They had brought her fresh baked bread and some apples from their own garden and had welcomed Sam into the very small community of a town with not even thirty citizens.

"Have a safe trip," Mr. Richardson shook her hand as well. He wasn't a man of many words, Sam had learned that quickly. But when he said something, it was always wisely chosen.

"Thanks." Sam waved and went back to her Toyota truck. She would be following Tony with her own car because she hated depending on someone and she didn't want to have to ask for a ride during her stay in town.

+++

Rushmore Facility, afternoon

"We've watched dozen of tapes and we still haven't found those guys." Ryan sighed and rubbed her temple. The never ending headache was getting worse by the hour. And Calvin wasn't feeling much better. He had gotten up and stretched a couple of times, but he couldn’t get rid of the kinks in his back.

"I'll go and talk to my uncle now." Ryan snatched the screen prints off the table and headed out of the room.

"It's about time." Calvin wasn't too happy about having to deal with Ms. Ryan all morning and his grumbling stomach told him he had missed lunch as well.

He didn't understand why Ryan wanted to find all this information by herself instead of just asking those who knew, like her uncle. He didn't know that Ryan had learned the hard way only to trust information she could confirm herself.

"Damn that woman." He grabbed an energy bar from his desk. "Does she ever eat?" the tech wondered. "Maybe she does live off the blood of her victims," he thought out loud about the rumours going around with the other employees.

+++

"Uncle Melcome!" Ryan placed a fake smile on her face and greeted her uncle, who had just called her inside his office via the intercom on his secretary’s desk.

"What brings you here, my dear?" He smiled but it never seemed to reach his eyes. "Do you have news on Adrian yet?"

"Do you know these men?" Ryan got straight to the point and placed the very same pictures from the surveillance tape on his desk, resting her hands on each side.

His facial expression when he looked at them didn't give the slightest hint away about what he thought of them.

"I could swear he's not really alive," Ryan thought to herself.

"So?" she asked.

Melcome Ryan breathed deeply and let the air out slowly from his lungs. "I've seen this guy before." He pointed at the smallest of the three men in the pictures, the one that looked like a doctor with the white coat. "His name is Dr. Peter Newman. He's got a medical degree and taught at the local university." The chairman wrinkled his nose a bit in disgust. Ryan might have not noticed if she hadn't watched her uncle closely.

"And why would he kidnap Adrian?" the brunette was growing impatient.

"Did he?"

"What do you think they are doing in that picture?" Ryan had the urge to hit something. "Why was it always like that with the Facility? No question was ever really answered, and no matter what, you always thought there was something more to it.

"Why did you tell me Adrian ran away when he was taken?"

"Was he?" Melcome asked his niece. "I want you to find Dr. Newman and find out if he knows anything."

Ryan took a deep breath.

"Listen," the chairman got up from his leather chair and walked around his desk until he stood in front of Ryan. "There are things I can't quite tell you yet. But be assured it is very important."

She knew the tone he spoke in. He had used it before. He was trying to take advantage of their relationship and she hated him doing that. If he wasn't her uncle, she would have probably kicked his butt. Yet he laid a hand on her arm and looked at her almost pleading.

"Whatever." Ryan shook her arm free and took a step back. "But I need more information. Christ, I spent the better part of yesterday and today trying to find out what happened with Adrian, and who those guys are, only to find out you already knew that!" the brunette was angry and made no attempt to hide it.

"My dear, please listen. Right now you might not understand why I do certain things but believe me, it's only best for you."

He slipped her a note when he took her hand in his and patted their joined hands assuringly.

Ryan frowned and left his office.

"I'm being spied on. Be careful!" displayed the small white piece of paper Ryan had unfolded when she had reached her office.

Augusta, a small café

Ryan had gotten in her Jaguar after she had read the note and told Calvin to call her if he found anything new. She needed to get away for a while. Driving into town, she had found a nice little café she hadn't been to before.

Entering the small place, the smell of fresh coffee, cinnamon and other spices greeted her. She found the last empty table and an elderly woman, sporting a smile took her order and Ryan relaxed a little. She felt as if she could leave her worries outside whenever she entered the warmth of this place.

Ryan was getting frustrated with herself more and more lately. She knew that there was something going on at the Facility. But what was it and how should she deal with it. Had her uncle something to do with it. He must have because he was the chairman. Nothing ever happened at the Facility without his knowledge. Shrugging out of the blazer she wore over her satin blouse, she hung it up over the back of her chair.

Just when she was about to take a sip from her Espresso, a voice spoke to her from behind. At first Ryan thought the waitress had come back to her table but when she turned around, a smiling blonde stood there, holding out a folded paper.

"This just slipped from your jacket." Ryan accepted the paper from the outstretched hand and smiled in return.

"Thanks." She watched as the blonde cast her look over the small bar, looking for an empty table probably.

"Hi Elise!" the blonde greeted the waitress. "Looks like I have no luck today."

"Welcome back, Sam. And I'm sorry. There's a conference across the road. But I can give you your order to go." Elise offered while Ryan watched.

Even though it was only early afternoon, the place was packed. "This seat's free." Ryan offered, contrary to her better judgment, and watched the light frown on the woman's face transform into a smile, which Ryan found suited her well. The long blonde hair fell in soft curls to the shoulders of a warm brown leather jacket and a matching scarf. Her cheeks were slightly flushed from the sudden change of temperature and her big round eyes were of a light blue color.

"But only if you really don't mind." She said, and took off her scarf when Ryan shook her head amused.

"I'll bring you the usual." Elise took off towards the counter.

"My name's Sam, by the way." Sam shrugged out of her jacket and put it on her chair as well. "This place sure is popular, isn't it?" Sam rubbed her hands together.

"I'm Ryan." Ryan usually avoided small talk in bars or restaurants but for some reason, she was glad for the distraction today. And what a good looking distraction, Ryan mused. “I’ve only found this place today so I really don’t know.” She smiled charmingly. Maybe today wasn’t too bad after all.

"Let me tell you, it's like this every day." The blonde greeted the older man behind the bar. "I try to come here as often as I can when I'm in town."

"So you're here for work?"

"Yes," Sam trailed off, "Actually I just got here and came straight from the hotel." She grinned, and Ryan couldn't help but do the same. There was something very likable about her companion.

"Are you here on vacation then, Ryan?" Sam asked, and thought she caught a glimmer of sadness or maybe worry in the brunette's eyes for just a heartbeat.

"I wish." Ryan's smile faded but she composed herself quickly. "I work outside of town."

"And I suppose like me, you're not thrilled to talk about work right now." Sam tried to ease the sudden tension.

Ryan didn't reply but the smile was back in place.

Shortly, Elise arrived with Sam's usual order, a large coffee and a slice of cherry cake while Ryan used the moment to study her a little more closely.

The blonde had said she frequented this place but still she didn't seem to greet anyone nor, was she waiting for someone. There was no ring on her finger and the only jewellery she was wearing was a golden chain around her neck with a slim cross.

"Thanks again for the seat." Sam pushed her hair back when the waitress left to bring her order, "I really need some caffeine and sugar now."

They sat there talking about this and that until Ryan got a call from Calvin and had to return to her office.

"It was real nice meeting you, Sam." Ryan pulled some bills out of her slacks to cover her order plus a large tip. "Maybe I'll see you around."

"You know where to find me now." Sam laughed and waved Ryan goodbye.

She noted that her eyes were not the only ones following the tall brunette to the door. Lifting her eyebrows, Sam glanced at her watch and decided she still had some time until she had to join Tony in the office.

+++

Augusta, Special Unit Headquarters, a little later

Sam sat together with Tony's team in the darkened tactical office. A huge corkboard held memo's and pictures from the crime scenes. Harrison Clay, a young officer of Spanish heritance who specialized in computers and anything that had to do with electronics, filled Sam in on their current state of investigations. Using an LCD projector to throw the pictures from the computer to the wall, he was just finished reviewing Montgomery Nevill’s file, when another woman joined the team.

"Sorry I'm late." Serina McNeill sat down next to Sam.

After Tony introduced them both, and they shook hands, Serina explained why she was late.

"I've talked to every employer at Mr. Saunders' office. There were several complaints filed against him but nothing serious. The usual I'd say." She handed copies of her interviews to the other three people at the table. "He was the chief editor at the Daily News.”

Serina had been working in Tony's squad since Sam left. She was in her late twenties and still had the fire Tony missed with so many of his fellow co-workers. Her red hair stood out against the white blouse she was wearing over comfortable looking black cargo pants.

The third team member was Dr. Myra Becker. She was the pathologist and had worked in the job for over thirty years now.

"Okay folks, let me recap." Tony got up and walked in front of the screen.

"We have two victims. We can't find any connection, and we agree that they both shot themselves. Sam?" Tony leaned his hands flat on the desk and the others turned to watch Sam.

"Right," Sam stared at the photo's on the board. "From what I gather with the interviews with the relatives, there was no indicators for suicide. Mr. Saunders had an appointment with his dentist two hours after he killed himself. He even called early that morning to confirm his appointment. That doesn't make any sense. And what makes me wonder the most, is that someone altered the telephone LUD's. We can't find any records, but two nurses witnessed the phone call. Why would someone do that?" she looked over to Harrison.

"That's a good point there. And this wasn't some kid hacking into the system. Someone clearly didn't want to know who talked to Mr. Saunders that day. I got the files from the telephone company but we still couldn't work through it. I can't even say if we ever can."

"That's okay Harrison, just keep trying." Tony patted his shoulder.

"Dr. Becker," Sam addressed the coroner. "Did the toxicology-screen show anything unusual? Did either of the victims take any medications? And what about their medical files?"

"The tests all came back negative. Mr. Saunders was a very healthy man and did a yearly check-up which didn't show any signs of illness. Mr Nevill did take some light medication to control his blood pressure, but otherwise he was fine. No alcohol or illicit drugs in their blood. From a medical standpoint, everything points to suicide. Trace proved that it was their own hands that fired the guns."

+++

Elise's Café

A few days later, Ryan met Sam again at the café and they chatted a bit. It was an easy conversation and Elise joined in after the afternoon crowd slowly left.

“I’m afraid I need to get back to work,” Sam sighed and looked at her watch. “It was nice seeing you again, Ryan,” she looked at the brunette and smiled.

“Likewise,” the brunette replied and got up as well. Walking together to the counter they both paid for their coffees.

“Go catch the bad guys,” Elise smiled, “I’ll pack you some muffins for the guys.”

“Thanks,” Sam took the offered paper bag and didn’t see that Ryan had haltered in her motion when she heard what Elise had said.

Sam’s a cop! Ryan was surprised; she usually could smell a cop a mile off.

“Have a good day,” Elise handed Sam her change and the two women left the warmth of the café and were greeted by the cold, brisk wind on the street.

“So you’re with the police?” Ryan asked casually.

“I’m freelanced and currently working as a consultant.” Sam replied and waited for Ryan to say something but the other woman just starred past her shoulder, a bewildered look on her face.

“Did you see him?” she asked and pointed with her finger towards a couple of parked cars. “Did you see that guy with the baseball cap?” Sam turned and Ryan grabbed her arm.

“What guy?” Sam asked and looked around. The street was empty.

Ryan let go of her and walked a couple of steps and then turned back to her and sighed.

“Never mind,” she closed her eyes. “I,” she trailed off, “I think I’m seeing things.” Ryan pulled her hand through her hair and debated.

“You sure you’re alright?” Sam was worried.

“Fine, really. It’s probably nothing.” Ryan tried to assure the other woman while she was pretty sure there had been someone watching her all day.

“Okay, but you should call the police if someone is stalking you.” Sam pulled out her card and a pencil. She wrote Tony’s number on the back and handed it to Ryan. “Here’s my number and the one of a good friend.”

Ryan was touched by the by the blonde woman’s sincere concern.

“Thanks,” she took the card and put it in her coat pocket. “See you around,” she felt like she needed to get away. From what, she couldn’t say.

“See you,” Sam watched her walk away and strolled to her own car.

+++

Empty factory, somewhere in town

Hitting the send button, Adrian smiled, satisfied. He had just arrived at the old factory building which served him as a home and office after he checked out of the motel and put the camera on the desk in front of the window. The place was old and dirty but it served his purpose. Nobody would expect anyone to live here and he could keep a low profile.

Elise’s Café

"I was a bit worried yesterday when you didn't show up. I thought I scared you off or something." Sam tried to make it sound like she was joking.

Ryan looked bad. Deep circles under her eyes were visible even under her make-up, and her body language wasn't as relaxed as usual.

"I just couldn't make it yesterday, sorry." Ryan sighed and signalled the waitress to bring her coffee.

In truth she had debated with herself is she should go back to the café.

"Glad you could make it today! I just, you know, was wondering." She smiled, and for the first time since Ryan arrived, her mood lightened up and she smiled back.

"It was kind of rough at work." The brunette rubbed her temple, and thanked Elise kindly when she brought her coffee right away.

"You look like you need it." She winked.

"You don't know how right you are there." Ryan had just taken her first sip when her cell-phone rang.

Excusing herself, Ryan checked the caller ID and went to the back of the café when she recognized Calvin's office number.

"What?" she answered with a slightly nervous tone.

"It's me, Calvin." He started, and continued before the brunette could fire something at him. "I just got a very strange email. You should take a look, I'll forward it to you right now." The tech hit a few keys and Ryan could feel her cell vibrate.

"It looks like someone knows where Adrian is and wants to get paid for his service."

"I'll check it out and call you back." Ryan knew her time off was over.

Meanwhile, Sam glanced her way now and then with a worried expression while Ryan read the mail on her cell and frowned.

Rubbing the bridge of her nose, the brunette closed the device and walked back to their table.

"I'm very sorry, but we have kind of an emergency at work. I need to hurry." Ryan took another sip of her coffee and fished for money in her coat pockets, but Sam laid a gentle hand on her arm.

"I'll get it." She smiled and let her hand rest a moment longer.

They looked at each other for a moment and then Ryan nodded. "Thanks, I’ll make it up." She waved at Elise and disappeared out the door.

+++

Empty factory building

Adrian moved around in his darkroom, pulling his latest work from the rinse and hanging it up to dry. Waiting a moment, Adrian turned on the regular light and looked at his newest trophies with an evil grin on his face. He was really enjoying himself.

There were photographs of Nevill and Saunders pinned to the wall. Their faces were crossed out.

The newly developed pictures were of Ryan. Some were taken in front of her apartment complex; one showed her passing the security guard at the entry of the Facility. Another one was taken that same afternoon from outside the café.

Caressing Ryan's face on the photograph he pulled his hand back as if he had burned his finger.

"First things first." Adrian glanced at the pictures on the wall of another woman and a man. Their faces weren't crossed out yet.

Donning his jacket and grabbing his car keys, Adrian left the factory.

 

+++

Police Headquarters, two hours later

"Sam, we have another possible murder." Tony stood in the doorway to her temporary office and held up a piece of paper. "Security at the college reported one of the professors missing. They said she never missed a day without calling in sick. Officers are already on the way."

"Why do they think it has something to do with our case?" Sam looked up from her file. The file she’s been trying to read for the last forty minutes or so. But all she could think about was the woman she had met at the café. She liked her right away and it didn’t hurt that she was gorgeous either. Just when she wondered if she should invite her for dinner or something, Tony interrupted her.

"Because, she's Mr. Saunders mother-in-law."

"When do we leave?" Sam closed the file she'd been studying.

"Right now." Tony put on the jacket he'd been holding, and Sam grabbed her cell and her purse, and told Jerry to be a good dog and wait for them. Jerry only blinked one eye open and closed it as soon as they had left the office.

+++

Street in front of Mrs. Chester's house, 15 min later

From her car, Ryan had called Calvin and had told him to meet up with her at the location that was given in the mail.

Twenty minutes later she pulled up at a suburban street and parked around the corner. Spotting Calvin in another parked car she got out and walked over and knocked on the window. Startled, Calvin grabbed his chest above his heart and got out.

"Jesus!" he locked his car, and they walked up to the house with the number 1509. It looked just like the forty other houses on the street with the same white front door and the rusty fence around the front yard.

"This doesn't look right." Ryan mumbled when she noticed the front door ajar. Pulling her gun from the holster in the small of her back Ryan signalled Calvin to be quiet.

Entering the house, they walked down the long hallway on a thick red carpet. Glancing in the kitchen to the right, and walking past the office, Ryan pushed open the living room door at the end of the hallway with her leather gloved fingers. Securing the rest of the room, she walked over to the elderly woman in an old rocking chair. Her eyes were closed and the fire in the fireplace had burned down a while ago, but the embers had yet to go out completely.

Calvin stayed one step behind her and looked around nervously. "Is she…?" he trailed off. “Damn,” he though, “my job description didn’t say one word about stuff like this.”

Shaking the woman's shoulder and took her glove off to check for pulse. Ryan shook her head. When she looked around, she noticed the empty bottle of Vodka and an empty bottle of pills.

Meanwhile Calvin wandered around the living room, observing. When he looked out the window he flinched.

"Cops!" he shouted, and Ryan joined him at the window.

The police cars were coming down the road with flashing lights.

Pulling a startled Calvin with her out the backdoor, they both climbed the small fence and disappeared through the gardens.

Trying to be as uninteresting as possible, they both walked to the side alley where their cars were parked and decided to meet up at the office later.

In the rear-view mirror Ryan caught a glimpser of Sam exciting one of the cars. Speeding off, Ryan cursed and wondered why her life always had to get more and more complicated.

+++

The Facility, late afternoon

Ryan had gotten a call from her uncle's secretary to meet up with him in the conference room. So after sending Calvin to track down the origin of the email with the tip, she took the elevator to the fifth floor.

Opening the double doors, she was surprised to find not only her uncle there, but also Simon Yousif from the supervisory board.

"Ryan!" her uncle greeted her a little too enthusiastically, as Mr. Yousif merely nodded her way.

"Uncle Melcome, Mr. Yousif. What can I do for you?" Ryan always hated the conference room. It was huge and over filled with a massive conference table and dozens of chairs. The walls were cherry wood wainscoted and the carpet was of a rich blue grey colour.

"Please take a seat." Mr. Yousif, a man of Arabian heritage pulled out a chair and waited until the Ryan's did the same.

"We'd like to discuss Adrian's case with you, dear." Melcome Ryan started the conversation that wouldn't last longer than ten minutes.

Afterwards Ryan stomped out of the room and down to her office.

She had just been informed, that her cousin, Melcome's son, was assigned to help her find Adrian because the supervisory board didn't think she could do it alone. He had already been sent to take a few bullies and bring in Dr. Newman.

The board wanted results and they wanted them fast. They didn't care on what cost. It wasn't even the trail of blood Adrian left behind; they were just trying to save their butts.

Elise's Café, the following day

When Ryan visited the café again, she felt nervous. She wasn’t sure if she was doing the right thing. She hesitated a moment in front of the building. Was it wise to befriend a woman who worked with the police? What would she tell Sam if she asked where she worked and what would she do if Sam had heard the rumors about the Facility?
Glancing through the glass door, she spotted Elise and then Sam. She took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

“Hi!” she greeted them and took off her gloves. Shrugging out of her coat and taking off her scarf Ryan seated next to Sam.

“Hi yourself!” the blonde smiled sincere. "You know, I could've sworn I saw yesterday when I was on the way to our case. You don't happen to have a green Jaguar XR?" Sam asked her.

Ryan mused for a second if she should tell the truth or make something up, but she didn't want to lie to Sam. Looking up from her apple pie she put the fork down.

"Yes, I saw you too. I'd been sent to meet a client and got lost in the area." Ryan knew that her excuse was lame but Sam watched her for a moment and then nodded. “What happened?” Ryan asked innocently.

+++

The Facility

"Shaun." Ryan greeted her cousin when he entered her office.

The resemblance between the two was unmistakable. Shaun had the same thick brown hair and his facial expressions matched hers almost perfectly. He was a bit taller than Ryan, his trained body hidden under an expensive suit. The only difference between them was their eyes. While Ryan's were deep blue, Shaun's were dark brown, almost black.

"I thought you'd be still abroad. What brings you back?" she asked, even though she didn't really care.

She and Shaun had been close at one time. Being the same age and growing up basically in the same house, they had shared many things. Their fathers both worked for the same company and Ryan spend most of her time at her aunt’s because her own mother had died at a young age. They had even attended the same boarding school.

But that had all changed after her father's death. Ryan had withdrawn and didn't let anyone get close to her. She didn't want to talk to anyone and even arranged a transfer to another boarding school.

Shaun had a degree in law had started working for a company joined with the Facility, officially for legal matters, but unofficially the sole purpose of that company was to threaten and spy on people, organisations or public agencies that could be dangerous to the Facility and their businesses. After an incident which involved a federal investigation, he had left the country for a while.

"Things got solved." He said, in a matter of fact manner while he poured himself a drink. "Want one?" he held up Ryan's own scotch but she declined.

"Dr. Newman is in our custody." Shaun took a sip. “Good stuff.” He approved. They still had the same taste.

"And are you going to tell me what he has to say or not?" Ryan didn't like the way he invaded her office, touching everything here and there from the painting on the wall to the letter opener on her desk.

"Sure." Shaun put his glass down and sat lazily in one of the leather chairs. "He claims not to know anything. All he admits to is that he treated Adrian while he was in our care." Shaun accented the word care. “Not sure why he treated him though.”

"And?"

"And we'll see what he says when my guys are finished with him." Shaun's boyish grin looked evil, but Ryan held his gaze, even though she wanted to look away disgusted.

After he had left, Ryan checked her emails one last time before she headed home. She didn't like what she found in her inbox.

Adrian's email taunted her about not being able to find him, and asked if she had even found out that he was involved with two more dead people.

Ryan thought he was trying to be caught or he was plain crazy. She didn't know which she liked better.

Further, he added a couple of pictures he had taken of her. Worst of all, there was one of her with Sam in the café.

Cursing, Ryan dialled Calvin's number and hoped he was still in his office.

“I want the reports from two murders, and try to track back the email I forward you.” She gave him the details and asked the tech to call her as soon as he got them.

+++

Ryan's penthouse

That night, Ryan didn't sleep well. She lay awake for hours and when she finally fell asleep, nightmares haunted her.

She saw herself at age ten sneak out of her father’s office even though he had told her to wait right there for him. But like every kid, her patience ran short and she wanted to explore some of the Facility.

Being curious, she wanted to see those parts of the building she was always forbidden to see. Whenever she and her cousin Shaun would visit, they were brought to their father’s offices directly.

Shaun had dared her to go down to the first sublevel and told her he had been there. Not wanting to look like a sissy, Ryan had taken him up on his challenge.

Waiting for the security camera to zoom into another direction, Ryan stood around the corner to the elevator and held her breath. Nervously she picked at the hem of her purple skirt. Her white shoes didn’t make any sound when she jumped into the elevator and pressed the button.

When the door slowly slid open at her destination, Ryan peeked around the corner. It was a long hallway with many doors to the left and right. The light was dim; one bulb near the end of the hallway was faulty and went on and off all the time. It felt like it was several degrees colder but Ryan couldn’t tell if it was real or all in her imagination.

Shaun had told her to bring something so she could prove she had been down there. Watching around for camera’s, the little girl waited for an opportunity and ran over to the empty helpdesk.

Hiding behind the counter, out of sight from security, Ryan opened a few drawers to find a souvenir but they were all empty. Turning around to look into the next drawer, Ryan screamed.

Right behind her stood a smiling man. He was tall and lanky. His teeth almost reflected the dim light. “Hello little girl.” He stretched his arm out and Ryan jumped back and crashed into the counter. “Don’t be afraid.” He was talking calmly but everything in Ryan screamed danger.

That was the moment the security camera zoomed in on the man with a white patient’s suit and the alarm went off.

Ryan had used the moment of distraction and had started to run around the counter and towards the elevator but the guy was faster. He stood in her way, his eyes looking wild now. “Why do you run?” he screamed. “I wasn’t going to hurt you!”

Ryan’s heart was beating fast now and she started to sweat. But instead of being paralyzed, she started a dead run towards the end of the hallway while the alarm rang in her ears.

Tears started to run down the little girls face. She tried every other door but they were all locked. Ryan let out a scream when a face appeared behind one of the glass windows in the door. She jumped back and looked towards the guy who was chasing her. He slowly walked after her, his bare feet making squeaking sounds on the grey floor.

Now, Ryan was paralyzed. She was trapped, cornered and afraid. Her little body started to shake when the guy bend down on his knee and stretched his hand out once more. “What’s your name, pretty girl.” He asked but Ryan had lost her voice.

He took her hand in his just when the elevator as well as another door at the other end of the hallway opened and a dozen security guards lead by Ryan’s father stormed in.

“Peters, let her go!” the tall man shouted but the guy didn’t even turn around. And Ryan was too afraid to look anywhere else but her hand in his. With one swift motion he scooped her up in his arm and Ryan screamed.

“Let her go!” another security guard shouted and pointed a gun at him.

“Daddy!” Ryan cried now, sobs shaking her little body which was held tightly.

Ryan tossed and turned in her sleep. The dream felt so real, like it was yesterday.

Peters held her in a tight grip with one arm when he pulled something out of his pockets.

They guards and Ryan’s father kept moving forwards but halted when they saw Peters hold a fork to Ryan’s neck. “Stay away!” he screamed. “Or I’ll kill her!”

“Hold!” One security officer ordered his team.

“Let her go and we leave you alive.” Ryan’s father was dead serious. “I swear if you hurt her, you won’t live long enough to regret it.”

“What makes you think I want to live like this any longer?” Peters shouted back, the veins in his neck swelling and his head turning red. “I don’t have a future.” He pressed the fork deeper in Ryan’s neck and blood started leaking out in drops.

“Daddy!” Ryan kicked wildly with her legs but she just wasn’t strong enough to help herself.

“I wasn’t going to hurt her.” Peters’ fury changed to desperation.

“Like you didn’t hurt those other kids?” Tim Ryan asked with clenched teeth. “The judge didn’t think so and you’ll rot here ‘til the end of your days!”

“No!” Peters pushed himself back further to the locked door. “No!” he repeated and pressed the fork even further into the child’s neck. He looked like he’d have a nervous breakdown any minute.

Tim knew if they didn’t do anything soon his daughter would suffer serious damage so he decided quickly. Giving the chief of security a signal, a bullet hit Peters in the arm first so he let go of Ryan and she fell to the ground screaming and holding her ears when a second shot hit her aggressor in the chest.

“How the hell did he get a hold of a fork?” Tim barked and picked up his crying daughter. Bringing her a few feet away he watched as the team secured the body and signalled that Peters was indeed dead.

“I want you to turn the quarters upside down. I want to know how he could unlock his door and how he got a hold of this fork!” he ordered and left with Ryan for the doctor’s office.

When they entered the elevator, Ryan still clung to her father. Tears were running down her cheeks and onto her father’s shirt along with blood drops.

“Everything’s gonna be alright.” He tried to calm her.

+++

When Ryan woke the next morning, her hand went to her neck and traced the four tiny scars. She had repeatedly scratched the scars open the following weeks after the attack and so it had left scars. Back then, she hadn’t cared, now, she hid her scars under make-up and scarves.

Shaking off the memories of the attack and getting started for the day, Ryan was ready to leave for work when the phone rang and a guy who claimed to be her bank’s manager informed her that her accounts were frozen and asked her to come by the bank.
When she got there, it turned out that an anonymous source had reported her to the IRS who were reviewing her finances now.

Cursing, Ryan had called the Facilities lawyer and ordered him to sort that mess out. Not giving the manager another glance, Ryan left his office and the bank.

She had a pretty good idea who had staged that.

Alley near Elise's café, following day

Sam arrived late at the café, and she was almost sure she had missed Ryan. But when she crossed the road to the café, she spotted someone looking like Ryan walk around the corner to a side alley. Holding her coat tightly together against the cold wind, Sam walked after Ryan who was just about to open the door to a dark green Jaguar XR.

Even before Sam's hand touched Ryan's shoulder, she was swung around and pressed against the car, a hand on her throat, the barrel of a gun pointed under her chin. Startled Sam just watched Ryan whose facial expression turned from anger to shock.

"Oh my God, Sam!" she put her gun back in the holster on her back and let go of Sam's throat. "I'm so sorry. I thought," she trailed off, took a few steps back and watched as Sam rubbed the skin of her neck.

"I startled you." She said, still a little bewildered. She didn't know Ryan was armed.

"I'm really sorry. It's just; I thought you were someone else."

"Is someone following you?" Sam asked.

"I’m not sure,” Ryan wanted to scream out of frustration. She didn't have time to talk to Sam but she knew she had to fix things or Sam would be gone from her life faster than she had come in.

"Listen, I need to be at the office by five but please let me make it up to you somehow?" Ryan knew she had never before sounded so pleading in her adult life.

"That's not necessary, really." Sam didn't know if she could still trust her feelings. She had liked Ryan from the start but there was something haunting her. Something dangerous or she wouldn't have reacted with a weapon.

"Please let me invite you for dinner. Do you have plans for tonight? Please?" Ryan frowned.

"Okay.” I'll give it a try, Sam thought. She was feeling confused but she really wanted to go out and talk. Maybe she could figure out what kind of secrets Ryan tried to hide.

+++

Police Headquarters, afternoon

"Hey Sam! Would you like to come and have dinner with us?" Tony asked when they were finished discussing the latest developments on their case. "Rita called earlier."

"I'd love to but I already have plans. But tell her thanks and I'll take a rain check."

"Do I know him?" Tony grinned and folded his hands behind his head when he leaned back in his big chair.

"Hardly. I’m just going out with a friend." Sam collected her stuff and walked to the door.

"A friend? Must be some friend for you to pass up Rita's food." Tony called after her and she rolled her eyes.

+++

Sam's hotel room, same night

8:00 pm sharp there was a knock on Sam's hotel room door. Casting one last look at the mirror and being quite pleased with her choice of clothes, Sam opened the door to find a sheepish smiling Ryan looking her up and down.

"Right on time." Sam couldn't keep from smiling back and held on to Jerry who was just about to jump up and greet Ryan properly.

"I see you have company." Ryan bent down as much as her black skirt allowed and let Jerry sniff her fingers before he nudged her hand with his nose to tell her he was ready for a pat.

"Yes. And I see he likes you." Sam donned her coat over her azure blouse which matched her eyes and dusted of some ever present dog hair off her black slacks.

"He's such a cutie!" Jerry had turned over and received a nice belly scratching until Sam told him to get back to his basket and be quiet until she got back. Snorting, as if he didn't quite agree, Jerry trotted off.

+++

Later that night

Both women had finished their meal of fresh seafood, and were on their second glass of wine when the waiter brought their dessert.

"So, will you tell me who's threatening you now or do I have to force you?" Sam couldn't hold back any longer. They had talked all through dinner but Ryan had carefully avoided the touchy subject.

"Force me?" Ryan chuckled, and while the thought at first amused her, the next second she slightly blushed. "With what army?" she tried to cover it as much as she could.

"Don't try to change the subject, Ryan." Sam didn't let her get away this time.

All the while they were talking, they didn’t notice the elderly man watching them from the far end of the restaurant.

The brunette thought for a moment about what to tell Sam, and decided to go for the truth. Only bits of it, though. "It might be a patient from the facility I work with. Most of them are harmless but others give you the creeps."

"So why don't you report him to the police." Sam laid her cheek in her hand.

"It's really complicated." Ryan sighed. "Will you believe me when I tell you I was over reacting?" she looked at Sam with pleading eyes.

Scratching his fake beard, Adrian took the last sip of his white wine and signalled the waiter to bring his check. He had things to do.

When Ryan went to pay the bill, she rolled her eyes. Her accounts were still frozen and she didn’t carry much cash with her. Looking over her shoulder at Sam and back at the clerk, she sighed and pulled out her office credit card. It wasn’t unusual that she invited business clients to lunch or dinner but she didn’t like mixing business with the little private life she still had.

+++

The Facility, a few days later

"Why should I believe one word you said?" Ryan was getting angrier by the minute. She was just about to pay Calvin a visit when the phone rang.

How dare Adrian call her and tell her a story like that. The Facility ordered him to kill those people? "Why would they do that?"

"Don't ask me, I just do what they tell me." He was so smug she wanted to smack him, if she only knew where he was. "I'm willing to trade information." His voice was so smooth, he could have been reading a children's book.

"I'm not giving you *anything*." Ryan paced in front of her couch.

"And you're sure about that? How about this, I offer you one free tip. Maybe you'll believe me then." He gave her a name and an address.

Then there was a long silence. "And by the way, did you know that your new best friend has been investigating you?" he finally asked, and Ryan hung up and threw her cell on the couch with more force than necessary.

"Bastard!" she knew he was playing with people's emotions. That was how he manipulated them and got them to do what he wanted. But she wasn't going to let him play with her. She was supposed to return him to the Facility, not try to play the therapist with him.

She needed to talk to her uncle. Or should she?

When she got in her car, she looked up the address Adrian had given her. It was an hour ride, on the other end of town.

On the road, the nagging feeling didn't quite leave, and Ryan wondered if Sam had indeed been looking up information about her.

And why was it bothering her after all? Sam was working for the government, and she herself was looking for information on Sam, only that Calvin hadn't been able to pull up Sam's file yet.

+++

Police Headquarters, Tony's office

"Mr. Minetti, we have a suspect. She was hiding in the back of the house when we arrived. My partner is watching her. Please follow me." Officer Arnold, according to his nametag, walked to the back of the crime scene followed by Tony and Sam. When they entered the backyard the muddy and handcuffed suspect turned around and Sam felt the blood leave her head.

"Ryan?" Sam's voice broke.

"Hello Sam!" Ryan nodded at her.

"Did you check her for weapons?" Tony asked the officer who shook his head no.

"Sam, please pat her down." Tony turned to his friend and noticed for the first time how pale she looked.

"I already handed you my gun." Ryan replied, annoyed as the first cop held up a 9 mm with his gloved hand.

"Please turn around." Sam walked up to the brunette while the three men watched.

"What are you doing here?" Sam whispered into Ryan's ear while she patted her hands down her arms and her back.

"I have nothing to do with it. It was a trap." Ryan said back, not caring if anyone could hear her.

Stepping around the suspect, Sam stood in front of her and they watched each other for a moment before Sam repeated the procedure and declared Ryan free of any other weapons.

As soon as the officer had unlocked the cuffs, Ryan rubbed her wrists and threw a mean glance towards the cops.

"You say it was a trap?" Tony motioned for the cops to leave them alone now. "But before you say anything I have to inform you that you have the right to remain silent. Anything you do say, can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to a lawyer. If you can't afford one, the state will provide one for you. Do you understand those rights?"

"Yes,” Ryan rolled her eyes, “I got a call and was told to go to this address. It was a personal matter." Ryan didn't once look at Tony, but kept her eyes on Sam.

"I found the victim and ran after someone who escaped through the backyard. When I got outside, someone hit me over the head and I blacked out. Next thing I remember is your guys handcuffing me."

"Sam?" Tony watched his friend who nodded as a sign she believed what Ryan had said.

"Forensics will tell if she fired a gun or not. They should be here any minute." She didn't want to talk about any theories with too many people around.

She glanced at Ryan and quickly turned around to inspect the crime scene. Too many thoughts ran through her mind right now. When she had patted down the brunette, she saw flashing images, too many of them to grasp them all yet.

Ryan bowed her head and kept her eyes on Sam. The other woman seemed vacant and Ryan wondered if things between them could be fixed.

“Bring her to the station.” Tony ordered the officers.

+++

Police Headquarters, interrogation room 1

A criminal technician had tested Ryan for gunpowder residue on her hands as well as her clothes, and all the results came back negative. Further investigation lead them to believe the victim fired the gun himself, which would mean suicide, if not for the other person fleeing from the crime scene, according to Ryan's statement. They also found fresh footprints outside the office window and they didn't match Ryan's shoes.

Being allowed to leave the station, the brunette looked for Sam but couldn't see her anywhere. Assuming it wasn't the right time and place, Ryan had left, just to be greeted by her cousin outside the station.

"I thought you could use a ride." Shaun grinned at her and they walked around the corner to where he had parked.

Tony's office, a little later

"So how do you know that woman?" Tony arrived back in his office and addressed Sam, who stood by the window from where she had watched Ryan leave with a stranger.

"Coincidently." Sam sighed. "I met her a few weeks back at Elise's."

"And what do you know about her?" Tony was carefully trying to get more information out of his friend.

"We haven't really talked about work. I just know that something has troubled her the last few days." Sam wasn't sure if she should talk to Tony, nor how much she should tell him. Deep down, she knew Ryan wasn't a bad person, but she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else going on.

One flashback stuck to her mind. It was of a man. She assumed it was the same man who threatened Ryan.

She was startled out of her musings when Harrison walked in the office followed by Dr. Becker.

"We have more information's about our last victim." The young man waved a few papers.

"Let's meet in the lounge. I'll call Serina" Sam suggested and the other three nodded.

“There was a piece of skin next to the footprints we found outside our victims window. DNA results are still pending, but we’re quite sure we can at least use it as a match should we arrest someone.” Dr. Becker started after they had all arrived.

+++

The Facility, Technical floor

"That sick bastard set me up and I swear I'll make him pay!" Ryan paced around her desk and Calvin was afraid she'd throw the cup of coffee she'd been holding to crash against the wall at any second. "He was waiting there for me and called the cops while I lay face down in the flower bed.

"But first we have to find him," He muttered, and Ryan glared at Calvin with icy blue eyes.

"Right." She put her cup down and leaned on the desk. "And we need to figure out his motive. We still don't have a clue why he's killing all those people."

"Can't your friend help you? I thought that's her job?" Calvin dared to ask.

"Sure. And then I go to my uncle and tell him we worked together with the police. I might as well order my coffin."

+++

The Facility, parking lot

"I didn't know you'd switched teams." Shaun met Ryan on the way to the car park.

"What are you talking about?" Ryan unlocked her Jag when Shaun stood in front of the door and pulled out several pictures from his jacket.

"I don't know what surprises me more. That she's a gal or that she's with the cops." Shaun frowned and watched Ryan's reactions.

Snatching the pictures from his hand, she glanced at them and recognized them from the café, as well as the restaurant she had invited Sam to.

"And I don't know why it is any of your business with who I'm friends with." Ryan tried to open the door but Shaun didn't move.

He pursed his lips and then stepped back. "Just watch it." Shaun took the photos back and burned them with a lighter. "Maybe Adrian sends them to my father or the board next time. And I heard they're not too thrilled he's still free.”

+++

Police Headquarters, lounge

Tony and Sam sat together with the team, Harrison, Serina and Dr. Becker to discuss the case when Sam's phone started ringing.

Sam fished in her jacket for her cell phone and picked up after the third ring.

"Can we meet somewhere? I need to talk to you." A well known voice asked, and the blonde who excused herself from the meeting and walked outside to the hallway.

"I don't think that's a good idea. You're somehow involved in my case and I shouldn't be seen..” Sam paused, “talking to a suspect." There was nothing else she'd rather do than talk to Ryan, and find out how she was tied to all this.

"Please, I really need to talk to you." Ryan asked again. "And if you like to check, my name's already off the records. Our lawyer took care of that." Ryan informed her. "Please."

"Where?" Sam finally gave in and let Ryan explain where to meet her.

When she returned to the meeting, all eyes were on her but no one asked any questions. Tony watched her a moment and then continued discussing details with Dr. Becker.

"So, Mrs. Chester, our third victim, is our first victim's, Mr. Saunders, mother? How does that help us?" Tony looked over at Sam, who was having trouble following along. Shaking the nagging feeling off, the blonde took another look at her notes.

"Prof. Chester married Mr. Chester after Saunder’s father died of cancer. That’s how why her name’s different. She worked at the university and developed medications and tested them on volunteers." Sam kept staring at her notes, concentrating her focus on the information available.

"It's just a gut feeling so far, but what about someone who was involved in one of those tests? Maybe it was someone who suffered permanent damage?" She wasn't really asking, she was talking to herself, but the others listened carefully.

"My guess is, this person is taking revenge. Prof. Chester was the doctor who performed the tests. It is someone with a deep hatred, and that someone is very clever. He's got to have an unusual way of talking to people or he couldn't bring them to kill themselves. We need to investigate the last weeks of all of our victims. He had probably contact with the victims for several days or even weeks." Sam was on a roll and the others took notes.

"Our guy is a twenty to thirty year old male. Caucasian, only child, maybe an orphan. He was under medical treatment for years." Sam looked at Serina. "Please find out if anyone is missing at a hospital or other facilities. We also need to check parole records to see if anyone fitting this description was recently released." The blonde looked over at Tony who nodded.

“We’ve also got the DNA results back.” Dr. Becker sighed and rubbed her temple.

“But we couldn’t find a match?” Tony frowned.

“The problem is, we did find a partial match which tells us the suspect is first generation related to someone whose file’s been classified. We haven’t been able to get access yet.”

“Why aren’t we allowed to look into the file?” Harrison asked. “Is it the military?”

“We haven’t even managed to find that out. All we know is it’s male DNA.”

“I’ll take care of it.” Tony got up and went to make a few phone calls.

Sam stayed behind while the others left the room. Why did she keep the image of that man threatening Ryan in her head while she was thinking of the case?

+++

Somewhere out of town, Ryan's cottage

Ryan was nervous. She just couldn't sit still, and the walls of the small house seemed to be closing in on her. Grabbing a thick blanket, she went out on the porch and sat down on the steps. She loved the fresh air out here, always had.

Her summer house was located in the area where she and her dad had gone hiking on the rare weekends he had time for his daughter. A few miles from the city, away from the noise and the stress of work, it was her refuge.

Sam was already an hour late and the sun was slowly setting behind the tall trees, rays of sunshine falling through the leafless branches, leaving their golden touch over the whole countryside.

Maybe Sam wouldn't show up at all. And Ryan couldn't even hold it against her. The blonde had every right to be mad at her.

Just as Ryan started blaming herself, she heard the engine of a truck far away. Being the only resident for miles, she knew it had to be Sam following her directions.

Letting out a deep breath Ryan let a tiny smile appear on her lips when she saw the blonde's truck come around a corner.

Getting up and folding the blanket that had kept her warm, Ryan put it on the railing and walked down the steps.

When Sam opened the door, Jerry couldn't wait any longer; he jumped over her lap and ran towards Ryan, his tongue hanging from his mouth and his tail wagging as he circled around the tall woman.

"Tony couldn't watch Jerry tonight and I didn’t want to leave him alone in the hotel," Sam shrugged. "I hope it is okay with you."

"No problem." Ryan replied and while she scratched Jerry behind his ears, giving him the attention he called for.

"I'm glad you came." She added softly without looking up. She could feel Sam's eyes on her though.

"Would you like to go inside, it's getting real cold now with the sun down." Ryan stretched back up to her full height and watched Sam nod. Jerry had already taken off to explore his new surroundings.

Ryan's cottage, hours later

 

"Why haven't you said something before?" the blonde asked after Ryan had explained her involvement in her serial killer case.

"Because it's dangerous. The Facility won't hesitate to send an assassin to solve their problems." Ryan quickly dismissed the thought of her cousin.

They were sitting in the small living-room while Jerry played outside. During the last half hour Ryan had explained everything she and Calvin had dug up on Adrian over the last few weeks.

Sam had listened with a blank expression, taking a sip of her tea now and then, avoiding eye contact as best as she could.

Ryan's story was unbelievable, but it sounded so plausible the way she explained it. Now everything made perfect sense.

"And why are you telling me this now?" Sam asked, puzzled after a moment of silence.

Ryan shrugged, folding her hands over her knees. "I didn't want to lie to you." She looked the blonde in the eye and they stayed like that for a long moment until Sam looked away.

She couldn't quite explain it, but the way the brunette looked at her make her feel uneasy. Not uncomfortable, but it stirred her deep inside. Her heartbeat quickened and she was having a hard time processing all the latest developments.

"If you don't want to see me again, I can understand, but please believe me that I didn't know you'd be involved with this case when we first met." Ryan felt miserable, like she was losing her best friend even though they had only known one another for a few weeks.

"I believe you." Sam just said. She didn't know what else to add. The only thing she was sure of was that she needed to talk with Tony about everything she had just learned. But what would happen to Ryan then? All these thoughts made her head spin. Getting up she walked to the window and looked outside into the dark without really seeing anything.

"I wish I could go back and change things." Ryan walked up behind Sam and looked at her through the reflection in the window. "I would have introduced myself differently. Something like, Hi, I'm Ryan. I'm hunting down a sociopathic serial killer protected by a mysterious organization and the government. Nice to meet you."

Chuckling with the irony, both women gazed at each other.

"I want to be mad at you. For not telling me sooner, for getting me involved. But I know that it's not really your fault." Sam sounded physically and mentally tired.

"It's frustrating, isn't it?" Ryan took another step closer. Sam drew her like a moth to a flame. She knew she would be burned, but she couldn't stay away.

Putting a hand on the blonde's shoulder, Ryan pulled it back when Sam shied away.

"I need to go check on Jerry." Sam tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear with shaking fingers.

Outside, Sam drew a deep breath which didn't calm her as she had hoped it would. Calling out for Jerry, he came running from the woods.

Fixing him a portion of dry food from the truck, Sam fetched the bowl and walked to the outside tap.

Jerry being taken care of, the blonde watched him for a moment and tried to decide what to do. And think about why she was so shaken. Earlier in the house, she had longed for a hug, to release some of the tension that was bottled up in her. But the same time she wanted to appear brave and confident.

+++

Police Headquarters, the following day

"Is there something you'd like to tell me?" Tony asked Sam the next day at the office. Sam had called in and said she'd be late. She'd been lost in thought ever since, and he had to call her name three times before she recognized he was talking to her.

“Any luck on the DNA results yet?” Sam asked and Tony shook his head no.

“You know I’m always there if you need to talk, right?” he watched her carefully as she nodded and walked to the spare office that was assigned to her.

The phone rang when she sat down at her desk.

“Do you still want to see me?” Ryan had finally found the courage to give Sam a call. Closing her eyes, Ryan listened to the breathing on the other end of the line and waited.

“Yes,” Sam paused, “I told you I needed to sleep over it.”

“I’m gonna be tied up at work pretty much all week but why don’t you meet me at the cottage on Saturday when you finish work?” Ryan felt hope.

“I’d like that,” Sam smiled.

+++

Ryan's penthouse

When Ryan returned to her townhouse the following night after work, she found a single rose with a card laid on her doorstep. Looking up and down the hallway, she couldn't see anyone. Bending down she picked the flower up and tucked the card from the envelope.

The small smile on her face quickly disappeared when she read what was written on the note.

Sam.

But it wasn’t a signature; the blonde’s name was crossed out with a red marker.

+++

The Facility, a little later

"This is not good." Calvin mumbled and dialled Ryan's cell.

"Those two names, I found them in our own database." the tech informed his boss.

“Is this line secure?” Ryan cut him off.

“Uh, no.” Calvin held the receiver away from his ear and starred at it.

“Calvin!” Ryan startled him, “I’ll meet you in the park in ten minutes.” The brunette threw the cell on the passenger’s seat.

Parking on the visitor’s parking lot she walked the short way into the park and spotted Calvin nervously walking back and forth in front of a deserted bench.

“Ms Ryan!” the shorter man was relieved and tried to tame his mane and straighten his shirt when he noticed her raising an eyebrow over his looks.

“What’s so important?” Ryan asked and glanced around, trying to find out if they were watched.

“You asked me to find out more about Adrian’s background. Well, and I did.” He wiped his hands on his beige baggy pants and stepped closer to Ryan so nobody could eavesdrop though the park was mostly empty. “I was down in the archive,” he spoke to Ryan’s shoulder because he didn’t want to look into her eyes. It was most likely he would forget what he was about to say. “Did you know Adrian went to college?”

That got Ryan’s attention and she pulled the tech with her. “Let’s walk.” Her eyes kept roaming the front and windows of the Facility for surveillance. She knew the cameras were without audio, she had ordered them herself, but right now, she didn’t trust anybody.

“At age 12, one Dr. Newman suggested he’d participate at some courses for highly intelligent kids. The report says, the kid was under surveillance of one Prof. Dr. Chester, the same Mrs. Chester we found dead!” Calvin’s voice raised but he got himself back under control after one warning look from Ryan.

“Interesting, but why were those files not digitalized like the rest?”

“Good question. And I didn’t exactly find them where one would be looking.” Calvin stopped under a big oak three and turned to Ryan.

“I didn’t really use the official way to gain access to the archive,” the tech mumbled and waited for any comments. When there was none, he continued, “While I was down there searching the documents, I heard someone walk down the hallway towards me so I looked for a spot to hide. Really, someone should at least once a year send someone down there to clean up. Anyway, I hid behind a huge shelf in the dark and suddenly spotted lights shining on the floor. When the guy had walked away, I checked it out and found another chamber. It was locked and,”

“Is there a short version?” Calvin was cut off by Ryan.

“Yeah,” he sighed, “it was in fact a whole corridor that was hidden there. Most rooms were completely empty but one held more files.”

“And?”

“And I scanned some documents for you. I’ve returned the original ones right away. Here,” he handed Ryan a memory-stick.

“Thanks.”

“One more thing,” Calvin didn’t quite know how to interpret, “the whole back of the archive was dusty. But the hidden corridor, there were traces in the dust in the same room I found these. I tried not to leave any traces, but...”

“You did great.” Ryan assured him and they started walking back to their offices. “I’ll find out who’s been looking into these files.”

 

+++

Ryan’s penthouse

Back home, Ryan loaded the documents Calvin had dug up for her and spent the next hour reading through them. One file caught her interest in particular. What she was reading was a database of genetic material of everyone at the Facility. Employees *and* patients. Why the hell didn’t she know about that? It was her job to keep accusations away from the Facility.

Reading over the names, Ryan wasn’t really surprised to find her own name. Her whole family was registered. Scanning for Adrian’s file, Ryan grinned. There he was in bits and pieces.

The same moment her phone rang and Ryan picked absently up.

“Ms. Ryan?” Calvin asked, “I think I stumbled over something else.” The tech spoke slow and hushed.

“Which is?” Ryan tapped her fingers to the desk.

“You’re probably reading the same files I am right now. But I thought I run some DNA results to the databases and see if I can find any relations about Adrian or if the cops found his DNA at a crime scene.”

“And?” Ryan asked when Calvin stopped.

“It seems he did leave traces of himself behind at a crime scene. But what’s even more mysterious, I made a mistake and tried to find a match within our own database. And I got a hit.”

“What do you mean?” Ryan was all ears.

“Normally I wouldn’t check Adrian’s DNA with the database I got it from, but,” Calvin started but was cut off by Ryan.

“I got that, but what did you mean with, you got a hit.”

“There’s one Mrs. Evelyn Chester in our database. It’s 99% sure that Adrian’s her son.”

“Why’s Mrs Chester in our database?” Ryan asked.

“I don’t know, but anyway, that’s not all because victim number one, Mr Saunders, is Mrs Chester’s son as well.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Ryan wasn’t laughing though.

“No?”

“Do Saunders and Adrian have the same father?”

“I can’t tell. You know, I’m no DNA specialist. I don’t even know much about medicine. All I do is run the programs.” Calvin babbled.

“Okay, fine. Thanks Calvin.” Ryan hung up.

The Facility, Saturday afternoon

 

"Hello?" Calvin had been nervously walking around his workplace when his cell rang.

 

"Miss Ryan, where *are* you? I've been..." he was cut off.

 

"Pack your stuff and get out of there. Go on a holiday and don't tell anyone where you're going!" Ryan ordered him without an explanation. But Calvin didn't need one. He was a nervous wreck by now anyway.

 

They had discovered that so far, each of Adrian’s victims had been in contact with him one way or another over the last years.

 

What she didn’t know was who had found those files before her.

 

+++++

 

Police Headquarters

 

“Sam!” Tony walked past her office into the conference room.

 

Looking up a little confused, Sam wondered what was up with her friend and followed him. He had already called the whole team and they all arrived one after the other within a few minutes.

 

“I have news.” Tony grinned and his face showed deep lines around his eyes. “A match to the DNA results from our third crime scene.”

 

“Who is it?” Harrison tapped his pencil to the table.

 

“One Adrian Bloom,” Tony read the information his informant had given him.” What no one knew was that Calvin had sent a mail to Tony’s office before he had taken off. He knew he couldn’t help his boss. He was no warrior, but at least he could see that Ryan wasn’t alone out there. He had added all the pictures Adrian had send to Ryan as well and hoped that they could arrest him before he did even more damage.

 

 

+++

 

Police Headquarters, a little later

 

“I can’t let you go there by yourself, Sam.” Tony tried to convince his friend that it was too risky to visit Ryan.

 

“Our main suspect’s last known address is the mental home your friend works for. Why has nobody reported him missing since?” Tony couldn’t understand why Sam seemed so blind.

“Tony, I don’t understand it myself, but I have to go talk to Ryan about this.”

 

“But you’re not going alone. I’ll come with you.” Tony hoped he could at least get some more information. Of course he wanted to keep an eye on Sam as well.

 

After dropping Jerry of with Tony’s wife, Rita, they drove to the cottage together.

 

+++

 

“Let me go and talk to her alone first.” Sam told Tony and didn’t wait for a reply. She just got out of his car and walked over to Ryan’s cottage’s porch. Knocking twice she entered when she heard a yes.

 

Right after Sam entered the living room and closed the front door behind her, she sensed something was wrong.

 

Adrian stood next to Ryan and held her at bay with her own 9mm.

 

“Hi, Sam! Nice to meet you!” Adrian greeted her cheerfully while Sam and Ryan locked eyes. It looked like they had been fighting. Adrian’s cotton pullover he wore with his black leather pants sported blood drips from his split lips and a nasty bruise started to show below Ryan’s right eye. Her blue, long sleeved t-shirt was torn around the neck and her coat was dusty all over.

 

Sam’s mind raced and tried to think a way out of there but Ryan shook her head lightly. Adrian saw it and nodded.

 

“Smart one, here, eh? She’s right, don’t try anything or I’ll blow her brains out. You!” he pointed the gun at Sam and then back at Ryan, “get on your knees and put your hands behind your head.” He ordered and when Sam didn’t follow his orders immediately, he punched Ryan in the ribs without warning. “Do it!” he said calmly while Ryan sank to one knee and tried to catch her breath.

 

Tony glanced at his watch again. He’d give them five more minutes.

 

Meanwhile Adrian pulled Ryan’s hands up roughly and told her to keep them behind her head.

 

“You’re probably wondering why I’m here, right?” he walked around the cottage’s living room looking into Sam’s eyes and keeping the gun pointed at Ryan. “Because I can!” he pronounced each word.

 

“You’ll never catch me if I don’t let you” he spat out, challenging both women.

 

“But you want us to.” Sam bit her tongue as soon as the words were out. She should know better than to play mind games with a sociopath.

 

“How do you know what I want?” Adrian walked over to the window and peeked out. “I see you brought a friend,” he smiled and took aim.

 

“No!” Sam spun up but Adrian’s gun was in her face before she could attack him.

 

“Don’t even think about it,” Adrian pressed the barrel to Sam’s temple.

 

Both women were surprised how cold and unattached Adrian sounded, like he wasn’t really involved.

 

“How about we join him outside? Get up and walk to the door.” He ordered Ryan.

 

Not having any other choices, the brunette did as he asked. “Try anything and I’ll shoot your girlfriend, got me?” he loved how angry Ryan looked at him. Grabbing Sam by her coat, he pushed her towards the door. Peering out once more through the window next to the door, he ordered Ryan to open the door and step out on the porch. He followed with Sam.

 

When Tony saw the front door open he got out of his car and stretched his limbs. Eying Ryan curiously, he waited for Sam to follow and froze when he saw their suspect holding a gun to the blondes head.

 

“Don’t even think about using your gun.” Adrian warned and pushed Sam to the ground.

 

“Hey!” Ryan growled. She felt helpless and useless. Sam was being pushed and could be shot and she couldn’t do anything about it.

 

“Ten steps back,” Adrian ordered, “now!”

 

"What do you think your dear uncle will do when he finds out that you co-operated with the cops?" Adrian grabbed Sam's hair and pulled her up on her knees while he pointed the gun at Ryan and Tony.

 

"Let her go!" Tony said with calm voice. He knew panic wouldn't get any of them out of this situation.

 

"You!" he let go of Sam and walked over to Tony, all the while swinging the gun between him and Ryan. Pushing Tony back, who held his hands up in defence, Adrian took his gun from its holster. With skilled fingers he opened the cylinder and emptied all but one of the bullets. Swinging the cylinder shut, he threw that gun at Ryan's feet.

 

Taking his position next to Sam he once again held the barrel of his gun to her head.

 

"Take the gun!" He screamed at Ryan, who started to realize what his plan was. "I might let her go if you shoot him." Adrian smiled devilishly.

 

"Don't believe him!" Sam shouted and Adrian pulled on her hair brutally and the blonde let out a scream.

 

"Do it!" Adrian screamed at Ryan who picked up the revolver. She knew there was no chance she could take down Adrian before he could pull the trigger and shoot Sam. Clenching her teeth Ryan closed her eyes and pointed the gun at Tony who looked shocked.

 

"Shoot!" Adrian said and pulled back the hammer of his gun. Hearing the clicking sound, Ryan whispered. "God forgive me!" and the next thing that was heard was a loud bang.

 

Tony looked horrified when he fell to his knees. Blood trickled down his shirt and it was only seconds before his face fell down in the thick carpet of leaves.

 

Adrian grinned, Sam screamed something and Ryan dropped the gun and bent down on her knees, her coat falling widely around her on the ground.

 

Sam tried to run away but Adrian's grip was too tight. He pulled her back forcefully.

 

That was the moment Ryan needed to pull out her backup gun from her ankle holster.

 

Adrian's gun fell to the ground when a bullet hit him right in the arm, with a shocked look on his face, he let out a scream, and Sam stumbled to her feet and over to Tony.

 

Ryan walked over to Adrian, her gun pointed at his head. "Tell me just one reason why I shouldn't end your miserable life right here?" she asked with her voice as cold as ice when Adrian tried to shrink further away, to no avail.

 

Sam fell on her knees next to Tony. Tears were running down her cheeks and her eyesight was blurry. Checking for a pulse with shaking fingers, Sam fell back startled when Tony stirred. Bringing his left arm to his shoulder, Tony laughed. "Bitch!"

 

"Tony!" Sam helped him to his feet and steadied the older man and they walked over to Ryan.

 

"Don't!" Sam was frightened by the glare Ryan shot toward Adrian. "He's not worth it."

 

Ryan kept staring at him for a moment and then lowered the gun a bit, the tension leaving her body.

 

"Turn around!" the brunette said to Adrian who was holding his bleeding arm now.

 

"She shot me in the shoulder!" Tony mumbled. "Damn!"

 

"But you're still alive, right?" Ryan searched Tony's eyes and was relieved when she saw no hard feelings.

 

"Alive, but I'll be deaf on this ear for weeks!" Tony pulled his handcuffs from his waistband and threw them at Ryan to chain Adrian to a metal ring on the tap and searched him for any other weapons.

 

Sam helped Tony over to his car when they were sure Adrian wasn’t a threat anymore. Tony radioed for help while Sam stopped the bleeding with her wool jacket.

 

“You sit here tight and don’t move!” she ordered him after the confirmation that paramedics and their team were on the way.

 

Sam didn’t know how long they were waiting. It was like time had stopped, the adrenaline slowly leaving her system.

 

She kept watching Ryan who stood at the same spot, guarding Adrian until the horn signalled them the cavalry was arriving, then Ryan walked back to the cottage and leaned against the wall, legs apart, head back.

 

After greeting their team and instructing the paramedics, Sam walked back over to the brunette and flinched when she saw how bad Ryan looked. Adrian had hit her twice, once in the ribs and once in the face. The bruises around the eye were already visible.

 

Hesitating for a moment, Sam stepped closer and between Ryan’s feet.

 

“Are you alright?” the blonde asked timidly and brushed a strand of dark hair from Ryan’s face. Their eyes locked and Sam knew that they were both far from being alright. She caressed the not bruised cheek slowly and Ryan pulled her closer, encircling the blonde’s waist with her arms. First one tear slid down Sam’s cheek, then followed others while Ryan held her tight.

 

It didn’t take long to get their emotions back under control, but it would also not too long until they’d come to interview them.

 

Sam knew Tony had held them off for a while, and when she looked back at the scene, it all seemed so unreal to her now. Her arms were still around Ryan’s neck when she watched the paramedics argue with Tony about him obviously not wanting to ride with them.

 

Ryan hadn’t said anything yet. And she didn’t know what to say. Thoughts were swirling around in her head and her bruised ribs were starting to really hurt, but she didn’t want to go see the paramedics.

 

Sam made that decision for her. Brushing some hair away once more, and taking a look at the colours on Ryan’s cheek, Sam took a step back and took the brunettes hand.

 

“You need an ice-pack for the bruises and you should get your ribs checked.”

 

Not feeling up for resistance right now, Ryan followed Sam.

Chapter 11
Ryan’s apartment complex, garage

 

"I swear I didn't know anything about this!" Ryan's cousin held his hand up in defence.

Ryan went berserk when she arrived back at her apartment after interrogation and found his car following her.

"You didn't know Adrian was out to kill people for the Facility or that he tried to kill me?" Ryan slapped him hard on the cheek.

Shaun swallowed hard, his mind racing to figure out how to calm the brunette down.

"I heard some pretty interesting things, but we really shouldn't discuss that here." he sported his best puppy dog look and prayed she wouldn't shoot him in the knee just because.

Ryan started walking towards the elevator without even looking to see if he was following, she knew he was.

“Nice place.” Shaun’s grin left his face as soon as he made eye contact with Ryan. He felt ashamed. Someone had tried to kill her not more than a few hours ago. Realizing what really was happening, Shaun frowned.

“Why did Adrian say he killed those people for the Facility?” Ryan asked right to the spot.

“He did? Why would he?” Shaun was clearly surprised.

“Yes, he did. He killed his mother and his brother.”

“That doesn’t make sense.” Ryan’s cousin licked his lips. “How did he know who they were?”

“That’s what I’m trying to find out.” Ryan hung up her coat and took of her shoes.

“What did Newman say? You should be over with your interrogation, shouldn’t you?” she asked.

“Well, apparently, Adrian wasn’t born by Prof. Chester. And Mr Saunders isn’t really his brother. What they did was use her genetic material which was stored at the Facility.”

“And later, Adrian participated with Prof. Chester’s own research? And you probably want to convince me that Chief Neville was his father. Or why did he kill him first?”

“No. I don’t know and I don’t really care. Our job was to return him. In which you failed, by the way.”

“Right. What was I supposed to do? Shoot the cops? Brilliant idea.”

“Now, that’ll be your problem as I know that the board will want him back and the cops out of it.”

“There’s one more problem,” the dark haired man confessed, “Newman’s no longer in our custody.”

“What? You let him go?” Ryan couldn’t believe her ears.

“No, my father called and said he’d send some guys to pick him up. He wouldn’t tell me why.” Shaun frowned.

+++++

“I told you to get lost.” Ryan grumbled when she opened the door minutes after Shaun had left and stopped in surprise to see that it was Sam who stood there.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were...”

“The guy who I passed in the entrance hall?”

“I’m afraid so. He’s my cousin and a pain in the butt.” Ryan tried to light the mood. Sam looked strangely serious. “Come in, please!”

I should have known they’re related. Now that she mentions it, they do look a lot alike; Sam thought and felt relieved for some unknown reason.

“Can I get you a drink?”

“I think I could use one.” Sam followed Ryan into the kitchen.

Ryan took two glasses and filled them with Scotch whiskey. Giving Sam one glass, she went back and took some ice from the freezer. Putting them in a towel, she held it to her bruised cheekbone and they both went to the living room.

“Does it hurt badly?” Sam reached out but pulled her hand back.

“Only when I laugh.” Ryan smiled and sat down next to Sam on the couch. She was glad for the company. “How are you holding up? I bet you were at the station ‘til now.”

Sam sat her glass down on the living room table. “Adrian’s still in interrogation. But Tony sent me home.”

“He’s a good guy,” the brunette smiled. Since Sam had arrived she had avoided eye contact. Whenever Sam looked at her, Ryan glanced away.

She was nervous. The adrenaline was slowly leaving her body and she felt exhausted.

“Hey,” Sam gently nudged Ryan’s leg, “it’s not your fault.”

“Right, this could have happened to anyone.” Ryan put the now wet towel aside. “If I had...”

“If you hadn’t been so brave, we could all be dead now.” Sam didn’t let Ryan put herself down.

“I wish I had shot him.” Ryan shook her head. Now that Adrian was caught, she’d had to face her uncle and the board. It was highly unlikely that their lawyers could pull them out of this unnoticed.

“Have you ever killed someone?”

“No.” the brunette shook her head and winced when her ribs protested of her movement.

“Believe me, you don’t want to. No matter who it is and what they’ve done.”

“You sound like you know what you’re talking about.” She looked surprised at Sam.

“I shot the man who killed my brother.” Sam confessed and gulped, the memories still fresh in her mind.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. It’s been one year.” Sam smiled ruefully. “And even though I had wished for the moment I could take revenge, it didn’t satisfy me like I was hoping for.”

“What happened?”

“I’ll have to leave this for another time. I doubt either one of us is up for that tonight.” Sam smiled a little, assuring Ryan everything was alright.

“Okay.”

“I just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing. You must be tired and I should be going.” Sam sighed and wanted to get up but Ryan’s hand on her arm stopped her.

“You don’t have to go. I mean,” Ryan started babbling and blushed a little, “I mean I’d like you to stay a little.” She added after a moment.

“Sure.” Sam smiled and pulled her hair back behind her ear. “Um, have you eaten anything yet?” she asked sheepishly. Ryan’s stomach caught the cue and grumbled.

“I guess that’s a no. And you look a little pale.”

“There’s a good take-out just around the corner. Wanna walk?” Ryan offered but Sam frowned.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea. You should keep that ice pack on your eye.” She took said towel and put it back in Ryan’s hand. “But if you tell me what to get, I’ll go get it.”

An hour later, they both were feeling better, two pasta dishes gone and two empty stomachs satisfied.

After dinner Sam had given Rita a call and asked about how Jerry was doing, and after a short description of their day, Rita had assured her that Jerry was perfectly fine and that Sam should get some rest, she’d take care of the dog. Being tired and exhausted, Sam didn’t protest much and promised to drop by in the morning.

“You still look worried, what’s wrong?” Sam walked back into the kitchen where Ryan put away the washed dishes and put a hand on the brunette’s shoulder. “He’s locked up now.”

“I wished it was this easy,” Ryan held both hands to the rim of the sink.

“Then why isn’t it? Want to talk about it?” Sam offered and rubbed Ryan’s back who was all tense.

“I shouldn’t pull you into this mess.” Ryan turned to walk away but couldn’t. Her feet just wouldn’t carry her. Standing in front of the blonde, Ryan rubbed her forehead. A thousand thoughts ran through her mind and she couldn’t sort them out. Frustration mixed with those thoughts and tears filled her eyes.

Seeing the inner tremor, Sam pulled her towards her and Ryan put her arms around Sam’s neck. She couldn’t cry but she couldn’t get her emotions under control just yet. Hugging her friend tightly, Ryan wanted to hide here in her apartment forever.

“Thanks for being here.” She mumbled a while later against Sam’s neck and felt a shiver run down her back. Letting her thumb slowly caress the blonde’s neck, Ryan placed a light kiss on the side and waited tensely to see if she had made a mistake now. Hearing a soft purr she smiled and placed another kiss a little higher on the neck while Sam’s hands started caressing her back.

Sam shivered when Ryan kissed her just below the ear and pulled her head back just enough to lock eyes.

Closing their eyes, the leaned closer and their lips touched lightly.

When Sam pulled back, she leaned her forehead to Ryan’s and sighed. “This isn’t such a good idea.” She mumbled.

“What?” Ryan pulled back and looked in the blonde’s eyes, searching for what she was really thinking.

“Relationships built on stressful situations usually don’t work out.”

“And you believe that psycho stuff?” Ryan pursed her lips which Sam found looked incredibly adorable.

“I wrote an article about it.” Sam smiled and caressed Ryan’s neck with her thumb.

“You’re probably right,” Ryan felt more exhausted than ever, “but hey, you said relationship instead of affair. Do I still have a chance?”

“We’ll see,” Sam leaned back in, and this time the kiss wasn’t as timid as the first one.

+++

The Facility, the next day

“Mr Yousif,” Ryan looked up when he knocked and entered her office. Ryan was still trying to keep a smile from her face. “How can I help you?” the brunette hid her confusion well. She normally didn’t have anything to do with Yousif and the board. She got her orders from her uncle.

“We need to discuss something.” He took the offered seat and unbuttoned his expensive dark suit jacket.

“Sure.” Ryan put the files she’d been reading aside and folded her hands. Instead of reading, she’d been looking at the small note Sam had left that morning when she left. Shaking off the lingering memories from the previous night, she had a hard time concentrating.

“You probably know by now but we’ve got Adrian back in custody. He’ll stay with us until his trail.”

“Yes, I was informed this morning, but I still don’t understand what’s that got to do with me,” Ryan frowned.

“I’d like to let you know personally that Melcom Ryan, your uncle, has been removed from his position as chairman by today. His position is vacant ‘til the board votes someone new.”

“And you’re telling me this because?”

“The state attorney was informed that the two men who were involved in Adrian’s escape were known and would be brought to justice. Newman and your uncle will pay for what they did.”

“What exactly did they do?” Ryan tried to put the puzzle together.

“An anonymous source showed that Newman took Adrian from the Facility to perform more tests which his fellow professor at the university, Prof. Chester refused to finish. I’ll spare you the medical details but Adrian’s brain was tested with medications. Now, some part of the tests went horribly wrong, and not to get tied up with it, Newman and your uncle tried to cover it up by sending Adrian after them.”

“Did he know that Prof. Chester was his mother?”

“Not at first. That’s another thing they tried to cover up. You see, Adrian wasn’t born by Prof. Chester, she was the egg donor. We still haven’t located the father but we’re almost certain that it was another experiment. Therefore Adrian became what he is today, a sociopath.”

“I still don’t get why you’re telling me all this.” Ryan pulled her dark locks back and tapped her foot lightly on the floor.

“We want you to investigate how far your cousin, Shaun was involved in all this because he has applied for the chairman’s position.” Yousif watched her carefully.

“As far as I know he wasn’t even in the country when this mess started,” Ryan started, “but I’ll see what I can find out.” She said diplomatically. As much as she despised some of her family’s actions, they were still that, family.

+++

Police Headquarters, same day

“Hello?” Sam picked up the phone in her now empty office. She had packed her little bit of personal stuff in a cardboard box and was about to bid goodbye to the team when her cell rang.

“Hi!” someone said on the other end and Sam could hear the smile over the phone.

“How’s it going?” the blonde asked and closed the door.

“Not bad I guess. Not sure though. It’s all weird here.” Ryan couldn’t keep a grin from her face though this wasn’t really the time for chit chat. She didn’t even know what was going on at the Facility but she just had to call the blonde.

“I’ve been thinking of you.” She admitted.

“Is that so?” Sam sat on the edge of her desk. “And what were you thinking?”

“Well, I’d rather show you, but,” she trailed off. “Strange things are happening here and I don’t know when I can leave tonight.”

“Is everything alright there? I heard Adrian was brought to the Facility this morning instead of being held in custody.”

“How long are you staying?” Ryan knew that Sam’s work was done and she was probably going back home soon.

“I’m having dinner with Tony tonight to celebrate a bit. Do you want to join us?” Sam asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t think Tony would want me to.”

“Don’t say that. He’s a real fine man and I’m sure you’ll get along with him when you know him better.” Ryan noticed how Sam didn’t say if, but when and will, get to know instead if knew him. Did that mean she really wanted to keep her around?

“We could try,” she responded after a moment.

“How about you give me a call when you leave work? We can go from there.” Sam offered and wished it was already night.

“That sounds like a plan. Keep your cell close.” Ryan grinned.

Chapter 12
The Facility

“I see you make yourself at home.” Ryan entered her cousin’s new office, just a bit down her corridor.

“Why yes, I figured since my company closed without further notice I should hang around and see if I can help here.” Shaun grinned but Ryan knew he wasn’t half as full of himself as he seemed.

“Good thinking, buddy.” Ryan sat on the edge of his desk while he seated himself on the chair. “I heard some of your fellow co-workers were arrested this morning. How come you’re still here?”

“My looks and my charm?” Shaun offered and was wondering where this conversation was going. When he had tried to call his father about why his company was closed, he couldn’t reach him. It was when he arrived at the Facility that he was informed that Melcom had turned himself in.

“Do you know anything about my uncle?” he blurred out.

+++

“You know the rules.” Yousif stood in Ryan’s office. He seemed as calm as ever.

“Yes, but,” Ryan stood opposite of him and tried to hold her composure.

“And we just made new rules. The board has been taken over by a new generation and I’m here to speak for them. You might not know, but years ago, the Facility was run by three men, one of them was your father. But when they had financial trouble, they had to fund the board and that’s when things changed. There were insiders at the board who kept a close eye on what was happening all over the years and now, after all debts are paid off, another division started that was organized when they gave the power of control to the board.”

Ryan looked still sceptical and Simon smiled.

“I am the third generation member of the board who’s been assigned by your father and here to tell you that the boards been officially closed. The notary was here this morning and arranged everything. I don’t have to tell you that it caused a small earthquake. My suggestion is that you should leave for a couple of weeks until we can sort things out.”

Simon Yousif suddenly didn’t seem so intimidating anymore. Ryan found he was a good actor and had played his role perfectly.

“Mr. Sully, the notary, is waiting outside to hand you some documents. If you have any further questions, give me a call,” Simon handed her his business card and excused himself.

“Ms Ryan, David Sully, nice to meet you,” An elderly, slightly overweighed man in his sixties entered and introduced himself.

“Mr Sully, please take a seat.” Ryan was having a hard time processing all the latest information. She wasn’t sure if she looked forward what the notary held for her.

“I’m sure Mr Yousif informed you already about my being here. Now, I’ve got some documents that I am directed to hand to you personally after those contracts run out.” Mr Sully opened his old and worn leather briefcase and pulled out several envelopes. The first one he handed to her was letter size and her name was written on it in her father’s handwriting.

“The other two documents should not be opened until you read the letter. It’ll explain it all.” Mr Sully smiled genially and closed his briefcase. “I’ll wait for your call.” He nodded at her and left Ryan quite perplexed.

Hesitating for a moment, she took the smaller envelope and opened it with skilled fingers. Pulling out two folded pieces of paper, she stared reading.

+++

Hotel, somewhere near Riverside

“Calvin?” Ryan asked when someone picked up his cell but only mumbled. “Wake up!” she said a little louder.

“Ms Ryan!” the tech was up and around within seconds.

“How was your vacation?” she asked and smiled.

“It was, um, unexpected.” Calvin mumbled and added quickly, “but nice.”

“Good! Because you lazy time’s over. Get you butt back here and meet me at the office tomorrow afternoon.”

“But,” Calvin injected.

“Everything’s under control and I need you here.” Ryan didn’t want to explain everything over the phone. “Just get here.”

“Okay,” the tech rubbed his face and tried to pry his eyes open a little further. He’d spent the whole night sitting in his hotel room and playing interactive games via internet. That was his next best choice to keep a low profile.

+++

The Facility, two days later

“Mr Sully said we’d meet here.” Simon Yousif entered the conference room and shook hands with both Ryan and the notary.

“I assume you made a decision.” He eyed Ryan curiously.

“Yes, I did indeed. I spend the last two days thinking this over and here’s the result,” The brunette handed one of the documents given by him back.

“It’s a wise choice,” Mr Sully said after he had put on his glasses and read over it. “I’m sure you’re father would be very proud of you.”

“So you’ll be quitting...” Simon remarked after he read the papers, “your position and take the offered opportunity to lead the Facility.” He smiled warmly.

“I’ll try.” Ryan didn’t quite feel up to it but she wanted to do the right thing and lead the Facility back to where it’s supposed to be.

“My first action will be to hire my cousin as my personal assistant.” Ryan informed them, “And I’d like you do take my job, Mr. Yousif, if you’re ready to take it. It’s not going to be pretty at first.”

“It would be my pleasure,” the Arabic heritage man agreed and bowed lightly. “But with all due respect, why your cousin?” he asked.

“He’s my family.” Ryan replied, and I’ll rather have him close so I can keep an eye on him, she thought. Keep your friends close, your enemies closer.

“So is your uncle,” the notary added.

“Yes, but he’ll have his hands full with several lawsuits. Last I heard is that the university is suing him for his involvement in the tests that weren’t authorised and threw bad light on them.”

“True,” both men agreed.

When Sully had left and Yousif was about to excuse himself, Ryan ask, “Simon, can I ask you one question?”

The dark skinned man halted, “Of course.”

“Who has been down in the archive and dug up those files Calvin, my tech, found?”

“Ah, yes,” he walked back to the desk. “That would be me.” He looked to the floor and Ryan pursed her lips.

“And you wouldn’t have given this information to one reporter named Saunders, would you?” she asked.

“I’m afraid that was one mistake I can be blamed for. I had tried to stir some trouble so your uncle would have to react. Unfortunately he had found out early and involved Adrian.”

+++

Ryan’s penthouse

“Ryan, I’m not sure if I get this right.” Shaun folded his napkin and put down his fork. Ryan had invited him for lunch to clear some things. He would be offered amnesty if he’d testify against his previous supervisors and gave Ryan all the insider information he knew. If she was given a second chance, she could at least offer him the same.

“It’s quite simple actually, Shaun. Talk and stay, or be loyal to thieves and murderers. I want to know everything. Even the ugly and you better tell me all, because I’m going to get that information anyway, one way or another.”

“Why would you help me?” he asked bluntly. “I thought you hated me.”

“I do condemn some of your actions but I still believe in the little boy I grew up with. Don’t you remember what we promised each other after this incident?” Ryan pulled back her hair and showed the scars on her neck.

Shaun felt ashamed and looked to the ground. Scuffing his feet a bit he sniffed his nose. “I do remember.”

“And what changed?”

“I guess we did.”

“No, you did.”

“What was I supposed to do?” he got up so fast his chair tipped over. “Right after graduation my father introduced me to this guy and told me I should learn from him.”

“And how well you did.” Ryan watched him pace.

“Oh, don’t give me that. You’re not better than me!” Shaun spat out angry. “You’ve been involved just like I was.”

“Yes,” Ryan shouted back, “but I never crossed that line. It’s one point to bend the truth and lie to reporters; it’s another thing to beat someone so badly that he barely survived.”

“Now I get it. It’s still about this poor guy, isn’t it?”

A few months into the job, Ryan had a date with her cousin for lunch. She was a little early and entered his office without knocking like they always did. She was shocked when she saw her cousin hit a guy in the face who had been tied to a chair. His face was bruised and his clothes were full of blood. Turning on her heels, Ryan had left the building as fast as she could and had reported to her uncle, horrified at what she’d seen.

“I’m no saint, I admit that, but do you know why I was doing that to this guy? Because the cops wouldn’t.” Ryan frowned and he went on.

“He’s been one of the Facilities psychiatrics. That guy released one of our patients without further proof he’d been healed. The guy he let go was a convicted murder who’d been sent to the Facility instead of jail because his lawyer had proved to the jury his client wasn’t sane during the murder. That guy had killed his own mother in cold blood and it turned out that he’d been killing animals for fun since his childhood. But our dear psychiatrist thought he was real good and his therapy had changed the guy. Unfortunately, the same guy kidnapped a little boy only two days after he was free. The board thought I should have a word with the psychiatric. And so I did.”

“You nearly killed him!”

“So? I would do it again. Do you know he had the guts to tell me it wasn’t his fault? He blamed the little boy, claimed the kid must have done something to tickle sicko off? I didn’t want to kill him but I’m sure I taught him a lesson.” Shaun straightened his suit and tried to get his rage under control.

“What about all the others?” Ryan still couldn’t make up her mind about her cousin.

“Who?” Shaun clenched his teeth.

“I read those reports your company sent us. Don’t play coy with me.”

“I’m sure you read them. But do you know the backgrounds? What lies beneath the surface?”

+++

Ryan’s office, next day 

“So, I think everything’s going back to normal now.” Ryan signed the last documents and handed them to her secretary.

“It looks like it.” Shaun stood by the window. They’d had talked well into the night and Ryan was willing to give him a chance. Though that didn’t go well with Shaun’s father, her uncle, and those who believed in him, they’d done quite a selection with Simon’s help over the last weeks. Those who were still loyal to her uncle were fired and turned in for their involvements, others, like Calvin, were promoted and managed a whole new staff now.

Ryan’s lawyer had a hard time keeping her out of any trials, but so far she never had committed any crimes. The deal with the state attorney helped, too.

Packing her stuff, Ryan took her handbag and motioned for Shaun to get out. “I’ll take this weekend off. I trust you not to do anything stupid while I’m gone.”

"Where will you go?" Shaun asked and Ryan grinned.

Several hours later she pulled down a dirt road. Glancing at the small piece of paper with directions once more, she was sure this was the right way to Sam’s house.

 

The End