The Gillespie Five (A Political / Conspiracy Novel) - Book 1 (42) by T.K. Harris

white coat, carrying a bag.  She stood, waiting as the guards hesitantly filed out of the cell, closing the door behind them.  For just a second he thought he'd seen a flash of fear in one of the guard's eyes as he had glanced at the doctor. 
    Once the door was firmly shut, the woman made her way to his bedside, setting her bag down on the floor beside his bed.  She had dark blond hair, cut short, and the brightest blue eyes he had ever seen.  He couldn't figure out her age, but from the way she carried herself he figured she must be at least in her late twenties or early thirties.  She smiled at him as he tried to rise.  "You're fine.  Just lay there quietly. My name is Dr. Lyndsay.  How are you feeling?" 
    Tommy started to respond when another spasm of coughing took him.  The doctor gently rubbed his back until the coughing subsided and then helped him sit.  Once he seemed steady, she reached in her bag and pulled out a bottle of water.  "They said you weren't feeling well and I think that was an understatement.  Here, drink this.  When you're ready, I'm going to check a few things okay?"
    She opened the bottle and helped Tommy drink. When he finished she said, "Now I need you to take off your shirt."
    He tried to do as she asked when another coughing fit caught him.  Dr. Lyndsay waited until he stopped and then reached over to help him.  A part of him shied away, embarrassed to need someone's help to undress – especially a strange woman – but he was too weak to give into the embarrassment. 
    With his shirt off, Tommy collapsed against the wall behind his bed, exhausted.  He was having a tough time keeping his eyes open as the doctor began methodically checking his pulse, blood pressure, heart beat and breathing, all while keeping up a steady stream of conversation.  He was also finding it difficult to concentrate on her words.  He thought she asked him a question and tried to respond but found his tongue had become too thick.
    A sharp prick in his arm was quickly followed by a second and then a third, but he found he really didn't care.  Everything seemed to suddenly be coming from very far away.
    Relax.  Just relax.
    He wasn't sure if she had spoken or he had thought it, but it sounded like a good idea. 
     
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    Dr. Lyndsay watched, waiting for the kid's breathing to stabilize before giving him the next shot, the one that would bring him to the surface just enough to let her do what they had brought her here to do.  As she waited, she took in his bruised body wondering why they always brought her in only after they had done something like this.  Brute tactics that they knew rarely worked. 
    His breathing steadied and she gave him the shot, hoping it wasn't too late.  If they had managed to break him already, there would be nothing she could to do to help them get the information they wanted.

Chapter Eleven
     
     
    Alex spent the morning working from home, trying to remain calm as he waited to get access to Tommy’s dorm room.  Two days of waiting hadn’t helped his agitation, and he had found himself reaching more than once for his phone, on the edge of not caring what flags he raised.  But he’d waited.  And waited.
    To fill his time, he worked on some long overdue tasks he usually put off.  He also put out a few tentative feelers to see if there had been any recent FBI stings on hackers that, for whatever reason, his team hadn’t been brought in on. 
    When his brother finally called, Alex was halfway through a bagel and in the middle of an online conversation with one of his managers.  He left both without hesitation and was already sprinting to his car before he heard more than a ‘hello’ from Ken.  It wasn't until he had pulled out of the parking lot and was on the road that he realized his brother was still talking.
    "Alex, did you hear me?"
    "Sure, Ken.  What did you say?"
    He could hear his older brother's sigh over