Intrusion (4 page)

The security breach weighed heavily on her. If she’d only done something—tied the man to the chair, knocked him out with her bag—anything to keep him in the lab until the guards arrived.

But no, he’d flustered her with those intense eyes and a grin that lacked the cold calculation she would’ve expected from a hardened criminal. So she’d stood there and flubbed the chance to take him down.

Now, reeling from an acute lack of sleep after last night’s delayed flight, she was forced to heel to Charlie’s brusque summons. Somehow she didn’t think the purpose of this meeting was to welcome her back after her successful trip.

She shifted the sheaf of papers in her arms, pushed her shoulders back and strode into the conference room. Her feet stumbled to a stop.

A man she didn’t recognize sat at the head of the large oak table. He was thin with square framed spectacles that drew attention to his large, dark eyes currently pinned on her. Charlie, short in stature, but large around the middle, sat to the man’s left. For him to have relinquished what was known around Nanodyne as his spot...

Something was definitely up, and it wasn’t good.

At least she had one ally in the room: Jonathan Peterson from the Department of Defense, her staunchest supporter and cheerleader. She’d collaborated with him from the start of the project three years ago and counted him as a friend. He glanced up from his legal pad, dark circles marring his normally clear blue eyes.

“Audra.” A heavy note of apology weighed down his smooth voice.

He reached up to push aside an unruly thatch of blonde hair that curled against his forehead, but instead of meeting her gaze, he dropped his hand to the table and fixed his attention on the white bandage across his knuckles.

“Jonathan.” Why wouldn’t he look at her? She frowned at Charlie. “Is everything all right?”

Charlie’s mouth flattened under his bushy salt and pepper mustache. “Audra, take a seat.”

“Charlie, if this is about your phone calls, I’m sorry I didn’t return them. I barely had time to complete the tensile series on the nanotubes before—”

“Sit.”

Gripping the nearest leather chair, she dropped into it, feeling like a child at detention. Her cheeks burned and the heat teased an unwelcome grimace from her lips. She tossed her packet of papers on the table, trying not to squirm under her boss’s frank scrutiny.

He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms in front of him. “Where have you been?”

Her spine stiffened. “At ChemTech, of course.”

He sighed. “I spoke to Lee Adams of ChemTech. He said you didn’t show up until four o’clock on the fourteenth. Your flight left for Chicago on the afternoon of the thirteenth. What took you so long?”

“What is this?” Her heart squeezed tight then burst into a painful rhythm in her chest. “An interrogation? You knew I grew up in Chicago. Being back there…”

She’d gone and stood on the cracked sidewalk in front of the rubble that had once been St. Anthony’s shelter, the passing of twenty years crumbling like the building’s worn out brick. How could she explain the emotions that had swamped her? Some memories were far too personal and bittersweet to share. The fact that at thirty she still grieved over her lost childhood was nobody’s business but her own.

“I just...I needed a little personal time, but you know I wouldn’t let it affect my work,” she said, pushing her past back into its proper place. “Surely you can’t question my dedication to this project. I gladly work more hours than you pay me for.”

She’d fulfilled her obligations, damn it. Why did Charlie look like he wanted to chain her to a chair? Her gaze skittered to the third man in the room who up to now hadn’t said a word. “What’s going on here?”

He tossed his pen onto the table. “Jim Larson, assistant D.A. Charlie wanted to give you the chance to come clean before taking further action. We hoped you’d cooperate.”

She curled her fingers into her palms. “I would if I knew what in the hell you’re talking about. Charlie? Jonathan? Why is the assistant D.A. here?”

Charlie shifted, his chair creaking in the thick silence. “Audra. All employees are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement when they are hired here at Nanodyne. That extends to discussing projects with outsiders as well as taking research outside this facility.”

“I’m well aware of that, Charlie. I signed the document.”

“So you willfully broke the agreement when you accessed the vault at three a.m. on the fourteenth.” The assistant D.A. flipped open a notebook with one hand and pointed at her with the other. “When, according to your statement, you should have been in Chicago.”

Her heart jumped. “Oh, my God. You can’t be serious.”

The rigid trio of faces said otherwise. She shrank back in her chair, a weight settling in the pit of her stomach. Her armor was gone? No, that wasn’t possible. That project meant everything to her. Everything. And they thought she’d taken it?

Dark spots swam in front of her vision. Her ears buzzed. “I was in Chicago. I caught my flight as planned, Charlie. You know that.” She slid her stack of papers to the middle of the table. “I have the results of ChemTech’s tests right here.”

Jonathan sighed and leaned forward in his chair, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Audra, Nanodyne’s contract with the Department of Defense makes the armor Government property.”

The D.A.’s lips twisted into a sneer. “And stealing it is a Federal offense.”

Blood drained from her head and pooled in her stomach. “There must be some mistake. The last time I accessed the vault was on the twelfth. You can verify that in the logs.”

Jim Larson skewered her with a sharp gaze. “Nice try. But your thumbprint puts you at the scene.”

He tossed her a single sheet of paper bearing the scan of a thumbprint. The time and date stamped in the corner matched the one he’d given her.

She studied the whorls of the ink print then lifted her thumb to examine the lines. God, they looked the same even to her untrained eye.

She shot up from the chair. “I didn’t do this.” Her hip struck the table and she snagged the edge of the table with her fingers to keep her balance.

The D.A. stood. “Audra McCain, you’re under arrest for burglary, grand larceny and suspicion of fraud.”

Her stomach twisted into deeper knots with each tick of the D.A.’s fingers.

Bile rushed her throat. She blinked a fuzzy Charlie into focus. “No. I didn’t—” An inappropriate urge to laugh swarmed her and she gave into it with a snicker that came out half-shriek, half sob. “Am I being Punk’d? Is that what this is?”

When Charlie’s face remained chiseled in stone, she sobered. “Charlie, you know me. I wouldn’t do this. What about the man who broke into my lab? Isn’t anyone checking him out?”

“Yes, let’s talk about the man who—,” The assistant D.A. paused, swiping a thumb down his nose, “—broke into your lab the same night you just happened to come in for a little research rendezvous.”

“A research rende—off all the ridiculous—”

“When did you two meet?” Charlie cut in. “Before or after I hired him to test Nanodyne’s security?”

His questions were a slap in the face. “You...hired him?”

Before she could regain her balance from Charlie’s bombshell, the D.A. peppered her with more questions.

“Did he approach you? Convince you of the money you two could make off the prototype? Sounds like the perfect plan. You hand him sensitive security information and the two of you set the whole thing up to look like an insider breached the facility.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’d never seen the man before that night. I don’t know what you’re talking about. Charlie, Jonathan, would you please tell this man—”

“Maybe you were the instigator. Is that how it went down? You sought him out?”

As the D.A. grilled her, he tossed a series of grainy black and white photos to the table. She picked one up with a shaky hand. Oh, God no. How could this be? After she’d accessed the vault that night, she’d turned and bumped into the tall, dark intruder. But from the angle of this picture, taken by the vault’s security camera, it looked like they were sharing an embrace.

She dropped the photo, backing away from the table. “Charlie, please—” Her voice cracked.

He cocked his jaw. “I hired him, Audra. I already gave my statement to the police, Audra. They’ll get to the bottom of this.”

She turned to the only sympathetic person in the room, hoping he’d step in. “Jonathan…”

He stood and tucked his hands into the pockets of his slacks. “I’m sorry, Audra.”

Two uniformed police officers crowded into the conference room. The insignia on their shoulders branded them as Phoenix P.D. Panic crawled into her throat and lodged there. She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.

“I didn’t do this.” How many times did she have to repeat it before they’d believe her? “What possible reason could I have for making off with the prototype? I’ve worked my butt off to finish the damn thing. And both you and Jonathan know it.”

The police officer captured her wrist and tugged it behind her back.

“Let go of me!” She yanked on her arm, but the cop only tightened his grip, his fingers digging into her flesh. “You’re hurting me!” She twisted her body and threw her weight to the side. The man’s arms snapped up, releasing her, and his bony elbow connected head-on with her eye.

A cry tore past her lips and she jerked her hand to her face. The officer used that to his advantage and pushed her to the ground. His knee jabbed the small of her back, robbing her of breath. She clenched her teeth against the ache. Cold metal snaked around her wrists and pinched tight.

“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right—”

“I have the right to know what the hell is going on!” Her heart pounded in an erratic rhythm and she tugged at her wrists ignoring the sting of the cuffs. “Charlie, my work is my life. You know that. We’ve shared our vision many times. Why would I do this? How could you even think I’m capable of something like this?”

The police officer hauled her to her feet. “You have the right to speak to an attorney and have an attorney present during questioning.”

“Come on, Charlie. Can’t we talk about this?”

He swallowed and tucked his chin into his chest. “Audra, I’ve always respected you. You’re a brilliant scientist. If you were having financial problems, personal problems, whatever the case may be, I would have been happy to talk to you and work this out. You knew how important this project was for Nanodyne’s reputation.”

“What about my reputation? I didn’t do this, damn it!”

The D.A. gave a curt nod and the officer jerked on her cuffs, leading her out of the conference room.

“If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” she bit off.

Humiliation swam through her as she took the walk of shame down the hall. Her colleagues shook their heads and watched openly as the officer dragged her into the elevator and down into the lobby.

They believed she was guilty. All of them. She’d worked beside these people for years and not one of them stuck up for her.

She tamped down the urge to cry. What good had crying ever done her? She ducked her head so she wouldn’t have to see the censure in anyone else’s eyes.

Flashbulbs burst in front of her face. Someone shoved a microphone under her mouth.

She flinched, but met the gaze of a reporter.

“Carol Marsh from KPHO Channel Five news. Dr. McCain, how do you feel about these accusations being lobbied against you?”

Acid clawed its way up Audra’s throat. God, even the media grabbed hold of her guilt. “The accusations are completely unfounded.”

“Dr. McCain—”

“I have no further comments.”

“But, Dr. McCain—”

They reached the police cruiser at the curb. The cop opened the door and pushed her inside, a hand to her head. He slammed the door, narrowly missing her foot. She shifted on the seat, her wrists already starting to go numb from the cuffs.

The stuffy car smelled of sweat. She gagged on the stale air and clenched her mouth shut. The car lurched, then zoomed away from the curb.

Charlie believed she was guilty.

The cops believed she was guilty.

Even the reporters spread the accusations.

Who was left to believe in her innocence?
No one.
The two words whispered across her mind in a faint, scratchy hiss. No one. That’s right. She had only herself to count on and couldn’t fall apart.

She clenched her hands, her fingernails digging into her palms. She wouldn’t fall apart. Her mouth clamped shut. She tightened her jaw and her molars ground against each other.

She
never
fell apart.

A shudder rippled across her stomach. Echoing waves heaved up her throat and into her limbs. Her entire body started to quake and she hunched into a tight ball as her resolve crumbled at her feet.

***

He’d screwed up, big time.

Cam clenched his teeth, the bitter taste of a botched job filling his mouth. He should’ve planned better—reacted smarter—when Dr. McCain intercepted him in her lab. Now he had to find a way to salvage the contract with Nanodyne before Danvers called Cam on the fact that he’d made an unauthorized decision to breach the facility.

You failed to get the job done, son. There’s no reward for losers.

His father’s voice snarled in his head until he dug his fingers into his scarred knee and caused a shaft of real pain to wipe out the phantom one.

Who was this new Cameron Scott? The one who consistently found himself at the bottom of the heap? At thirty-three it was an unfamiliar position. He could handle the shattered knee; not the identity crisis that came with it.

Leather creaked underneath him as he leaned back in his recliner; his favorite piece of furniture in the living room of his sparsely decorated adobe ranch house. The soft sounds of the television buzzed around him, but his focus was riveted on the laptop he dragged across his knees. Nanodyne was in serious jeopardy. His fish-o-meter rose off the charts on this one, and he planned to deliver the rotten offender to Danvers. Maybe then all would be forgiven and he’d be deemed brilliant instead of a fuck-up.