Breaking Through

by King, D. Nichole

  I’m desperate for answers. Taking Riley to my bunk and showing him what Haskal broke into means I’ll have to offer up a little trust. It’s necessary though, I think, because he’s the captain and what he knows or doesn’t know could make or break this mission. And Cara, it seems, has a higher security clearance than Riley, which makes no sense. How did she get that?

  As long I keep distance between the two of us, keep our relationship professional like Kray advised, I won’t lose control.

  We walk through the curtain, Riley adjusting it closed behind us. “I’ll fix this tomorrow,” he says again.

  My gaze travels the length of his body, and I swallow. “Yeah, thanks.” I tear my eyes away from the sculpted arms that felt so good around me after my nightmares. “Over here.”

  He motions for me to take the chair. I obey. Riley stands behind me, both hands on the backrest. Warmth radiates off him, and I catch the scent of his aftershave. God, he smells good.

  I hand him the note Haskal gave me. “Cara’s information.”

  “Cara’s? How did you get this?” He holds it up without looking at it.

  “Haskal,” I out. We’re on the same team, right? Plus if I owe him now anyway, what I do with the crumpled slip of paper is my business. “This is Nate’s file.”

  I lean back so Riley can get a good look at my computer screen. He must read fast, because he reaches around me and pushes the down arrow button. My brain tells me to shift a little so my arm isn’t touching his, but I’m weak. So weak.

  When he reaches the bottom of the page, he doesn’t say anything. Instead, his other arm rounds me and rests on the desk, caging me between them. I want to nestle into him. Minty breath puffs against my neck, and a shiver races up my spine. I both hate and love the effect this man has on me.

  He moves the cursor to the search field and types in TorpMissionOne. No results found.

  He deletes his first search and enters J.R. Frank.

  “The person who recruited Nate,” I say, remembering what I’d read.

  Six hits appear.

  “Nate was recruited because of his talents. And he was recruited by J.R. Frank, but in the records I’ve seen, Frank’s name isn’t associated with TM1.”

  “Do you know Admiral Frank?” I ask.

  “Never heard of him.”

  “What about M. Mariz? The person who wrote the notes on Nate’s page.”

  “Her, I know. The other aquator I’ve met? That’s her.”

  “Did she know Nate?” I ask.

  “Maybe. Maybe not.”

  Riley scans the six Franks. Only one has an admiral rank, and he clicks on it. Like Nate’s page, Admiral J.R. Frank’s is adorned with a red ribbon across the top. Deceased.

  Riley doesn’t comment on that, though. Instead, he scrolls through Frank’s rise in the Navy, reading faster than I do. With Riley’s ability, he’s probably committing each word to memory as he goes. I get in two full sentences before I give up.

  When he hits the bottom of the page, I ask, “So?”

  “Frank orchestrated TM1, all right. He spent years off the coast of the Koreas, digging into their weapons program. Especially when it came to underwater weaponry and submarine warfare. He returned to the States with a proposal for a team—a highly specialized team from Brighton. His objective you already know.”

  “Did he die on the mission, then?”

  Riley shakes his head. “No. House fire just before departure, and his second-in-command became the top dog.”

  “Cara?”

  “You got it,” he says, now typing Cara Prior’s name into the search field. Unlike Nate’s and J. R. Frank’s, Cara’s page is virtually empty. Like mine. She has a picture and a short bio, and that’s it.

  “Shit,” Riley mutters. He swipes a hand through his hair, and despite myself, I can’t help but find the look of pure analyzing on his face as sexy as hell.

  “Dead end?”

  Riley doesn’t answer. He just leans over me again and types Tony Melene into the search field.

  “Who’s that?” I ask.

  “My superior. The man behind TM2.”

  “You think he’s hiding something?”

  “I think he’s high-clearance military and knows more then he lets on.”

  I don’t even try to read this time; he’s just too damn fast. A minute later, he’s finished and massaging the stubble on his chin.

  “And?” I prompt.

  “Nothing out of the ordinary. It doesn’t even mention his involvement with TM2.”

  “But that’s to be expected, right?”

  “Yeah, it won’t be listed on any of our profiles.”

  “He’s clean, then?”

  “Seems to be.”

  “What about M. Mariz?”

  “No involvement. After Frank’s death, she became the commanding officer by default, but the amount of red tape was too thick to have an on-site association. The mission progressed without her.”

  “Which means what?”

  “All she did was write the report.”

  Another dead end. Great.

  He goes quiet again, his gaze locking onto some point on the wall. I let him think. He’s still settled over me, my body trapped between his arms. That feeling of safety I get when he’s this near cocoons me. His omission about Nate still irritates me, but after what I read in my brother’s file, I realize Riley’s knowledge was limited.

  Riley straightens, the arms that are already just a memory slip away from me. My heart drops, but I ignore it. This is my reality.

  “What do you think?” I ask.

  “I think Melene was right when he told me TM1 was doomed from the beginning. But not for the reasons he believes.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’ve been duped. TM1, and quite possibly TM2, were never meant to succeed. It’s all a ruse.”

  “The torpedo…we won’t be able to stop it?”

  Riley swallows, the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching. “Nautia, we’ve been sent on a suicide mission.”

  “By Melene? Frank?”

  Golden irises cut to me. “No. By Cara.”

  Why the hell didn’t I see it before? I’ve been running my ass off, covering all possible bases of this operation, and missing the one piece staring me square in the face. Why, though?

  Son of a bitch!

  I pound my fists into the punching bag. Hit after hit only fuels my frustration. Cara made sure Admiral Frank was out of the picture first, then she orchestrated events so no member of TM1 returned home. To keep whatever deal she has with Ji-jin, none of us can return either. I’m leading a damned crew.

  Fucking pyro.

  Options. I need options.

  I have to refocus on solutions. It’s 2 a.m., and I’m alone in the weight room. No distractions. No bullshit. Just me, my thoughts, and the slow burn of muscles as I work them. I do a roundhouse kick to clear my mind.

  Turning the ship around means North Korea will launch its new, state of the art torpedo, killing countless civilians. Continuing on would guarantee the deaths of everyone on board, plus North Korea launching the torpedo. I’m in goddamn Morton’s Fork.

  The only way out of this is to change the trajectory completely. Operate on a new set of not-military-approved rules. Admiral Melene can’t help me now. There are nine other people on this ship, and those nine are my immediate responsibility.

  Ocean blue eyes flash across my mind. The pain I see in them makes me close my own, wishing like hell I could take all of the hurt away. Cara started this war, and I’m going to end it.

  I throw more punches into the bag, a plan forming in my mind. From the beginning, we’ve been split into Navy and Specials. No more.

  No longer is Nautia the wild card in this mission. Now, she’s the ace.


  I grab a towel from the rack and wipe the sweat from my face. I snatch up the T-shirt I tossed to the side. When I turn back, those eyes that had mesmerized me from day one stare at me from the doorway. Hair swept over one shoulder, Nautia shifts her weight. As she does, my gaze is drawn down her body, her bare legs exposed under a pair of too-short shorts. She’s barefoot too, toenails painted bright red.

  This girl is powerful beyond her knowledge, but the way she’s standing there, one hip resting against the doorjamb, reminds me she’s not just a beautifully wrapped weapon. Nor is she a grenade with the pin pulled, ready to go off at any second. No, Nautia is the perfect mystery. The kind that frustrates you, and turns you on at the same time. That you have to figure out before it drives you mad. That you long to protect, even if it kills you.

  She bites her lip and rolls her painted toes against the cold floor. My legs are telling me to go to her. My arms beg to be circled around her. My lips burn to kiss her, and my dick wants to be buried inside her.

  But I’m an intelligent man, so it’s my brain I listen to.

  “Can’t sleep?” I ask from where I’m standing.

  She shakes her head. “I keep thinking about Nate and Cara. She knew all this time what happened to my brother, because she gave the orders. She was behind all of it. She killed him, and in essence, all she ever told me was to get over it.” Nautia’s voice cracks as she fights the emotion flushing her cheeks. Still, I stay where I am.

  “I sat in a room, being counseled for two years by the woman who murdered my brother, and the only thing I can think about is why she wanted me on this mission. After telling me I’d never be recruited if I couldn’t control my ability, then wham! You come along, and now I’m here. That’s not a coincidence, Riley. Cara doesn’t make mistakes. She’s precise, meticulous. She has a plan, and she’s had it from the start. She took out my brother, and now she’s going to take me out.” Nautia inhales, her gaze averting to the floor as her chest expands. She slowly lets out the breath before coming back to me. “And she’ll take everyone on this ship down with me.”

  “I won’t let that happen,” I say. “Not to the crew, and I sure as hell won’t let her hurt you.” I ignore my brain now and let my feet carry me forward on instinct. She’s emotional. She’s pissed. And she’ll lose control.

  I move closer, holding her stare. Like me, she’s probably wondering what comes next. But she sought me out, not Kray. To be honest, it surprises me, given our recent history. I’m not complaining though. I want her to come to me. With everything.

  She backs into the doorjamb as I press against her. I slip both hands into her hair and hold them there. I tip her head up, forcing her to look at me. Moisture makes her eyes glisten.

  “You’re right, but Nate’s fate won’t be yours,” I assure her. “We will stop Yun Ji-jin, and we will stop Cara Prior. She’s not going to win this time.”

  “She’s already won, Riley. She has us out here, exactly where she wants us.”

  “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean she’s won. We just have to get creative.”

  “You have a plan?”

  I grin at her question. “Brains outsmart fire.”

  Nautia’s muscles relax, and she smiles back at me. “Someone’s cocky about his superpower,” she teases.

  I lean down until my forehead touches hers, our breath mixing in the space between us. “I hope soon I’ll get to say the same thing about you.”

  Her smile fades, her gaze dropping. “I don’t know, Riley. She knows everything about my power. She’ll use it against all of us.”

  “If that’s Cara’s plan, then she’s forgotten about one thing.”

  “Yeah? And what is that?”

  I pause until her ocean-blue eyes lift to meet mine. Then I grin. “Water puts out fire.”

  Heat trickles off Riley’s skin, making it hard to concentrate. Plus, his bare chest is right up against me, and I can’t breathe. I have no idea why I came down here when I could have used an axe or something to break down Kray’s door. Though, even then, I’m not sure he would have woken up. My best friend could sleep through the apocalypse. Still, spilling my guts to Kray doesn’t feel dangerous.

  I’m plastered to the doorjamb now. He’s so close, I shiver from his nearness, needing more of him. Needing him pressed against me in ways I can’t even imagine without pipes breaking or storm clouds rolling in. Damn, this man has me going crazy.

  “Cara has more experience than I do,” I say, working to keep the conversation on track. “Her power is like mine: tied to her emotional core. And she can control hers. I can’t control mine.”

  Riley’s mouth dips down to my own. “Then we need to double our efforts. Control can be learned.”

  I take a shaky breath, knowing I need get out of this trance he put me in, but loving it too much to move.

  Oh God, I can’t think!

  “More training?” I murmur, though once the words are out, they sound like I’m begging for mercy. I swallow. “Like, with waterspouts?”

  “That’ll be part of it,” Riley says, his voice low and husky.

  My eyes fall closed, the sound from his lips stirring flutters in my stomach. I squirm as I reach behind to grab onto whatever I can. Cold metal presses into my palms, giving me a moment of clarity. Had I done what I wanted, I’d be pulling him into the weight room and closing the door behind us. And then Cara wouldn’t have to worry about this mission anymore, because we’d all be at the bottom of the ocean.

  “See you tomorrow?” I quip, opening my eyes. “Up on deck?”

  Ugh. I hate myself already.

  Riley’s eyes roam over my face. Smoldering hazel taking in each feature. Slowly, he backs up, but not enough to let go of me. Air flows over my face as he exhales faster than normal. I don’t dare to look lower than his eyes. I can already feel against my belly how this conversation has affected him. That knowledge alone has me on the verge of succumbing; the visual would totally send me overboard.

  “After dinner,” he confirms, giving me a full-body onceover.

  “Riley,” I whisper, the weight of his gaze melting me like I’m ice. Drop by precious drop.

  He leans in again, gripping the back of my head. Golden irises sweep over my face. Lips hover millimeters from mine, warm breath tickling my skin. Just one small move from me, and I’d have what I want.

  Kiss me.

  “I can’t,” I say.

  “Because you don’t trust me?”

  “No,” I breathe out. “Because I don’t trust me.”

  Normally, Riley dismisses the five Navy commanders after morning laps. But not today. Today, all of us are lined up on deck: Specials on the right, commanders on the left, and Captain Barton in front of us. He walks back and forth, examining the line in silence.

  Then he stops, dead center. “TorpMissionTwo was assembled by Admiral Melene for one objective: to collect a sample of hydroplexasma from the weapons facility in Wonsan in order to test its chemical composition and replicate it, so that we can create a system to detect the invisible torpedoes and dispose of them before they cause damage. This mission is the answer to the failed TorpMissionOne, originally created by Admiral Frank two years ago.”

  Haskal’s gaze wanders to me, burning hot. I glance in his direction two people down from me. I haven’t spoken to him since yesterday, but he clearly knows I showed Riley what I found. His expression is unreadable, though whatever he’s thinking, Kray is hearing. Kray’s eyes flick to me too, his eyebrows high on his forehead.

  “Later,” I mouth to both of them, then turn my attention back to Riley. Even so, I immediately feel Kray in my head.

  Impatient much? I think.

  “Most of this you were told upon agreeing to join,” Riley continues. “Upon further research, I have concluded that TorpMissionOne failed not because the crew and Specials messed up, but be
cause the mission was supposed to fail. North Korea was one step ahead, placing a bug in the midst of the operation. This bug killed Admiral Frank, then took charge. I have reason to believe this same bug has orchestrated events so that this mission too will fail.”

  Riley holds up a manila folder. “You will find all necessary information regarding TM1 in this packet. Read it carefully. We are not only dealing with Yun Ji-jin’s elite, but also with a very powerful trainer from Brighton Academy. A pyro. After lunch, we will reassemble in Training Room C, where I’ll answer any questions and go over the new plan.” He hands out a packet to each Navy officer. “Commanders, you are dismissed.”

  Riley waits until they’ve left the deck before addressing us. When he does, he drops his captain persona, relaxing, and becomes one of us. He leans back against the railing; his legs stretch out in front of him and cross at the ankles.

  “At Brighton, I didn’t interact much with Cara Prior. Many of you, though, have. I’m going to be straight with you: Cara Prior won’t go down without a fight. She’s one of the most powerful trainers Brighton has ever seen, not only because she can create and wield fire, but also because of her position in the school. She has access to all student files and letters of recruitment, plus any counseling files a student may have while under her care. Bottom line: she knows everything about each of us and what we’re capable of. She also knows our weaknesses.”

  “Wait,” Britta pipes up. “Cara Prior is the mole?”

  Riley nods.

  “Do we know this for sure? I mean, Brighton trainers are tested in their skill level, psychological level, and patriotism. Why would Cara sell us out?” Britta asks.

  “For a shit-ton of cash,” Haskal answers, surprising me. My gaze, along with everyone else’s, turns to him. He pushes a hand through his hair. “Fuck it. Cara came to me the day you recruited us. Asked if I’d like to earn myself five million and get off the government recruitment list. The five mil sounded sweet, but to be off the government’s radar? To be free of this curse?” He jets his hand out, and a wrench flies through the air and into his palm. “I asked what I had to do.”