At least that saves taxpayers some money, Sean thought to himself.
Katie snorted into his mind. It saves them, but that doesn’t save us.
Debris from the jet fell through their phased bodies as Sean altered their density enough to start them sinking toward the ground. The earth was a patchwork of green and brown, with roads crisscrossing the ground far below his feet where they dangled impossibly high above.
Does base know we came under attack? Annabelle asked.
They know. They’ve scrambled fighter jets from the nearest military base to try to—
She broke off as high-energy laser bolts ripped through where they floated in the sky. The passage of the bright bolts didn’t harm them in the phased state Sean was controlling, but it was real fucking unnerving to not see where the next strike was coming from.
Can’t come soon enough, he said grimly.
They’d be dead or worse if Sean hadn’t been on that combat jet, a fact that made him really fucking angry. But he didn’t have time to focus on his anger. He needed to get them all back down to earth, and his usual way wasn’t going to cut it right now. If he solidified them so they went into freefall to get down faster, it would be a sure sign to the enemy they were hittable targets. Sean was quick with his power, but he didn’t want to risk Katie or Annabelle if he didn’t need to.
The cold and wind this high up didn’t bother them as Sean kept his focus on getting them to safety. The ground below kept getting closer, but not quick enough to stop another attack that cut through their bodies. The second volley of high-powered laser bolts was followed by the jet itself, the internal mechanics of the machine ripping across Sean’s vision, momentarily blotting out the sun.
When he looked over his shoulder, he could see the stealth skin losing the reflective invisibility it created. Sean’s power could disrupt anything electronic—and that included a fighter jet that ran on an integrated computer.
Not ours, Annabelle said flatly.
How can you tell? Sean asked, genuinely curious.
I know everything that flies. That jet is twenty years old, but it’s Russian-made.
Not ours, but the pilot is one of Declan’s people, Katie said.
Sean thought about the investigation this attack would spawn and made a face. That doesn’t really help us.
The sonic boom from a squadron of Air Force fighter jets hit their ears as five of them streaked their way through the sky. The jets broke formation before they reached the spot where the three were floating, intent on eradicating the threat that had breached United States air space.
Annabelle whooped, her yell whipped away by the wind. That’s what I’m talkin’ about!
Can you get us down any faster? Katie wanted to know.
I’m trying, Sean said.
He got a little distracted when an explosion ripped through the air. All three of them looked to the right where a jet had exploded in midair, pieces of it falling to the earth below. Two fighter jets banked away from the target they’d just taken out, curving back around their way.
The enemy wouldn’t land, so they shot him out of the sky, Annabelle said.
Sean turned his attention from the sky to the ground, gritting his teeth. The sooner they reached the ground, the sooner they could maybe figure out what the hell their next course of action was. Luckily, that wasn’t his job anymore. Figuring out his own personal exfil was no longer on the table. Katie was in charge, and Sean happily ceded that task to her.
When they finally landed in the middle of a field—the middle of nowhere really—Sean breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Freefall, phased or otherwise, was not his favorite pastime. He didn’t let go of Katie or Annabelle, unsure of the status of the aerial fight above. He wouldn’t put it past the remaining enemy fighter pilots to strafe them.
“Were you able to get anythin’ from the pilot’s mind?” Annabelle asked.
“Nothing of note. He seemed to have been kept out of the loop like Jansen. I couldn’t dig deep before he got blown up,” Katie said.
“Couldn’t have happened to a nicer flyboy. Bless his heart.”
Sean snorted. “Yeah.”
Katie shifted on her feet, squinting against the harsh sunlight. It was spring, but it looked more like summer in the Great Plains. The field they stood in was a patchwork of brown prairie grasses with clusters of bushes and trees scattered in the distance. If the weather hadn’t become so harsh over the years, this area of Kansas might have been thriving.
The farms that used to fill the middle of the country had all faded away beneath high temperatures and lack of water. Tearing up the trees to make room for more fields nearly two hundred years ago had created the second great Dust Bowl, a manmade disaster exacerbated by climate change.
That’s when most of farming started to move northward, into the green zone near the border shared with Canada. Huge vertical farms were erected to better control crop yields and irrigation. Corporate ranches producing cattle, pigs, and chickens could no longer be subsidized by the federal government. The food and water shortages during that time had killed off a lot of people, and not only in the United States.
Standing on the cracked bones of the old world, Sean only hoped the MDF arrived soon.
“Base knows our rough location,” Katie said, and Sean half-wondered if she was reading his mind. “I can guide them to us once they’re within range of my telepathy. For now let’s find some cover.”
Annabelle pointed at a copse of trees in the distance. “What about over there?”
“Let’s go.”
Katie led the way, all three of them keeping a critical eye on the sky. The dueling fighter jets had disappeared over the horizon, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t return. He didn’t let go of Katie or Annabelle, not even when they were hunkered down beneath the flimsy shade found beneath a scraggly group of trees. Until they were in the clear, Sean wasn’t going to risk their lives.
Some fifteen minutes later, Katie broke the quiet that had settled between the three of them. “Fighter jets are returning to their base. They managed to take out another enemy jet, but the third got away.”
“Have to wonder where the hell Declan is hidin’ them,” Annabelle said.
“Private airfield maybe?” Sean mused.
“They could’ve launched from anywhere if they traveled through atmo. Someone’s head is going to roll, it just won’t be ours,” Katie said.
Sean nodded agreement. A breach of the country’s borders was no small issue and a review was definitely going to happen. “Stanislav must have helped Declan plan the attack. Question is, did they hope to kill all of us, or just Jansen?”
Annabelle snorted. “Shootin’ that bastard out of the sky is one way of keepin’ him outta the loop.”
Conversation drifted away from what they’d just survived to lighter subjects as they passed the time until their pickup arrived. A little over an hour later, Katie looked up at the sky and nodded to herself.
“Extraction in two minutes. Let’s meet them in the field,” she said.
“Stay phased?” Sean asked.
“I think we’re in the clear, but we’ll stick close.”
He unwrapped his fingers from their wrists. Together, the three of them left the copse of trees behind and trudged across the open field to a flatter area. The sun beat down on Sean’s shoulders, though the combat uniform he wore kept him mostly cool.
Annabelle pointed out the combat jet’s arrival first, her keen eyes easily locating the dot on the horizon. “There they are. You know who’s onboard?”
“Alexei and Trevor,” Katie said.
“Bet Jamie’s pissed.”
“Not a bet I’m willing to take.”
Less than a minute later the combat jet landed in the field, engines still running hot, ramp already lowered. The combat jet’s energy shield disappeared and they jogged up the ramp to safety. Alexei and Trevor waited impatiently inside, both men assessing everyone’s physical state.
“We’re fine,” Katie assured him.
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Trevor said.
Annabelle hurried past him to replace the agent piloting the combat jet. Katie and Sean dutifully allowed Trevor to do a field assessment on them while Katie reported back to base about what had happened in the air after the EMP hit. Alexei sat beside Sean for the entire flight home, his arm a warm weight over Sean’s shoulders.
“Stanislav not stopping,” Alexei said when they were halfway back to base.
“No,” Sean quietly agreed. “He’s not.”
Whatever was coming for them next, Sean knew none of them would like it, and he had a sinking feeling they were all massively unprepared. He didn’t know how they could win against someone who could see the future, but they had to find a way.
Somehow.
10
State of Distortion
“Keep me updated,” Jamie said over comms, trying not to clench his jaw. “Do not keep me out of the loop this time, sir.”
“You’ll be kept apprised of the situation. Ovechkina and the others are en route to base and will be debriefed accordingly,” Nazari replied, ignoring Jamie’s tone.
Jamie had a multitude of responses to that, but what came out of his mouth was a teeth-gritting, “Thank you, sir.”
The line went dead without the director saying goodbye. Jamie glared at the wall in his father’s home office before shaking his head. He’d have returned to base to greet his team, but he couldn’t get out of the dinner tonight. If it were anyone else but the President of the United States, he’d cancel and reschedule. But he’d practically been ordered to attend, and Jamie couldn’t escape.
“Something wrong?”
His mother’s voice broke through his thoughts and Jamie looked over at where she stood in the doorway. Charlotte wore a pristine white business suit, her red stiletto heels matching the red silk blouse she wore. Her makeup was perfect as always, but it couldn’t hide the tiredness in her blue eyes.
“Some members of my team were just shot out of the sky over Kansas while transferring a metahuman prisoner,” Jamie said flatly.
Charlotte’s eyes widened. “Are they all right?”
“Yes. Sean was onboard and got them clear. The fact they were attacked at all is disconcerting.”
If it were just to take Jansen out, then Stanislav could have done that in Europe. This attack on home soil was nothing more than Stanislav playing with them, much as a cat played with its prey.
“Do you need to leave?”
Jamie shook his head. “As much as I want to, I can’t be a nonappearance at dinner tonight.”
“Your father will be happy to hear that.”
“I’m not doing it to make him happy, Mother.”
He and Richard had been at each other’s throats where the media couldn’t see ever since the closed session hearing. The strain between them felt like a Cold War that had no end in sight. Jamie had done all the apologizing he was willing to do, but it was never enough for his father. Charlotte and Leah had done their best to act as mediators, but Richard was the consummate politician and Jamie would always be a Marine. They stood for different things, and their common ground was vanishing a little more with every day that passed.
“We’ll be leaving soon. Come join me downstairs,” Charlotte said.
It was a request, not an order, but one Jamie could easily grant. He shoved aside his heart-clenching worry for his team and sternly told himself to focus on his family tonight.
Charlotte led him to the wide-open kitchen, the spotless room empty of the usual private chef in charge of feeding his family. The chef had tonight off since Leah was out with friends and he and his parents would be at the White House.
Charlotte poured them both a cup of coffee, adding some cream and sugar to hers while keeping Jamie’s black. He followed his mother out to the back garden, the late afternoon sunlight warm and bright. They sat side by side at the patio table, coffee steaming in their hands. Jamie eyed the pair of Secret Service special agents standing guard along the rear property wall. The extra security was necessary, but it felt more and more claustrophobic with every week that passed.
“I understand you’ll be taking Gabriel along as your date to the State Dinner,” Charlotte said.
“I was ordered to.”
Charlotte took a sip of her coffee. “I’ve met him once or twice before at separate engagements. He’s a brilliant young man. Well-educated, charming.”
“Mother,” Jamie said warningly.
“You haven’t dated in years, Jamie. Perhaps you should think about doing so.”
“You know why I can’t simply date just anyone, Mother.”
“I’m well aware of the constraints you put on yourself, but they aren’t healthy. This is a stressful time for everyone, and I worry about you not having someone to lean on.”
Jamie bit his tongue, thinking about how he’d woken up with Kyle in his arms that morning. His mother’s worry was severely misplaced, but he couldn’t tell her she had nothing to worry about. She couldn’t know he’d been in a serious relationship for almost two years, that he was engaged, and that the love of his life was currently waiting back at base to get eyes on their teammates so Kyle could let him know they were safe.
The tightness in his chest was hard to place for a moment before Jamie recognized the ache for what it was.
He realized he wanted to tell his mother that he wasn’t alone, that she had nothing to worry about. Jamie wanted to wipe away her concern with his words in a way he hadn’t ever been able to do since his first day at Annapolis.
Except he couldn’t.
“I have people I lean on all the time, Mother. They hold me up just fine.”
Charlotte reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. “You need someone in your life, Jamie. Someone to share the ups and downs like I do with your father. I want that for you. We both do.”
I have someone, he thought. But when Jamie spoke, those weren’t the words that came out. “I know.”
“Dating someone might soften your image. If Gabriel isn’t to your tastes, I’ve several friends with sons who might be.”
Jamie fought not to flinch at that offer. “I don’t think dating anyone right now is the right course of action.”
“It never will be if you don’t take a chance.” She patted his hand before letting him go. “The media found out about the dinner tonight.”
Jamie was grateful for the change in subject. “Did we leak the information?”
Charlotte smirked, the faint wrinkles at the corners of her eyes a telltale sign she was due for a salon appointment. “Of course. We need to be a tad more ruthless, and getting ahead of the story so we can steer it in the direction we want is important.”
It wasn’t a new lesson, but Jamie let his mother explain the latest media strategy the campaign was set to roll out. Contrition for past mistakes, a resoluteness to continue onward, and the shadow of no comment overlying it all to give a hint of something more the media had yet to uncover. Apparently Jamie’s stonewalling at the closed session hearing was workable within the latest narrative Charlotte was building to prop Richard up.
“There you are,” Richard said sometime later from the patio doorway. “The car is ready.”
“Shall we?” Charlotte asked, arching an eyebrow at Jamie.
Jamie nodded and pushed the chair back. He got to his feet and helped his mother to hers. They left their empty coffee mugs on the patio table and followed Richard back into the mansion. Several Secret Service special agents waited for them by the front door, ready to escort them to the military-grade SUV out front.
Jamie would have preferred taking his own car to the White House so he could leave for home right after, but they had to give the appearance of one big, supportive family. Which meant he rode with his parents and kept an eye on their surroundings out of habit. Richard took a brief conference call halfway there and finished it right before their SUV pulled up
in front of the White House’s security checkpoint.
After everyone’s credentials were validated, the security gate slid open and the SUV rolled up the drive that curved around the North Lawn. Daytime tours of the White House had been momentarily suspended in the lead up to the State Dinner. Only the dedicated reporters of the White House press corps were there to document their arrival.
Jamie ignored the camera flashes going off in the distance, buttoning up his dark gray suit jacket after exiting the SUV. The dinner tonight was being touted as a working meal between old friends, and while the president shouldn’t have a favorite in the presidential election race, that was all but impossible in reality.
President Rodriguez was termed out, however, and so he didn’t need to worry about optics as much as everyone else. He could play up the need for a meeting to address national security concerns and the media would eat up the excuse. His father, Jamie knew, would take any help he could get at this point in the race.
The First Lady and the president’s chief of staff, Charles Argent, met them just inside the entrance hall. Ashley Rodriguez was a petite woman close to his mother in age who adored bright colors. The dress she wore for tonight’s dinner was an eye-searing fuchsia structured designer piece with an asymmetrical hem. She smiled widely at them, stepping forward to clasp each of their hands in hers in greeting.
“So happy that you could make it, Richard,” Ashley said.
“Always, Ashley,” Richard replied warmly.
“Michael is still working, but he’s expecting you.” Her brown eyes flicked over to Jamie, catching his gaze. “Both of you. Charles will be more than happy to escort you two to the West Wing while I catch up with Charlotte. Dinner is in thirty minutes in the Family Dining Room.”
“I’ll be sure to remind the president that he shouldn’t be late.”
Ashley chuckled. “See that you do.”
In the Requiem (Metahuman Files Book 5) Page 15