“Yes,” Nathan said in his clipped tone. “That’s the new supplier for Omega MSCs for the study.”
“Right, but look at the name on the invoice,” Maggie said, still sounding excited.
I moved closer. Above the address, which I recognized as the one I’d looked up on Google Maps, there was a different business name.Helix Laboratories.
“So… they have another lab?” I asked blankly. This wasn’t helpful. We needed to figure out who was trying to kill Nathan, not pretend to be the IRS.
“Helix Laboratories isn’t a real lab. Lachlan’s team found its incorporation documents, and the ones for Axion Biostorage. They’re both shell companies,” Maggie explained. “They’re both owned by a holding company called S.D. Holdings. That holding company is registered under an anonymous agent in Wyoming, but Lachlan can figure out who owns it. It’s agoodlead. Lachlan said anyone registering their company in Wyoming is definitely sketchy.”
Annoyance bubbled in my stomach. “I don’t see how this helps find who shot Nathan.”
“I’mgettingto that part. God, can’t I build a little fucking dramatic tension?” I could almost hear her rolling her eyes. “Wealsofound a partial print at his apartment and got a match.”
“Who was it?” I demanded.
“I just sent through his mugshot. Some kid who was arrested for petty theft a few years ago. There’s a warrant out for him now.”
Gabriel pulled up the photo and, sure enough, it was the same man who had threatened me. In the photo he looked a bit younger, but he had the same dark hair and eyes, and an expression of sullen disinterest.
Then Gabriel scrolled to his name: Marco Lamont.
I pulled the laptop out of his hands and brought it closer to my face. My breath caught in my chest.
Surely not. There were millions of Marcos. This couldn’t be the same Marco that fell asleep on my shoulder what felt like a lifetime ago.
And yet. There was something of Domenic in his face. The same strong nose with prominent bumps on each side of the bridge. And those eyes. Hadn’t I thought his eyes looked familiar when he pulled a gun on me on the street?
“Fuck.”
“What is wrong, carissima?” Gabriel pulled the laptop out of my hands. Was I breathing?
“I… I think I know him.”
I told them the story of meeting the little boy who claimed Domenic was his father, while Maggie listened on speakerphone.
“It’s him. It’s Domenic. He’s the one threatening us,” I said into the silence that followed.
Andrew frowned. “We don’t know that. We shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I mean… not that I don’t believe you… but that was like fifteen years ago, right?”
But I was certain. It made sense. Why else would my mother have come to the clinic? Domenic had to be involved.
“That company,” I said, picking up the burner phone to talk directly to Maggie. “I bet you anything he owns it.”
“Shit. Okay. We’re on it.” She hung up.
I dropped the phone onto the coffee table with a clatter. This was all my fault. My hands gripped the roots of my hair and the slight ache helped dispel some of the tightness in my chest. Restless energy coursed through my legs, making my knees jump with the need to run. But where?
“Hey. You’re okay. We’re right here with you.” Andrew’s spicy scent burned through the haze of my panic as his hands found my knees. “Deep breaths, baby.”
I forced a full inhale and Andrew’s scent came with it. It wasn’t calming, exactly, but it made me want to keep breathing. After three more deep breaths, I could look up again.
Andrew was crouched in front of me, his green eyes intent.
“Doesn’t that hurt your knee?” I asked.
His surprised grin didn’t help with my racing heartbeat. “It’s worth it.”
“Even if it is your father doing all this, you are safe with us, mi fiore,” Gabriel murmured. I realized he was drawing his fingers slowly along my back, like he was soothing a frightened animal. “He cannot hurt you here.”
