“Any update on Thunder Island?” asked Heath.
Zane looked away from the screen for a second. The sound of his fingers racing across the keyboard could be heard. “I monitored three air crossings to Thunder Island over the last two hours. It’s hard to get accurate footage. Every drone we send gets blasted out of the sky. I’ve hacked into State satellites and pulled images from those.”
“Is it heavily guarded?” asked Danni.
“It’s not so much the people but the tech you need to be wary of,” said Zane. “They’ve got armed drones surrounding the island. There are supply bays by the dock. Then it’s a single road leading to the center of the island. That’s where the copters make their landings.”
“That’s where they have the dragon hybrids,” said Anastasia.
“You’re going to have to disarm the drones before you make a landing on Thunder Island,” said Zane. “Get past those, and any militia on the ground won’t be a problem. They’re confined to the building in the middle of the island.”
“Guarding the precious cargo,” said Danni. “Anything else?”
“There’s something weird going on,” said Zane.
“Define weird.”
“Well, there looks to be a large number of animal cages on the island.”
“Any animals inside?” asked Lincoln.
“Impossible to see. But they don’t have standard cage bars,” said Zane. “They’re twice the thickness of a normal cage bar.”
“What do the State want animals for?” Danni tapped her fingers on the table. “They outlawed pet ownership as soon as they took over. Exterminated all domestic pets. The same with any captive animals.”
“That’s another reason to hate them,” said Arlo. “Who doesn’t love a friendly dog or a cute kitty?”
“Whatever is in there, you need to be careful of it,” said Zane. “I detect heat signatures inside the cages. My advice would be to give them a wide berth and stick to the building itself.”
“What if they’re keeping dragon hybrids in these cages?” Anastasia sat forward in her seat, her hands clasped together.
“The signatures are too big to be a normal dragon hybrid,” said Zane.
Lincoln’s pulse kicked up a gear. “You don’t think they’ve done it, do you? What if these cages are holding dragons?”
Zane’s eyes widened. “I’m not sure. I mean, if they were, they’d be small dragons. Infants themselves.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Send the information you have,” Danni interrupted. “We’ll take a look at the cages and decide whether it’s worth the risk to investigate them.”
“You’re the boss,” said Zane. “Sending the intel now.”
A screen slid down at the front of the room and images flickered across it, showing schematics of the building and the layout of the island. Zane was right; other than the building in the center of the island and the storage facilities by the dock, everything else had gone. This island had once been a thriving tourist hotspot, famous for its sandy beaches and sailing.
Lincoln stared at the flat landscape and rubble. The State had wiped out the entire population, just to claim the island.
Anastasia glanced at him with a concerned expression. He realized how hard he was squeezing her knee. Regretfully, he let go.
“Heath, what’s your plan?” Danni raised her eyebrows.
“The center needs to be our priority,” said Heath, as he studied the images that flashed across the screen. “I can send people to investigate the cages while we’re inside, if you think they’re of value.”
“And the drones?”
Heath looked over at Lincoln. “Fancy practicing your long-range shooting while on board a moving vehicle?”
“Sounds like my kind of gig,” said Lincoln.
“You’ll need to be fast and accurate,” said Zane. “There are a dozen drones protecting the island.”
“I’m always fast and accurate,” said Lincoln.
“And modest,” muttered Anastasia.
“The tide will turn and be in your favor in the next five hours,” said Zane.
“That gives us enough time to get to the coast,” said Heath. “We can make the final prep while we travel.”
Lincoln looked at Anastasia, who was already getting to her feet. He didn’t want her to come with them, but from the fury in her eyes, this was one mission he couldn’t stop her from being on. “You’re going to want in?”
“Try and stop me.”
“No! I want the two of you to do what Clive asks,” said Danni.
“But what about the dragon hybrids?” Anastasia glared at Danni and then at the screen.
“You collect whatever it is Clive wants you to. It’s the perfect opportunity to get ourselves onto that island without raising suspicion.”
Lincoln nodded. Damn, Danni was a great strategist. “And you’ll be our welcoming party when we get to the dock?”
Danni nodded and looked at Heath. “Assemble a team to meet with Anastasia and Lincoln when they’ve made their collection. We need to see what the State are doing on Thunder Island.”
TWO HOURS LATER, ANASTASIA sat next to Lincoln in a discreet, black sedan. The windows were tinted, the ID number fake. Any drone who scanned them would think they were Mr. and Mrs. Drummond from Alpha Zone two. All thanks to Kade and his hacking skills.
The tension in her joints made them creak. “You’re going to have to stop me from ripping Clive’s head off when we meet him. That guy gives me the chills.”
Lincoln flashed her a sharp grin. “Join the queue.”
“What do you think he’s expecting us to transport?”
He stopped the car and looked over at her. “No idea. But we get in, take the package, whatever it is, and leave. We can’t afford to make Clive suspicious.”
Sucking in a breath, Anastasia nodded. “I’ll be on my best behavior. But just know, I’m silently willing him dead every time we share the same air.”
They left the sedan and strode to the back door of the club. The place was quiet. No drunken, sweating fight voyeurs to get in their way. It would be different in a couple of hours.
Lincoln rapped on the door. It was opened by a black-suited guy wearing wraparound shades.
“We’re here to pick up a package from Clive.” Lincoln looked past the muscle into the gloomy corridor.
“He’s not here.”
Anastasia repressed the urge to grab him and shove him into the wall. “Clive didn’t leave anything? Something to go to Thunder Island?”
The guard twitched. “You Taser and Devil Killer?”
Anastasia forced a fake smile. “You’ve seen me in action?”
“You look different with clothes on.” The muscle tilted his head at Lincoln. “He beat you.”
Her fake smile grew wider. “Only just. And, I’ll let you into a secret, I let him win.”
The guy snorted. “Not likely.” His gaze ran over Anastasia. “Wait here.” The door slammed shut.
“Friendly guy,” muttered Lincoln.
“Didn’t get hired for his charm and personality, that’s for sure.”
The door opened a few seconds later. The muscle handed a large metal box to Lincoln.
“What’s inside?” Anastasia looked at the lock on the box.
“Nothing for you to worry about.” The muscle shook his head. “And don’t decide to get nosy. Clive doesn’t like that. Deliver it as per your instructions.”
“I don’t care what’s inside,” said Lincoln. “So long as we get paid.”
The muscle nodded. “Clive’s good. Do what he asks and you’ll get your credits. And you’ll need this.” He handed Anastasia a card. “There’s credit on there to hire a ride across the water. You’ll need to take your own weapons.”
“How generous.”
The muscle gave her a humorless smile. “Didn’t say the job would be easy.”
Curiosity burned through Anastasia as they returned to the sedan and st
ashed the box on the back seat. She climbed in next to it.
“You not sitting up front with me?” Lincoln cruised away from the club.
“I want to see what’s inside.” She tested the lock, but it was a solid metal bar, with a combination. It wouldn’t budge.
“You’ll make Clive angry if you tamper with his things,” teased Lincoln.
“Don’t you want to know what’s in here?”
“Of course. When we get to the dock, give it to Kade. He’s an expert in breaking through any sort of lock or code.”
Lincoln commed Heath. He let him know they’d made the pick-up and to meet at the dock.
They traveled in silence for a while, until Lincoln turned on the radio. The silky-smooth voice of Octavia, the DJ on the pirate radio station Flame, slid through the car.
“Time for a little tune to get the blood pumping and stoke the flames. And anyone standing too close to the embers might like to take a step back. I hear it’s going to get hot tonight.”
Anastasia’s head shot up. “It sounds like she’s talking about you.”
Lincoln chuckled. “She does talk to us. I don’t know how Octavia does it, but she has a handle on our movements. She sometimes sends us warnings about State movements, as well. I’ve no clue who this woman is, but she’s something of a guardian angel to us. Arlo loves her choice of music. And Jude, well, he’s just totally in love with her.”
“Even though they’ve never met?”
“He says it’s her voice. Like warm honey and melted chocolate. The guy is crazy over her.”
“And you?” Anastasia regretted asking the question as soon as it popped out.
His gaze met hers in the rearview mirror. “I’m not looking for that kind of woman.”
She swallowed the rest of her questions, and focused on the box. The music played by Octavia was just her sort of thing; loud, lots of guitar and drums, and men with gravelly voices.
An hour later, the car slowed. Anastasia realized her eyelids had been drooping and shook herself awake.
“This is our stop.”
She looked around, seeing nothing but storage containers and gray lock-up garages. “Where are the others?”
“Give them a second. They’ll have the Invis-Tech cloaking them.” As he spoke, a heat haze shimmered in front of them. The Cobra appeared.
Heath climbed out the driver’s seat of the Cobra. Jude followed from the other door. Arlo and Kade emerged from the back. They all wore protective gear and had their weapons with them.
Anastasia followed Lincoln as he climbed out and headed toward the others.
“Everything go okay?” asked Heath, his gaze shifting to the sedan.
“The package is on board.”
“What are you carrying?”
“It’s locked. A little job Kade might like to take a look at,” said Lincoln.
Kade walked to the car and looked at the box. “Won’t be a problem.”
“Run a scan over it first,” said Heath. “Check it’s nothing toxic or explosive.”
Kade nodded, grabbed a bag from the Cobra, and ran a handheld scanner over the box.
“Anything bad?” asked Anastasia, anxious to see what was inside.
“Nothing pinging,” said Kade. He hunched over the box, twirled the lock a few times, and it sprung open.
“I told you he was good,” said Lincoln.
Kade inched the lid open and looked inside.
“What is it?” Anastasia bounced on her toes.
“Blood and tissue samples,” said Kade. He lifted out a sealed beaker.
“Human or dragon hybrid?”
“Can’t tell without analyzing it,” said Kade.
“Whatever it is, if Clive’s sending these samples to Thunder Island, it can’t be for any good reason,” said Lincoln.
Heath scrubbed a hand across his chin. “You can guarantee that.”
Lincoln walked over and pulled a pulse laser protection vest out of the Cobra and handed it to Anastasia. “I know you think you’re indestructible, but this will take the worst of any blast that hits you.”
“I’ll take it.” Anastasia shrugged the vest over her head. “I know not to play with lasers.”
“And this.” He handed her a helmet.
She glared at him, but took the helmet. With her dragon hybrid abilities, she could heal from almost any illness, but needed to be in top form to make sure she got the dragon hybrids out. These were her people. She would not let them down. “What are we using to cross the water?”
“Someone is meeting us from our southern bunker with a vessel. They’re better equipped for sea travel than we are.”
“Our contact will be here in five minutes,” said Heath.
“And the creatures you talked about at the briefing,” said Anastasia. “What sort of thing lives in these seas?”
“Things from your nightmares,” said Arlo.
“You’re not talking about sharks?”
“Think bigger and nastier,” said Arlo. “They love nothing more than sucking boats under water and eating whoever is inside.”
“Not helping,” growled Lincoln.
“We encounter all sorts of nasties underground, as well,” said Arlo. “Giant versions of insects and arachnids, in particular. Imagine coming face-to-face with an eight-foot-long spider with venomous fangs and you in mind as his lunch.”
“I’ll make sure I keep an eye out for those.”
“I blame the State for them,” said Kade.
“So do I,” said Arlo. “For everything.”
Kade punched Arlo’s arm. “I mean, these creatures wouldn’t have mutated so quickly on their own. The State have been feeding them something, or releasing these creatures into the sewers, to help them get rid of humans.”
“Like an army of scary, many-limbed monsters,” said Arlo, wiggling his fingers in the air.
“I’d place a lot of credits on the fact the State have engineered these monstrosities to act as another check against humans,” said Kade.
The group fell into silence. Anastasia twisted her fingers anxiously into her hair. So much had changed in the last couple of months. She’d gone from being a slave to becoming a free dragon hybrid, and had uncovered more of the cruel State behavior against her kind. It made her blood boil thinking about the sick things they did to innocent dragon hybrids.
Lincoln leaned closer to Anastasia. “Everything okay?”
“Not really.”
“I can hear your teeth grinding. I know it’s difficult, but try to relax.”
“When I think how low the State have stooped by stealing infants, it makes me sick,” said Anastasia. “What do you think they’re doing to them?”
“Don’t think about that,” said Lincoln. “You’ll only drive yourself mad. Focus on the fact we can get them out and give them a safe place to live. All of this will be a distant memory for them, soon enough.”
“And the women,” said Anastasia. “If they’ve taken ones of reproductive age, it means they’re planning to use them in breeding experiments. Why else would they be so selective?”
“It’s a possibility,” said Lincoln. “But maybe they took those women because they need them to care for the babies.”
“They won’t care for the babies,” said Anastasia. “They’ll use them up and dump them when they’re done.”
“I never figured you for the maternal type.”
Anastasia sighed and rolled her shoulders. “Neither did I. I always found having kids around annoying. They make so much noise. And never stop eating.”
“That description reminds me of Arlo.”
She smiled, and glanced at Arlo. “Your brother is full of energy.”
“He’s got nothing to focus on,” said Lincoln quietly, “other than his bombs. They keep him occupied. He was the same when he was a kid. He’d be the first to wake up and come bouncing on our beds. Then launch himself down the stairs, eat everyone’s breakfast, and be out the door five minutes later,
insisting we play with him. He never sat still, always on the move. Our parents often wondered what they’d do with him when he grew up, what kind of profession he’d go into. He needed something to tame his restlessness.”
“He followed them into the military?”
“We all did,” said Lincoln. “The discipline and order suited him. He got a few reprimands for stepping outside the boundaries, but never anything serious enough to get kicked out.”
“Not like you.”
“That’s right,” said Lincoln. “I messed up big time.”
Anastasia felt a tug of surprise in her stomach. This was the first time Lincoln had confessed he missed being in the Marines. He’d always made out he was glad to go. “What were you like as a kid?”
“Cheeky,” said Lincoln.
“Even back then he was playing the field.” Kade grinned at his brother, as he checked his weapon. “He had half the girls in college swooning over him, and the other half too embarrassed to look him in the eye.”
“Some of them must have been immune to your charm,” said Anastasia. “You’re not that good looking.”
“You’ve noticed I’m good looking?” Lincoln grinned at her. “There were a couple who thought I was a jerk.”
“The ones he cheated on,” said Kade.
“I’ve never cheated,” said Lincoln. “I’m always clear from the beginning about a relationship’s status. If a girl ignores the rules, then I can’t do anything about it.”
“What about the time you dated two sisters?” said Kade. “The day they discovered what he was up to, they ran to our house and set fire to his bike.”
“And it was a lovely bike,” said Lincoln. “I still think fondly of that bike. It was my favorite low rider.”
“Sounds like you deserved it,” said Anastasia. “I’d have set fire to your house if I caught you cheating on me.”
“Like I said, I’ve never cheated,” said Lincoln. “I promise, I’m honest and open with my relationships.”
Anastasia snorted. “Sounds like it.”
“What about your childhood?”
“What about it?” She tensed and leaned away from him.
“Were you a wild child in school?”
“Not so much,” said Anastasia. “Kept my head down and got on with the work.”
Lincoln (Ember Quest Book 3) Page 6