Chapter Seventeen
Lara quickly made her way through the woods. Luckily, the paper had splurged for GPS on the phone. She actually didn’t think Peter would have normally, but the salesman made a crack about being cheap. Peter hated to lose face, so he bought the upgraded phone. She might just have to kiss that bastard the next time she saw him, or at least not beat the shit out of him.
“Well, hello, Little Red Riding Hood.”
Lara nearly stumbled over a branch in the woods at the sound of Nyx. She turned and found Jenna and Nyx just six feet away. Nyx grinned at her through the woods. Her ghostly blue eyes lit her face.
“You scared the shit out of me,” Lara hissed.
“And, how, exactly, would you have felt if one of those people from the compound caught you?” Jenna said and scowled at her.
Lara brushed off her pants, a little ashamed that she hadn’t really thought this through. Reporters didn’t go in armed.
Well, some did, but most didn’t. They were supposed to be neutral. Of course, this wasn’t exactly some war-torn country. This was really her just getting the inside story.
“You’re right,” she said quietly.
“Damn right we are,” Nyx said. She smiled and stepped forward. “Now let’s go see what those weirdos are up to.”
Lara stared at them both in shock. For the first time, she noticed they were both packing heat.
“Are you serious?”
Jenna nodded.
Nyx winked at her. “Don’t let the pretty face fool you. We’re still just as lethal as those morons.” She nodded behind her to where their houses were.
“Well, I wouldn’t say just as,” Jenna said quietly.
Nyx snorted. “’Kay, Annie Oakley.”
Jenna frowned and stormed off ahead. “I really wish you all would quit saying that.”
“What?” Nyx shrugged. “He’s proud of you. You took out someone from quite a distance. That’s impressive.”
Lara followed along, glad for the company and to know more about the women.
“You’re a sharpshooter?” Lara asked.
Jenna gave a half smile. “I’m good with a gun.”
Lara got the impression she was more than just good if they were calling her Annie Oakley.
“So what’s the plan?” Nyx asked.
She was surprised to find the hybrid woman was addressing her.
“Well,” Lara said. “I was thinking we’d just sneak inside and find out what’s happening. We need to know what’s going on with those trucks. Maybe we’d be able to slip in on the back or something.”
Nyx rolled her eyes. “Or we could just give ourselves up right now.”
Lara frowned. It sounded like a good plan to her. It was how she’d seen others do it. So what if it was in the movies? It was believable. Not everyone could be a super-soldier hybrid.
“Utilizing the trucks isn’t such a bad idea,” Jenna said. “How about we let Nyx scale the wall and open the side door? Didn’t you say there was one the robed guy came out of?”
Lara nodded. It wasn’t far from the main gate.
“Of course,” Nyx said and sighed. “Leaving the hard work to me again.”
Lara opened her mouth to say something when Jenna stopped her. She leaned in real close.
“She likes the attention,” Jenna said. “You just gotta give her props.”
Nyx glanced sideways at them and shook her head. “Super-hearing,” she mumbled.
They reached the forest line and stared at the massive wall ahead. It seemed nearly impossible that Nyx could scale it.
Slowly, the trucks came in, and the heavy gates opened.
“I’m off,” Nyx said.
She raced through the tall grass, staying just outside the light from the cars and wall. Lara could just barely make her out as she reached the side of the wall, specifically a pocket that was only visible from one direction.
“She’ll be fine,” Jenna said. “They have extraordinary abilities. They are silent but deadly hunters that will stop at nothing to get what they need to.”
“I’m glad you think so.”
They jumped at the sound of Rem’s voice. He and Magnus were crouched just behind them.
Jenna smiled at him, and he smiled back.
“I had a feeling I’d see you,” Jenna said.
Rem snorted. “You don’t say.”
Lara looked to Magnus and could tell their meeting wasn’t going to be as playful. She opened her mouth to say she was sorry but stopped when he pulled her hard against him.
“Don’t ever run off like that again,” he mumbled against her hair.
Lara nodded and hugged him back. His nearness comforted her.
“So what’s the plan?” Rem asked.
“Nyx,” Jenna said and nodded as the side door peeked open just a bit.
A slim hand came out and raised a finger.
“Did she just?” Lara trailed off, not quite sure what she’d just seen.
Rem sighed. “That’s our Nyx. I think she must have been flipping those bastards at the Group off in utero. It just comes so naturally.”
The men stood. “We’ll be back,” Rem said.
Jenna snorted loudly. “Oh, I don’t think so,” she said and raced across the field, managing to stay low. “But you’re welcome to tag along.”
Lara looked to Magnus, whose face suggested he wasn’t happy.
“I have to,” she said to him. “I just have to know. I have to see it with my own eyes. Can you understand?”
He paused for a moment and nodded.
“Stay low,” he said quietly. “And if shit starts going down, you run. You keep running and don’t look back.”
She nodded, but her heart said she wouldn’t. If things started to go bad, she wanted to be with him. Even if it meant her last moments on this Earth, she’d take it.