“It’s about the coma. Maybe he can help with some background information,” said Christopher.
“About what?” said Meghan. “You may as well tell. I’ll just nag until I find out.”
Christopher and I traded glances again. I was trying to protect her. It wasn’t my fault that she insisted on being in the middle of everything.
“We’re looking into what happened to Brandon. Lizzie suggested Andrew might help. She suspects there are men after his research. It could be dangerous for us to investigate without more information.”
Andrew had been quiet, listening until now. He looked casual, leaning on the island in the middle of the kitchen, stealing potato chips from a bowl. “What makes you think this is something more than an accidental drug overdose?”
My head shot up. He’d already investigated. He’d known about the coma.
My sharp look registered. “I did some digging. When you wouldn’t tell your sister what happened with Brandon, she badgered until I looked into him. Did you know about the drugs?”
I rocked my head violently.“He didn’t do drugs.”
“My brother never touched drugs a day in his life,” said Christopher. “I don’t believe for a second that he’d start now, no matter what the official report says. It’s a cover-up.”
He held up his hand when Andrew would have interrupted.
“Elizabeth overheard him on the phone a few months ago talking to someone about the human trials. She believes they threatened him. He may have pushed her away to protect her. I would have.”
He looked down at me, his icy blue eyes warming me with their chill fire. I hadn’t considered that reason. It made me feel better about Brandon disappearing. A little. It didn’t make me want to renew our relationship, but I was less angry.
“This weekend we went to Reno to investigate a lead about Brandon’s research into scorpion venom. Elizabeth found an expert there,” said Christopher. “We’re going to make an antidote for his creation, give it to him, and hope he’ll wake up.”
“What if he wakes up and is mad you’ve stolen his girl?” Andrew crunched another handful of chips while Dad excused himself and hurried to the grill to rescue the steaks.
“We’ll see,” said Christopher. “I’d rather have him alive and angry than fading away in a hospital bed, never to wake again.”
We stood near each other, his arm wrapped around me, his hand warm on my hip.
“I think this is moving too fast,” said Meghan. “First, you’re with Brandon, then Christopher, then nobody. Now back to Christopher. You’re saying Brandon might still be mad and wreck the whole thing? That’s stupid.”
“I’m done with Brandon. You can’t blame this mess on Christopher. Being together is my idea. If I get hurt, it’s my fault.”I held my phone up for the others to read.
“She didn’t do this on her own.” Christopher tightened his grip, his fingers digging into my side possessively.
“If someone threatened Brandon, they could be dangerous,” said Andrew.
He was in police mode and had returned to the investigation. From his eyes, it seemed Christopher had passed some kind of test.
“How can I help? Do you have names or descriptions?” said Andrew.
“We have a few pieces of information. Elizabeth heard two men at the hospital yesterday talking about Brandon. Someone matching their description went to Reno, trying to buy scorpions. Brandon’s company is called Real Tech. We need to find out what else they are involved in. We think they’re trying to use synthetic scorpion venom to create soldiers that don’t feel pain. They could sell to the military and make a fortune.”
“Money makes people dangerous,” said Andrew.
“Dinner’s ready,” said Dad. “We can eat and talk.”
The rest of the dinner was pleasant. We talked to my family about the venomous snakes, lizards, and spiders that we’d seen. Meghan told the Jenga tarantula story and re-enacted my hysterics. She’d collected the pieces off the ground. She was braver than I was, even if she was younger.
“Maybe I should get a tarantula.” Meghan’s eyes danced. “They’re cool.”
“No way.” Andrew crossed his arms, a stubborn set to his jaw.
“I’m with Andrew. They’re creepy.”
Meghan might stop arguing when it was two against one, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t get one if she wanted to.
