Page 144 of Taste of Addiction

“Where are we?”

“Underneath the university. Apparently there are secret tunnels and storage areas that date back a half a century.”

“What are we going to do?” My heart is about to fly out of my chest. Adrenaline and fear pump through my body as I think of ideas on how we are going to survive this.

“I need you to keep your hands behind your back and act like you are my hostage. I need to get you out and then I need to find the kingpin and end this saga. I’ve waited two years for—”

“Well isn’t this nice,” a menacing voice echoes through the halls behind us. It sounds familiar in an odd way, but not so much that I can easily place it. “Taking another field trip?”

Paul and I whip around and come face-to-face with a shadowed man. My eyes squint, trying to make out his image. My shoulders round, my jaw twitches, and the pulsing of my thigh makes me lightheaded.

“Let me introduce myself,” he says coolly.

I feel Paul stiffen and hear his breathing speed up.

With the rise of his lantern, I wait with anticipation as the man’s face lightens with the glow of the flame. Just when I think I cannot be any more shocked, I feel overcome with sickness, deep within my stomach, twisting and turning until I am moments away from retching.

“Holy shit.” The words rush out of my mouth as the blood drains from my face.

Holy shit.

“I am The Prophet.”

25

“Dr. Williams?”

His smile is menacing, his eyes extra dark. “Being a professor is my side gig. This is where the real money is at.” He looks at me from head to toe, like he is seeing me for the first time. “My fans refer to me as The Prophet. Are you going to be a fan, Angie? Or a foe?”

I can’t answer. I am frozen stiff.

I wish I was hallucinating. I wish this was all a bad joke.

“And Paul—or shall I say Carson—it’s nice to finally know what a traitor looks like.” He claps his hands. “Kudos to you for fooling me this long. I have special plans for people like you.”

Disgust fills my body. “What are you doing here?” I ask stupidly. I stare at the pistol he raises and aims at my head. I didn’t even know he was armed. He looks like a completely different person. His dressed-down clothes and evil eyes make him look like the villain I never expected him to be. My mind hurts from all of this information overload.

“For over a decade, I’ve been running an underground empire.” He looks around at the cavernous space. “But in a more figurative sense. I did this, barely ever going noticed. I chose my clients carefully, as well as my victims. I had the perfect cover and the perfect job that linked me to the media outlets—and all their top stories. I was highly respected and basically untouchable.”

I seethe at his arrogance, wanting to lash out and initiate my own war.

Dr. Williams lowers his gun, toying with the handle with his thumb. “But then something went wrong during one of the operations between my second in line and a fragile young girl. It was unfortunate, really.”

“Penny.”

“Oh yes,” Dr. Williams hums. “I forgot what a small world it is. You are dating her annoying big brother. You can blame him for setting this all into motion. If it wasn’t for Graham Hoffman, I wouldn’t be in this mess right now. You see, Miss McFee, when Mark Tanner saw Graham’s reaction to you, he knew you were his weakness. His only weakness. You are the one person he is willing to die for. And he will. Soon.” He clears his throat, holding back a laugh. “I quickly found out everything I could about you. Discovered you were famous for a tragedy in your hometown. I was able to uncover who was responsible and then hire those predators to help execute my own bigger plan here in Portland. You became my ticket to bringing down the man who wanted revenge for his sister’s mishap. And what better way to do that than to use the two guys who had a special past with you from Baker City? Can you at least appreciate my attention to detail?”

“You are sick.”

“I mean, some things were purely coincidental. Being my student was just a bonus and your choice as to what topic you wanted to focus on was simply stupid on your part. In my defense, I tried to warn you. If only you knew what I’ve been trying to preserve for all these years. Think I would allow some naive young student to interfere with my drug network?”

“You’re not going to get away with this,” I threaten. “Everything is going to stop tonight."

“Oh, there will be an end. But it won’t be how you’ve envisioned.”

“What did you do to Penny?” I ask, not knowing whether or not I can trust whatever is said next anyway.

Dr. Williams turns and motions with his hand. “You all know my second in command.”

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