I picked up my fork and stared down at my plate, moving the eggs around like I was searching for the perfect scrambled nugget. A heaviness settled in my stomach, and I hesitated in telling him why I was there. He was so kind and good and honorable. I hated the idea of dragging him through the mud once more. He was still recovering from the last time he got tangled up in one of my messes.

Garth didn’t touch his fork, let alone his food, and I could feel his gaze steady on the side of my face. “So it’s serious, then. What’s going on?”

I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes, silently apologizing to him. “The kids who were missing . . .” I opened my eyes and looked at Garth. “I found them.”

His whole body tensed, and he became statue still. For a few seconds, he didn’t even breathe.

“I didn’t tell you earlier, because there wasn’t anything you could’ve done about it. The kids are safe—or as safe as they’ll ever be—now. Most of them, at least.”

“Was it Ouroboros?” Garth’s voice sounded tight, carefully controlled. “Is that why you killed that scientist—because he was involved?”

I lifted one shoulder and let it drop. “Sort of. He was partially responsible for my brother’s death. But yeah, Ouroboros took the kids. They were experimenting on them, super illegally.” I implored Garth with my eyes, asking him to understand. To forgive me for keeping this from him when he was the one who’d come to me about the missing kids in the first place. “Garth, if they were willing to do that, what’s to keep them from getting rid of a nosy cop or two?”

Nodding slowly, Garth picked up his fork and took a bite of hash browns. He chewed, swallowed, then glanced my way. “That still doesn’t answer my question.”

Why was I stalking him tonight? “Oh, right.” I picked at my food for a few more seconds, then set down my fork. “One of the kids escaped early—or thought he escaped, but I think someone let him get out on purpose.” I turned my stool so my knees were angled toward Garth and tilted my chin downward. “They infected him with something—we’re not sure what exactly, yet, but it’s bad. It spreads like crazy, and it’s totally unresponsive to any kind of treatment.”

I took a deep breath. It was the moment of truth. The big ask. “Garth . . . I need you to get me the addresses of the members of the Ouroboros board of directors. If I go straight to the top, someone will be able to give me some answers.” I shook my head, my eyes still locked on his. “It might be the only way to get a cure in time.”

Garth’s nostrils flared, and his jaw clenched. “How many people are infected with this thing?”

“Several dozen at least, and more and more each day.”

“I haven’t heard any reports of anything like this coming in from the hospitals.”