Page 12 of Her Dragon Outlaw

Lori turns and heads out of the parking lot to the front entrance on the other side of the building. I hate that I have to rely on her for pretty much everything right now. I have the rest of it, but this part is so important that I would not be able to stand it if something were to go wrong. It is difficult for me to even stand here, so I walk back to my car in the other parking lot. I have snacks in my car, so it should not look too suspicious to passersby. Just a guy eating his lunch in his car, as is my right.

There the nerves are again. I am not much of the praying type but I have to put my faith in her. As I settle into the car I take deep breaths to calm myself, and there I listen to the necklace as Lori disappears around the side of the building. I watch her go with a tinge of sadness and regret that I brush away instantly. She is doing the right thing. She is helping me when no one else will. There is literally no one else I could ask right now, no one in this vicinity and no one who I could ask to put their life on the line knowing that all the people being experimented on at this lab ended up dead. Only Lori.

Crunch time is now, and I have to be on alert. One wrong move could end this entire investigation and get Lori hurt. Now it is my responsibility to carry this thing out to its full conclusion, and I am not willing to let anyone, including myself, down.

It is now or never.

11

LORI

My nerves ratchet up the longer it takes me to walk into the lab. My sister might have done the same thing weeks ago and told no one. Was she really that broke? Or did they talk her into it? These thoughts swirl around my head like a swarm of angry prey birds, picking at my resolve as if to make me turn around. By then, I am already standing behind the doors. There is no turning back now.

The nurse leads me to the backroom where I lie on the table. “So, um,” I start, but she leaves before I can get the words out. Wow, rude. I only have time to fret for a few more seconds before the doctors come in—new ones this time. They are all wearing lab coats and to me seem professional, but they mostly ignore me as they get the shots ready.

I try again. “What’s in these things?”

“A concoction to help stimulate red blood cell production,” she says flippantly. She has a creepy smile on her face as though she is a shapeshifter imitating a human being.

Hmm, it sounds like bullshit to me. “How often am I supposed to get this?”

“Every day for the next few weeks.”

They are being purposefully vague about their answers with chipper smiles on their faces as if I will believe anything they say.

“Have you found anything interesting?”

The doctor with the shot turns around. He is not even wearing a mask or gloves. He may not even have washed his hands. This place is not as sterile as it appears. Mold spots dot the ceiling and there is a distinct smell of mouse shit.

“Oh, loads of interesting stuff. But don’t worry about that now. Just lie back and we’ll get this nasty shot business over with.”

He treats me like I am an idiot—or five years old. I cannot with these bastards. They might not even know what the effects are of this shit and they are just giving it to me. They are even giving me money to take the shots! The doctor presses me back onto the bed and jabs me with the needle, an unpleasant experience I do not plan to repeat after this.

“We’ll just be right back,” the doctor says.

“Where are you going?” Panic rises in my voice without my consent. I have no plan but I cannot stay here for much longer. I should never have agreed to this fuckery. I am so out of here.

“To get another shot. We’re doing 2-a-day now.” The doctor smiles in that creepy way of his and sickness rises in my gut.

The doctors leave and pull the mic necklace out of my shirt.

“Are you hearing this, Cody? Ugh, this place is so yucky-disgusting. I’m getting major bad vibes from this shit.”

Before I can say any more the doctors open the door again and give me an odd look. Crap, did they hear me talking to myself? I simply cannot get any more nervous than I am now—at least, I hope so. How am I supposed to get out of here without arousing suspicion when I am this nervous and agitated?

As they close the door, the corridor opens to the front desk where the receptionist looks through documents. Could she get proof from there? Is she herself enough proof that Miller is doing some shady, illegal shit?

The doctor’s hands are empty and his smile is no longer in place. “You’re free to go.”

I almost jump off the table in my haste to get out of there before I stop myself. “Why? What’s going on?”

“We don’t need to give you another shot today. That’s all.” His tone is curt and cold, nothing like what it was before.

Fuck, they must have heard me talking through the walls.

“I’m just going to go to the bathroom,” I say as I slip past them and into the hallway. I duck into the nearest bathroom and hold my necklace up. “Can you hear me? I need you to create a distraction. There are documents I can get if you help me out here. Hurry!”

I sit on the toilet lid debating my new plan. I doubt it will even work—how distracted can someone be when you steal their documents out from under them? Surely the receptionist is not that stupid. But I have to try. It is the only plan I have and if this does not work then Cody will have to come in here anyway. He is not the one on the front lines right now. I am terrified out of my mind that they are going to sic their goons on me and make me sleep with the fishes like this is some 1920s gangster movie, and Cody is out in his car away from the action, leaving me to fend for myself. What a joke!

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