Free Rogue Asset (Book 3 of the Wade Hanna Series) by Joseph D'Antoni Page B

the table. While wrapping the glass, Wade remembered Leo’s comment.
    One of Megan’s comfortable chairs called his body to rest and he reclined his head in its soft cushion. Wade didn’t realize how tired he was until he came to this moment. His body relished the rest, but his mind raced replaying the day’s events. It dawned on him that he was returning home tomorrow. His flight back to Alabama left mid-morning.
    He gazed focused on Megan’s bookcase. He wondered, Should I mention to Megan about being asked about sex with her in the polygraph? His answer was “No” and that was truthful but how would she react?
    Who was asking these questions and why? Who were the people whose names he didn’t know on the polygraph exam? He came back to the thought of his hotel room being bugged. Was Megan part of all this or was she also under the same surveillance? Was her condo bugged?
    The questions brought Wade out of his seat. He knew how precise everything in Megan’s condo was placed. She would recognize anything that was even slightly out of place.
    Wade began a visual sweep of the condo for listening devices making sure that anything he moved was put precisely back in its place. His inspection was complete, and he didn’t find any listening or camera devices.
    He turned to the bookshelf. Three medical books caught his attention. Her explanation that she kept them in remembrance of her father was reasonable. He looked more carefully at the book titles. There was a section of three books that seemed strange. They all dealt with exotic poisons. Wade’s mind instantly went back to his meeting with Morrison and remembered that Lockhart was drugged with an exotic poison that paralyzed him before his death.
    The bindings were old, but Wade couldn’t take his eyes off three titles: Ancient Medicinal Plants and Cures , Death by Plants and Primitive Warrior Potions . These books were different than the ones on anatomy and treating heart conditions. Megan didn’t mention her father was in tropical medicine. Wade made a small mark with his fingernail so he could tell the precise placement of the book before he removed it. Leafing through the book caused him to wonder further. There were sections on plants and formulas used by indigenous Indians for paralyzing their prey. The chemistry was over his head but not the purpose of these compounds, describing the paralyzing the effect on nerves, muscle tissue, and organs. He removed the other two books and found similar content using yet different compounds. Was this coincidence or some connection to Lockhart’s murder? Megan would soon be home. How much of this, if anything, was he going to discuss with her?
    After completing his review, Wade carefully returned each book to its marked position. He scanned the rest of the bookcase and drawers looking for loose pages of notes or anything that might refer to chemistry or the books. He found nothing.
    The books he checked hadn’t been used recently. He made a mental note to speak to a professor he knew in the chemistry department about the toxic compounds that were observed.
    Wade returned to his chair to finish his water. The pace of his mind was slowing to the point where he briefly dozed off into light sleep when he heard the key slide into the lock on the door. He jumped up quickly checking the peephole before the door swung open.
    There stood Megan holding her burgundy shoes in one hand and her purse in the other. Wade took the shoes and opened his arms to greet this beautiful woman with the smile. They embraced holding each other in the open doorway. As she closed the door with her foot, she gradually moved into the room and said, “Finally.”
    She kissed Wade in a strong sensual manner like she had never done before. Wade hugged Megan even tighter feeling every part of her body against him. All of his unanswered questions and uncertainties were aside for the moment. At that moment, he knew that both their feelings were genuine,