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said, reaching for the glass knob.
    I placed a hand on his back in an effort to slow him down. “It feels wrong to be wandering through someone’s place without permission.”
    “Evan’s not going to mind,” he said. “He’s not the kind of guy who—”
    His next words were lost when the door swung open. I don’t know if Gav stopped talking, I stopped listening, or both. I sucked in a hard breath of surprise, then wished I hadn’t. My hand flew to my face, covering my mouth and nose from the room’s hot, acrid stench.
    Gav stiffened then shuddered. We were so close—touching—I felt the reaction run through him as though it had run through me. Maybe it had. His training took over in an instant. He swept an arm sideways, stopping me from taking another step into the room. His words were icy sharp. “Get back, Ollie.”
    Too late.
    Three, no, four. No, wait. Five men lay on the floor, bound and gagged. In a breathless second, I knew they were dead. My instincts kicked in. I had to check. I desperately wanted to be wrong.
    “Ollie, no,” Gav said.
    I’d started past his outstretched hand, but he was faster than I was. He grabbed my upper arm and hauled me close with an urgency I didn’t understand. “Back in the other room,” he said. “Now.”
    Holding me tight, he spun and started back the way we’d come.
    “But what if they’re still alive?”
    “They’re not.”
    I chanced a look up at his grim expression. I knew better than to fight. “What’s going on?”
    He walked fast, the corners of his mouth revealing the pain I knew must be shooting through him with each step. If he hadn’t been holding, half dragging me along, I wouldn’t have been able to keep up.
    “Slow down, Gav. You’ll rip your stitches,” I said.
    We’d almost made it to the door when it swung in toward us. Five men, one woman. All wearing suits and bright-white gas masks over their faces. The leader’s body language suggested he was as surprised to see us as we were to see him.
    Gav stepped in front of me protectively, a human shield. “Who are you?” he asked.
    The first guy pointed to the man directly behind him. Wordlessly, he then pointed to us and gave the unmistakable hand signal to get us out. The second man complied immediately. He grabbed Gav and indicated to a third man to grab me. The man held tight, but not enough to hurt. It all happened so fast, I didn’t even have time to scream.
    A blurred second later we were outside and the man’s grip on me loosened. A little.
    The two men pushed us toward a dark cargo van that was double-parked at the curb. My guard said, “Get in.” The other one similarly urged us to hurry. Their white masks and mechanized voices made me feel as though I was a member of the
Star Wars
rebel alliance being shuttled into custody by the Imperial guard. Except they weren’t restraining us, exactly; it was more like we were being shepherded.
    “What’s going on?” I asked.
    Gav’s hand found mine. He gripped tight as he sized up the van idling quietly in the dark. I’d been dragged into a cargo van much like this one before. It was not an experience I cared to repeat. I pulled back, my instincts telling me to get away now. Just then, the van’s side door slid open to reveal equipment inside and a man at the controls.
    “Gav?” I asked in a small voice.
    He didn’t look as alarmed as I would have expected, given the circumstances. I’d say his expression was puzzled rather than panicked. Leaning close to my ear, he whispered for me to follow his lead.
    At that he stopped short, causing the Imperial guard behind us to bump into his back. “Who’s in charge here?” Gav asked. He didn’t let go of me. His voice was strong and brave, but I felt him tense.
    The guy in front of us turned around. He lifted the mask, allowing me to see his red, sweaty, furious face. “Agent Gavin, we are here on assignment. If you and your friend don’t want to suffer ill effects of a toxic