The Reckoning Read Online Free PDF

Elizabeth ’s back; she unconsciously leaned into his touch before she caught herself and straightened again. She hadn’t been expecting him to be so physical with her; he never had before and tonight for some reason it was twice as much. Mike seemed to do it more and more when Thompson was around. She’d been the recipient of Thompson’s charms at previous fundraisers. The more she thought about it, it had always been when Mike was around. She silently wondered if Thompson was doing it for Mike’s benefit or for her own. Elizabeth would have chuckled and kidded Mike about his moves if she wasn’t enjoying every caress. She’d let the charade play itself out.
    Dinner was served, and Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Claire when she sat her between Mike and Thompson.
    Claire regarded her with an innocent smile. Available, muscular men that any woman would have been proud to flirt with and call their own now surrounded Elizabeth . Any woman that is but Elizabeth would have gushed at the extra attention. Both men towered over her, crowding her. For as spacious as the table setting was, she felt claustrophobic with all of the male testosterone surrounding her. Thompson brushed her hand when he’d reached for the salt. Elizabeth brushed off the innocent gesture, acting as if it didn’t mean a thing. Mike reached around like a teenager and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer into his side. The move hadn’t been lost on her and neither had Thompson’s wink afterward.
    The only thing that kept her comfortable during dinner was watching the siblings squabble with each other. Their dinner decorum around the table was similar to the way she’d grown up.
    “How are the wedding plans coming along?” Elizabeth asked, hoping for a neutral topic .
    Claire’s smile grew bigger. “It’s all set. It’s just a waiting game now.”
    Mike cleared his throat and wiped his mouth with his napkin. “Squirt, did you find out anything about the blue powder?” 
    The humor around the table instantly died and the mood changed to one of sober reality. Abby’s brows drew together as she sat her fork down. “Nope, even I haven’t figured it out yet.”
    “Any word from headquarters? Anyone there have a clue?” Mike turned toward Thompson and raised his brow in question.
    Thompson took a sip of his wine and shook his head. “In all of the years I’ve been with the bureau, I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like it and neither has anyone I’ve spoken with.”
    Mike turned to Butch and Jake and asked the same question, with the same response. With all of the years and expertise at the table, he’d been sure someone would have at least an idea of the drug that Abby’s team had found; if only from the tale tell sign of the blue color.
    Abby took a sip of her coffee and set it down. She propped her elbows on the table. “I talked to the captain about it before I left. He mentioned calling in a chemist to break it down. If it’s a drug on the streets, we need to know what we’re up against.”
    “Who’d they call?” Jake asked. “Maybe we know him.”
    “Some old professor… What was his name?” Abby tapped her chin, and then a huge smile spread over her lips. “I think it was Isaac Thomas Oliver.” Abby giggled. “Yeah that was it. Three first names. I kept wanting to call him Professor Ito. Can’t you just picture him? Some old potbellied scientist in a lab coat with a salt and pepper beard squirreled away in his lab with nothing but a microscope and a pad of paper?”
    Elizabeth stiffened beneath Mike’s palm. She reached for her water and sipped, swallowing around the lump in her throat. The need to flee overwhelmed her. The news only confirmed her suspicion that the bastard was here. This can’t be happening…not now…not here .
    Mike rubbed her arm and leaned over, whispering in her ear, “You all right, Doc?”
    Elizabeth attempted to put a smile on her face, but she was sure it didn’t