I’ve never been so scared in my entire life as when I got into that computer room and Hugh was gone. Life has changed so much, and I fear it’s just getting started.
—Dr. Eleanor Smithers, Brigade Notes
Ellie ran through the hallway and followed the blood just in time to see two men load an unconscious Hugh into a van. She tried to run after them, and Deke stopped her with an arm around her waist. “Let me go,” she yelled, her body shaking.
“Later.” The soldier forced her back inside and put her to the wall. “Eleanor. Listen to me.”
Panic heated down her body, seizing her lungs. She couldn’t breathe. “Deke. We have to get him.”
Deke’s eyes softened even as his jaw hardened. “We will. But first things first. Those guys did something, and we have to figure out what it was and then fix it. If this place goes, we’re all dead. Along with thousands upon thousands of other people.”
She gulped in air and tried to stop crying. Okay. Her hand shook. She wiped her face. Deke was right. “I need the security feeds.”
Deke took her arm while bringing the phone to his ear. “Ivan? Hugh just got taken from the power plant. Hack into any and all cameras and track him. If you need satellites, contact General Boseman. Nora has the number.” He clicked off. “We’ll get Hugh back. I promise.”
She wiped more tears away and ran back to the computer room. “I can go in reverse with the security feed from right now and track that guy. The one who shot Hugh.” She sat and started typing, bringing up video. How badly had Hugh been shot? It seemed like there had been a lot of blood. God. Was he okay? Why had they taken him? It had to be for information about this mess or even other nuclear power plants.
Deke leaned over to see over her shoulder. “Keep going.”
They watched the video in reverse, switching camera angles every few minutes.
“Wait. There.” Deke pointed to the screen. “Slow down.”
Ellie slowed the video and then stopped breathing. Yusef had entered one of the other buildings, climbed stairs, and stood over huge pools of nearly luminous blue waste. It was oddly compelling. “Hugh was right. Isn’t that the spent fuel?”
Deke straightened. “Yeah, and that’s a bomb.” He breathed out and moved for the door. “Keep watching and make sure they didn’t plant any other explosives. Let me know as soon as you do.”
Ellie glanced up, her body chilled beyond cold. “What are you going to do?”
Deke shoved open the door. “Find Connor and figure out how to defuse this bomb.” He grimaced. “I don’t know shit about explosives.” Then he disappeared down the corridors.
Ellie turned back to the video. There couldn’t be any more explosives. Right?
She traced Yusef’s movements from the time he’d arrived at the facility until he’d taken Hugh. Her heart sped up as she watched the feed of Yusef meticulously planting two big bundles of explosives around the nearly luminous blue waste pools, just like Hugh had predicted. The bomber had worked alone.
Then her breathing just up and stopped when he planted a third bomb behind what looked like a bunch of equipment above the pool.
Then he exited and made his way to the computer room, where he’d run into Hugh.
God. She had to tell Deke about the third explosive. She launched herself at the door, ripped it open, and barreled right into Hugh.
She bounced back, and he grabbed her arms to keep her from falling. “Hugh.” She jumped right back into his warmth, her chest bursting. “God. You’re okay.” Tears pricked her eyes. Wait a minute. She leaned back and grabbed his right arm. He’d tied what looked like a bunch of rope around the wound, and it was already turning red.
His eyes were clear, though. “I’m okay. You?” He almost frantically ran his good hand down her arm.
“Yes.” She gulped, finally getting centered at seeing him standing in one piece. “You’re okay. I wanted to come get you—”
“There’s at least one bomb.” He kissed her quickly on the forehead and tried to push her toward the exit. “I’ll go find it. Get to the car.”
Not a chance. She grabbed his hand and started running down the hallway toward the facility containing the waste storage. “He planted three explosives in boxes with locks, and one is hidden. We have to get to Deke.”
“Shit.” Hugh took the lead, running through hallways and down corridors, outside, and to the storage facility. He led her inside and up two flights of steel stairs.
He paused at seeing Deke and Connor hunched over a box next to another box with the pools below them, bright and blue. “How bad is it?”
Deke glanced up. “Shit if I know. It has a combination lock. We could break it open, but I don’t know how volatile this thing is. You?”
Hugh edged forward and crouched to check out the bomb. He gingerly grasped it.
“Whoa,” Connor said, standing to his full height. “What if you joggle it or something?”
Hugh lifted the box and looked under it. “We’re good. There has to be a timer or a detonator that they’ll hit as soon as they’re out of range, and I can’t see how much time we have. But they should be to safety already, so any second this could go off. Grab the other one.”
Deke shrugged and gingerly grasped the box, holding his breath.
“There’s a third box.” Ellie ran around the equipment and grasped the final box. Her hands were shaking. “What now?” She backed away from the giant blue pool of death.
“This way.” Hugh turned and jogged around the railing back the way they’d come. “It’s plastic explosives. Won’t go off if you run. So fucking run.” He launched into a faster movement.
Ellie held her breath and ran after Deke, her heart thundering. She had a damn bomb in her hands. This was insane. The air whooshed out of her and she sucked more in, conscious of Connor on her right.
“Do you want me to take it?” he asked.
“No.” She shook her head, afraid to move it more than she already was. Her footsteps pounded down the corridors after Hugh until they burst into the parking lot. Shocking rain splashed into her. When had it started raining?
Thunder rolled high and loud above them.
“This way,” Hugh bellowed, running for their SUV. He gently placed his box on the floor in the back. “Keys.” As Deke winced and put his box next to Hugh’s, Hugh grabbed the car keys out of his jeans’ pocket. Then he turned and took Ellie’s box to slide on the seat. He slammed the door shut.
Ellie grabbed his arm. If they were going to blow up the SUV, they should really run.
He kissed her hard and then jumped into the driver’s seat. “Love you, Ellie Mae.”
“Wait—” Deke grabbed the door handle, but Hugh hit a button and locked it. The engine ignited. Hugh punched the gas pedal, and the SUV swerved and then gained speed, heading for the river.
Ellie yelled for him, her body going numb. Shock? Stress? A way to avoid pain?
The SUV sped up and then arced, sailing right over the embankment toward the rushing water. “Hugh!” she screamed, bursting into motion and running across the asphalt. “Did he jump?”
“Don’t know,” Deke said, running right alongside her.
They reached the edge.
The SUV hit the water with all four windows down and slowly sank.
Ellie tried to scramble down the bank but Deke held her back. “Wait a minute.”
The earth seemed to still. Then the SUV, only partially under water, exploded.
* * * *
Hugh rolled over on the grassy bank, smashing into a tree. He covered his head as the explosion threw water, car parts, and a couple of fish high into the air. Smoke and debris plumed up. The water burst in every direction, rolling all the way up to his boots.
Then silence.
He gasped in air, his heart thundering. The rain pelted down and he rolled over, letting it wash over his face. God. This was nuts.
Slowly, he shoved to his feet and looked up. Just trees.
His entire body hurt. Head to fucking toes.
He limped between trees, following a barely-there path and finally emerging at a small stone path with stairs. Ellie was already running down them with Deke ineffectually trying to grab her arm.
Upon seeing him, Deke halted.
Within seconds, Ellie Mae was against him. The pain was worth it. Hugh put his good arm around her and kissed her wet hair. “It’s okay, Ell.”
She shoved him. Hard. “What the holy fuck were you doing?” She backed up, her face wet, fury in her eyes. God, she was beautiful. Those blue eyes were deep enough to get lost in forever. “You don’t tell somebody you love them and then go crash an SUV full of bombs into a fucking river.” She was yelling now. Had a good set of lungs on her.
“Underwater explosions don’t propel objects through the water as far as surface explosions,” he gently explained. “It’s the drag water exerts on objects.”
She hit him in his good arm. Hard. “I know that. I got an A in chemistry, remember?” Tears were sliding down her face.
“Ah, baby? I think you’re in shock.” Hell. He might be, too. An interesting ringing had set up between his ears. He moved for her and then ducked back when she tried to hit him again. If he remembered right, she wasn’t that great of an aim. If she hit his injured arm, it’d drop him.
Connor jumped down the stairs. “Hugh, man.” He reached him, gingerly plucking a stick out of Hugh’s waist. Blood flowed out of somewhere near his ribcage and trickled down his jeans. “You, um, might need stitches.”
Hugh grinned as the world started to tilt in what should be an alarming manner. “Yeah. Hey. We’re friends now.”
“We surely are.” Connor caught him in strong arms right before he hit the ground. Now that was a good friend.