Page 46 of Sticks and Stones
“It’s me,” Gene said. “Can I come back in?”
That stopped Corbin’s slide.
“Yeah, we’re talking about a kit,” Ethan said, clueing his partner in as he came around the corner with Ethan’s go bag.
Gene was honest.
“We need that kit,” he stated. “Desperately. If we’re going to find the people who did this, we need to get their DNA.”
Corbin said nothing.
But he was shaking.
Honestly, they couldn’t blame him.
“How about I do the kit?” Ethan asked. “Would you feel better if we did it off the record and the FBI ran the information so we could control who saw it?”
At that suggestion, Corbin opened his eyes, and stared up at Ethan.
“Promise?” he asked.
Blackhawk reassured him.
“You have my word, Corbin. I promise,” he said, reassuring him.
At that, Corbin gave in. Slowly, he nodded, giving him his consent.
Well, that was the hardest part.
While Ethan wasn’t a forensic scientist, he didn’t have to be one-hundred percent accurate. He just needed to swab Corbin’s thighs to see what they pulled up.
In case they couldn’t nail this down, that might help them in the long run.
At his words, Gene began pulling out some comfortable clothes from the bag. Ethan had his less formal clothes in there for when he wanted to work out.
“Where are the clothes you were wearing?” Gene asked.
He shrugged.
“I don’t know. I was found naked,” he whispered, as tears slipped down his face. “Maybe they were in the dumpster where they left me.”
Jesus.
Gene wanted to be sick. It was best if he excused himself from the room to handle a few things.
“Okay, Corby,” he said, placing a pair of sweats and an FBI T-shirt on the table next to the bed. “I’ll get the kit, and I’ll keep the nurses outside. We’ve got you. I promise too.”
And that was the only reason he agreed to the kit. They would make sure he was safe, and that was what Corbin needed right now more than anything.
With Gene handling that part, Ethan appreciated it. That allowed him to focus on the man.
When he was gone, Corbin looked exhausted, and no one could blame him.
“I’ll be incredibly gentle,” Blackhawk admitted. “I’m just going to swab your thighs. I promise it won’t be invasive. We don’t need to be thorough. We just need any DNA they left on you.”
Corbin’s voice was so low.
He knew the truth.
