He stepped closer. She resisted the urge to sink back into the sofa. This close, the feel of his evil was so strong her insides felt like they were trying to claw their way out and her stomach just about jumped up her throat.
"Are you military? Ex-military?"
Energy crawled around her body, her mind, a sensation wholly different to the evil of his soul but just as sickening.
That pressure seemed to build around her, as if the energy was trying to crawl into her mind. Telepathy, she realized. He was trying to read her thoughts.
And while the fact that she couldn't actually feel him in her mind suggested he wasn't having any immediate luck, she wasn't about to give him the time to succeed, either.
"No, I've never been in the military, General." She rose, retrieved her badge from her pocket, and flipped it out for him to see. "Samantha Ryan, SIU. If you have questions, please ask them. I do not appreciate your mind reading efforts."
"Mind reading?" Wetherton said, voice all bluster despite the quick flick of concern he cast the general's way. "This office is fully shielded against such events, so I think you must be mistaken, Agent Ryan."
"No," she said, her gaze not leaving Blaine's. "And shielding is not always one hundred percent effective."
Wetherton's expression didn't give much away, but she had the distinct feeling, just from the way he was looking at the general, that the news the general could mind read horrified him. Which meant that maybe Wetherton did have secrets he had no wish for the military to uncover. It also meant that there was a whole lot more going on here than what Stephan and the SIU presumed.
The general's smile was slow and cold. "No, psi shields are never one hundred percent effective. But you are wrong, Agent Ryan. I was not trying to read your thoughts."
So what the hell had he been trying to do? She shoved her badge back into her pocket, and decided to tackle Blaine head on. "So, General, do you work in the same division as General Frank Lloyd?"
He raised his eyebrows. "You know General Lloyd?"
"Yeah. Had a very brief conversation with him about some former military employees that were getting murdered."
"Ah yes, the retired scientists."
"And the retired specimen donors. Don't suppose you know anything more about the projects they were involved in, do you?"
"No. I was never involved in that side of operations."
"Then what were you involved in?"
"Why do you wish to know?" he countered. "You caught and killed the people involved in those murders. The case is now closed."
"Actually, no, it's not, because one murderer is still loose.
The kite." It was risky mentioning it, because few people had any idea they existed. The SIU hadn't yet released an all- points about their existence.
"Kite? What the hell is a kite?" Irritation was very evident in Wetherton's voice. He had no idea what was going on, and he didn't like it one bit. But if he was the military's puppet, shouldn't he have had at least some clue? "Beyond something flown on a string, that is."
Blaine didn't react to the mention of the kite. Didn't do anything more than stare at her in that flat, calculating way.
Either he knew about the kite and wasn't about to give her any information about it, or he didn't know anything and wasn't going to admit it.
She ignored the minister and added, "The kite might yet come after you and Lloyd and anyone else involved in those projects. We'd like to prevent that and would appreciate the military's cooperation."
"The military takes care of its own, Agent Ryan." He tilted his head a little, his gaze intensifying, as if he was trying to see into her head and her memories without actually using his psi skills. Or maybe he was simply recalling the past and juxtaposing his memories of a flame haired child against the woman who now stood in front of him. Comparing the two and drawing God knows what conclusions. "And my involvement in those projects was in the area of training, as I'm sure you're already aware."
A chill prickled across her skin. His words were an indication that his comparison had drawn the obvious conclusion.
But for now, it was one she had to let ride.
"General, getting information out of the military is harder than getting blood out of the proverbial stone. So no, I have no awareness of either yours or General Lloyd's position in Hopeworth."
"And I would be surprised if that was the truth, Agent Ryan." He glanced at Wetherton. "If you wish to discuss the funding matter any further, please call."
Wetherton nodded. His expression was still a mix of confusion, irritation and concern. And she had every intention of finding out why.