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Excitement shot up her spine like a jolt of electricity. She rocketed out of the chair and into Jack's lap, throwing her arms around his neck. "I knew it. I knew you could do it."
He lightly clasped her arms and kissed the inside of her wrist. "Hold on. I haven't done much of anything. Didn't you hear the bad news part? I don't remember where I put him."
"But he's free. He must be free." She slid off his lap and paced to the door. She had to give the man space.
"We don't know that, Lola. If he's free, how come he hasn't contacted anyone?"
"I suppose it would be too much of a coincidence if he had amnesia, too."
"Umm, yeah, I'd say so."
"I know you're thinking the worst--that the terrorists recaptured him or...injured him in some way. But if you led him to safety, I'm sure he's safe."
His body stiffened and he swung his legs off the couch, sitting ramrod straight. "I'm not a god, Lola. I'm only a man, a man who still can't put all the pieces of his life together."
"But you're not a traitor. What else did you remember? Do you remember Prospero? The colonel's name?"
"Colonel Scripps." He sipped the water, biting the edge of the paper cup. "I also remembered the third name of my Prospero team members--Ian. So it's Buzz, Ian and Riley. Another name floated to my consciousness, too."
Lola waited.
Lines bracketed Jack's mouth. His dark brows painted a fierce scowl over his nose. He crushed the paper cup in his hand.
Oh, God. Was it his wife?
"Who, Jack? Who else did you remember?"
"Farouk. The man's name is Farouk. You know that virus your brother was working to cure? Farouk plans to use it as a weapon of mass destruction."
Chapter Thirteen
A slow shudder worked its way through Lola's body until it almost buckled her knees. She braced her hands on either side of the doorjamb. She choked. "Gabe."
"Your brother most likely responded to that area of Afghanistan to investigate the outbreak of a peculiar and deadly virus. The terrorists must've been developing it there."
"And this Farouk is their leader?"
"Prospero battled Farouk for years, but we could never capture him. He's involved in this scheme."
"They kidnapped Gabe because he was working on a vaccine for the virus, didn't they? That's why they never asked for ransom." Her sweaty palms slid from the wood slats of the doorway. "Why wouldn't they just destroy the formula...and him?"
"If you plan to unleash a deadly virus on an unsuspecting populace, you'd better have access to a vaccine for yourself. There's something else I remembered. Farouk was going to start with that newly formed African country, Burumanda. That must've fallen through, though, because the president is back in power. Anyway, that's what they want. They need your brother's formula. Maybe he gave it to them to stay alive, but he'd already stored it on his computer. They probably know that now."
"And that's why they're here. After me."
Jack stood up and swayed to the side. He planted his hands on the desk, hunching his shoulders.
"You okay?" Lola pushed off the doorjamb and poured him another cup of water.
He downed the water in one gulp and grabbed her arm, his grip sure and strong. "We need to get that formula from Gabe's computer and turn it over to the CIA."
"Once you do that, they have to believe you didn't steal the virus for yourself."
"Maybe, maybe not." He released her arm and pocketed the antinausea medication. "But now I know I have people to vouch for me. I'm not alone."
Didn't he realize he could count on her? She snapped up the paper cup from the desk and crushed it in her fist.
"We can't pick up the new computer until tomorrow. Since we're here, I'm going to check up on Eddie."
"I'll join you."
"Are you sure you don't want to rest? This office is vacant."
He tapped his forehead. "I have a slight headache. Otherwise, I'm good to go."
Lola grabbed the handle of the door, and Jack covered her hand with his. "Wait. What happened at the police station?"
She grimaced. "You were right. They found my fingerprints at the lab."
"Did you handle it?"
"It's like you said, I told them I had been in the lab before. Nothing unusual in that."
