Free Under the Microscope by Jessica Andersen Page B

a hint and she chuckled. “I see. That definitely counts as fine, and then some. So hold onto the rest of the pills for now, and we’ll let you know when you’re cleared to use them again, okay? Great. Bye, now.”
    When she disconnected, all trace of humor fled from her face, leaving her eyes dark and worried when she looked over at Max. “How’s she doing?”
    “I take it I don’t have to introduce myself?”
    “Raine told me you’re working on the case. I’m her assistant, Tori Campbell.” The woman offered her hand, but kept her body language closed, making Max wonder exactly what Raine had said about him.
    He took her hand, noting a mostly concealed flinch that told him far too much. “Call me Max.” He nodded to the row of lights on the telephone, some lit, some blinking. “You taking all the calls?”
    “No, we’re using a service to handle the majority. There were a few I wanted to handle personally, though.” She glanced away.
    People she knew, Max surmised. People she’d wanted to make sure were still alive.
    Tori Campbell didn’t trust her own product.
    Interesting.
    “Did you know any of the women who died?” Max deliberately turned his back on the receptionist and leaned against the desk, so they were both facing out into the lobby, where the FDA investigators were loading fat files into sturdy cardboard boxes.
    “No,” she answered, “none of us did. It seems so…random. Those poor women and their poor families. I talked to the first husband on the phone when it all started, before the lawyers and the FDA got involved. His name is James Summerton. Hesounded awful. Hurt. Confused. Angry.” She paused. “I can’t get his voice out of my head.”
    Her words resonated inside Max, where something clicked. He stiffened as he realized there was yet another possibility that could explain the house fire.
    Revenge.
    What if Thriller really had killed the women? What if Raine really had deleted the data records? What if someone connected to the dead women had decided to take matters into his own hands?
    The possibility didn’t ring as false as Max would have liked. Stifling a growl, he pushed away from the reception desk and faced Tori. “Do you think the drug killed them?”
    “Raine is a good person,” she said quickly. “She wouldn’t have gone forward with the sampling and the advertising if she’d thought there was any chance of Thriller being deadly.” Then the secretary pursed her lips and looked both ways, making sure nobody could overhear her say, “There are a couple of others here that I’m not so sure about, though.”
    Max leaned closer. “Meaning?”
    Her voice dropped so low he almost couldn’t hear it. “Jeff Wells has been pretty chummy with the FDA people. And he’s been hanging out with the computer techs. He never used to do that.”
    Max watched her eyes, trying to gaugewhether this was real or a personal agenda. “You don’t like Jeff?”
    “I’ve never had a problem with him before, but ever since this thing started with Thriller, he’s been…” She shrugged. “Weird, I guess. Then again, we’re all under a ton of pressure right now. If Thriller goes under, it’ll take Rainey Days with it.”
    He’d heard the same fear from hundreds of employees at dozens of companies since he and William had gone into business. Now, though, it resonated on a different level.
    A personal one.
    Max scowled and shifted away from Raine’s secretary. How could he trust Raine so little, yet still want to help her?
    “I don’t know,” Raine’s voice said unexpectedly from right behind him. “I’ve been wondering the same thing.”
    Max jolted and turned toward her, halfway thinking he’d asked his question aloud. But her eyes were focused beyond him as she crossed the office lobby with her cell phone pressed to her ear and her long red coat draped over her arm, as though she were going somewhere.
    He shifted to block her path, interrupting. “You’ve been