Page 106 of Locked In Ice

Lane looked down at the floor near the wall of body storage cabinets.A drop of blood had fallen from the scalpel.Why the hell hadn’t that drop registered sooner?

“Are you still looking for Ophelia?”Benedict asked him.

Lane’s head turned—slowly, like a snake sizing up prey—as he focused on Benedict.

“Told you already, she’s gone.She rushed out.Had a case to solve.”An exhale.“I’m sure she’ll contact you.”

Lane pulled out his phone and held it in the air even as he advanced on Benedict.“She already did contact me.”

Benedict’s eyes narrowed as he tried to read the screen.“What does that—oh, oh, I’m sorry.She’s ending the partnership?”

He kept advancing.

“That’s too bad,” Benedict told him sympathetically, “but I’m sure you can find another—”

Lane swung the phone and the fist that gripped the phone—and drove both into Benedict’s face.Benedict yelled as he stumbled back, and he hit the nearby surgical tray.Instruments went flying across the floor.So did Benedict.

“What the hell?”Benedict’s eyes had doubled in size as he rolled to look up at Lane.“Are you insane?”His hand lifted to his bleeding lip.He swiped the blood away, but made no effort to rise to his feet.

“If you’ve hurt her, you’re dead.”A cold, hard truth.

“You’re crazy, you’re—”

“She said it.Right in front of me.She said it all, and I didn’t put the pieces together.Dammit,shedidn’t put them together because she trusted you.Her profile on you was right the fuck there.”

“There is no profile.”Benedict slowly staggered to his feet.He also gripped a scalpel in his fist.The one that had freakingbloodon it.“You’ve gone off the deep end.No wonder Ophelia left you.”

“She said you always cared about the victims.That you hated their deaths.That you wanted to give justice for the dead.”He spared a glance around the lab.“What happened?You get tired of seeing the vics all the time and decide to deliver your own justice for them?”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

He spun away from Benedict and rushed toward the body storage cabinets.Every instinct he had screamed that Ophelia was locked in one of those freaking things.He was getting her out.

“Stop!”

He didn’t.

He grabbed for the cabinet door Benedict had been standing in front of moments before.When Lane had first rushed into the lab.His fingers curled around the heavy handle to open it.

Footsteps rushed behind him.

Lane spun around just as Benedict brought the scalpel slicing down at him.

***

Darkness.

Her eyes were open.Ophelia was pretty sure of that.But it was pitch black around her.Not a light anywhere.

I always leave on at least one light.That way, she could see her enemies coming.Her father had given her that lesson long ago.You didn’t have to wake in the dark.Didn’t have to waste time as your eyes adjusted.You could go straight into attack mode.

Only her eyes couldn’t adjust because the blackness around her was so complete.

But she could wiggle her fingers.And…

“Help,” Ophelia gasped.She’d finally managed to speak.Or croak.She wet her lips and tried again.“Help!”Her fingers slowly lifted.They touched thick, heavy fabric.

The body bag that she’d been zipped inside.

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