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Simon’s eyebrows rose up a notch "You juents from the NSA were after us, and we didn’t have any other choice"

Simon frowned and then nodded toward Tyler "Did you cut yourself? While you were escaping?"

So that was it then It was all the confir all the way up "It was me? I did this to hiht now We need to get you both out of here I can explain on the way" Siet hinoring Simon because he didn’t matter for the moment, I went to Tyler and stroked his face "It’s okay," I whispered, pulling one of the hijacked packets fro it open I eased his head off the pillow The back of his neck was slick with sweat "Take these," I ordered, dropping the Tylenols into his htstand

I was grateful for the pills he ed to s, and I prayed they did the trick

I was suddenly unsure about what the right thing to do was I wanted to take Tyler, to keep hi around me only made him worse

"Maybe we should leave hirabbed rip firm "I won’t stop you if that’s what you decide, but just be clear about what you’re setting hi the help you think he is Those NSA guys, they will find hiure out why he’s there--what happened to him and why he’s suddenly so sick--and then they’ll cut him open--sarasp, rubbingat Simon, I lowered my voice and asked the question I so didn’t want to ask "Why? Why would they do that?" I thought of that guy--the agent froun to his own head after being exposed to unshot we’d heard made sense He didn’t want to be a science experiment "Why wouldn’t they just cure him?" I refused to think of the lab tech fro tiether, and his expression shifted all the way from determination to compassion It was the co what I saw in that look "No," I insisted "There has to be so Some way to fix thisto make him better" I looked back to Tyler, and hated hi completely-totally-utterly unavailable when I needed hi in the world I wanted to hear

Butmess

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Day Seven

I RODE IN THE BACK OF SIMON’S CAR WITH Tyler’s head in my lap

It had taken nearly twenty minutes after Tyler had sed those first two Tylenols for his fever to finally break When he was alert enough, I was able to persuade hiht so we could get hiain

We talked for a while--Tyler assuringdifferently but keeping ether

When he finally ad him, I didn’t have the heart to tell hi him; it was me

The entire time it was hard for me to maintain eye contact with hiers were everywhere, stroking his cheeks and his forehead, his shoulders and his hair "I’m so, so, so sorry," I whispered beneathI repeated it insidethere was some penance in the words That I could so an accidental murderer

If Tyler heard me, he never ers occasionally caressingon toanywhere

And I wasn’t I swore I would never leave hi, and I turned lances in the rearviewback here "Whose car is this anyway? You know, it scared the hell out ofto rise, casting a golden glow over his dark skin in his reflection "Sorry about that The carwell, let’s call it a loaner"

I shookare we supposed to drive around in this thing before so and calls the cops? Then what? We can’t let them take Tyler" When I said his naers over his hair to settle hiain

Simon dropped his eyes back to the road in front of him "Don’t worry about it We’re al us, and we’ll ditch this car No one’s gonna catch us" I didn’t ask who Willoas I assumed it was another one of Sied back in h Tyler’s sweat-da pissed at Simon I blamed hi myself around Tyler--or anyone else--if I had known my blood was somehow toxic