“Yeah well, welcome to the surface,” Fiona muttered sarcastically. “I can guarantee you this: you won’t find but a small handful of men on this planet that have never cheated. Women too, for that matter. I’d rather spend the rest of my life alone than to ever go through that again.”
It pleased Gryke that she spoke of unfaithfulness in a negative manner. Although he wasn’t sure why.
A dozen or so soldiers stood around Aukrabah’s entrance as Gryke and Fiona stepped from the shadows. Braum was among them.
“Braum,” Gryke called out, striding toward his closest friend.
Braum broke away from the soldiers and extended his arm.
“It is good to see you, my friend,” Gryke murmured, clasping Braum’s forearm.
Fiona stepped up beside them. “Here comes Melvin.”
Gryke released his hold on Braum’s arm and shifted his attention to the rapidly approaching Melvin. “Any news?”
Melvin nodded. “With a little coaxing, Darcy has informed us of Jefferies’s location.”
“What are we waiting for?” Fiona snapped, her voice laced with impatience.
Melvin raised an eyebrow. “We can’t go charging in there without a plan. If he sees us coming, it’s game over for your brother.”
“Where is he?” The tightening of Fiona’s jaw spoke volumes about her determination. “I want to be the one to go in.”
“No,” Gryke growled, suddenly finding himself the center of attention. He glanced around at the three pair of eyes now staring at him in surprise.
Clearing his throat, he tried again. “Jefferies has no intention of allowing you to live. If you show up with the fake scrolls, he will shoot you without question.”
“And if anyone else goes in my place,” Fiona argued, “he will kill my brother. I’m not willing to risk it.”
Melvin abruptly held up his hands. “Enough. Jefferies has Fiona’s brother at a boathouse in the Destin Harbor. As I’m sure you’re aware, he picked that particular place for two reasons. First, it’s surrounded by water, with the only way in through the deck leading up to the front door. Second, he has a boat secured to the back for an easy escape.”
Removing his hat, Melvin ran a hand through his hair and continued. “Keep in mind, he’s expecting Roosevelt, Darcy, and Fiona. No one else. He had no idea that the CIA is here. He’s not expecting us.”
Melvin shifted his gaze to Gryke. “The best chance we have here is the element of surprise. Fiona goes in with a bag containing blank scrolls and offers it in exchange for her brother. You and Braum will enter the gulf and come up beneath the boathouse without being seen.”
Gryke shook his head. “It is too risky. If he grows suspicious or questions her about Darcy and Roosevelt’s whereabouts—”
“He won’t,” Fiona interrupted, meeting Gryke’s gaze. “Trust me, he won’t.”
Gryke crossed his arms over his chest. “How can you be certain?”
“Because I’m taking Darcy with me.”
“And you think he will not inform Jefferies of your deceit?” Gryke muttered in disbelief.
Fiona shook her head. “Not if we have his mug in the sight of a sniper’s scope.”
Gryke stared at her blankly. He had no clue what a mug or a sniper’s scope was.
Melvin must have read his thoughts. “What she’s saying is, we can have a man hidden far away with his rifle trained on Darcy’s head. One wrong move on Darcy’s part, and we take him out. Meaning, we kill him.”
As much as Gryke hated for Fiona to risk herself in such a manner, he realized it was the only feasible way to save her brother. “You have this sniper with you?”
“He’s already on the roof of a building near the boathouse,” Melvin assured him. “Waiting for orders.”
Gryke gave a quick nod. “Let us go.”
The four of them dispersed toward Melvin’s military vehicle.
Braum sidled up beside Gryke. “You care for the female soldier.”
Gryke’s jaw hardened with anger. “I do not care for her. I simply do not wish to see her die and leave her small son without a mother.”
“If that is what you wish to tell yourself,” Braum muttered, a smirk evident on his face. “Far be it for me to argue.”
Stopping next to the vehicle, Gryke gingerly placed the bag of scrolls in the back. “It is the truth.”
“Then you will not mind if I pursue her?” Braum asked with a grin.
Gryke reacted without thinking. He gripped Braum’s vest and pinned him against the side of the vehicle.
The corner of Braum’s mouth lifted. “Is that a no?”
Instantly releasing him, Gryke climbed into the back seat and stared straight ahead while Braum got in beside him.
Melvin got behind the wheel and glanced at a silent Fiona sitting in the passenger seat. “Everyone is in place.”
Chapter Twelve
Fiona didn’t speak until the vehicle pulled up in front of the house that contained Darcy. She watched through the windshield as two agents escorted him out.
“Put him in the back between the Bracadytes,” Melvin ordered, nodding to one of the agents.
Gryke got out and held the back door open as pale-faced Darcy slid in next to Braum.
Fiona could feel the enormous amount of restraint it took for Gryke to seat himself next to the traitor. She could relate.
“What did Doug promise you?” Fiona asked Darcy as the vehicle pulled out onto the street. She knew that Darcy had been a Marine for several years, and wondered how Jefferies had been able to recruit him.
When Darcy refused to answer, Fiona turned in her seat and stared into his eyes. “You betrayed your country. And for what? Money?”
“I didn’t betray my country,” Darcy sneered. “My country betrayed me!”
More than a little surprised by his response, Fiona continued to question him. “How do you figure your country betrayed you?”
Darcy glanced between Gryke and Braum. “By allowing these things to continue breathing. They’re aliens—abominations that weren’t meant to walk amongst us. Yet here they sit as if they have a right to be here, while hundreds of thousands of our people die.”
“Our people are dying because of our own government,” Fiona bit out. “Not because of the Bracadytes.”
“You’re defending them because you’ve become infatuated with one of them!”
Fiona noticed Gryke’s fangs peeking out from beneath his top lip. She decided to defuse the situation before he ripped out Darcy’s throat. “You’re right. And though he’s not human, he’s ten times the man you will ever be.”
She flicked her gaze at Gryke in time to see the unguarded look on his face before he glanced away.
Had that been interest she saw swimming in his emerald-green eyes? Fiona wasn’t sure. She would think about that later after her brother was safely out of Jefferies’s clutches.
* * * *
The vehicle came to a stop several streets over from the boathouse where Jefferies held Fiona’s brother.
“Stick to plan,” Melvin reiterated, glancing back to peer at Darcy. “Remember, your every expression is being watched through the sniper’s scope. If you so much as twitch suspiciously, it’ll be the last twitch you ever make.”
“I got it,” Darcy snapped, sliding across the seat as Gryke opened the door and got out.
Melvin exited the vehicle and handed Darcy the unloaded gun they’d talked about on the way to the boathouse. “Keep it trained on Fiona as you normally would.”
Darcy accepted the weapon and rounded the vehicle where Fiona now stood holding the black bag of makeshift scrolls.
Fiona noticed Gryke staring at her from the other side of the Humvee. He took a step closer, piercing her with an emerald stare. “I will be directly beneath the boathouse.”
“I know,” Fiona softly responded, telling him with her eyes what she couldn’t express with words.
The truth was, she did feel safer with Gryke bac
king her up. He had a way about him that made her want to give up her cherished control and step into the safety of his massive arms.
Gryke’s gaze glittered with understanding, as if he could read her thoughts.
Fiona broke eye contact with the giant Bracadyte and gave Darcy her back. “It’s showtime.”
Though she knew the gun wasn’t loaded, the thought of Darcy holding one on her raised the hairs on the back of Fiona’s neck.
The two of them walked along in silence, the leather bag nearly slipping from her sweaty palms.
Keep your cool, Fiona’s mind continuously chanted while her feet steadily moved her forward through the empty streets of Destin. Her stomach tightened with anxiety as the boathouse came into view.
“Don’t screw this up,” she muttered to Darcy, while taking slow, deep breaths to calm her nerves.
A lone figure suddenly staggered from the shadows, wild eyed and foaming at the mouth. The sounds coming from him were mind numbing and horrific.
Darcy sucked in a breath and raised the empty gun in his hands. He pulled the trigger over and over, the clicking of an empty chamber echoing off the walls of the surrounding buildings.
The rabid man kept coming, faster this time.
“He’s got that virus!” In a panic Darcy shoved Fiona facedown onto the asphalt and bolted down a nearby alley.
Fiona’s head smacked the unforgiving pavement hard enough she saw stars.
Groaning from the pain, she rolled to her back and kicked out with her legs in an attempt to prevent the rabid man from attacking her.
Her feet made contact with his chest, sending him sailing through the air. He landed on his back, only to spring up and dive for her again.
A shot rang out, leaving Fiona both startled and grateful. The bullet that entered the guy’s forehead sent him crashing into a row of garbage cans.
Surely, Jefferies would have heard the shot.
“Brant!” Fiona breathed, jumping to her feet. She snatched up the bag of fake scrolls and sprinted toward the boathouse like the hounds of hell were on her ass.
Praying she wasn’t too late, Fiona burst through the door only to find the room empty of Jefferies.
A soft moan caught her off guard. She stumbled toward a pile of boxes in the corner to find Brant, lying on his side, bound and gagged.
Fiona quickly untied his gag and pulled the cloth from his mouth. “I’m here, Brant. Everything will be okay now.”
Brant slowly lifted his head, peering at her through a slit in his left eye. His right eye was completely swollen shut. “Go…”
“Not without you,” Fiona whispered vehemently. “I’m not leaving you.”
She dropped to her knees and went to work on untying the restraints on his wrists. “Where is Jefferies?”
“Not far,” Brant slurred, falling forward as he attempted to stand.
Fiona caught him before he face-planted on the wooden floor.
With a groan, Brant pushed himself up onto his knees. “He…” Another painful sound rumbled from his chest. “Checking for…trap,” Brant finished in a barely audible voice.
“He’s checking to be sure it’s not a trap?”
Brant’s slight nod and pleading expression did little to calm Fiona’s nerves. She gripped him beneath the arms and moved to stand. “We have to hurry.”
“Fi—” Brant’s body went limp.
Fiona carefully released him and jogged over to the small set of stairs near the back, leading down to the water.
“Gryke?” she hissed, searching the night for any sign of the big Bracadyte.
A soft rustling noise sounded from beneath her seconds before Gryke’s head broke the surface.
“I need your help.” Fiona turned back to the stairs without waiting to see if he followed. She wasn’t about to leave Brant alone for a moment longer than necessary. Not with Jefferies out there somewhere.
Gryke suddenly bounded up the stairs behind her, wild eyed and dripping wet. Fiona had never seen a more beautiful sight in all her life. “I need your help getting my brother out of here. He’s hurt pretty bad.”
“Where is Jefferies?” Gryke questioned, his gaze scanning the room.
Fiona hurried to Brant’s side. “I don’t know. Brant tried to tell me before he passed out, but I couldn’t make out half of what he said.”
Gryke strode over to Fiona’s brother, bent, and tossed him over his shoulder as if he weighed nothing. And Brant was a big man.
Chapter Thirteen
Gryke rushed to the door of the boathouse with Fiona’s brother thrown over his shoulder. His protective lenses slid into place, bringing the darkness to light in his vision.
He quickly scanned the area for signs of Jefferies, noticing the sniper on a building across the street. His gaze touched on Melvin, along with a dozen other agents hidden throughout the area.
Satisfied that Jefferies wasn’t near, Gryke glanced down at Fiona. “Stay close to my back.”
A soft gasp escaped her when she noticed his eyes, but she only nodded.
“I have Fiona and her brother,” Gryke mentally informed Braum. “Get Melvin and return to the vehicle. Be careful. Jefferies is out there somewhere.”
Without waiting for a response, Gryke shot out of the boathouse and ran for the vehicle they’d left a few streets over, with Fiona tight on his heels.
Braum appeared moments later with Melvin in tow.
“Any sign of Jefferies?” Melvin questioned, opening the back of the Humvee and moving things aside.
“He was not in the boathouse.” Gryke laid Brant’s unconscious body in the back and waited for Melvin to shut the door. “Take us back to Aukrabah.”
“The president will want to speak with you,” Melvin argued, rushing to the driver’s side and jumping behind the wheel.
Braum took up Fiona’s previous position, leaving her no choice but to sit in back with Gryke.
After seating himself, Gryke closed his door, breathing a sigh of relief once Fiona was tucked safely inside next to him. “Your president has no business with me. Braum can answer any questions he might have.”
The Humvee took off with a jolt, taking the corner with enough force that Fiona was nearly thrown onto Gryke’s lap.
Quickly righting herself, she lifted to her knees in the seat and turned to check on her brother.
Gryke’s gaze strayed to her thigh. He watched in fascination as the muscles tightened beneath her pants with every movement of her leg.
There was something oddly intriguing about her, he silently admitted, allowing his gaze to travel up her torso. Perhaps it was an inner strength or the warrior that dwelled within her that he found so appealing. He wasn’t sure. It definitely had nothing to do with her golden eyes or her fiery-red hair.
Gryke shifted in his seat, confused at his body’s reaction to Fiona’s nearness. What was happening to him? Not only was she a land walker, but she’d betrayed the Bracadytes, spied on them, and stolen from them.
She did destroy the boat full of soldiers that attacked Oz’s yacht, he told himself. She also fought alongside them at Playa Pilar.
Glancing down at his growing erection, Gryke ground his teeth. It angered him that Fiona had that effect on him, that she could make him want her against his will.
Gryke flicked his gaze to the mirror that hung from the windshield. If Melvin looked up, he was certain to get an unencumbered view of Fiona’s backside.
“Your brother is not a child,” Gryke growled, forcing his gaze away from the mirror. “Either crawl back there with him, or turn around and sit still. You are causing a distraction.”
Fiona’s head snapped in his direction, indignation flickering in her golden eyes. “What’s your problem, Lurch? When I want your opinion, I’ll ask for it.”
“We’re here,” Melvin announced, stopping the Humvee near the entrance of Aukrabah.
Gryke jumped from the vehicle, anxious to put some space between him and Fiona.
“Wh
at about Brant?” Fiona questioned, exiting from the opposite side.
Melvin climbed out as well. “I’ll take him to Abbie, and—”
“No,” Fiona snapped, effectively cutting him off. “He stays with me.”
Braum appeared at the back of the vehicle. “He is injured, Fiona. It would be in his best interest to take him to Hauke’s mate.”
Gryke watched the play of emotions scattered across her face. “Fine. Then I’m going with him.”
“It is not safe for you to remain on the surface,” Gryke growled, ready to toss her over his shoulder if she argued. “Not as long as Jefferies is out here somewhere.”
Fire flashed in Fiona’s eyes. “And you think it’s any safer for my brother? If he stays, I stay.”
Gryke stared at her with his most intimidating look, which of course didn’t work. Fiona merely raised an eyebrow in response.
“And what of your child?”
That got her attention. The angry mask she had in place suddenly slipped for a second. “I would give anything to see Andrew right now. But he’s safely below with Naura. My brother, on the other hand, is not.”
“Fiona,” Melvin began only to be cut off by her next words.
“No. I know what happened to Vaulcron and Mallory in that lab. Brant will be too vulnerable in his condition. I can’t risk it.”
Gryke blew out a defeated breath. He understood Fiona’s feelings about leaving her brother on the surface. He would react the same way if it were Braum that was injured and alone.
“Can you get us another ATV?” Gryke asked Melvin. “And something to transport her brother in?”
Gryke didn’t miss the look on Fiona’s face or the tension that instantly left her shoulders.
Melvin jerked his cell phone from its holder and pressed some buttons. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you.”
Fiona’s soft admission caught Gryke off guard. He wasn’t sure how to react to it. Ignoring her words, he ran a hand through his long disheveled hair. “What happened back there at the boathouse?”
Gryke: A SciFi Alien Romance (Enigma Series Book 6) Page 5
