Second Chances(119)

He didn't even realize what was happening until it was too late. He howled in pain as the cuffs were placed around his wrists and then secured to the stretcher.

"What the hell? What is the meaning of this? I am a federal agent. Release me at once," he demanded even as the paramedics began to walk away.

The man who was clearly in charge of the group that had dropped from the helicopter approached Cameron. He stood over him, a phone to his ear.

"Yes sir, he will live."

"What is going on?" Cameron again demanded.

The man said nothing, but held the phone to Cameron's ear. He saw another of the men from the helicopter approaching.

"Hello Cameron," a voice from the phone said.

"Dillinger! You son of a bitch. What do you think you are doing?"

"I warned you, Cameron. It is not my fault that you failed to take me seriously."

"You bastard. So you are going to kill me and take over the project? Is that it? You chicken-shit asshole."

"Kill you? Take over the project?" On the phone Dillinger chuckled. "I have no intension of doing either. The project will be shut down as it should have been so very long ago."

"And me?"

"You'll be reassigned, of course."

"I will?" He couldn't hide the surprise in his voice.

"Yes, I understand that a position has recently come open at Ocean View Estates."

Cameron's eyes went wide as the meaning of the words registered.

"No, Bill, please anythi..."

He was still in denial as the agent slipped the needle into his arm. He fought it as hard as he could, but it wasn't long before he felt fogginess seeping into his brain. He knew they had only given him a sedative. Jason's medication didn't work that fast, but he knew it wouldn't be long before they did give it to him and then...then he would know the meaning of the phrase, living hell. He wanted to scream, he wanted to cry, He wanted to beg for death, for surely that would be better then the fate that awaited him. But the sedative had taken hold and all he could managed was a single tear rolling down his cheek.

The agent lifted the phone to his ear as they wheeled Cameron away. He looked toward the other ambulances and saw that the four others were being loaded up.

"So what about the others, sir?"

The man listened intently. When it was over, he slipped the phone into one of the pockets on his vest and began to issue orders.





CHAPTER EIGHTY-EIGHT



Nathan woke with a start, his eyes wide, looking around. It took him a few moments to remember exactly where he was. He grimaced at the ache he still felt in his shoulder. The doctors had told him the wound was healing nicely and today he was going to get released.

He looked over and saw Paige was curled up in the chair by the window. She was asleep, but twitched occasionally. He wondered if she was having nightmares as well. He hoped they would fade in time.

He sat up slowly and then got out of bed. Every inch of him hurt, but the doctors told him that would fade soon enough. He thought back to the time on the bridge. Had that been four or five days ago? Hell, maybe it had been longer.

He remembered the agent climbing into the ambulance with him. He'd had no idea what the man would say to him, but he certainly hadn't expected what he heard. He was free. They were all free. As long as they kept their mouths shut they would be left alone. It was hard to believe and at first he hadn't. He had expected that they would be taken off that bridge and killed. But that hadn't happened. Instead, they'd been taken to the hospital and admitted for treatment. Julie had suffered a broken arm when the car had rolled over. Paige had suffered serious lacerations on her back from the original crash. Jason, amazingly, hadn't been hurt nearly as bad as Julie had originally feared. He had suffered a number of cuts from that shattered window, but it had looked much worse than it had actually been. He was now up and moving better each day. His memory still seemed fuzzy, but he seamed quite clear on at least one thing, his love for Julie. That seemed to be enough for him.

Linda had also survived the crashes. She had certainly had her bell rung, but she was expected to make a full recovery. There was a guard at the door to her room, but Julie had actually been allowed in to see her. She had said the woman was a wreck. She'd been officially declared dead. Her husband was reportedly in mourning on a beach in Hawaii. She told Julie that she'd been informed that she was being permanently reassigned. A real dream assignment. She was to be Kassar's full time caretaker at Ocean View. Julie had done her best not to smile. She knew the assignment would be hell, being forced to take care of the man who had wrecked her life.

Nathan stood over Paige, looking at her. She had been at his side as soon as they had allowed her and she hadn't left him since. He looked down and smiled. Paige. Not his Paige, not yet anyway. He thought back to that night on the bridge and to the words he'd believed she had said to him as he stood over Kassar. He didn't know what the future held for any of them, but he knew one thing. They had all been given a second chance and he intended to make the most of it.