Page 59 of Under Pressure

“I’m working on it,” Kendra replied, her destination coming into sight. “I have some questions that need answers first.”

“All right, fine,” Lily exhaled, frustrated. “There’s another thing.”

“What?” Her grip tightened on the wheel, about to turn into the gate. “What is it?”

“I took another look, re-examined the doxycycline traces in the victims’ plasma again. There was something else that I saw. Whatever pills those guys were taking, they weren’t just antimalarial.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t totally conclude, but they all have distinct markers of recently having a virus.” Lily let out a long breath, seeming to try to make sense of it. “It really looks like a lab-manufactured virus, benign but purposeful. I saw this exact thing at the Harvard lab.”

“It was infused in the antimalarial drugs?” Kendra pulled her car into the gravel drive of a military base, which was non-descript and unobtrusive. “Like, a live organism, housed in the drug?”

Lily continued, “That’s what it looks like. I just can’t figure out why.”

Kendra pulled her car up to the massive gate concealing the interior of the secretive Navy SEAL training facility down the Southern California coast. Her destination.

“I might be able to ask someone,” she started to explain to Lily. “I received a call from someone in the military, someone who is offering to help me, if I can help him.”

“Oh? Is he hot?” Lily quizzed. “You know I’m single, Kendra. Don’t hold back.”

“You don’t need military guys, Lily—especially not SEALs.” Kendra let out a short laugh. “Stay away from the lab and stay safe. I’ll call you later.”

As she ended the call, she realized that it was much later in the day than she’d hoped. Driving anywhere in Southern California takes forever, Kendra scoffed as she glanced at the time, irritated. Guilt crept up as she realized yet again that she was leaving Leo for longer than she’d like. Sienna was as dedicated as a caregiver could be, but Kendra wanted to be with her son every minute of the day.

“This is the last time,” Kendra grumbled to herself, promising that she just needed to find out that one bit of information—and she’d be done. She owed it to Leo to find it out.

As she waited, her car idling in front of the gate, she tried to not fidget. Straightening her pencil skirt, she cranked her rear-view mirror down to check her lip balm. Nervous, exasperated, she had no idea how the plan was going to go.

The gated SEAL base loomed before her, unfriendly and exclusive. She knew what it looked like inside. She’d been there before. That was where she’d met Delta. That helped—because she was about to do something really risky, something she’d only do if she were desperate.

She was going into the lion’s den.

After what felt like too long, a guard that looked like he was Naval enlisted walked out of the gate and lazily sidled up to her car—as if they didn’t get many visitors. She rolled down her window as he approached, ready to drop her tin on him.

“Good evening, ma’am”—the guard leaned in, not removing his sunglasses as he inspected her and the inside of her car—“how can I help?”

She drew her badge up, catching his gaze. As slick as possible, she kept her story circumspect.

“I have a meeting. It won’t take long.”

The guard raised his eyebrow, not convinced. “A meeting—with whom?”

She opened her mouth, but before she could answer, a man she just barely recognized peered around a doorway in the fence and called off the guard. It was Chief Warren Cameron, one of Delta’s closest friends. His reddish hair was glistening under the hot Southern California sun. She hadn’t seen him since the day she’d met Delta—right here on the compound. He raised his arm, waving at her, instructing her to drive through.

As the guard stood back, the gate opened slowly, which gave Kendra the necessary time to wipe the distress off her face. Nodding at the guard and trying to remain calm, she drove into the compound, not missing a beat. Something eerie crawled up her spine as she entered, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

Military guys were still milling about as she parked her car next to the main building—metal and stone, as nondescript as one might expect for an off-the-grid facility. A few guys shot her questioning glances as she stepped out of her car, wondering what the hell she was about to learn.

Warren marched up to her from the gate. As he got closer, she observed his bright blue eyes that sharpened as his tall form came to stand firmly in front of her.

“It’s been a while,” he said, his face dead serious, “Kendra.”

“Thanks for calling me.” Kendra bit her lip, trying not to look as anxious as she fiddled with her bag. “I have to admit that I was surprised to hear from you.”

“I was surprised that it came to this as well,” Warren said slowly, never taking his eyes off her. His intense, assessing gaze reminded her of one other SEAL she knew.

“You said you have something to show me?” she asked, trying to understand what Warren was playing at.

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