Some Gave All Read Online Free Page A

daughter, Aliyah.
    Riley recently discovered the contract while he was cleaning out his garage. With the help of social worker Angela Alcina, he was able to contact Aliyah’s aunt, Indira Patel, who is her guardian, and present the gift certificate to Aliyah on behalf of her mother.
    “Her favorite flavor is chocolate-chip cookie dough,” Mr. Riley said.
    “This was so kind, Mr. Riley.” Cat was moved.
    He made a face. “Not as sweet as it looks. That aunt of Aliyah’s is a piece of work—the poor kid was covered in bruises. I called social services on her. And Miss Alcina, too. They all said they’d investigate but every time I call I go straight to voicemail. Last time I called—yesterday—Miss Alcina’s message mailbox was full.”
    Cat took note. Theoretically, she would never have enough time to follow up on that—it wasn’t relevant to her investigation, and it was out of her jurisdiction—but she knew that before the end of the day, she’d be making a few calls.
    “What about Karl Tiptree?” she asked. “Have you learned anything about him?”
    “I read his obituary on my computer,” he said. “It didn’t say anything about a serum. It said he was a ‘consultant.’”
    “Yeah, I’ll bet,” Vincent muttered.
    Mr. Riley’s eyes traveled to Lafferty’s portrait. Then he picked up one of the shot glasses and passed it from palm to frail palm. “Do you know what they’re talking about? That
my
little girl was turned into a
monster
? What does
that
mean?” He swayed as he walked. He was so agitated that Cat worried about his blood pressure; she reminded herself that Vincent was a doctor, and he would intervene if he thought it was necessary.
    “I haven’t slept since I got this note. I don’t know what to think. The world is full of crazies, you know? But if it’s true… if someone
did
something to her…” He trailed off. “Do you think they’re trying to tell me that she’s still alive and
she’s
doing these things?”
    Cat slid a glance at Vincent. He was clearly conflicted, yet he kept his silence. She understood his reticence, but she had a thousand questions of her own. When they had first connected, he had told her that he was the only surviving genetically modified supersoldier of the army’s Delta Company. But over time they had learned that there’d been others. Cat’s biological father had a list of them, and he programmed Vincent to kill them one by one. Now this. “FFNY” was wise to fear for Mr. Riley. However, they were also putting him in danger by linking him to the tragic events in Afghanistan.
    She reread the note and tried to remember if Vincent had actually told her that he had seen Lafferty die.
    What if she
has
evolved into this new beast that’s tearing New York apart?
    Mr. Riley shuddered. “I can’t go to my grave without knowing what happened to my girl. I’ve been her daddy since before she was born. I was on the older side, but I kept up with my little tomboy as best I could. Her real father was Hector Lafferty; a good man, a cop, shot in the line of duty. We had Roxie keep his last name to honor him, and I thought that was proper. But she was mine. My daughter.” He heaved a sob. “When our girl died, my wife, Amanda, just faded away. She kept saying she was going to look for Roxie in heaven. That our angel still needed us…” Agony stretched his vocal cords like violin strings. He seemed to shrink before Cat’s very eyes, fear and worry pressing down hard.
    As Vincent turned around, a muscle jumped in his cheek, a vein pulsed in his forehead, and the merest hint of a yellow glow flickered in his eyes. The rising tension in the room was affecting him, too. But where Mr. Riley shrank before potential danger, Vincent responded with the first signs of beast aggression. Cat tried to subtly clear her throat as a warning for him to calm down. Mr. Riley was lobbing emotional grenades at a sorely misused veteran with a deep connection to him. Even