Free Up in Flames by Alice Brown Page B

problem. Here, you need to be seen first. Change places with me,” Lucas informed him as he hopped down off the exam table and grabbed his phone with one hand, while holding out the other to help steady his boss.
    “Who all was behind me?” Walter inquired, as he made it to the exam table and felt like collapsing on it.
    “Other than myself there was Adam, Donte, and Ethan.”
    Walter closed his eyes for just a moment. Four Rangers down, including himself. “How bad?”
    “Nobody serious. You are probably in the worse shape; you were closest and took the brunt of the blast. I am just thankful Meredith was in the studio when the blast occurred. I hate to think what would have happened if she had been carrying those damn flowers.”
    “Still, this is an insult that he was able to get through everyone. And I want our leak found and dealt with. I fucking hate walking around questioning my trust in people I’ve worked with and trusted for years.” Walter shook his head as he sighed deeply, then glanced over to Lucas. “This stops today. Hell, maybe I’ve been too lax, but not anymore. This situation has just escalated to our top priority.” Two nights ago, they had discovered the bug that had been planted in his office. Walter and Lucas had then gone through the entire downstairs area, doing a thorough sweep, to check for any more. They found a total of three that night: one in Walter’s office, one at the reception desk, and one in the conference room.
    “Tell me what you want done, Walter. I am none too happy knowing that it is pure luck that I still have my mate. If she had been holding those roses, or even close to the vase, she would have been seriously injured at least.”
    “I am holding a meeting just as soon as we can get everyone patched up and back downstairs. Help me keep a close watch for anyone looking away, or shifting from foot to foot, increase in heart rhythm, or anything else we might label as suspicious behavior. I seriously doubt we will get that lucky, but we’ve got to start somewhere. We don’t stand a chance of truly shutting down McDaniels until we find our own damn leak!”
    Dr. Weathers came in and the discussion was dropped.
     

Chapter Five
     
    It took Dr. Weathers several hours to get everyone patched up and sent back downstairs. Lucas held Meredith’s hand tightly as they took the stairs down to the meeting. Walter planned on opening up and informing the Rangers who were present about the situation, then see if they could get a read on anyone who might be suspicious.
    Lucas knew they had a mole, there simply wasn’t any other explanation. What ate at his gut was he had worked with each of these guys for several years now. He had trusted each one of them to have his back at one time or another, as he had theirs. To know someone wasn’t who they were supposed to be left a sour taste in his mouth.
    He and Meredith were the last two to show up for the meeting in the large conference room downstairs. The room was eerily quiet when they walked in, with Lucas continuing to hold Meredith’s hand as he led the way over to a couple of empty seats. He had come too close to losing her today, and he had no intention of letting her go anytime soon.
    “Okay, I think everyone knows we had an explosion upstairs this afternoon in medical. What you don’t know is why. The young lady sitting with Lucas came to me about ten months ago. She had been on the run for a year at that point. She was in the wrong place, wrong time, and witnessed Eddie McDaniels killing one of the victims. He has been after her ever since. I have given Meredith sanctuary upstairs since she came to me, hiding her from Eddie and his goons. And I’ve been able to keep it quiet, with only one or two other people knowing that she has been living upstairs all of this time. Unfortunately, when Lucas was injured, it seemed to be the beginning of this mess. We now know Eddie was tipped off to Lucas’s visit due to the fact three