Page 139 of Drift

Giving a snarl, Martin was out of the car, shoving Gray up against the Merc. Only Gray shifted so much faster, slamming Martin down on the bonnet, a grip at his throat.

“Calm it.”

“That’smyblood she’s just taken.” Martin pulled him down close. “You should have fucking ripped her apart for a location on where.”

Forcing Martin’s head back with a grip in the back of his hair, Gray went in closer as, despite all of his warnings, sirens sounded in the backdrop. “Fucking Curare poison,” he said flatly. “It kills within thirty minutes and London’s burning. There’s no time to get an antidote or interrogate her. She knew that. She played on Protocol One, a culler’s pull off the street by the King’s guard because the poison would see me go after them, not her, the ones who were behind taking mine down. She’ll have the antidote close by where we won’t be able to do a bastard thing.”

Martin held his look. “She only needs the antibodies he carries.” Flat calmness came to his voice. “She doesn’t need him to be alive for that.”

Gray turned his ear towards the sirens for a moment, and such a dead look came in his eyes as he focused back on Martin. Jan saw why. No one would have had time to get protective clothing, not at hazmat level. They’d ignored his warning.

London was falling, and killers were about to be made in the backstreets….

“Domestic terrorism through a virus that burns out of the system in just a few short hours…” Gray said down to him. “Get your heart out of your ass and fucking think overwhy.”

Martin frowned, looking so pissed off with being forced to think beyond Drift. His one flaw was that he really didn’t give a fuck beyond who or what he needed to protect. Jan knew that—had felt it tear at his own head with how sometimes all that intelligence could be so goddamn relentless, to the point he’d take down everything and everyone just to look after himself and his.

“They need Drift alive,” said Light to Martin now he was out of the car with Jan. “Whoever’s in charge is after a brutal but short chemical attack, one that will clear from the streets, all so she can threaten elsewhere across the EU. With different countries come different climates, different rates of infection. So she’ll need to make sure Drift gets that antidote in order to keep on top of creating new strains to bypass whatever we come up with. It’s why so many tests have been done over such a long period. She’ll go international terrorism and traffic him out as soon as possible.”

“That won’t go for West.” Jan tugged Gray off Martin. “They’ll kill her.”

Gray shook his head, but his look stayed with Martin as he pulled Martin up. “Terrorism. They’ll keep her alive to keep Drift in line.”

“You can’t know that.” Jan went in so close, but Light pulled him back.

“Yeah, I can.” Gray looked Jan’s way, and his look was so… off. Black-eyed full of… off… “Because it’s what I’d do.”

“Well clever fucking you,” said Martin flatly, going in close. “You’ve bought them both time so she can give him the antidote, but he won’t make it back to wherever it is she’s taking him to with this virus hitting the streets. Every sick, virus-infectedwannabe police bastard with access to firearms is going to tear apart anyone caught out there. And you allowed her to fucking walk my kid back into it because she’s a watcher: she’ll want to see London burn, and even he can’t run fast enough from a city full of freaks. He couldn’t run from Ava.”

“Fucking psychopath,” Gray said coldly. “You let me know when my version of it finally sinks in.” He gripped Martin’s jaw. “You’re damn right Ava’s a watcher, and with the antibodies she carries, she’ll want to be in the thick of London burning. From Ray, we know the virus takes an hour to work fully into the system, so within fifty minutes, she’s going to need to get as close as possible, but she’ll need to make it high to get the best vantage point and keep her crew safe, in one of the best ventilated buildings. That cuts down her vantage points, and handover with Drift will take place at the highest point she can reach.” He let Martin go.

“Only she’s not seeing the wider playing field, why this geneticist is keeping completely under the radar and allowing Ava to be seen on the streets,” Gray added flatly. “She’s going to want to cleanse as much of Ava’s hold off the streets because she’ll have Drift and the virus, someone who doesn’t have Ava’s blood thirst. Ventilation in that building won’t be working, and she’ll turn on Ava’s crew. All of those kids are walking to their grave like anyone else caught out there. And me?” Gray pushed him away. “You wanna know why I wasn’t targeted and Ray was? The Monarchywillandismaking the call to put me in lockdown because they won’t risk infection my way, not with how I’d turn on them. But they’ll send me in afterwards for cleanup. So I’m back to dancing naked in whorehouse windows because this woman knows that I’ll be called to make damn sure the killing field is cleared of the infected for her next step.” He snorted. “But I really don’t give a fuck about collars, the world,and everyone burning in it. I just want three people. Ava, this geneticist—andDrift. But it will be without any collar, onmystreets, my fucking way.”

Martin stayed quiet as Simon got out of the car with his phone.

“Here.” He quickly handed Gray the phone. “These are the two buildings with the highest isolated vantage points and ventilation within the given time limit. They also haven’t been hit from what police drones are telling me. I’ve focused on heat signatures tailored towards movement from kids in the surrounding area.” He flicked a look at Gray. “Drones will be switched off, cameras stopped as soon as I know which one.”

Gray looked at the phone briefly and nodded before finding Jan. “Lilliana Whitlock. Get in touch with Raif. Find out if Jackson’s was hit, then ask Raif to get a location for the doctor who diagnosed Drift. She didn’t prescribe drugs, but I bet she recommended pharmacies to hit. From the list we saw, Sodium Valproate and clobazam were on that list that Jackson’s crew stole from the pharmacy. Both are medications for seizures and could have been switched. Either way: tell him to get her found and put on the MI5 Most Wanted. I need the identity of this geneticist.”

Jan nodded quickly and tugged out his phone as Gray looked at Light.

“Drift’s bloods…. The meds he hides in the Anadin box,” said Gray. Jan hadn’t made that connection: how the Anadin box had Drift’s name scrawled across it. “Start tests on them both,” said Gray. “Find out what poison has been mixed in with them, give me a name and a cure for what people are facing out there. You’re going to need it.”

Light stiffened, then shifted over to Simon and backed him into the car, and Jan didn’t understand why, but it was lost as Gray went in close to Martin and rested a hand on his neck, pulling him in breath-to-breath close. “You need to stay here.”

Martin snarled, tried to pull away.

“Trust me when it comes to getting Drift back.” Gray tightened his grip. “Because I really need to trust your bastardness too now when it comes to calling enough for me out there on those streets.”

Martin frowned. Stilled.

“Don’t let anyone in to follow me until you call it,” Gray said quietly. “No one else, you hear me? Light will try to push you to breaking that bastardness of yours in order to get Drift back to you. You hold him back for as long as possible any way you can and give the airborne virus time to burn its shelf life out. We don’t know in what way it does affect psychopaths, even ones who don’t have the virus. Find out why. But just, just don’t let me go up against my own kid out there. Please. I will kill him.”

The antidote.You’re going to need it… Jan frowned so seriously at Martin, then rested back on Gray.

London burned, all the devils made here, and Gray….

Grayknew he wouldn’t make it back out of there sane.

Not alone. Not without killing anyone who tried to help him.

TO BE CONTINUED

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