Evan released the man and watched him fall back into the chair. He continued to watch him for a moment then stood up straight and straightened his lab coat. “EMP.”
Stevens gave him a confused stare while rubbing at his neck. “Excuse me?”
“You asked how to stop them. An EMP.” Evan took his seat and opened the dossier on Jameson and Ingram. “Their battle suits are quite advanced, but they’re not hardened. An electromagnetic pulse will short circuit them. They’ll lose their displays, their communications, their ability to seal off wounded limbs, their networking with other operators. They’ll essentially be men in very heavy Kevlar armor.”
Stevens stared off, his mouth hanging open. “I can’t believe that nobody thought to shield their armor.”
“Neither could I. But I went over their schematics numerous times. They’re most definitely not shielded.”
Stevens smiled. He began to chuckle. His chuckling turned into full on laughter. “All of the money they spent on R&D and nobody thought to shield against an EMP? That’s rich!”
“They probably didn’t think that they’d have the need since they were designed to face monsters. Not much need to protect from an EMP when fighting vampires and werewolves and the like.”
Stevens nodded. “I would have to agree.” He reached for his coffee and took a long pull from it. “So, is there a way to create an EMP big enough to shut them down without setting off a nuke?”
Evan smirked. “Does a Northern Greater Elf delineate his borders with bioluminescent markings?” He noted the bewilderment on Stevens’ face. “I mean, uh…does a bear defecate in the woods?”
“Ah! Yes! Yes, they do!”
“And yes. Yes, I can.”
*****
The limo pulled to a stop and Viktor opened the door. He stepped out into the twilight and adjusted his suit. He glanced up the steps at the two vampire guards waiting at the top of the landing. He gave the two men a slight nod but neither responded.
Holding the door open for Rufus, he kept his eyes moving for any others who might be lurking in the shadows. Once Rufus was clear of the car he gently shut the door and stepped in front of the vampire, acting as a shield as the two made their way up to the main doors.
Both guards took a step closer, effectively blocking the entrance and Rufus gripped Viktor’s shoulder. He pulled him back gently and stepped forward. “Inform the Council that Rufus Thorn is here to meet with them.”
“You aren’t cleared for access, Mr. Thorn.”
Rufus gave the guard a slight bow and smiled. “If you’ll inform the Council that their request has been met. The demon queen has been removed. I believe they’ll allow my audience.”
One of the guards spoke softly into his sleeve and a moment later he nodded to the other. Both men stepped aside and the smaller of the two opened the door allowing both Viktor and Rufus to enter the building.
Once inside and away from inquisitive ears, Viktor leaned closer and whispered, “Should I be alarmed yet?”
“Not yet, mon ami.” Rufus entered the elevator and punched the button for the top floor. As the doors shut he stared straight ahead. “Are your people in position?”
Viktor pulled a small device from his breast pocket and punched a series of buttons. “They are. And they are monitoring me. I need only to give them the word.”
Rufus nodded. “Let us hope they won’t be needed.”
Viktor stiffened as the lights slowly rose closer to the top. “Do you truly think that is a possibility?”
“Anything is possible.” He turned and gave a sad smile. “Not probable, but possible.”
The doors opened and a very large vampire stood before the pair. “Monsieur Thorn. I am to escort you to the Council.”
“Very well.”
“Your dog stays here.” The large vampire sneered at Viktor who showed no emotion.
“My Second comes with me.”
The vampire stiffened and stared at the much smaller man. “We were under the impression that your brother was your Second.”
“He was. He was released and Viktor has taken his rightful place once more.” Rufus held his head high and motioned to the vampire. “Shall we?”
With a low growl, the vampire turned and escorted the pair to the Council Chambers. Just shy of the door he paused. “Wait here. You’ll be called when they are ready.”
The large vampire disappeared through an alcove and Rufus stood ready. Viktor cleared his throat and whispered, “How long do you think they’ll make us wait?”
“Long enough to remind us of who is in charge.”
“Great.”
*****
“Spanky!” Little John yelled as he tried to focus on where the pair had rolled to. He could see arms and legs grappling as the pair rolled down an embankment, dirt and debris flying as each tried to gain footing to best the other. John stood and took off toward the tumbling pair. “Move! Move! Converge on Spalding!”
He took off down the embankment, sliding through the wet mossy mud until he reached the bottom of the hill. He could see where the two had struggled further down the dry creek bed that led to the rushing water they had been listening to on their approach. He crested a small rise and saw the pair still struggling and rolling toward the river below. “Double time it!”
John took off at a sprint, his night vision bouncing as he tried to avoid low hanging limbs and prickly vines. He ducked low and rolled under a fallen tree, coming up with his rifle at the ready. By the time he focused the reticle, he saw only Spanky coming to his feet, his head spinning in different directions, looking for his attacker.
“Delta One, report!” John barked as he made a slow approach.
“Operational.” Spalding slapped mud and leaves from his uniform and pulled his carbine back around from his back. The strap had nearly strangled him during his encounter.
John slowed his approach and scanned the area, Lamb and Jacobs flanking him and taking a higher position to scan for the attacker. Donovan laid a hand on John’s back. “I don’t see Five.”
Spalding’s ears perked and he was suddenly up the hill, his carbine leveled. “Delta squad, report.”
Donovan nodded to him. “Delta Two, ready.”
“Delta Three, five-by-five, boss,” Lamb reported from above him.
“Delta Four standing by.” Jacobs was on one knee and scanning the hillside with his carbine.
Little John felt the bile rise in his throat when Five didn’t report. He looked to Spalding and shook his head. “Delta Six, at the ready.”
“Fuck me standing.” Spalding reached down and pulled his boonie hat from the muddy moss and slapped it across his leg. “The attack was a diversion.”
“There’s two of them?”
Spalding shrugged. “At least.” He ground his teeth and hit his throat mic. “OPCOM, Delta Actual, we have multiple tangos. They have Delta Five.”
“Copy that, Delta Actual. Air support inbound. Switching to thermal and beginning an expanding search pattern.”
“Roger that, OPCOM.” Spalding released his mic and turned to Lamb. “You and Ing check for tracks. Look for anything that might indicate where they took Gus. There’s no way the big guy went down without a fight.”
“Copy that.” Ron tapped Jacobs and the two double-timed it back up the hill, their eyes scanning the ground and surrounding foliage for any indication of a struggle.
“What do want us to do, boss?” Donnie asked.
Spalding ground his teeth and glanced down the hill where his attacker had suddenly released him and disappeared in the darkness of the forest.
“We’re gonna hunt that other fucker down. Odds are, they’re gonna meet up somewhere. I want to be there when they do.”
*****
Jameson returned to his office rather than trying to return home for thirty minutes of sleep. He opened his door to a ringing phone and assumed it had to be Ingram. He punched the button and lifted the receiver to his ear. “This couldn�
�t have waited?”
“I’ve got people gearing up to move into an empty office complex across from the Monster Squad hangar. Since it’s basically across the street and has three stories of glass facing their operation, I thought it would be the best place to set up surveillance.”
“And?”
“And, as soon as you walked out I got a call from my contact at Tinker. Apparently Mitchell put in a requisition to commandeer that building. He wasn’t too happy when he found out that someone else had laid claim and was in preparation to make the building operational again.”
“Too bad for him.” Jameson fought a yawn and sat down in his chair. “How soon before we have boots on the ground?”
“A few days. They’re already making repairs to the building and getting support staff set up. Apparently there was a bit of activity that took place there recently.”
“Am I supposed to care?”
“You might.” Ingram paused, hoping that Jameson would rise and take the bait. He didn’t. He exhaled hard and continued, “Apparently they had a sniper set up there. He took a shot at the hangar. Reports are sketchy at best, but rumor has it that somebody was killed.”
“One of the abominations?”
“Nope. Somebody close to them, though. At least, that’s the scuttlebutt.”
“Again, I’m supposed to care, why?”
“I just found it interesting that somebody else was watching them besides us. And that somebody took a shot at them.” Ingram waited for the older man to add to the conversation. When he didn’t, he continued. “The enemy of my enemy…”
“Could very well be my enemy, too,” Jameson deadpanned. “I’m sorry, Robert, but I simply don’t buy into old adages. They tend to get people killed.” He spun in his chair and glanced at his map of the Middle East to remind him exactly of why he didn’t believe such things.
Ingram sighed and Jameson could hear the phone shift. “All I’m saying is that if there is somebody out there who is trying to put the hurt on these guys, maybe we can use them. We don’t have to crawl into bed with them, just…let them rattle the cage a bit and keep them off guard. You know, keep them guessing what the left hand is doing while the right hand swats them.”
Jameson shook his head and wished that he had a large cup of coffee to help jump start his brain. “I understand your desire to preoccupy the Monster Squads, but the whole idea was to alert them to the threat of the Titans, remember? Allow them to prepare themselves as best as they could so that they would throw everything they had at our troops at once. Wipe them out in one fell swoop. No survivors. Nobody to try and return to avenge their fallen comrades.”
“I know, but…with what we’ve learned recently, it just seemed prudent to use whatever we could to our advantage.”
Jameson smiled although Ingram couldn’t benefit from the gesture. “My boy, if our super soldiers can’t handle these mutts, then they don’t deserve to wear the mantle of ‘defender of mankind’, now do they?”
“Well, I don’t know if I’d go that far. Our troops have the right stuff to protect humanity from monsters. I’m just not sure if they’re prepared to face the—”
“They’re monsters, Robert. Plain and simple. They may believe that they fight for our best interest, but they are still monsters. And the Titans were created to destroy monsters, were they not?”
“Well, yes, but—”
“No buts.” Jameson leaned forward, preparing to hang up. “They will face the Council and destroy them. Then they will face the Monster Squad and destroy them. If they aren’t up to those tasks, then they simply aren’t worthy.”
“So, what? We wash the project down the drain?”
“Of course not, dear boy. We simply create a better monster hunter.”
18
“What do you mean we can’t appropriate that building? I already cleared it with General Litchfield’s office. They said that nobody wanted that building because of the condition and—” Mitchell got cut off and clenched his jaw while the woman on the other end of the phone made excuses.
He pinched at the bridge of his nose and did his best not to yell. “Ma’am, I understand that, but we were assured that we could utilize that building as long as we were willing to renovate to current code and standards and we agreed to in order to ensure the security of our operations. General Litch—” He was cut off again, except this time she explained that somebody much higher up, from the Pentagon, had authorized the use of the three-story office complex, and the new tenants were already making renovations.
Mitchell groaned and leaned back in his chair, the fight having left him. “In other words, there’s not a damned thing that neither I, nor General Litchfield can do. Somebody with more brass than brains has already made the decision.”
“That is correct, Colonel.”
Mitchell fought the growl rising in his throat as he thanked her and hung up. “More bad news, I take it.”
“You could say that.” He turned and filled his coffee cup again, wishing for the umpteenth time that it was scotch. “We lost the building across the way that Bigby set up in.”
Jennifer nodded as she tried to find a silver lining. “I suppose if somebody is utilizing the building, the odds are much lower that somebody else can do what Bigby did, correct?”
Mitchell shrugged. “I suppose.”
Jennifer fought the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “So what is the proper military protocol when you get a new neighbor? Do you take them a cobbler or a pie and welcome them to the neighborhood?”
“You’re not funny.” Mitchell sipped the coffee and lifted his blinds to study the two men down in the lab.
“I really wish you’d lighten up a bit.” She wrapped her arms around his middle and nuzzled his neck.
“When all of this is put to rest, I’ll do my best to take a little time off.”
Jennifer snorted and hid her face. “I thought you said there was always some sort of threat that needed your attention?”
He gave her a sidelong glance. “Did I?”
“I believe you did.”
“Hmm. Well, maybe I should choose my words more wisely in the future.”
She stepped between him and the window and gave him a devilish smile. With a sudden jerk of her hands, she pulled open her blouse and exposed herself to him. “Maybe if I can distract you from all of these worries.”
Mitchell opened his mouth to comment just as his office door burst open. “We have an operator miss—Oh, my God!” Tufo spun on his heels and headed back out of the office.
“Would it kill you to learn how to knock!” Mitchell yelled.
“I didn’t see a damned thing!” Tufo yelled from the hallway. “And for the love of Pete, turn up the heat before she catches her death!”
Mitchell ground his teeth while Jennifer laughed and refastened her blouse. “Go. See what’s so important.”
“I’m gonna kill him.”
She placed a hand on his cheek and gave him a loving smile. “We’re wolves, my love. Nudity doesn’t faze me.”
“But it was him.” Mitchell’s eyes narrowed.
“Go!” She pushed him toward the door, tears of laughter forming as he reluctantly left.
Mitchell did his best to stomp menacingly toward the OPCOM. He threw open the door to find Mark sitting at attention in the command chair, his eyes glued straight ahead at the overhead screen.
Mitchell shut the door and stepped to the chair where Mark refused to even blink. “What was so damned important that you felt it necessary to interrupt,” he glanced around the room and cleared his throat, “such an important meeting?”
“Gus Tracy has been abducted.” Tufo’s eyes continued to stare straight ahead. “And let the record reflect that I didn’t see a thing.”
“Bull cookies.” Mitchell glanced to the boards and checked the readouts on the drone. “Anything on the thermals?”
“Negative, Colonel,” the drone operator responded. “We’re doing an e
xpanding grid, but so far we’re not picking up anything larger than a raccoon.”
Mitchell glanced to Tufo, his face a mask of confusion. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
“Turn up the heat in your office?”
“No! For the love of…underground tunnels!” Mitchell slammed a fist down on the rail between the command chair and the technicians. “If they nabbed Gus and they’re not reading on the thermals, they must be travelling through some kind of tunnel system.”
Mark’s eyes widened as it suddenly became clear. “That area is supposed to be eat up with caves. Who says there can’t be tunnels connecting them?”
Mitchell nodded to the coms officer. “Notify Delta Actual. Tell him to keep his eyes peeled for any kind of underground access. And for God’s sake, be careful out there.”
*****
“Chief Jack, the Wyldwood asked that I provide guidance while here and I must profess that this course of action is foolhardy at best.” Allister took a half step forward, his face unreadable. “Might I suggest that you take a moment to calm yourself and—”
“When I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you. Understood?” Jack pointed the angelic blade in Allister’s direction, sending the griffin back the half step he had advanced. “That goes for all of you. If you’re not part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem.”
Azrael’s brow furrowed as he spoke. “We’re either with you or against you? Is that what it’s come to, Chief Jack? Because the last I heard, you were our leader.”
Gnat stepped from between Azrael’s legs and propped his familial war hammer across his shoulder. “Aye. I pledged my allegiance to you, Chief Jack. To live, fight, or die by your command.” He glanced across the room to the others. “I stand by that pledge. Even if I believe your threat to be foolhardy as Allister has proclaimed.”
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