Ultraviolet Catastrophe (20 page)

“How many broken hearts did you leave back in Ohio?” he asked.

“Not nearly as many as you’d think.” I tried to keep it light, to hide how much just being this close to him made me feel. I couldn’t push away my feelings for him anymore, but did I really want to cross that line right now? I swallowed as he arched a perfect eyebrow at me. Most definitely yes.

“The guys at school didn’t usually choose brains over beauty,” I added.

“Then they’re idiots. Especially since you have both.”

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers leaving a trail of heat against my skin.

I let out a shaky breath. “Can I ask you something?”

He nodded. “Anything.”

“Why me? You could have any girl here. You probably have. So why do you keep doing this? Why do you care if I like you or not?”

Three bars of music played before he answered, staring into my eyes. The spotlights above us shifted his eye color from blue to turquoise to twilight. “Because you’re different. And because no matter what you think, you’re special. I know you’re suspicious of me and my past, but I promise, most of it isn’t true.” For the first time since we’d met, his smile was unsure. “Let me prove it to you? On a real date? We’ll go somewhere quiet, just the two of us, and talk.”

I wanted to believe him, more than anything else I’d ever wanted. Finally, I nodded. “All right.”

“Yes!” He grabbed me around the waist and swung me in a circle.

I giggled and struggled in his arms. “Put me down! People are watching us,” I hissed, though I would have stayed like that the rest of the night.

“If I must.” He let me down slowly, our chests pressed together.

The beat of the music changed to something fast, and he slid a hand to my lower back and lowered me into a dip.

His lips were millimeters from mine, his breath caressing my face as he whispered, “But I have a feeling they’re going to be doing more than watching us by the end of the night. They’re going to be talking about us.”

The smell of coffee woke me the next morning, and I padded out into the kitchen. Dad lounged on the couch with his tablet, and he glanced up as I entered.

“There’s plenty left in the pot for you.” His gaze was appraising, and I wondered how many people had been gossiping about me and Asher last night. Especially after it got around that we’d been found together in Avery’s office. I had a feeling it was Asher who’d let that little fact slip.

I poured myself a cup, cradling it in my hands as I sank into one of the armchairs.

Dad raised an eyebrow at me. “Do I even need to ask if you had fun last night?”

Heat flooded my face, and I stared down into my mug. I so did not want to have this conversation with him. “Dad, we were just…”

“I
know
what you were doing.”

My head snapped up. He couldn’t. It wasn’t possible. Asher said he’d been careful with the scan of Avery’s files.

“I know you like the boy, but he’s bad news. Don’t get involved with Asher, Lex. No matter how attractive you think he is. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“Dad, it’s not what it looks like.” I wanted nothing more than to spill everything. He was an assistant director; he’d be able to help us figure out what was going on. Maybe even stop it. But Asher and the others had agreed to wait. I couldn’t break their trust.

“Lex, I was a teenager, too. I know what you two were doing. And where it might have gone if we hadn’t stumbled in on you. Promise me it won’t happen again. Promise you’ll be careful.”

I nodded, though the smart-ass part of me wanted to ask if he was being careful himself. The way Jordan had been hanging all over him last night had led to his own brand of gossip snaking through the dance floor.

Dad sighed. “Since you were…busy during Dr. Danvers’ speech, did you hear the news?”

“What news?”

“I’m taking over as head of Project Infinity.”

I stared at him in shock. How could I have been so distracted by Asher that I’d missed news like that? “What? That’s fantastic, Dad!”

He tried to keep his expression modest, but it turned into a full grin. “It was unexpected. I thought Seth would get it since he was Avery’s right hand man.” He took a sip of coffee and shook his head. “It’s going to be a crazy couple of weeks though. We’re going ahead with the first test on Friday, and I still need to catch up on Avery’s notes. The guy was so disorganized I don’t know how he found anything.”

“I’m sure you’ll do great, Dad. You’re smarter than anyone else at QT.”

“I’m not sure about that, but I’m honored to be in charge. I just wish I had more time to go through Avery’s plans. I hate feeling out of the loop.”

So did I. And as far as I knew, Asher hadn’t found any clues last night on Avery’s computer. It was up to me. “Have you heard anything else about the investigation into Avery’s murder?”

Dad’s lips thinned. “You know I can’t talk about that, Lexie. It’s classified.”

“Come on, Dad. Who am I going to tell? It’s not like I have friends.”

“Asher’s not a friend, then?” He sounded almost snarky before he glanced down at his coffee. “This doesn’t leave the room. Understood?”

I nodded.

“The autopsy came back yesterday. Avery was injected with some sort of fast-acting toxin. The scientists have never seen anything like it before. They’re still trying to figure out who had a motive, but the guy wasn’t exactly popular. The only thing we know is it had to be someone with Division Seven access or higher. They’re interviewing everyone with clearance.” He stared out the window, and I knew he was wondering which of his colleagues had committed murder. And if there were other targets who might be next.

I clutched the arm of the chair, remembering Grant’s serum. Branston was involved. I knew it. I’d hid the brochure I’d found in Avery’s office in my nightstand, but its presence felt like a weight on my shoulders.

We were running out of time. Branston had already found me once. What if Dad was their next target now that he was in charge? “I’m sure they’ll find whoever did it soon.”

He got to his feet. “I hope so, Lex. Because until they do, QT isn’t going to be a fun place to work.”

Dad was right. Starting Monday, new security protocols were implemented at QT. We had to go through two full body scans, and our bags were searched both on entry and exit of the building. Divisions were locked down and security revoked for non-essential personnel. It took an extra fifteen minutes just to get into the building in the morning, and I was glad I didn’t have normal classes or even a specific schedule. As it was, Max, Zella, and Amy were working off-site, Asher was locked in the lab, and I spent most of the time in the library trying to figure out how Avery’s calculations fit in with the ultraviolet catastrophe information I’d already researched.

People still whispered about Avery’s murder, but most of the project members were too busy getting the first test ready to have time to hang around gossiping. Dad slept at the lab a few times that week, leaving me to take the shuttle back and forth and generally fend for myself. It worked out well since Asher wanted to get us all together to go over the scan of Avery’s computer on Wednesday.

I got to Coco’s before everyone else and had a seat at the bar while I waited.

“So what’ll it be?” she asked. “I make a mean pumpkin spice latte.”

“That sounds perfect.” I stifled a yawn and watched her brew the espresso.

“You meeting someone or just getting some studying done?” Coco asked over her shoulder.

“Meeting Asher and the gang.”

She nodded. “Looks like you’re fitting in here just fine, huh?”

I gave her a secret smile. Asher had asked me out, and Max and Zella were being friendly. Things were starting to look up.

Coco laughed. “I know that look. ‘Atta girl. Asher’s a great guy.”

The bell on the door jangled, and everyone walked in together. “Hey, guys.” I slid off my stool.

Asher slung an arm around my neck and held me in a headlock for a second. “Did your dad give you a hard time about finding us Friday night?”

I couldn’t stop my grin. “It could have been worse. He just warned me you weren’t trustworthy and I should be careful.”

“Smart man.” Asher let me go as we headed toward a round table in the back of the restaurant.

I tried to ignore Amy’s glares as I slid into the chair beside Asher. She, of course, sat on his other side.

“Guess he’ll just have to get used to me being around, huh?” Asher bumped his shoulder into mine.

“Guess so. We still on for dinner Friday night?” I tried to be casual about it, to hide the kick of my heart at the thought of going on an actual date.

“I’m not letting you out of it now. I’ve never worked this hard for anything.”

My smile was a little bigger than it needed to be as I turned to Zella on my other side. “Hey, I like that sweater. That color green is gorgeous on you.”

She blinked at me. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, Lexie’s right,” Max said, tilting his head as if noticing for the first time.

Zella let out an uncomfortable giggle. “I’ve had it forever.”

“Well, I like it.” They smiled shyly at each other, and I stared down into my latte, trying not to giggle myself.

Beside me, Asher took a deep breath. “So I finished running the analysis on Avery’s files.”

Amy leaned forward and put her hand on his arm. “What did you find?”

He slid his hand away from hers, and a hurt expression flashed across her face. “Nothing. It was wiped before we even got there. His whole system was just too clean.”

I shook my head. “What does that mean?”

“There was a back door into Avery’s files. Someone used it to erase the incriminating ones. He was up to something, and either his killer knew it and wanted that information or someone else is covering for him.”

We all stared at each other in silence, and suddenly, it felt real. My skin crawled. A man was dead, and someone we might know had killed him. But why? What was it they wanted?

Amy stretched out a hand to touch Asher’s arm but paused. “Ash, the first test is Friday. If someone is targeting scientists or trying to sabotage the project, we need to tell them or we’ll put everyone at risk.”

He jumped to his feet to pace in front of the table. Coco looked up from where she was cleaning the bar, but Asher waved her back. “Give me the rest of the week. If we don’t make some sort of progress by then, we’ll tell someone. Please.” His voice sounded desperate, and my skin pricked with unease wondering what else Asher wasn’t telling us.

Max nodded. “We can do that. Right, guys? Give him a break.”

Amy pouted, but she finally shrugged. “Fine. We’ll wait until next week. But I just want to go on the record that I think we should have told Danvers about this when Lexie first discovered the anomaly.” Her expression was more calculating than annoyed and made me wonder what exactly was going on in her brain.

“We’ve gone this long. Let’s let Asher do his thing. He’s never let us down before,” I said, hoping he wouldn’t get all smug and cocky at my compliment

She turned and tapped a finger against her chin. “That’s true. I mean, it’s not like he’s his mother, right? We can trust him.”

The color drained from Asher’s face. “Amy!”

“Well, I’m just saying. You’d never betray us.” She sank back in her chair while Max, Zella, and I exchanged confused looks.

Amy’s voice turned husky. “Want to go back to your place and see if I can find anything with those files? Your tutoring the other day was…useful.”

He stared at her for a long moment before shrugging. “Sure. It’ll be good to get another set of eyes on them.”

Amy got to her feet and wrapped a hand around his arm. “We’ll keep you guys posted if we find anything. See you later.”

He was careful not to look at any of us as he led Amy from the restaurant.

The three of us stared as they left Coco’s. I closed my open mouth with a snap.

“What the hell just happened?” Zella demanded.

Max shook his head. “Amy mentioned Asher’s mom, and it was like she’d punched him.”

Asher’s mom. Amy.
I chewed my lip as something niggled at the back of my mind. “I think he got an email from his mom a couple of weeks ago. Amy read it.” Whatever was in that email must have been more serious than I’d thought.

Zella’s voice went up an octave, and she echoed my thoughts. “What did it say? I’ve never seen him like that before.”

I wished I knew. There were so many things Asher and I had never talked about, so many things I wanted to learn about him.

Zella got to her feet and slung her bag over her shoulder. “I guess we’re not going to find out sitting here. I’m going to run to the bathroom before we leave. You’re still dropping me at fencing practice, right, Max?”

He nodded, and I perked up. “You fence? That’s so cool. Is there someplace around here that teaches it? I’ve always wanted to learn.”

“Yeah, there’s a studio off South Street. I’ve been going for about three years. It’s fantastic.” She paused. “Let me know if you want to tag along some time.”

I blinked once in surprise before nodding. “Thanks! I’d like that.”

She nodded back and headed toward the bathroom.

Max watched her leave and shook his head. “Asher and I aren’t best friends or anything, but there’s something wrong, Lexie.”

I was still shocked at Zella being so nice, but I nodded, dragging my thoughts back to the earlier conversation. “Yeah, I got that impression, too.”

He paused, looked down at his cup. “Are you two dating?”

A heat crept up my neck, and I wasn’t sure how to answer. “No? Yes? I don’t know.”

“Amy doesn’t take no for an answer, does she? Though I suppose most guys wouldn’t mind that if they were dating someone who looks like Amy. She’s definitely not your typical science nerd.” He blinked once, and his cheeks went pink. “Not that you look like a typical nerd either, Lexie.”

I laughed. “Thanks, Max, but I have no illusions about the way I look. I’m perfectly average, and I’m okay with that.” Most of the time. “What about you, Max? Are there any girls you’re interested in?” I couldn’t stop my gaze from flicking toward the restrooms.