by R. D. Brady
“You ready?” Adam asked.
Maeve nodded. They’d agreed she’d make the approach, thinking she’d be the least threatening. “Greg, you know the plan?”
Greg sighed. “My part’s not that difficult. I hear anything scary and I take the triplets and Tilda and beat a hasty retreat. I’m a little more worried about your part.”
“We’ll be all right,” Maeve said.
“Give me two minutes.” Adam stepped from the car. He was going to find a spot close to the house where he could keep an eye on Maeve. Chris hadn’t been thrilled that that duty had fallen to Adam but had agreed to stay in the car, ready to move if they needed to.
“You sure you’re up for this?” Chris asked.
“The sooner we get Guardian or Nadine or whoever, the sooner we get Alvie back.”
“Be careful,” Chris said.
“I will.” Maeve stepped out of the car, pausing for a second to take stock of her surroundings. Three kids played basketball in a driveway a few houses down. Another homeowner pushed a lawnmower over their lawn. And a woman jogged by while pushing a toddler in a stroller. Just a normal day in suburbia.
A dog barked somewhere in the distance, followed by squeals of children laughing. A light wind ruffled Maeve’s hair. She was having a tough time accepting how normal everything was around her right now. People were just living their lives, no worries about the government tracking them down and destroying their family.
An image of Alvie flashed through her mind. Her knees weakened and she stumbled before straightening herself. She blew out a breath. Get Guardian and then we get Alvie. This is for him.
Straightening her shoulders, she headed up the path to the yellow, two-story colonial house with a well-manicured lawn. She reached up and rang the doorbell, then took a step back.
The door swung open and a young girl with her hair worked into four braids stood in the doorway behind the screen door.
Must be Nadine’s daughter. Maeve opened her mouth to speak, but the girl beat her to it. “Hi. I’m Penny.”
Maeve smiled at the friendly little girl with the bright eyes behind her glasses. “Hi, Penny. I’m Maeve. I’m looking for your mommy.”
Penny frowned, tilting her head. “You are? Does Mommy know you?”
“Not yet.”
“Hm.” Penny stepped out of the doorway.
Maeve waited for a moment, but she heard no further sounds. She knocked again. “Hello?” she called through the screen.
“Hold on,” a woman called.
An African-American woman in her thirties appeared at the door, a dish towel in her hands. She dried her hands as she spoke. “Yes?”
“Nadine Johnson?”
“Yes,” the woman drew the word out.
“This might sound weird, but do you work for the NSA?”
The woman stepped back, alarm flashing across her face. “Who are you?”
“I’m Maeve Leander. We received your message. We came to—”
The woman shook her head. “Message? What are you talking about? I never sent you any message.”
Maeve frowned, watching the woman, who looked completely confused by Maeve’s words and even a little scared. What was going on? Maeve spoke slowly. “We received a message from someone called Guardian. They gave us this address and said they needed help.”
The woman shook her head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I never sent you any message, and I certainly don’t know anyone named Guardian. I think you need you to leave.”
Maeve looked at the woman and did not get the sense she was lying, but Guardian had sent them here and Nadine worked for the NSA. That couldn’t be a coincidence. “I’m sorry to have bothered you. But you’re sure you don’t—”
“I’m Guardian.”
Maeve turned slowly to look at Penny, who had returned to the room. She walked up behind her mother, pulling a suitcase.
Nadine turned as well, her mouth gaping. “Penny, what are you talking about? You invited this woman here?”
Penny looked up at her mother. “We need to go.” She turned to Maeve, meeting her gaze for only a moment. “They’re coming.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
Maeve stared at the little girl. She was even smaller than she’d realized. She was barely four feet tall and incredibly skinny. She couldn’t be any more than nine. “How old is she?”
Nadine reached out a protective arm, stepping in front of her daughter. “Twelve, not that it’s any concern of yours. Now you need to go before I call the police.” The door slammed in Maeve’s face.
Maeve stepped back, stunned. Guardian was twelve? That had to be a mistake. Maeve tapped the mic on her collar as she headed back to the car. “Guys, did you get that? Do we have the wrong place?”
Greg answered her. “No. Nadine and Penelope Johnson both work at the NSA. Penelope was hired two years ago.”
“But she would have been ten,” Maeve said.
“I know.” Greg’s exasperation came through loud and clear. “But that is what my research is telling me.”
“It has to be a mistake. Maybe somebody switched the names or something. There’s no way that little girl—”
Tires squealed at the end of the street as a dark Suburban turned onto the street, moving fast. “Guys?”
“Get out of there, Maeve!” Chris yelled.
Maeve looked at the car barreling down the street toward her and turned and ran right back to the Johnsons’ home.
From behind the door, she could hear raised voices. Maeve yanked open the screen and shoved open the heavy front door. Nadine jumped back, pulling Penny protectively behind her.
“An unfriendly SUV is heading right here. You are in danger. We need to go,” Maeve said.
Nadine shook her head. “We’re not—”
“They’re coming to kill us,” Penny said, the words all the more chilling due to the lack of emotion in them.
Nadine gaped at her daughter. “Why would you say such a—”
Outside, the squeal of brakes cut off her response. Chris’s voice burst out through her earpiece. “Maeve, get them out the back. I’m on the street behind you.”
Maeve whipped around as three men took up position in front of the house. Oh God. Maeve kicked the front door shut. “Get down!” Maeve slammed into Nadine, pushing her to the ground and yanking Penny down with them. Gunfire cut through the front of the house, destroying the windows and splintering the front door.
Nadine scrambled toward the kitchen, pulling a screaming Penny with her. Maeve followed them, sliding through the kitchen door and around the cabinets. The gunfire cut off and Adam’s voice came through her earpiece. “Get them out the back. Now.”
Maeve grabbed Nadine’s arm, hauling her up. Penny had scooted into a corner and lay curled up. Maeve grabbed Penny’s arm and she screamed, cringing away.
“Maeve, where are you?” Chris yelled.
“Still in the kitchen. Having a problem here.” Maeve tried to grab Penny again, but she kicked out at her, keeping her back.
Adam crashed through the front door. He grabbed the suitcase and sprinted into the kitchen. “Get the mom—I’ve got her.”
Maeve turned to Nadine, who stared her, eyes wide. Maeve hauled her up and hustled her out the back door. Penny screamed again but went silent as Adam hoisted her over his shoulder.
Maeve ran through the Johnsons’ backyard, pulling Nadine with her and through the neighbor’s yard behind them. Chris waved them on, taking aim behind them. He let off a series of shots that caused Nadine to cry out.
But Maeve just pulled her forward, all but throwing her in the back of the car. Adam lowered Penny in beside her mother as Chris jumped into the driver’s seat. Maeve dove in after the Johnsons as Adam took the passenger seat.
Chris tore out from the curb and Maeve whirled around, but no one seemed to be following them. She let out a shaky breath.
“You guys okay?” Greg asked in her earpiece.
Maeve let out a shaky laugh. “Oh, sure, right as rain.”
“Meet you at the rendezvous.”
“Okay,” Maeve said. Her heart pounded as Chris sped down the residential streets.
Chris checked the rearview mirror. “They’re not chasing us.”
“I disabled their car,” Adam said.
“How?” Maeve asked.
Adam turned, his voice even. “Bullets.”
Chris grinned. “Well, let’s hope they came alone.” And it appeared they did. But it was another twenty minutes before anyone relaxed.
But not Penny. The longer they drove, the more agitated she became. Then she began to shriek. Nadine leaned down, struggling to open the suitcase.
Maeve reached down to help her. “What do you need?”
“Her headphones and tablet.”
Maeve unzipped the case and handed Nadine both items, which luckily had been right on top of the suitcase’s contents. Nadine positioned the headphones on Penny’s head and a few moments later she calmed. Nadine handed Penny the tablet and Penny’s hands flew over the screen.
The traffic light in front of them, which had just turned red, shifted to green. The next five lights all turned green or stayed green as they approached.
Maeve met Adam’s gaze. “I guess she is Guardian.”
“I don’t understand what’s going on,” Nadine said, looking from Maeve to the front seat. “Who are you people?”
Maeve felt nothing but empathy for the woman. She seemed to have absolutely no idea what her daughter had been up to. And now she had been yanked into a world that Maeve, who’d grown up with Alvie, still struggled at times to believe.
Maeve met Nadine’s gaze. “I’m afraid you two are now part of a government secret.” Maeve paused, not sure exactly how to start. She struggled to come up with a way to ease the woman into it. But honestly, Maeve had been through too much in the last few days to finesse this conversation.
Oh, screw it. “Nadine, do you believe in UFOs?”
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
DULCE, NEW MEXICO
His team had missed Guardian. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that Guardian was a child. A female child, no less. But after Penny Johnson had been picked up by Leander and company, there’d been no sign of her.
Or them, for that matter. The little girl, a girl in pigtails, had hidden all of them completely. It was humiliating. His phone beeped and he yanked it out with a growl.
It was a text: He’s here.
And just like that, Martin’s mood shifted.
Martin felt like humming. No, singing. He felt like singing. They had Subject One in custody. Control of this particular subject had been a decades-long quest.
To the determined go the spoils, he thought with a smile as he made his way down the hall on the seventh level, the facility’s lowest level. This was where cryogenic storage was located. He visited this level once a day. It helped him think.
He punched the elevator button and the doors opened immediately. Stepping in, he punched the button for the first level as the elevator doors closed soundlessly. He tapped his foot as he watched the number change on the display above the doors. With a ding, the doors opened, and he moved briskly down the hall. Security personnel nodded at him as he passed, but he ignored them. He pushed open the door just as the truck was pulling to a stop in the large loading area.
When the facility had first been created, there’d been little more here than a large cave. The cave had been hollowed out to allow large trucks and it had been extended another half mile into the mountain. Lights shone brightly across the space and a dozen guards had arranged themselves around the back of the truck.
The subject had been driven by truck the entire way. Construction, of all things, had forced them to take a longer route. Anticipation rolled over Martin. He made his way to the truck as the door was opened. Inside were six more guards and a containment unit. Four men carried it out and laid it on the waiting stretcher.
“Open it up,” Martin said.
His security head unlocked the crate, pulling back the lid. Martin peered in at the creature. He was small, smaller than Martin had expected. Perhaps he’d built him up so much in his mind he’d expected more. But he just lay there, his small chest rising and falling. Even though he was close to thirty years old, there was a childlike quality to his appearance. No doubt that was what had led to the bond between the creature and both mother and daughter Leander.
Fools.
A man in a white coat walked around from the front of the truck. Dr. Mikhail Svenson, second in charge of science division. In his late fifties, Svenson had been with Martin for years. He rarely left the facility. He even slept there. The man was a true patriot.
“When was he last dosed?” Martin asked.
“Before transport. He should wake up within ten minutes or so.”
Martin smiled. “Perfect.”
“Do you want him to be brought to the third level?”
Martin stared at the creature. Normally a new subject was brought to the third level for a full round of testing. Each new subject spent about two weeks there before they were brought down to the fourth floor for mind-control experiments and then finally to the sixth level for genetic experiments and aggression analysis. The sixth floor was where all the fun happened.
The history on this particular subject, though, was already well documented. He was probably the most well-documented subject in U.S. custody.
“Yes. But just get baselines and verify they’re consistent with his files. I want the testing to start first thing this afternoon.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
WALSENBURG, COLORADO
They drove for three hours without stopping. When they did stop, only Adam got out. He ordered enough food at a travel stop for all of them. Carrying the bags of food and another smaller bag from the convenience store, he got back in the car.
Chris turned onto a gravel drive twenty minutes later at Adam’s instruction. The drive was long but finally ended at a ranch house. Lights were on inside and Maeve’s heart lifted. She needed to see her little guys. She glanced at Nadine. “You ready for this?”
Maeve and Nadine had spoken for an hour straight after they were in the clear. Maeve answered all her questions the best she could, but she could tell the woman was struggling. Apparently Nadine did not believe in aliens and thought UFO sightings were cases of experimental aircraft or crazy people.
So convincing her that the U.S. government had held aliens for years in a secret program had not exactly been an easy sell. The gunfight had helped sell the fact that the government was currently trying to kill her and her daughter. But Maeve could tell Nadine was still trying to come up with any other scenario that fit the facts in front of them.
Nadine gave Maeve a look just shy of a smirk. “Meeting alien-human hybrids? I’m not sure anyone is ready for that.”
“How do you think Penny will handle it?”
“I think she’ll handle it better than me. Apparently she’s had more time to acclimate to this than me.”
“I know it’s a lot, but—” Maeve paused, then shrugged. “Actually I have nothing to say beyond that. It’s a lot.”
The front door opened and Greg bounded out of the house, Hope right on his heels. Maeve had asked him to keep the triplets inside. She figured making the introduction in a house might make it less surreal.
Maeve stepped out of the car and Hope jumped at her. Maeve rubbed her sides. “I’m happy to see you as well, little buddy.”
“How about me?” Greg asked.
“You, too, big buddy.” Maeve hugged him.
“We’re going to walk around. Make sure we’re all good.” Chris gestured to Adam, who was already walking down the drive.
“Okay. Be careful.”
“Always.” Chris kissed Maeve’s cheek before he headed down the drive, Hope trotting behind him.
Maeve introduced Greg to Nadine. Penny still sat in the car, her a
ttention focused on the tablet’s screen.
“So that’s Guardian.” He paused. “I thought he’d be taller.”
Maeve hit him in the arm.
“Ow.” Greg rubbed the spot.
Penny looked up from the tablet, the screen reflecting in her glasses for a moment before she took off the noise-cancelling headphones and stepped out of the car. “Where are the triplets?”
“Inside,” Maeve said.
Penny headed to the house. Nadine shrugged at Maeve with a bewildered look on her face before hustling after her daughter.
“Um, that was a little strange,” Greg said.
“Really? After everything we’ve seen, you think that was strange?”
“What can I say? Now normal is the new strange.”
Maeve laughed before heading to the house. “You’re not wrong.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
DULCE, NEW MEXICO
There was an energy in the lab today as Martin stepped in. On the one hand, it all looked the same. The subject cages, four on each side, were lined up against the walls. Tables lined the inner layer, covered in computers, medical equipment. And then there were the stretchers, dunk tanks, and assorted other equipment that lined the back wall. All the equipment was on wheeled pallets to make it easier to move them around the lab. A dozen lab assistants, most with white coats over their blue scrubs, were working at different lab tables lined up in rows in the center of the lab. The glass windows of his darkened office were straight in front of him, twenty feet above the space.
And yet, as normal as the scene appeared, there was almost a tangible spark in the air. A new subject always had that effect. And this subject had been coveted for a long time. It had been a waste of both time and money to coddle Subject One all these years. While Martin had at first supported the idea of seeing if a bond could be established between Subject One and the deceased Dr. Leander, once the bond had been established, they should have moved on to the next stage of testing—seeing what the subject would do in support of that bond. But with a Leander running the project, that had never happened. Now Martin could test the subject to his heart’s content. But first things first …
