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PROLOGUE
Daisy tossed Scotch tape at her sister.
“Hey,” Gwen snapped.
“What? You need to complete your outfit for your first day at work.” Gwen was beyond nervous about her internship in the toxicology research department with the county morgue. When she had decided on her major, she never would’ve thought it’d lead to examining postmortem bodies. She expected Bunsen burners, test tubes, and a high-powered microscope.
“Ha, ha, you’re so funny.”
“I guess you’re right. It’s not like you have anyone to impress. Your client is dead... Gross, Gwenie, I still don’t know why you took the internship. You had so many better offers.”
“If I want to help people, what better way than by learning why certain drugs or diets fail. And you know why I’m doing this. Besides, it’s kind of like being a historian.”
“That’s a crazy way of thinking about autopsies.”
“I’m excited to learn from the past. It will help me figure out what happened to Clover.”
“At least Mom and Dad are excited to have a PhD in the house, even if it’s not the kind of doctor they would’ve preferred. Look, I get it, but then again I don’t. Nothing will change what happened to her, and honestly, I can’t see you as a scientist. I think you should model. You’ve got the looks.”
“Very funny... since we look exactly the same.”
“Not with those ugly black glasses. They hide your eyes, which we both know are our greatest asset.”
“I’d hoped my brain was... but you ain’t lying. We do have awesome eyes. But my contacts irritate them. I’ll have to continuously remove my gloves to scratch them.”
“I feel like you and I are the female equivalent of Superman.”
“Lord, please explain that far-fetched analogy.”
“It’s simple. You’re Clark Kent, the nerd, and I’m Superman, the alter ego who’ll one day rule the world.”
“At least it’s nice to know your ego is in check. Now get out of my room. I need to finish getting dressed.”
Gwen watched as her best friend and sister left the apartment they shared. She wouldn’t admit it, but she was lucky to have an instant best friend. Despite them sharing the same appearance, their personalities were extremely different. Gwen was a nerd, as her sister often reminded her. She preferred reading to watching TV. She preferred quiet time to being surrounded by large groups. And she preferred to remain single as opposed to perpetually dating. Of course, none of those things were wrong. Where Gwen was an introvert, Daisy was an extrovert. Where Gwen was a forever kind of girl, Daisy was a dine-and-dash kind of dater. Gwen hated first dates, whereas Daisy lived for them.
Three hours later, Gwen donned the blue paper gown, tied her long brown hair into a braid, and ensured it was tucked neatly under the cap. Exiting the dressing room, Gwen walked into the autopsy room, where four other students gathered around the deceased. Daisy had been right. She had received numerous internship offers, and might have considered them, if she’d not gotten the one she wanted.
The pathologist called the team of five closer to their first body. Her first week would be to observe autopsies. Not everyone could handle seeing and smelling a corpse. She’d seen those faint of heart drop the required course. Gwen, however, worked even harder to ensure her success. One of those initiatives was creating a special salve that was placed under her nostrils. While most used petroleum-based products, she knew something had to be better to mask the smell. Once she’d shared her discovery with the team, including the pathologist, she’d become known as Voodoo. She spent hours, much to her sister’s dissatisfaction, tinkering with potions, herbs, and other Eastern homeopathic options.
Six months into her internship, she’d been allowed to take on one patient to determine her cause of death. The patient’s medical records documented her primary illness—that most likely was a contributing factor in her death, according to her family and primary physician. Unfortunatly, the last round of medication was reversing her cancer cells. At the age of fifty, Patient X had her colon and parts of her large intestines removed due to her cancer diagnosis. Initially, the combination of her surgery and rounds of chemotherapy seemed successful. Then one year later, the cancer returned and was now presenting itself in her blood. Patient X was offered to participate in a drug trial program that had promising results. Gwen confirmed the patient hadn’t received the placebo. The pharmaceutical company had requested Patient X undergo a full autopsy, which including a biological examination, which was her specialty.
It took her three months before she’d finally found the problem. She contacted the pharmaceutical company with her speculation. Their new drug was counteracting the patient’s chemotherapy treatment. Based on Gwen’s findings, the pharmaceutical company needed to test the effects on patients not currently or previously undergoing chemo.
Her findings that day, as well as many others in her three years internship, had her attaining her doctorate degree in pharmaceutical forensics. She evaluated the effects certain drugs had on the human body. This drew the attention of big pharmaceutical companies. It was also why she was currently sitting in the lobby of the Central Intelligence Agency. The freaking CIA had called her in to consult on an operative’s mysterious death. They’d supplied her with a lab to work in, as well as a team. She hadn’t received an employment offer from the agency yet, but knew it would come, especially after she outlined her discovery.
It was during one of the many meetings she attended that she met Carter Hughes. His partner had died from the poison she was tasked to investigate. Sitting across from her was also his newest partner, a stunning blond agent. Gwen presented her findings, as well as an antidote she’d created. The solution hadn’t been tested on humans, but she knew it would work.
“How confident are you?” the special agent asked.
Gwen slowly met his eyes, the deepest brown she’d ever seen, and answered, “Confident enough that I’d test it on myself.”
“Isn’t that risky?” Carter asked.
“Not if you understand the poison, its makeup, and how to combat it, which I do.”
“I don’t think we have to go as far as you testing it,” her supervisor stated.
“I’m simply trying to emphasize how confident I am of its success,” Gwen responded.
