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CHAPTER 5: SECRETS

"Have you spoken to him—her?" Joseph asked.

"Yes, I have," Sarah said, stepping out of the shadows behind his desk.

"And?"

"She has no clue, whatsoever, about her sordid past."

His eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Are you sure?"

"Of course. She's recuperating from the accident. Her doctors are confident that she'll make a full recovery."

The corners of Joseph's mouth tightened with displeasure. "I gave explicit orders that she be taken care of. How is it that your man failed to do just that?"

Sarah dropped her slender frame onto the chair in front of Joseph's desk, her dark brown eyes focused on his face. "I'm not. Killian knew what he had to do. He carried everything out to the letter. Even gave his life in doing so. That she survived speaks volumes."

Joseph slammed his fist across the desk, rattling several pens and pencils scattered across its surface. A snow globe, sitting haphazard on the right corner of the desk, teetered and rolled off the edge. It shattered into a million pieces across the floor. Joseph's nostrils flared outward with anger, and a muscle twitched across his lower jaw.

"I should have killed her a long time ago."

"You gave her a chance to prove herself. So far, she's done just that. She's shown no signs of remembering who and what she is."

"Forgive me for being such a skeptic, Sarah, but these things always have a way of backfiring on us. I refuse to allow this man—woman, no less—wreak havoc on our lives. We've come too far to let her take everything we've worked for away from us."

Sarah raised a hand and pinched the bridge of her nose between a thumb and forefinger. "If you've always believed this, why'd you go to such lengths to erase what she used to be? Surely, you were better off in killing her from the get-go?"

"I never thought it would come to this. The fact that she's survived for so long worries me."

"You've erased her memory and ensured that she lives her life as the woman she's become. We've kept tabs on her from the moment you set her free. If she hasn't remembered anything about her past up until now, I doubt she ever will."

Joseph hissed with annoyance. "That isn't good enough. Sooner or later, everything unravels, Sarah. You know that as well as I do."

"Yes, and if it does, we have the means to take care of the problem. Do you really want to end what's been one of your most effective experiments?"

"No, but we run the risk of her discovering what we've done. What then?"

"Jeremy is the only one of your subjects who's survived a successful brain, body, and memory reassignment. Granted, he gave us more trouble than he was worth. Nevertheless, you succeeded in making him believe a truth of your own making. For all intents and purposes, he now believes he is, and always will be, a female."

"Be that as it may, we cannot allow her the luxury of delving into secrets we've gone to great lengths to hide."

Sarah nodded and smiled. "Which is why I'm stepping in. Her current condition allows me to keep a better eye on her. She believes I'm a physical therapist named Anna Carreira. In helping her regain her mobility, I have the chance of growing close to her. Who knows? Perhaps she'll confide in me and tell me more about the life she's been living."

Joseph snorted with derision and rolled his eyes. "That's easier said and done."

"It'll give us leverage. You took away her memories. Wiped the slate clean. There's no way she'd ever remember she was once a man, much less that she was also a trained killer."

"You're underestimating our opponent. Should Jeremy ever come to terms with the fact that we've changed his life completely, he'll do everything possible to tie up all loose ends. That, my dear, includes you."

She clicked the tip of her tongue against the back of her teeth and waved a hand in the air in dismissal. "The first person he'd go after is you."

"No, Sarah," Joseph said. "He'd go after you. From the moment he woke up, you were the first thing he saw. Aside from the fact that he discovered we made him into a woman before you came into the picture, of course."

Her face blanched. "I doubt he'd come for me."

"You taunted him. Forced the tip of a gun between his legs in order to get him to comply. If I were in his shoes, I'd blow you to bits and then some. You underestimate him in ways you shouldn't."

Sarah shrugged and composed herself. "Until he shows any signs of regaining his former self, I refuse to believe that I'm in danger. Besides, I can take care of myself."

Joseph stood and rounded his desk, tugging her to feet. He curled his hands around her pale cheeks, staring deep into her eyes.

"I appreciate the fact that you've been in on this from the beginning. You've been an asset to the company and more, I assure you."

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Then, allow me this one task. Let me keep an eye on Jeremy. It's the only way we'll know for sure if he's remembering anything about his past."

He took a deep breath and nodded. "If anything seems amiss, you get in touch with me as soon as possible. Is that understood?"

Sarah grinned and leaned closer to him. "Of course."

"Good girl," he said, leaning forward to clamp his mouth across hers.