“You’re brilliant.” I shot him an admiring glance before turning to Kane. “John, I didn’t even think to ask, how did you get here?”
He raised an eyebrow at Hellhound. “Great minds think alike, apparently. I rented a superbike and stashed it a few miles up the road.”
I laughed despite the tension gathering in my shoulders. “Fabulous. I suppose you’re fully geared up, too.”
“Yes, but I don’t have it with me. I made a separate cache out in the woods, away from the bike.” Kane gave me a wry grimace. “I didn’t realize the situation was heating up here. Stupid. I should have been prepared.”
“Not stupid at all.” I reached over to squeeze his hand, knowing he’d been focused on what he believed to be a safe haven after his devastating mission. “You didn’t know what you were walking into so it made sense to leave behind anything that might compromise your cover.”
He shrugged. “Be that as it may. I have my Sig with me, of course, but that’s it.” He scrubbed both hands over his face before eyeing me tiredly. “I suppose you’ll be checking in with Stemp soon.”
“Yes.” I hesitated. “I don’t have to tell him you’re here if you don’t want me to.”
“It’s all right.” Kane’s words were flat with resignation. “I’ll hike out and pick up my gear, and while I’m out there I’ll call in my report. I’ll tell Stemp I’m staying here until the situation is resolved or until he gets a team out here to support you, whichever comes first.”
“Thank you. I’m really glad you’re here.”
Kane looked slightly surprised, and I wondered if he had thought I didn’t want him here. Or maybe he thought I’d feel threatened professionally if he attached himself to my mission without asking. Little did he know how abjectly grateful I was for both his and Hellhound’s presence.
“Are you geared up, too?” Kane asked.
“Yes, I have night-vision and thermographic, my Glock and a trank pistol, a tracking unit for Orion…” My words faded into a burst of adrenaline. I hadn’t checked on Orion for two whole hours. Jesus, I was such a shitty agent.
I whipped the tracking unit out of my jacket pocket and released my tension in a slow breath. “He’s over in the renters’ camp again.” I tucked the tracker back in my pocket and went on, “…a night-vision remote webcam, binoculars, and a bunch of secured phones. Oh, and hand restraints and a couple of spare mags for the trank gun and my Glock, and a bunch of extra ammo for both.”
“All right. How do you want to proceed?” Kane asked.
Shit, he was asking me? What the hell did I know?
“Um, I need to talk to Stemp first,” I said. I glanced at my watch. “It’s late enough now that we can move around fairly safely. Most of the members will be in bed. Nichele’s presentation was supposed to last until nine-thirty…” I trailed off again as cold fear gripped my throat. “Arnie, did you happen to go by the main building?”
“Yeah, I checked to make sure she was doin’ her talk in there around eight-thirty,” he confirmed. “An’ I didn’t see anybody around that looked like your Ratboy.”
I sent quiet but fervent thanks skyward. “Okay, good,” I said out loud. “So she should be safely holed up in the kitchen for the night by now and everybody else should be in their tents. I’ll walk my east loop to check in with Stemp, and then I’ll need to swing by and check on Moonbeam and Karma. John, do you need night-vision to find your cache?”
“No, I noted the GPS coordinates.”
I managed not to grimace. Of course he had.
Hellhound spoke into the momentary silence. “While you guys’re doin’ that I’m gonna go have a closer look at those explosives, an’ then scout for places where I can get a clear shot at the bridge an’ around the main buildin’ just in case those assholes decide to move. Don’t like havin’ all these civilians undefended.”
“Okay, but don’t go near the bridge,” I cautioned. “If you can’t see what you need with your scope, just wait until I have orders from Stemp. Remember Orion has night vision and he’ll likely be coming back across that bridge sometime tonight.”
“Don’t worry, darlin’, he ain’t gonna see me.”
“Okay…” I hesitated, wondering what I was forgetting.
“How many secured phones did you say you had?” Kane asked.
“A dozen.”
“Let’s each carry two,” he suggested. “Since we don’t have radios, we’ll need some way to communicate if there are new developments while we’re separated.”
“And you’re brilliant, too,” I said gratefully. “Wait here and I’ll go and get them from my cache.”
“Where is it?” Kane asked. “Will you be long?”
“No, it’s in the pond. I’ll be right back.” I pulled on my rubber boots and ducked out the tent flap.
Back inside the tent with my dripping box, I handed out the burner phones and we programmed the numbers into their speed dials. Then I tucked the tranquilizer pistol into my shoulder holster, strapped my survival knife to my hip, and pocketed a couple of sets of hand restraints before reaching for my own backpack.
Hellhound eyed me narrowly. “Expectin’ trouble, darlin’?”
I sighed. “I don’t know what to expect. And I don’t want to leave anything suspicious in my tent in case somebody searches it, so I’m bringing everything.”
I loaded the rest of the gear into my backpack, briefly considered my laptop, and then added it and the spare battery, too. At least if Stemp wanted a private conversation I could fire up the laptop out in the woods without having to trek all the way back here.
And Kane and Hellhound didn’t know about my secret communication system, or about Stemp’s family. I trusted both men with my life, but Stemp’s little daughter’s life was in my hands alone. What they didn’t know, they couldn’t be forced to tell under torture.
I shuddered at the thought of what Kane must have seen that had shaken him so profoundly. Whatever it was, I wouldn’t let it happen to Anna.
“Ya okay, darlin’? Ya look like ya just saw a ghost.” Hellhound’s worried voice brought me back to the present.
“Sorry. I’m fine.” I pushed a smile onto my lips. “So are we good to go?”
“Yes. When do you want to meet back here?” Kane asked.
“Um…”
I did a rapid mental calculation. Hike out, report to Stemp, possibly exchange a short conversation on the laptop, then come back via the kitchen to check on Nichele, and check Moonbeam and Karma’s tent to make sure they were in for the night. I’d have to stop and visit for a few minutes if Nichele saw me. But maybe I could just peek in the window…
“An hour and a half,” I decided. “Does that work for you guys?”
They both nodded and I shouldered my pack and turned for the tent flap.
“Hang on.” Hellhound’s voice stopped me.
I turned back. “What am I forgetting?”
“This.” He drew me into his arms and kissed me.
It wasn’t the chaste kiss he usually offered when Kane was present.
He didn’t linger unduly, but he didn’t rush, either.
“Be safe, darlin’,” he murmured against my lips. Then he stepped back, meeting Kane’s nonplussed gaze squarely. “Be safe, too, Cap,” he rasped. “But I ain’t gonna kiss ya.”
Kane let out a bark of laughter. “Thank God. You be safe, too.”
Hellhound grinned and ducked out the tent flap.
Kane turned to me and a wry smile twisted his lips. “Well…” He hesitated, then shrugged and pulled me tight against his body.
He definitely lingered over the kiss. By the time he released me I was breathless and my wobbling knees barely held my weight.
He cupped my face between his palms. “Be safe.” He kissed me lightly again and turned for the tent flap.
“Uh,” I croaked. “You, too.”
I stood blinking at the flap for a moment after he disappeared through it.
Okay, t
hat had been a little weird and awkward.
My lips turned up in spite of myself. But hell, if they were going to turn this into a competition, I could foresee only one winner.
Me.
My grin widened and I blew out the candles and left, securing the tent flap behind me.
Chapter 31
My smile didn’t last long. Creeping along the moon-dappled path with my head swivelling like a manic owl, I felt as though at any moment Orion would pop out in front of me wearing night vision goggles and carrying a detonator.
Though heaven knew why he’d want to blow the bridge.
A trickle of fear oozed down my spine. What if the bridge wasn’t the only thing rigged with explosives?
The fear gushed into an icy torrent. Oh, God, what if he’d rigged the main building, too? He could kill everybody in the commune with a single bomb. He could be on the other side of the river and still hear the damn Spirit bells ringing. He’d know exactly when everybody was gathered and he wouldn’t have to be anywhere near it when it blew…
I yanked out a burner phone and punched the speed dial. The phone rang once before Hellhound’s gravelly voice issued from the speaker.
“What’s up, darlin’?”
“Arnie, did you check the main building for explosives?”
Momentary silence on the other end confirmed my fear.
“Shit,” Hellhound rasped. “They wouldn’ta… Fuck! On my way! Call ya soon’s I know.” The line went dead.
Heart pounding, I stood on the dark path clutching the phone. Should I call Kane, too?
A moment later logic asserted itself. No point. Hellhound was closer, and in a few minutes we’d know.
And there was no reason for Orion to blow the building immediately, so Hellhound should be safe unless the Spirit bells rang.
Oh, God, let him be safe.
I forced my trembling legs to carry me farther down the path. I might as well continue on as planned. I couldn’t help Hellhound. I knew nothing about explosives. And if the building did blow, there would be nothing I could do anyway…
Shut up. It wouldn’t explode now; that didn’t make any sense. I’d just get my ass out to where I could call Stemp without being overheard. Hellhound would probably have a report for me by then and I could pass it all on to Stemp.
By the time I reached the outer limit of my trail’s loop, my heart was pounding. No word from Hellhound. Surely that was good news. If he’d found explosives he’d have called me right away.
Or maybe he’d found so many he was still itemizing them all…
The phone’s vibration made me jerk with nerves and I nearly dropped it in my rush to answer.
“What?” I demanded.
“Nothin’. All clear.”
“Oh thank God.” I hunkered down on the path, my legs shaking too hard to hold my weight any longer. “You’re sure?”
“Pretty sure, ‘less they’re in the walls or somethin’, but you’d hafta tear the whole buildin’ apart to find out. An’ they couldn’ta hidden anythin’ in that concrete part on the bottom. It’s like a fuckin’ bunker.”
“Right, and I can’t see anybody having a chance to hide bombs inside the walls anyway,” I agreed. “There are people in and out of there constantly.” I drew a deep breath and eased it out. “Okay, thanks for checking. Sorry for the false alarm.”
“No sweat, darlin’, it woulda been a helluva lot worse if ya hadn’t thought of it an’ it turned out to be rigged. I’ll get back to scoutin’ my positions. What’s your tracker say?”
I extracted it from my pocket and eyed the dot. “Orion’s still on the renters’ land so don’t go near the bridge yet.”
“Okay. Call me soon’s I’m clear to move.”
We hung up and I punched the speed dial for Stemp. At his crisp greeting I drew a deep breath and gave him as concise an update as possible. When I had finished, the line hummed with a few moments of thoughtful silence.
“I agree, there doesn’t seem to be any tactical reason to blow the bridge except to allow the renters to isolate themselves,” Stemp said. He hesitated, then continued, “Disable the explosives if it can be done without detection. I’ll leave Kane and Helmand at your disposal for the rest of the week. After that we’ll re-evaluate, and if the situation warrants it I’ll assign a support team.”
“Okay. What about the renters?” I asked. “Can you get the analysts to dig for any information about them?”
“Already done,” he replied. “No paramilitary groups are claiming to operate in the vicinity, and my parents don’t use a computer system so no records were available to hack online. If you knew where to look you might be able to find a paper rental agreement with some names, but I never saw my parents doing paperwork as a child so I doubt the records are kept in their tent or in the main building. I don’t know where else they would be.”
I sighed. “Okay. I’ll start digging tomorrow. Any more information on Skidmark?”
“No. There are no military pension cheques being issued to anyone of the correct age and personal details anywhere around Port Renfrew.”
“Shit.”
“Indeed,” he agreed.
“All right, we’ll see if we can disable the explosives and I’ll keep you posted.”
I hung up and checked the tracker again, but Orion’s red dot was still stubbornly planted on the renters’ side. I was turning to trudge back along the path when my phone vibrated again.
When I answered, Kane’s tense voice issued from the speaker. “I’m off the road about two miles out. Two five-ton moving trucks just passed here heading toward the commune. ETA less than five minutes.”
“Outside vehicles aren’t allowed,” I said reflexively.
Kane must have dialled Hellhound and me simultaneously on separate phones, because Hellhound’s slightly-muffled rasp spoke next. “I can get eyes on the main gate by then. Ya sure they were movin’ trucks?”
“They were standard cube trucks and I could see the rental-company logos in the moonlight. Who knows what’s inside, though. I’m not at my cache yet and I still have to report to Stemp. Unless you want me to come back now, my ETA at the main gate is about thirty minutes. Aydan, what are my orders?”
Orders? He expected me to give the orders?
“I don’t know,” I said. “I think it makes more sense for you to get your gear- …oh!”
“What?” Kane snapped.
“Sorry, I just realized I forgot to tell you that there was a cougar in the area a couple of days ago, so be careful. But I suppose that’s the least of our worries compared to bombs under the bridge.”
“Thanks for the heads-up, but I’m not too worried about a cougar. They tend to look for smaller prey than me. And I don’t know that there’s any need to get caught up in an artificial sense of urgency about the explosives, either. They’ve clearly been there for some time. I don’t like the timing of these moving trucks, but…” I sensed his shrug at the other end of the line before he continued, “Let’s keep this connection open until we know where those trucks are going, but maintain radio silence unless reporting.”
“Okay, I’m still about fifteen minutes out,” I said. “I’m going to switch over to my hands-free, so if I lose you I’ll call right back.” I burrowed into my pack and fumbled out my earbud and cable. “Okay. There. Can you hear me okay?” I waited for their confirmations before breaking into a trot. “This path loops close to the river so I’ll keep my eyes open,” I added. “But the trucks will probably be gone by the time I get there.”
After that I saved my breath for jogging, the phone clutched in one hand, the hands-free cable slapping annoyingly against my chin. My laptop dug into my spine through the backpack and the night-vision headset thudded my forehead.
I clenched my teeth and kept jogging, my embarrassing panting echoing over the open phone line.
A few minutes later Hellhound spoke in a barely-audible growl. “Got ‘em. Comin’ through the front gate an’ it looks l
ike they’re headin’ for the renters’ side.”
“Maybe they’re moving out,” I panted. “Skipping in the middle of the night without paying their rent.”
“Followin’ ‘em now…” Hellhound’s terse update reminded me I was supposed to be maintaining radio silence. I bit my tongue and kept moving.
“…An’ they’re over the bridge,” Hellhound announced a couple of minutes later. “Lost ‘em in the trees on the other side. Aydan, where’s Orion?”
I halted to juggle the phone and the tracker. “Still with the renters.”
“Well, if they’re loadin’ or unloadin’ somethin’ they’ll be a while,” Hellhound said. “I wanna find one more position around the main buildin’, an’ then I’ll be ready to start scoutin’ near the bridge whenever ya give me the all-clear.”
“Okay, Stemp says to disable the explosives if we can, so I’ll let you know as soon as Orion’s back across the bridge,” I agreed. “I’m almost at the edge of the commune, and I’m going to check on Nichele. I might have to close the connection for a while if she wants to visit, but I won’t be long and I’ll pick up if you call.”
Murmurs of assent floated over the line, and I slowed my pace to a walk as I reached the part of the path that wound up and down through small gullies near the river. Bad idea to go dashing over a hill with all my gear on display only to run smack into one of the commune members.
And anyway, I needed to dry some of my sweat before I showed up to visit Nichele. It might be tough to explain why I looked like I’d been working out in the middle of the night.
Then again…
My steps slowed even more as a wave of mortification engulfed me. First she’d walked in on that orgy scene in my tent and then I hadn’t showed up for her presentation. It would be far too easy for her to infer a plausible reason for my disheveled state. I suppressed a groan.
A moment later I was glad I’d suppressed it. The sound of nearby voices made me whip off my night-vision headset and click off the phone, stuffing both into my pocket.
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