Ultimatum

by Lynda Filler

  He stopped in front of a bulletproof plate glass window. It perfectly framed another magnificent Pacific Northwest sunset. He grabbed his Nikon and tripod and went to a door that was flush with the left wall. It opened silently with the touch of Luke’s fingerprint.

  What he needed right now was to lose himself in what fed his soul and capture a perfect image of the sun setting over the San Juan Islands. His mind strayed back to several years ago after his wife and daughter died. He’d spent four months hiking the West Coast trail from California to Canada. He loved people in small doses and never pretended to be anything other than a reclusive geek. Those four months turned into a soul quest for Luke. During that trek, he’d developed the concept of The Raven Group. From that moment on, he knew what he wanted to do with his billions.

  He brushed his hands through his straight greying brown hair. He stretched his lean six-foot frame and thought about a workout. There was something significant going on—apart from Luci’s arrival. He could feel it. The quick phone conversation with Jack was running through his mind. Jack’s Foundation would be a key player in his plan. With him on board, many would follow. And France’s answer one way or the other, would impact the lives of millions of people around the world.

  “Luke?”

  Raven turned at the sound of Magg’s voice. The Sun had fallen quickly into the ocean, and he’d been lost in his memories.

  “Hi, Maggs. What’s for dinner?”

  “Great, that’s all I am to you? A chef? I need to whip you into shape on the mat.”

  Maggie, one of Raven’s key operatives, could sense his moods and for the most part, ignored them. The fact that she was the only person who could get the best of him at Krav Maga—besides Luci was a huge plus. He’d stolen her away from the military when they’d reneged on a promise to let this six-foot Amazonian beauty play in Special Forces. His gain. Still, her best skill was reading his mind, and sometimes his heart.

  “You only get to beat me once a month. What’s up?”

  “RB called from Canada. He’ll leave our place in the ice fields early tomorrow and arrive by noon. He decided to drive. Do you know why he didn’t fly the floatplane?”

  “He has a meeting in Vancouver in the morning. Might as well drive.”

  “He said he’d heard from Zach.”

  “Yes.” Luke was not really paying attention. His mind was still on Luci. It had been another close call for her, but he’d promised to protect them, and he did.

  Maggs was hesitant; she had a feeling this might be news to Luke.

  “You know he’s in Syria.” Maggie turned towards the house and started walking.

  “Syria? No. What’s he doing in Syria?”

  “I have no idea. Zach asked RB to research a few things for him. He said things are not what they appear to be Syria.” RB was the critical analyst for Raven’s group and also his best friend.

  Luke looked off into the distance, the first stars appeared in the darkening sky.

  Maggs stopped. “Let’s eat by the fire pit. Would you like that?”

  “Sure.”

  She continued into the house, wondering what Luke was up to this time. He was holding something back for sure. Well, like everyone else in the Raven Group, she’d find out when she needed to know.

  Available on Amazon