Page 133 of The Search

He came out of the lab carrying his briefcase. “Sarah, I was just going to call you. I ran into Logan a few minutes ago and he wants you to come with me to—” He stopped as he saw her expression. “I see. It’s not going to be as easy as I thought, is it? You’re a very smart lady. I was afraid you might figure it out. Too bad you did.”

“You’re the Judas, aren’t you? Rudzak had you planted from the beginning. He wanted us to rescue you. He wanted us to get you out of Santo Camaro so that he could use you to set up Dodsworth.” And set up Logan. Her heart stopped. “Where’s Logan? It was you who called him, wasn’t it?”

He nodded. “I told him I’d received a threat from Rudzak and asked him to meet at the basement lab. Naturally, he came.” He smiled. “We all know how Rudzak’s targeted me in the past.” He took a gun out of his jacket pocket. “But Rudzak also wants you with Logan, so I’ll have to oblige.”

“How much did he pay you?”

“More than Castleton. Even though Castleton brought me on board. I deserved it. Rudzak suddenly got impatient so he gave me an excuse to leave Phoenix right away. The bastard didn’t tell me he was going to shoot me too.” He motioned with the gun. “We’d better get going. Rudzak doesn’t want to blow this building without you, but he may get edgy. I don’t want to be here if he does.”

She didn’t move.

“Should I shoot your dog first?”

“No!” She started down the steps. “If I agree to go with you, is it all right if I send Monty to Galen?”

“You’re afraid he’ll be blown up?”

“There’s no reason for him to be hurt.” She stopped and turned to face him. “Let him go.”

He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t want to deal with him anyway. Send him away.”

“Monty! Go to—” She launched herself up the stairs and dove low, grabbing Bassett’s gun hand. “Monty!”

Monty buried his teeth in Bassett’s wrist as Sarah grabbed his bandaged hand and pushed the fingers back.

He screamed in agony and dropped the gun. She scooped it up and hit him in the face with the butt. Blood spurted from his gashed lip. “Bastard.” She hit him again with the gun. “Son of a bitch.”

He doubled over in pain.

“Sarah!”

She saw Galen running toward them. She told Monty, “Release.”

Monty reluctantly let go of Bassett’s wrist.

“Excuse me.” Galen stepped in front of her and gave Bassett a lethal chop on the carotid artery. “We don’t want him interfering. My, that felt good.” He looked down at Monty. “I never thought I’d see that ball of fluff on the attack.”

“He doesn’t like guns pointed at me.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have worried so much when I ran into Hilda Rucker at the front door and she told me you were going to see Bassett. You and Monty seem to have everything under control.”

“Nothing’s under control.” She started down the steps. “Logan’s in the basement lab. If you didn’t know already.”

“I knew.”

“And you and Logan knew all about Bassett.”

“Not at first. We only suspected. But we confirmed when we found out that his calls to his wife were being forwarded to another number.”

“That’s why no matter how tight the security, you knew Rudzak would strike here. He had someone on the inside feeding him information about security checks and opening all the doors.”

“Yes, that’s what tipped you off, wasn’t it? I knew it bothered you.”

“Then why the hell didn’t someone tell me?”

“Sarah, you’re many things, but deceitful isn’t one of them. You’d never have been able to look Bassett in the face and pretend you didn’t know.”

“So Logan is down there alone with Rudzak.”