Shadows to Light (Shadows of Justice 5) by Regan Black Read Free Book Online Page A

prove more productive than the others.
    Hands stuffed in her pockets against the wind chill, she trudged along with students and figured she was blending pretty well. According to her cell card, the building she wanted was on the fringe of the campus. A less populated fringe if the thinning crowd was any indication. The wind whipped up, tugging at her hair, blotting out the sounds of life. She leaned into it and trudged on, passing a shiny new science center as she aimed for the older buildings behind it. A sense of vacancy and benign neglect filled the air as the wind was diverted by architecture. Her mood bordering on melancholy, she found the right building, but no sign marking the old clinic. She found the main entrance locked with an older push button system and the windows felt like so many blank eyes watching her as she circled around.
    Giving herself a pep talk as the wind found her again, she tried to convince herself she'd find what she needed. She'd find the door that matched the key. Having to search wasn't a failure, only giving up.
    She was fairly annoyed with her persistent chant of optimism when she turned a corner and saw the faded sign. Nearly illegible between age, snow, and poor lighting, she thought her mind was simply caving to the power of suggestion.
    But she looked closer and smiled, feeling a fresh burst of energy bubble inside her when the logo and clinic name came into view. She lurched toward the door, dashing away tears induced by wind and hope with one hand and fumbling for the key with the other.
    It was the right kind of lock. No push buttons, electric keypad, or biometric scanner. Her heart hammered in her chest and her mind raced over the possibilities.
    A sound that was probably a security guard doing his rounds startled her, but she didn't see anyone when she turned and searched the shadows. She paused, debating the wisdom of charging in without any information. Like diving blind into a shock victim or coma patient, there was some risk just barging into an abandoned building.
    It was nearly full dark and the security light above the doorway blinked on, startling her as it glinted off the brass key.
    She had to try. She looked around once more and satisfied she was alone, she slid the key into the lock. It slid home and she nearly shouted for joy. Then it stuck, unwilling to twist either direction, and her joy bubble popped. This wasn't the right door.
    But when the damn bit of brass refused to come out, she considered throwing the mother of all hissy fits, security and witnesses be damned. She struggled with the key, heard another footfall on the slushy sidewalk, but refused to leave her only tangible clue to her father behind. Figuring she still looked young enough to make up some excuse about being sent out here by a professor, she kept at it and hoped she wouldn't have to lie.
    Finally, by luck, friction, or divine intervention, the lock tumbled and the knob swiveled. She paused, suddenly uncertain. She hadn't considered an alarm system until this moment. As the moment stretched without a screaming alarm, flashing lights, or the sound of footsteps rushing in her direction, she relaxed.
    The building seemed well and truly forgotten. Unless the system hadn't caught up with the breach. What if...?
    She could stand out here and freeze all night long or she could get on with the matter at hand. Someone, her mother or the 'allies' Cleveland referred to, wanted her to find her father.
    She nudged the door open and breathed a sigh of relief into the continuing silence. Waiting one more beat for the hammer to drop, she slipped through the opening and closed the door behind her. She was inside.
    Leaning back, giving her eyes a chance to adjust to the dark, she chided herself for even trying to play this game. She wasn't cut out for this. Hell, she didn't even have a flashlight to look for whatever clue or evidence she was supposed to find.
    The only consolation, aside from being out of the