“It would be fine in the end. We were making progress. The drug was working, it just needed to be refined. Tweaked.”

“Tweaked?” Sarah clamped her lips on the scream that wanted to erupt, even as her fingers flexed around the wheel. “What about the people who’ve been hurt or died?”

“Nothing great comes without a price. Every drug trial is a risk. The participants knew that going in and they found it acceptable.”

“And they’ve all paid the price for it. With their lives. Like Brianne.”

No response.

“You remember Brianne now, right?”

“I remember her.”

“Why say she wasn’t there at the hospital? Why deny her existence?”

“Because she wasn’t supposed to be there. Or have the drug in her system. She never volunteered, but we gave her the drug anyway. It would have been fine, except someone let her family know she was there, and when they showed up, Dr. Kilgore had to do something. He said to act like she was never there. So we did.”

“He told Dr. Kilgore to take her off of it.” Sarah swallowed. “He knew she would kill herself if they quit giving it to her.”

Sarah shot her captor a quick look in the rearview mirror and the woman’s jaw went tight. “That was unfortunate.”

“That was murder—and you’re a part of it.”

Donna let out a low breath. “I’m not a part of it. I just follow orders.”

Sarah didn’t bother to laugh. If she truly believed that, then she was just plain stupid. “And my brother Dustin? How did he fit into this whole thing?” She shoved aside the wave of sorrow and focused on the road.

“He volunteered for the study.”

“He knew something hinky was going on and offered himself up as a lab rat in order to find out what it was.” Sarah couldn’t help the snap.

Once again, Donna fell silent until she had to give the next set of directions. Sarah followed them until she was finally instructed to turn into the parking lot of a facility she should know. Why did the name set off all kinds of alarm bells?

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FOUR

Once their captor left, Gavin groaned and lay still, trying to catch his breath and work his hands. He needed to get out of the restraints—and fast.

Which meant he needed the general to wake up. Gavin rocked the chair once more and the man lifted his head.

“Is he gone?”

“You were faking?”

“Somewhat.” He grimaced. “Feel like I have a two-ton truck using my head as a shortcut to somewhere.”

“I know the feeling. He get you with chloroform to the face?”

“Yeah.”

“Who is it?”