Helix Nexus by Chris Lofts (read e books online free .TXT) 📕

the fiery clear spirit the villagers distilled from foraged botanicals. ‘I can take a walk if you want to fetch Lauren and tell her about Yawlander.’

Gabrielle shook her head and took a sip from the glass they were sharing. ‘She didn’t know him. Not as a father. She doesn’t need this now. I don’t need this now.’

‘Do you think Valerian Lytkin knew his sister was still alive?’

‘I don’t know. In all the time we were together, he always referred to her and his mother in the past tense. He didn’t say much and would quickly change the subject.’ She wiped her hand across her mouth. ‘No. I don’t think he knew. What about Sofi? Has she been able to find anything?’

Helix pushed his plate away. ‘Zip. As you know, there was a lot of confusion around the pandemic, particularly towards the end. Like everything else, record keeping fell apart, people just vanished, literally, and with none of the normal audit trails. The sister wasn’t exactly forthcoming with any additional information. I have no idea what she actually looks like or what name she uses.’

‘What about Valerian’s estate? There must be lawyers dealing with all of that, if she’s making a claim.’

‘Given time, Ethan might have unearthed something, but if someone vanishes and then remains invisible for that long, there’s not going to be any breadcrumbs to follow.’

‘So, you’re saying that you think it was deliberate?’ Gabrielle said, pulling her knees up under her poncho. ‘Her abduction and disappearance?’ She topped up the glass and handed it to him.

‘I don’t know. It’s possible, but it doesn’t make a lot of difference.’ He ran his hand over the stubble on his chin. Ulyana Lytkin was back from the dead. She had Ethan and that was his priority. He studied Gabrielle over the lip of the glass. Her or Ethan? It wasn’t a choice. He would go to his grave fighting for both of them. The rustic chair groaned under his weight as he got up and paced across the room to the wood burner. Unlatching the door, he put in another log and watched it catch, the smell of hot wood smoke filling his nose. The burner purred as the flames licked around the wood.

‘And what about Julia Ormandy?’ Gabrielle said.

Helix brushed sawdust and bark from his hands. ‘According to her, we’re all implicated in the deaths of Valerian Lytkin, Yawlander and Blackburn.’

‘Because of the letter.’ She pushed the cork back into the bottle. ‘A letter that nobody was ever meant to see except you.’

‘What are you saying?’ he said, closing the door of the stove. ‘That this is my fault?’ He pressed his hands to his hips and straightened his back. ‘We did everything we could to make sure that there was no forensic evidence placing you in Lytkin’s apartment, at considerable risk, I might add. For all anyone knew, he’d killed himself with the pathogen. What I didn’t bargain for was that you would write and sign a confession to his murder.’

‘Which you kept as evidence. Which now threatens to put both of us into halo-confinement. Or which Ulyana Lytkin is using to justify her revenge. Take your pick. Why didn’t you just destroy it?’

Her question hung in the air, like autumn mist over a lake.

‘Because it was from you. It was all I had.’

She closed her eyes and folded her hands in front of her face. ‘You’re right. None of this is helping. What are we going to do?’ She emptied the glass. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘I don’t know yet, but I do know that I’m not prepared to lose you or Ethan.’

Gabrielle slipped from her seat and met him in the middle of the room. ‘If Ulyana Lytkin had you and Ethan, why didn’t she just send someone else for me?’ she said, wrapping her arms around him.

‘I think she would have. But that letter gave her another way to stay invisible. By sending it to Ormandy, she gets the Government to do her dirty work. Look at it her way. The Home Secretary has a signed confession from the woman who murdered Valerian Lytkin, a crime that Ethan and I helped cover up. The Government will do the right thing and bring us all to justice. Ulyana Lytkin doesn’t have the same influence in Parliament that her brother enjoyed, so I can’t see how she can get to us if we’re arrested and that’s the wrinkle. At some point she’s going to have to show herself if she wants to finish what Valerian started.’

‘But she still didn’t need to release you. That’s the angle I don’t understand. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you’re here, but—’

‘It’s a win-win for her. Either way she gets what she wants.’ Helix sighed. ‘She knows there’s no way I’m going to let Ormandy arrest you and if I manage to prevent that and we get away, all she has to do is reel us in. If we fall into Ormandy’s hands, Lytkin has to show her cards.’

‘But in order to save Ethan, you need to deliver me.’

‘There is no quid pro quo.’ He pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head. ‘I will get him back, but not at the expense of losing you.’ Sensing a minute change in the air pressure in his ear, he opened his eyes.

Sofi spoke into his ear. ‘Update.’

‘Go ahead,’ he replied, relaxing his embrace.

‘The BBC has announced a special programme promising fresh revelations in the Justin Wheeler, Valerian Lytkin case.’

‘OK. Can you relay it to my jacket comms? I want Gabrielle to see it too.’

‘Roger that. It starts in 12 minutes.’

‘Anything else?’

‘Nothing of note. A couple of villagers wandering about. Nothing on the approaches.’

‘Is everything OK?’ Gabrielle said, taking his hand.

‘Ormandy’s making her move by the sound of it.’ He moved over to where he’d dropped his clothes before taking a shower. ‘There’s a news special. We can watch it on—’

‘What’s wrong?’

‘My jacket and weapons are missing.’