Kate Donovan - Exit Strategy

“But still, you were his daughter.”

She nodded. “He didn’t come to my graduation because he said it would be too painful for him to see all the other parents walking around enjoying themselves. When one of my teachers came to see him, to suggest it would mean a lot to me if he showed up, he called me selfish. Through it all, I just kept remembering what a great guy he had been once. I kept waiting for that guy to come back. I don’t think I really realized until after he died that…well…”

“That that great guy never really existed?”

She nodded.

Kell surprised her by grinning. “That’s a great event. Just perfect for our purposes.”

“Glad you like it,” she muttered.

“You’ll see.” He set two paper cups in front of her, one containing a blue pill, the other, water. “Okay, Jennifer. Here we go. The drug works quickly. You’ll feel good. Then you’ll feel great. Euphoric. Powerful. One subject described it as getting rid of all your baggage, even the baggage you never knew you had. I think that’s pretty accurate, judging from other responses.”

“Are you saying you haven’t tried it yourself?” she asked, honestly surprised.

“No. Not yet.”

“Good grief, Jonathan! Isn’t that the whole idea? You’re the Phobia King, right? This is your drug.”

He scowled. “My system is more sensitive than most people’s. I have a lot of allergies, for example. It’s complicated, and we’re not talking about me at the moment. Do you want to take it or not?”

She gave him a sympathetic smile. He had grown so comfortable around her-behaving almost normally-she had nearly forgotten he was actually a bundle of nerves. How ironic that his fear of new situations-of the unknown-was so intense it actually prevented him from benefiting from his own miracle cure!

“How long will it last?”

“Four to six hours of intense relief, then it tapers off gradually. When you finally sleep, you’ll sleep heavily. And as I warned you, there’s a price-a painful headache when you wake up. But the vitamins and calcium should help with that.” He touched her cheek. “I never tried this on a woman before, but the results shouldn’t be too different than with a man. I think you’re going to love it. And I know I’m going to love watching you on it.”

She picked up the pill, her pulse racing with anticipation. Euphoria. Invincibility. No more baggage. It all sounded too good to be true. “It’s not going to make me do anything crazy, is it? Like jump off a building because I think I can fly?”

He laughed. “No. It can affect your judgment to an extent, but not that way.”

“My judgment?” She winced, wondering if the drug might make her feel so powerful, she might do something crazy, like reveal the truth to Kell about her real occupation or her nonrelationship with Ortega.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be rational. In fact, you’ll probably be ultra-rational.” Kell grinned. “You’re getting cold feet?”

She returned the smile, then popped the pill in her mouth and washed it down without further hesitation. “Now what?”

“Walk around,” he suggested. “We’ll stay here for a few minutes, then move back to the drawing room if you’d like. Here,” he added, jumping up and moving to a stainless steel cabinet, which he opened to reveal a bow and quiver. “You said you like archery? You can play with these later if you’d like. I have a target set up in the basement.”

“Indoor archery? That’s a new one,” she said, teasing.

“For me, it was part of an experiment, not a sport.”

“An experiment?” She stared in delight. “Are you talking about Night Arrow?”

Kell drew back, visibly shocked. “How did you know about that?”

“When Ortega told me about the torture, he mentioned that they were grilling you about something called Night Arrow.” She winced and added lamely, “Listen to that. You’ve got me calling him Ortega instead of Ray! I already don’t like this drug.”

Get a grip, Miranda, she ordered herself. Sixty seconds on this power trip and you’re already blowing it! Talking about Night Arrow? Are you nuts?

Fortunately, Kell seemed amused rather than suspicious. “I’ll try to call him Ray from now on so I’m not such a bad influence.”

“Thanks.” She picked up the bow and tested it. “Nice. Ray said you didn’t know anything about Night Arrow, or you definitely would have told them.”

“That’s true. But after I was released, I made it my business to find out what it was, and traced it back to a myth from deep in the jungle. About a race of warriors who hunted at night. According to the legend, they anointed their arrows with a magic potion that guided them to their victims. So they could shoot their enemies even when it was so dark they couldn’t see them.”

“Doesn’t sound like something that can be tested in a lab.”

“I agree. But Benito Carerra believed otherwise. He apparently thought I had re-created the red mixture that they used on their arrows. And my investigators confirmed that other researchers had made some inquiries. The natives who remembered hearing the stories insisted that the potion was made from the sap of the tree from which the arrow was made, mixed with the blood of the type of animal being hunted.”

“Yuck.” She grabbed the quiver, then smiled mischievously. “Let’s go outside. I want to see what I can do with my new powers.”

“You don’t have new powers,” he said, chuckling. “Just a feeling of power. I take it it’s working?”

“Come on.” She strode past him and into the hall, laughing as he trailed after her whining about his allergies, and UV rays, and assorted other reasons why they needed to stay indoors. She could see now that part of her mission was to get this guy a life!

“You’re just scared, Jonathan,” she said, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him out into the sunlight. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you from humans and animals and bugs. Just remember that everything else-the sun, the air, even the wind-is good for you. You moved here for clean air, right? Let’s get some.”

One of the guards ran up to them, his hand on his pistol, apparently shocked to see his employer outside, much less dragged around by their houseguest.

Kell waved him away. “Go get my mask. And sun-screen. And my gray sweater. Jennifer? Don’t you need a sweater?”

“Nope.” She scanned the distance, looking for a target, finally settling on a group of trees far in the distance. “Which one of those do you want me to hit?”

“If you hit any of them, I’ll be impressed. It’s pretty far.”

“The second one from the left, then. Two feet off the ground, dead center.” She noticed that he was looking around and she glared. “Pay attention. I told you I’ll protect you. Two feet off the ground, okay? Watch me.”

Her movements were fluid as she drew an arrow, took careful aim, then sent it sailing through the air. The arrow hit the correct tree, but slightly off center, and almost three feet off the ground. “Damn.”

Kell laughed. “Forget about the tree. Tell me how you’re feeling.”

She bit her lip, then admitted, “I feel so great. So free. So lighthearted. It’s fun! Tell Carl to let the dogs loose so we can play with them.” She held up her hand to stop any complaints. “They won’t hurt you, right? You’re their master. And dogs love me. I’ll bet no one ever plays with the poor things, right?”

“Jennifer? Pay attention. I want to ask you some questions.”

“Okay.” She set the bow on the ground, then focused on him, her hands on her hips.

“You’re not afraid of anything, correct?”

“Correct.”

“Tell me why.”