Alex narrowed his eyes at the man. “A little support, bro, is that too much to ask?”
“No, but…I kind of want Ava to go with us,” Kyle answered with a wince.
Alex stiffened a little, frowning at him. “Seriously?”
Kyle twisted in his seat with a nod. “Yeah. She’s bad-ass. So, when we inevitably get flack from the powers that be in this podunk hospital, Ava will just step in and handle it. Also, I do not relish spending a lot of time with Shadow. No offense, man.”
Sebastian threw a hand in the air before he slapped it against the steering wheel. “I really fail to understand why everyone treats me like I’m the enemy. I have been helping you since the very beginning.”
“And we have been helping you,” Ava shot back.
“Plus, the super creepy mask thing didn’t help your cause at all,” Kyle answered. “And then the sudden reveal of your identity. It just left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.”
“He’s right. Also, the roses. You have several strikes against you.”
“Thanks. Thank you for the detailed explanation. Tell you what, why don’t weallgo to the hospital?”
“Because Alex is a germaphobe, I told you that,” Ava said with a huff, shaking her head.
“I’ll brave it. Just…go straight to the hospital.” Alex pressed his lips together into a thin line, firming his jaw.
He could do this. He could be there to support Ava and the others. He’d just…not touch anything or breathe the entire time he was there.
“That could work, Ace. Then you don’t have to hack yourway into the hospital. I’ll just tell them you are part of my team, and you need immediate access to all hospital security footage and all of the patient reports.”
“That’s never going to fly. HIPAA,” Kyle said with a shake of his head as the buildings filled in around them.
The small town took shape, its quaint cedar-shaked houses turning into businesses as they continued down Main Street.
“HIPAA has nothing on the DHS,” Ava said. “It’s a matter of national security.”
Kyle poked a finger over his shoulder at her. “And that’s the reason Ava needs to come with us. See, she stays calm under pressure and has a really good way of getting what she wants from people while also sounding subtly threatening.”
“It’s a gift,” she answered.
Sebastian flicked on his turn signal, easing to a stop at the red light at the center of town.
“The lone red-light,” Kyle said. “Right next to ground zero.”
Alex ducked his head to peer out Ava’s window at the now-closed diner, a hastily written sign proclaimingClosed Until Further Noticeposted on the front door.
“These poor people,” Ava said with a shake of her head. “Why did they pick this spot?”
“Because the town is small and isolated. It’s the perfect place for a test without risking this getting too far out of hand.”
Alex furrowed his brow. All it took was one person traveling anywhere in the country or even internationally to blow this into a world-wide crisis. How were they so sure they could contain this?
The light turned green, and Sebastian revved the engine, pulling onto South Street. A well-lit building sat in the distance.
Alex’s heart skipped a beat as he recognized the hospital he’d seen when he’d used a virtual map to walk around the streets of the town during their flight.
He swallowed hard, another wave of nausea hitting him hard. Ava tightened her grip around his hand. “It’ll be okay, Ace.”
He nodded, trying to take solace in the words, but finding none.
Sebastian pulled into the small parking lot, bringing the car to a stop in the only space available, marked for the president of the hospital.
“Dude, you can’t park here.”
