Justin
"I…I just can't believe this," Steiner stuttered, looking over the file that BioTech had on my uncle and the contract. We hadn't shown him the stuff on Manticore. That was still on a very need to know basis. And Jhondie thought I wasn't up on being all military-like. He looked at the pitcher of water on the dining room table, and then back at me. "Do you really think that chemical is in my water?"
"I don't know for sure," I replied. "But what we do know is that they need someone else to die, and they missed me earlier. My family isn't here. You're the next logical choice."
"Didn't you say your uncle had a partner?" Jhondie piped up from the kitchen counter. Mrs. Steiner had brought her a first aid kit and she was bandaging up a cut on her arm. She had gone through the window feet first but a few stray pieces of glass had managed to scratch her up.
"Yeah, Winston somebody," I replied.
"A Dr. Winston Post," Steiner added. So that was his last name
"He's a likely target as well. Not as much since BioTech is going to need a least one person to keep the research going." She perked up a bit. "I'm willing to bet he could run a test on that water and see what was in it."
Steiner gave Jhondie an odd look. I couldn't blame him. A half-hour before, he had woken up and went to take a drink of water, and then some girl comes crashing through his window, snatching it from him. A few seconds later, his favorite client flies through the door of his bedroom, and then the wife has hysterics. Good times for all. She was screaming, and I was trying to yell over her to ask Jhondie if he had drunk any of the water. She shrugged. Steiner was trying to calm down his wife, and question me at the same time. We were so lucky nobody called the cops.
"Gina!" Steiner yelled, "This is my client! Remember, Justin's nephew?" The volume lowered to hitching breaths and she looked over at Jhondie who was trying to be polite and not bleed on their carpet. Steiner looked at Jhondie, and then at me.
"That's my girlfriend," I said quickly, "And I know this isn't exactly how clients are supposed to get a hold of you, but I think someone may have poisoned your water since they couldn't kill me yesterday." Steiner's jaw landed on his chest and Mrs. Steiner went so pale I thought she was going to pass out. Jhondie shot me a look of "smooth explanation there, buddy" that I promptly ignored.
"What?" Steiner gasped, trying to regain the ability to speak. "Who?" He paused for a second. "MedGen?"
"I don't think so," I replied honestly. "It's kind of a long story."
So then there we were in the kitchen after explaining what we had discovered. Jhondie finished with her arm and came over and sat down beside me. Mrs. Steiner brought in coffee and then sat down beside her husband. They were both still giving Jhon a weird look. She was trying to look non-threatening, but she wasn't very good at it.
"What made you even look at BioTech?" Steiner asked. His eyes narrowed when Jhondie and I shared a nervous glance. She gave me a tiny nod to let me know that she was willing to trust my judgment on what to say. She knew I would only say what had to be said.
"Listen," I said, "this is something that my father doesn't even know." That got his attention. "I know up here you have to know who Eye's Only is. He's got people in the Informant Net all over the place. In LA, it's us."
Steiner's eyebrows nearly shot up to his receding hairline. "I wasn't aware you were that…dedicated to your profession. He gave you information that made you break into BioTech?"
It was easier to not explain the process of thinking that led up to it. "Basically, it got us pointed there," I replied. "The rest you know."
"And you just casually broke into their office?"
"It wasn't quite casual," Jhondie said. She gave him a sheepish grin. "See, I used to be one of those bad kids that you probably forbade your kids from hanging around with when I was a kid. I hung out with a lot of future career criminals, and I picked up a lot about breaking and entering. Luckily, I got away from it all when I got older, but I still remember how to do it. Only for good causes now though." They seemed to accept that explanation. Besides, we were from LA. By reputation, if we weren't beach bunnies, then we had to be crazed punks as teenagers. They were probably picturing her with piercings and tattoos.
"You pick up a lot working for Eye's Only anyways," I added. "Like she said, it's all for a higher purpose. In any case, can you get Winston and get him to MedGen's lab ASAP?"
"I'll call him first thing in the morning," Steiner said, still sounding slightly dazed. He was a great lawyer, but this was all way over his realm of expertise. It was kind of funny that a couple of years ago, I would have been just as dazed. Amazing what you can get used to as being "ordinary".
Jhondie got up and went over to the window, brushing the curtain to the side as little as possible, but enough to see out. They were again confused by her, but I knew exactly what she was doing. A second later she glanced back at me. "Good thing we came through the back." She sat back down heavily. "Probably have the phones under surveillance as well."
Mrs. Steiner looked sick. "Someone is out there? Watching my house?"
"They're probably just waiting to see if there's a call to emergency services," Jhondie said soothingly. "Unless they didn't poison the water. Then it's just to see if Justin shows up here so they can kill him easier." That wasn't quite as soothing to hear no matter how she said it. It hit me suddenly. Nobody knew Jhondie was here. I looked at her with an eyebrow raised in question. It was great to have a partner that I didn't even have to use words to communicate with. She shot me an answering smile.
"Use a cell and call Winston now," I said to Steiner. "Let him know that he's probably next on the list if he doesn't want to help out now."
"What are you going to do?" he asked, as Jhondie and I stood up.
I grinned. "Exactly what they were hoping to see me do."
"I…I just can't believe this," Steiner stuttered, looking over the file that BioTech had on my uncle and the contract. We hadn't shown him the stuff on Manticore. That was still on a very need to know basis. And Jhondie thought I wasn't up on being all military-like. He looked at the pitcher of water on the dining room table, and then back at me. "Do you really think that chemical is in my water?"
"I don't know for sure," I replied. "But what we do know is that they need someone else to die, and they missed me earlier. My family isn't here. You're the next logical choice."
"Didn't you say your uncle had a partner?" Jhondie piped up from the kitchen counter. Mrs. Steiner had brought her a first aid kit and she was bandaging up a cut on her arm. She had gone through the window feet first but a few stray pieces of glass had managed to scratch her up.
"Yeah, Winston somebody," I replied.
"A Dr. Winston Post," Steiner added. So that was his last name
"He's a likely target as well. Not as much since BioTech is going to need a least one person to keep the research going." She perked up a bit. "I'm willing to bet he could run a test on that water and see what was in it."
Steiner gave Jhondie an odd look. I couldn't blame him. A half-hour before, he had woken up and went to take a drink of water, and then some girl comes crashing through his window, snatching it from him. A few seconds later, his favorite client flies through the door of his bedroom, and then the wife has hysterics. Good times for all. She was screaming, and I was trying to yell over her to ask Jhondie if he had drunk any of the water. She shrugged. Steiner was trying to calm down his wife, and question me at the same time. We were so lucky nobody called the cops.
"Gina!" Steiner yelled, "This is my client! Remember, Justin's nephew?" The volume lowered to hitching breaths and she looked over at Jhondie who was trying to be polite and not bleed on their carpet. Steiner looked at Jhondie, and then at me.
"That's my girlfriend," I said quickly, "And I know this isn't exactly how clients are supposed to get a hold of you, but I think someone may have poisoned your water since they couldn't kill me yesterday." Steiner's jaw landed on his chest and Mrs. Steiner went so pale I thought she was going to pass out. Jhondie shot me a look of "smooth explanation there, buddy" that I promptly ignored.
"What?" Steiner gasped, trying to regain the ability to speak. "Who?" He paused for a second. "MedGen?"
"I don't think so," I replied honestly. "It's kind of a long story."
So then there we were in the kitchen after explaining what we had discovered. Jhondie finished with her arm and came over and sat down beside me. Mrs. Steiner brought in coffee and then sat down beside her husband. They were both still giving Jhon a weird look. She was trying to look non-threatening, but she wasn't very good at it.
"What made you even look at BioTech?" Steiner asked. His eyes narrowed when Jhondie and I shared a nervous glance. She gave me a tiny nod to let me know that she was willing to trust my judgment on what to say. She knew I would only say what had to be said.
"Listen," I said, "this is something that my father doesn't even know." That got his attention. "I know up here you have to know who Eye's Only is. He's got people in the Informant Net all over the place. In LA, it's us."
Steiner's eyebrows nearly shot up to his receding hairline. "I wasn't aware you were that…dedicated to your profession. He gave you information that made you break into BioTech?"
It was easier to not explain the process of thinking that led up to it. "Basically, it got us pointed there," I replied. "The rest you know."
"And you just casually broke into their office?"
"It wasn't quite casual," Jhondie said. She gave him a sheepish grin. "See, I used to be one of those bad kids that you probably forbade your kids from hanging around with when I was a kid. I hung out with a lot of future career criminals, and I picked up a lot about breaking and entering. Luckily, I got away from it all when I got older, but I still remember how to do it. Only for good causes now though." They seemed to accept that explanation. Besides, we were from LA. By reputation, if we weren't beach bunnies, then we had to be crazed punks as teenagers. They were probably picturing her with piercings and tattoos.
"You pick up a lot working for Eye's Only anyways," I added. "Like she said, it's all for a higher purpose. In any case, can you get Winston and get him to MedGen's lab ASAP?"
"I'll call him first thing in the morning," Steiner said, still sounding slightly dazed. He was a great lawyer, but this was all way over his realm of expertise. It was kind of funny that a couple of years ago, I would have been just as dazed. Amazing what you can get used to as being "ordinary".
Jhondie got up and went over to the window, brushing the curtain to the side as little as possible, but enough to see out. They were again confused by her, but I knew exactly what she was doing. A second later she glanced back at me. "Good thing we came through the back." She sat back down heavily. "Probably have the phones under surveillance as well."
Mrs. Steiner looked sick. "Someone is out there? Watching my house?"
"They're probably just waiting to see if there's a call to emergency services," Jhondie said soothingly. "Unless they didn't poison the water. Then it's just to see if Justin shows up here so they can kill him easier." That wasn't quite as soothing to hear no matter how she said it. It hit me suddenly. Nobody knew Jhondie was here. I looked at her with an eyebrow raised in question. It was great to have a partner that I didn't even have to use words to communicate with. She shot me an answering smile.
"Use a cell and call Winston now," I said to Steiner. "Let him know that he's probably next on the list if he doesn't want to help out now."
"What are you going to do?" he asked, as Jhondie and I stood up.
I grinned. "Exactly what they were hoping to see me do."
