Chapter Seven
They stopped again not far into the village. The sun had topped the horizon, and people were beginning to leave their houses.
Bren kept a tight grip on her weapon, not because she thought she might need to use it, but so the others didn’t notice how her hands were shaking after shooting that CS soldier back in the woods.
She didn’t regret it—he would have blasted Seb at point-blank range if she hadn’t acted first—but she was a little unsteady. Sure, she’d long come to terms with the fact that she’d directly and indirectly killed people in her fighter jet over the years, but she’d never looked another person in the face and made the decision to take their life in the blink of an eye. Watched them fall to the ground and breathe their last.
This was war. These choices had to be made every moment. And if someone had to die, then she’d much rather it be a stranger who’d taken up arms against the UEF than Seb, or herself, or anyone else she cared about.
But that was the point, wasn’t it? This was the senselessness of war. The man she’d killed hadn’t started this fight. He was acting on behalf of someone else who’d probably spent his life sitting safe in his office or home, never experiencing the decisions he’d made firsthand. Letting other innocent people die on his behalf. No one should have to die just because some lunatic had been given too much power and turned this once peaceful planet into a dictatorship.
Which was why so much hinged on this mission for McAllister. If he could get the rebels on his side, it could be the turning point in this conflict. Bren respected that, but her concern had to be focused on her fighter pilot who was out there, alone, relying on Seb and her to rescue her. With every hour that went by, the weight of Shen’s fate settled more heavily on her shoulders.
Seb shifted over to McAllister, where he was surveying the busier street beyond the alley they’d stopped in.
“I know you want to meet my contact,” Seb said, gaining the colonel’s attention. “I think I should go alone first.”
McAllister started to argue, but Seb held up a hand. “Halden has a wife and daughter. That patrol we ran across this morning was obviously looking for rebels. How many CS soldiers did we let go thinking that’s who we were? If we all march up to Halden’s house, it’s going to put him and his family in danger. Let me talk to him first, see if he can put me in contact with someone more deeply entrenched in the rebel organization.”
McAllister stared at him, obviously weighing up his options. “This is a huge risk, Seb. You won’t have anyone to back you up if things go bad.”
“I know.” Seb set his shoulders, looking completely confident. “But I trust Halden, and I knew what I signed on for when I agreed to come on this mission.”
McAllister cast a quick look over the rest of them, ending on her and lingering for a moment. Just as she’d feared, the remnants of the dream, and sensory recall of his arms around her surfaced, leaving her breath catching.
So stupid.
“Okay. While you’re doing that, we’ll create a distraction so everyone knows the ‘rebels’ were elsewhere while you’re speaking with your contact. There’s a bakery and alehouse on the western side of the town square. We’ll park ourselves there for breakfast.”
Seb sent him a worried look. “Won’t that be dangerous? I’d appreciate it if I could get back to the Knox with all my limbs and important appendages attached.”
“It’s a gamble. The villagers could call the nearest CSS outpost and report us as rebels just as easily as they could turn a blind eye. Everything we do on this side of the battle lines is a calculated risk. This one will give you the best chance of achieving our ends.” McAllister’s expression took on an exasperated edge. “And for the record, I don’t want anything to do with your important appendages, Rayne.”
Seb grinned as he backed up a few steps. “Hey, I’m just trying to avoid the wrath of Jenna. It’s nice having someone worry about your important appendages. You should try it sometime.”
“Not a chance in hell.” McAllister sent Seb a smooth smile that was all charm and amusement—a complete change to the usual serious expression he’d maintained in the last days. One that made his rugged, square features downright handsome. It was one of those smiles that made everyone else want to smile.
Without the filter of hurt and anger she’d always viewed him through, that smile—even though she’d probably seen it before—was making her quiver inside.
Maybe it was the close quarters or the stress of constantly being on edge behind enemy lines, but her head was spinning from the fact she’d gone from loathing him to the complete, extreme opposite in a few short days. She had to rein in her unstable emotions because letting them distract her could mean the difference between life and death while they were in enemy territory.
Seb concealed his weapons under his jacket and told them all he’d RV—rendezvous—with them later. He stepped out into the street and disappeared.
They waited in silence for at least ten minutes before McAllister gave the order to move out. This time as they walked, they were even more on guard than they’d been through the entire hike the day before. Her pulse had ticked up, and she was taking in every little detail she could, looking for any sign of danger.
The enemy could be here, but at least if the CS soldiers thought they were rebels, they were less likely to be immediately killed or sent to a reeducation camp.
However, it wasn’t only CS soldiers they needed to be wary of. The townspeople could just as easily turn on them.
People took notice of them, but from the way they quickly turned their gazes and went about their business, she had to guess this wasn’t the first time a group of rebels had passed through.
They made it to the public house that served as a bakery and supplier of fresh game meat and produce in the morning, but then became the local alehouse later in the afternoon.
McAllister picked a long rough-hewn wooden table inside, closest to the doors, and the man who came over to ask for their orders greeted them cordially.
The colonel didn’t bother asking what anyone wanted, just ordered fresh bread rolls, eggs, and the local strong, caffeine-laden tea that passed for coffee in the poorest villages.
None of them tried making much in the way of conversation as they waited for the food and Seb’s return. They were all on edge, aware of the people sitting at nearby tables or coming and going, any of whom might cause them trouble. This was risky, but covering Seb’s visit to Halden’s house was more important.
The food came before Seb did. She wasn’t worried about him, he could definitely handle himself, but she hoped he came back sooner rather than later. One missing fighter pilot was more than enough.
She picked at a bread roll, shaking her head when Bartlet offered her a tea. A couple of people sat at the table next to them with glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice, leaving her mouth watering. Oh man, she needed that juice, and she needed it now.
Glancing at McAllister, she subtly pointed to the other table. “I want to get some juice. Do you mind?”
“Go ahead.”
She thanked him and asked if anyone else wanted any, but they all seemed satisfied with the tea.
The counter serving food was down a short corridor in another room, as if this building had once been a house converted into a business. There were a few chairs and tables in this room—most of them occupied with people eating—and a long bench along the opposite end of the space that was stacked with all kinds of fresh foods.
A woman around her age served people at the end of the counter, a boy who could have been eight or nine beside her, counted money and handed over change as people paid.
The woman was a little wary of her, but no less friendly as they took her order. While she waited for them to get the juice, she walked along the counter, examining the produce for sale. In some ways—the simple ways—these people lived a better life. Before the war, decades ago, Ilari had been a peaceful, prosperous destination for those who wanted to get back to basics.
“I’m telling you, the wreckage had identification markings of the UEF military.”
The low but heated words from somewhere behind Bren pulled her to a stop, ears straining to catch the rest of the conversation.
“Why would a UEF ship fly so far past the battle lines? It was probably just another CSS ship that had engine troubles,” someone else answered.
“You don’t believe me, go see for yourself. I know what I saw, and it was definitely a UEF jet. The CSS must have shot it down.”
Unable to help herself any longer, she turned to find two men who would have been in their fifties talking over a pot of tea. Her pulse sped up. This was the clue she’d needed—her reason for coming on this mission. Maybe she should have simply loitered a little longer and gathered whatever information she could from eavesdropping, but she had too many questions that needed answering and the window of time to rescue Shen was rapidly getting smaller.
So, she took a quick breath and then sat herself down at the table. The two men cast her a startled look, and like everyone else in the town, obviously came to the conclusion that she was with the rebels.
“We’re not interested in being recruited,” one of the men said, pushing his chair back like he was about to get up and walk off.
“No, wait. That’s not why I want to talk to you.”
The man paused, but remained on the edge of his seat like he was ready to flee at the first hint of trouble.
“I need to know what you saw. The wreckage of the ship?”
The two men exchanged worried glances, neither of them looking like they were going to be all that forthcoming.
She leaned forward, about ready to beg if she had to. “Please. I don’t need to know who you are, and no one will ever find out I got any information from you. I just need you to tell me where you saw the wreckage.”
The man who hadn’t moved shrugged at his companion, as if to say what have we got to lose? then turned his attention to her.
“About ten miles east of here, there’s an abandoned farm, used to belong to the Pruitt’s before all their sons died in the war. In their back forty, the river runs through and there’s a good fishing spot. That’s where I saw the wreckage from a distance. The CSS were crawling all over it, so I didn’t go any closer, and I didn’t go fishing. I came back to the village.”
“Did you see any sign of the pilot?”
The man started to shake his head, but then he looked past her, and up; his expression shuttering like a window boarded against a storm.
“Excuse us.” The man quickly got up from his seat, followed by his friend, both of them hurrying away.
One guess as to what—or should she say who—had caused that reaction. Weird, but she could sense him standing a few steps behind her.
“Was that really necessary?” She twisted in her seat to face McAllister, where he stood glaring at her with his arms crossed.
“A word. Outside.” His teeth were clenched tight, muscle in his jaw pulsing.
He didn’t wait for her to agree or even stand, but turned on his heel and marched away like he was on a parade ground.
Why the heck was he so damned angry? She sighed as she pushed to her feet and followed, but instead of going through to the front room where the others were sitting at the table, he detoured down a short hallway and went through a door that opened into the alley that ran along the side of the shop.
She glanced around as she stopped in front of him, unsurprised to find they were alone.
“What was that?” he demanded before she could ask what this was all about.
Okay, had she missed something here? Or was she having a blond moment for the first time in her life? Because she couldn’t work out what he was so pissed about.
“Can you clarify, sir?” She tried not to let any heat creep into her voice, but wasn’t all that successful.
His expression took on an edge of incredulity. “When I agreed to let you tag along on this mission, I assumed you understood what black-ops meant.”
She crossed her arms, not liking where this was going, but seeing no way out of the conversation. Sure, she could walk off on him, but it’d only make things worse. Plus, she got the feeling McAllister wouldn’t let her get away with such an admittedly childish move. She hadn’t made CAFF by running away from a fight.
“I’ll ignore the condescension in that remark and ask you again. Can you clarify?”
“You need it spelled out?” He took a step closer to her, voice low and furious. “Approaching the local population and talking to them without permission from me. Putting the rest of the team at risk. Threatening the security of our cover. Is that clear enough for you?”
How could he think she would ever do anything to risk the safety of the team? “You’re angry because I spent less than three minutes talking with those two men?”
It had been a harmless few questions. Plus, everyone in the village thought they were rebels. She couldn’t understand how he could think what she’d done was any riskier than sitting there eating breakfast to cover Seb visiting his contact, Halden. Besides, it was information she’d desperately needed.
“The fact that you can’t even see how dangerous your actions were tells me everything I need to know. It tells me I was right about you.”
He started to turn away, but his words struck like a blade slicing through her. She grabbed his arm to stop him.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He looked down at her, expression as cutting as his accusation had been, gray eyes freezing in their intensity. “You’re exactly like your brother.”
He pulled out of her hold, her grip going weak at the shock of him even mentioning Jordie. It had always been like an unspoken agreement between them, that they never acknowledged the ghost of her brother hovering over them. Except, he’d just gone and blown that out of the water with a callous remark that made no sense to her.
The shock gave way to anger, and she hurried to catch up with him before he went back inside, planting herself in his path to face him down.
“You have no right to bring my brother into this!” Her emotions bubbled up, closer to the surface than they had in so many years. She’d always prided herself on keeping a cool head. For maintaining a tight rein on her feelings no matter what kind of shit was going down around her.
But in the last few days, being around McAllister was like someone had taken to her much-prized equilibrium with a pair of scissors. Snipping and hacking until that control was in tatters and of no use to anyone.
“You had no right coming along on this mission in the first place. That didn’t stop you, though, did it?”
Her assessment of “ass” the morning before had been dead accurate. “I came on this mission to rescue one of my pilots—”
“I’m fully aware of your agenda, Brenner.” His features were set in stone and unforgiving as he glared down at her. “Just know this. If you do anything to put my men or this mission in jeopardy again, I will have you detained somewhere until we’re done and then see you front a court-martial when we get back to base.”
He was threatening to court-martial her over one little conversation? Distantly, it occurred to her that he was completely overreacting, and there had to be something else going on. But for the first time in a long time, her temper had gotten the better of her, especially her common sense.
“Is that what you told Jordie when he wanted to defy orders to save everyone?”
Both his brows shot up, his features losing some of their anger to surprise, making her gratified in the direction she’d taken the conversation. Good. If he’d knocked her off-kilter, then he deserved some of the same.
“What, you think Jordie didn’t tell me everything? Yeah, it was classified and buried, but he told me the truth, McAllister. I know what really happened. I know what you did. I know who’s responsible for the team being killed. So, take that into consideration if you decide you’re going to detain me.”
Ha. Take that big guy. She tipped her chin, daring him to try any other threats.
He grabbed both her upper arms and yanked her closer, emotion burning in his gaze. Pain, regret, and shadows of things that haunted him. A vulnerability she’d never expected, gone between one second and the next, leaving just the dark glare of a man whose demons ran deeper than he let on.
“You think you’ve got it all figured out?” He shifted in until their bodies almost touched, until she could feel nothing but the heat radiating off him, his gaze running over her face. “You don’t know anything.”
He let her go as abruptly as he’d grabbed her, and she stumbled a step to lean heavily against the nearby wall, her legs shaky. McAllister strode away without a backward glance, anger in the tight set of his shoulders, the door slamming behind him.
She took a few unsteady breaths, mind spinning with too many thoughts to catch.
Dammit, she shouldn’t have shot her mouth. But no one had ever made her lose her temper that badly before. Okay, maybe she could have cleared it with McAllister before talking to those two men, but it had been too good an opportunity to pass up, and McAllister had totally overacted. Plus, what had that just like your brother thing been all about? Hurled like it was an insult.
Closing her eyes, she forced some calm on herself, and then pushed off from the wall, heading back into the building to get the juice she’d wanted in the first place.
When she returned to the table, it was like nothing had happened, though, McAllister didn’t even spare her a glance when she sat down. Obviously, he was going to deal with her now by flat-out ignoring her.
Well, good. She could get on board with that. The less she had to interact with him, the better until she could get back to the Knox and pretend she hadn’t spent a few days in hell with him.
Seb returned, looking relaxed and enthusiastic at the same time. He squeezed in next to her and shot her a smile when she pushed her mostly untouched food in front of him.
“How did it go?” McAllister asked as Seb started shoveling eggs into his mouth.
“Oh my God, this is so good,” he mumbled between bites.
“Rayne.” The tone McAllister used was one she’d often employed herself when it came to Seb and his cavalier ways.
Seb picked up her also-untouched tea, which would have been cold by now, and gulped it down. “It went really well. Halden didn’t want to get directly involved, but he knows someone in another village a bit over twenty miles from here. A transport will be leaving in the next ten minutes, so he’s going to get a message hidden in some supplies to let them know we’re coming. He also gave me these, in case we need to contact him.”
Seb subtly flashed two old-fashioned radios, before passing one over to Cam and slipping the other back into his pocket.
“And you’re sure we’re not walking into a CSS trap?” Harlow asked, tone wary.
“As sure as I can be.” Seb grabbed the bread roll she’d pulled apart, but not eaten earlier. “He helped Jenna and me last time we were in this village. He’s a good man. He’s got no idea who I am, and like everyone else, assumes I decided to join the rebels. I’ve got no reason to believe he’s leading us into a trap.”
McAllister nodded, seeming satisfied with the information. “We’ll keep our eyes open, just in case.”
“Should we see if we can get ourselves some space on the transport?” Bartlet asked. “It’d be easier and quicker than walking.”
“No go,” Seb replied with a shake of his head. “I asked. There wouldn’t be room for all of us, and it’d be better for the village if their shuttle wasn’t seen transporting rebels around.”
“Even if we could all fit,” McAllister put in. “I’d nix the idea. It’ll take most of the day to walk twenty miles, but it’ll keep us more low key.”
The colonel sliced a quick look in her direction, as if being low key was meant for her alone. Like she didn’t get it already.
“So which direction are we heading?” McAllister continued as he refocused on Seb.
“Still northeast. The locals call it Plowshed Road.”
Northeast. Close to the direction the wreckage of Shen’s jet had been seen. She was probably asking for another fight. But no matter what stood in her way—the CSS or stubborn-assed colonels—she wasn’t going home without knowing she’d done everything in her power to get Shen back safely.
“Sir. The intel I got placed the impact site of my pilot’s jet ten miles east of here.”
McAllister finally looked directly at her, brow lowering as though he couldn’t believe she had the gall to bring it up now.
“You got intel on Shen?” Seb asked, sounding impressed.
She shifted to look at him. “I spoke to a man who said he’d seen the wreckage. She came down in the field of an abandoned farm.”
“Good one, Bren.” Seb clapped her on the shoulder in congratulations, sending her an encouraging grin.
Well, at least some people around here didn’t think she was completely incompetent or had made the wrong choice in talking to the men.
“I figure we can head east and check it out, then cut north after—”
“No.” McAllister might have only said the one word in a hard, low voice, but it dropped like an asteroid into the ocean. “That’s not why we’re here.”
He was going to block Seb and her from investigating the crash site when it was so close?
“Maybe that’s not why you’re here, but it’s sure as hell why Seb and I are.”
She’d known her goal was secondary to McAllister’s. But she’d figured once they got on the ground and in the thick of it, he’d be willing to compromise.
Damn, had she been wrong.
If it were one of his men out there, he wouldn’t be so willing to dismiss this opportunity. Besides, this might be their best and only chance to rescue Shen before the CSS got to her. If they hadn’t already.
McAllister pushed to his feet. “We stick to the mission objective. If you don’t like it, you’re more than welcome to take that up with your commanding officer when we get back.”
He motioned to his men and then picked up his pack from the ground.
The anger and hurt she’d managed to push down after their exchange over Jordie threatened to come roaring back, so she tore her gaze away from him and once again forced calm on herself—a technique she’d learned while training to be a fighter pilot. It’d been a lot of years since she’d had to use it so much in such a short amount of time.
“What’s gotten up his ass all of a sudden?” Seb muttered, frowning in McAllister’s direction.
“Me, I think,” she said before she’d thought better of it.
Seb cast her a sympathetic look. “Something to do with your brother?”
Her heart skipped a beat. She’d never mentioned Jordie to anyone on squad, not even Alpha, who’d been her best friend for years.
“How do you know about Jordie?” The words came out at not much more than a whisper, and she had to swallow down a sudden tightness in her throat.
He nodded his chin in McAllister’s direction. “Cam mentioned it. Said they served together. I’m assuming they didn’t get along all that well.”
She was about to vehemently agree, but stopped herself short. Actually, she had no idea how McAllister and her brother had gotten along. For all she knew, they’d been best buddies up to that point.
“I don’t know. All I can tell you is that he’s here and my brother isn’t.” She got to her feet and retrieved her pack. “We’d better move before they leave us behind.”
Seb stuffed the last of the bread roll in his mouth, then grabbed his rucksack. As they set a fast pace to catch up with the others, he caught a hand on her forearm.
“Checking the crash site is a good idea, Bren. And you’re right, it’s not that far out of our way. Let me handle Cam, okay?”
After the blowout she’d had with the colonel, she was more than happy to let Seb deal with him. Especially if it meant they achieved their own objective more easily.