Echoes of War

by Cheryl Campbell

  She checked her watch. 2223. Shit.

  Mary picked up Dani’s pack. “I’ll keep this safe for you. Be careful.”

  Dani took a deep breath and circled to the rear of the building. The blowing snow had started filling in the prints made by Jens and Rosen. Dani followed them until she found the larger imprint in the snow where the Warden’s body had fallen. She spotted the rear door and walked to it. The flat security panel near the door’s handle blinked green. Her new suit contained some kind of proximity access somewhere on it. She had no idea what she was walking into or how many Wardens might be on the inside. Dani lowered her hand to the former Warden’s pistol, took another deep breath, and pulled the door open.

  CHAPTER

  42

  Dani was wishing she had Brody with her as she stepped through the door. The canines were being held well away from the worst of the firefight tonight, however. They would be brought in later, once they had the base, to help clear the remaining structures. It was a good plan—except Dani wanted him there with her now.

  She scanned the immediate area; it was free of Wardens. The armory’s interior was all metal beams and walls. It wasn’t much warmer in there than it had been outside, except there wasn’t any wind. Crates were stacked in groups and covered much of the floor. Several forklifts were parked in the far left corner.

  She signaled, and the waiting fireteams entered without a sound. One of them eased the door closed, and Dani moved forward alone after it clicked shut.

  Two Wardens sat in an open area at a table, playing cards next to a portable heater. Their helmets rested on the floor by their feet. A coffee pot and a couple of mugs sat on a table next to them. A path through the crates would lead Rosen to their rear, but she would need some time to get in position. Dani needed to create a distraction to give her that time.

  She communicated her intentions to the others with hand signals, and Miles shook his head. Dani ignored his silent protest. Keeping her helmet on to conceal her face, she strode away from the door and crates toward the table.

  “Longest smoke break ever, Walker,” one of the Wardens said. “Thought we’d have to come look for you, but it’s cold as shit. Easier to just let you freeze to death.” Both men at the table laughed.

  She couldn’t risk speaking, so she extended her middle finger at them. They laughed again and continued their game.

  Forcing herself to take slower breaths, Dani headed for the pot of coffee. She fumbled with one of the mugs and dropped it on purpose. The glassware shattered—and almost simultaneously, the lights went out. Dani’s helmet allowed her to see everything. The two Wardens were blinded in the darkness, but didn’t panic.

  “Damn storm took the power out,” one said, reaching for his helmet.

  Rosen stepped out from behind the crates and jerked the Warden’s head to the side while Jens looped a wire over the other Warden’s head. A tiny gurgle escaped the second man’s mouth, but Jens extinguished any other sounds as he pulled the wire tight around his neck.

  The remainder of the fireteams emerged from the maze of crates. Dani identified each member except Mary. She must be the one who’d taken out the lighting.

  A third Warden appeared behind Miles with his pistol out, and Dani drew her weapon. The lights came back on as Dani fired. Her shot clipped the Warden in the arm. He stumbled, and Marcic was on him and thrusting his knife into his neck in an instant.

  Miles signaled for the two teams to perform a sweep of the facility. Dani rejoined her group as they searched the rest of the armory for more Wardens. None surfaced, and the rest of the base remained quiet. Dani feared the third Warden had alerted the base to their presence, but it seemed Marcic had stabbed him before he could.

  They gathered at the center of the structure, and Dani removed her helmet. Elmore, Marcic, and Zykov opened some of the crates and celebrated their new stash of weapons. Dani busied herself by checking her watch while Rosen and Jens dispatched the regenerating Wardens. 2234. They were running out of time.

  Gavin’s voice boomed into Dani’s ear comm, startling her. “Javi, Wardens are moving helos out of the hangar, and the fireteams there can’t take them on their own. Move three of your teams in to support and keep them on the ground. Take the west armory next to the hangar while you’re there.”

  “On it,” Javi said.

  “Javi, wait,” Dani said. “Gavin, are they moving the birds to leave or to attack? Any signs that we’ve been discovered?”

  “Their movements aren’t rushed and no other Wardens have been dispatched to defensive positions. Nothing on their comms shows that they know we’re here.”

  “Then let ’em leave,” Dani said. “We can’t take the helos without making a ruckus. Blow the fake comm tower first, and the birds will be recalled, then we can blow the place as planned.”

  “Miles?” Javi asked.

  “We have a shit ton of toys we just took in the east armory,” Miles said. “We can blow the helos out of sky from the ground when they return.”

  “Javi, send one of your sabs to meet me at the decoy tower,” Gavin said.

  Dani slipped her helmet back on. “Gavin, I’m coming.”

  “Javi, I want Patel,” Gavin said.

  “He’s still working on the fixed-wings,” Javi said.

  Dani grumbled with annoyance. Gavin was trying to keep her back, and she refused to let him. “Gavin, I’m dressed as a Warden, so don’t shoot me. Javi, tell Patel and his crew not to kill me when I go by.” Dani took her pack from Mary and removed the detonator for the explosives she’d placed on the air traffic tower.

  “I’m still in the winter skin,” Mary said. “I’ll go.”

  “I can walk out in the open as a Warden and cover the half mile above ground quicker than you can make the three-quarter-mile hike underground in the sewers. Just blow my tower for me, will you?” Dani handed the detonator to Mary and headed for the door.

  Miles walked beside her as she went. “Don’t do anything crazy. Set the charges and leave. The comm and air traffic towers come down at 2300.”

  Dani resisted the urge to check her watch. “Understood.”

  The wind battered her as she waded through the snow covering the roadway between the base and the east armory and fixed-wing hangars. She gave a thumbs-up when she spotted Patel’s fireteam working below the four fixed-wings, hoping that Javi had relayed the message to them about her disguise. One of the volunteers returned the gesture, and a slight amount of the tension in Dani’s shoulders eased. Now she just needed to cross the rest of the airfield without dying.

  She pushed her feet and lower legs through the knee-deep and sometimes thigh-deep drifts. The wind had swept some of the north-south runway free of snow, and Dani realized she was walking directly over the CNA troops at that moment. She hurried across the runway, then slowed again as she encountered more drifts.

  Some lights near the helo hangar across the airfield flickered as the waves of snow swirled over the area. Dani wondered what the hell would possess the Wardens to make a flight in these conditions. The air traffic tower she’d crept beneath before, she now walked right past.

  She crossed a few other paved and wind-swept areas before arriving at the decoy tower. She tried to steal another view of the helos, and her head snapped back around when she almost walked into another Warden standing at the base of the fake comm tower.

  “This weather is shit,” the woman said. “Doesn’t matter where you stand, the snow finds you. I’m really missing Florida tonight.”

  Dani chuckled and hoped it didn’t sound as nervous as she felt. Her body was tense, and her heartbeat felt out of control. The Warden wore the same type of helmet as Dani, and Dani had a full view of the woman’s face through the shield. She assumed the woman could see her too.

  “I bet. What’s all the fuss with the helos?”

  “Boss wants to strike Bangor tonight is what I heard from one of the pilots. He was asleep and got called out to fly in this storm.” />
  “Ah.” Dani struggled to keep her face neutral. “Glad it’s him and not me.”

  “Me too. I’d puke my guts up on a flight that rough.”

  “Hey, head in to warm up a bit if you want,” Dani said. “I just transferred in from Boston, so the cold doesn’t bother me as much.”

  “You’re a lifesaver. I owe you a beer. What’s your name?”

  Dani said the first name that popped into her head. “Jackman.”

  The woman tilted her head, confused, and Dani realized she was asking for her first name.

  “I meant—”

  Hands grabbed the woman from behind and snapped her head in an unnatural direction. Dani started to bolt, and then she recognized Gavin. He pulled the woman to the ground.

  “You’re going to give me a fucking heart attack,” she said.

  “You suck at lying, Dani. You’re going to get yourself killed. You say your name is Jackman when your uniform says Walker. Brilliant.”

  Dani looked down at the name label on her stolen body armor. Fuck.

  “We’re not here to make friends,” Gavin said.

  “I wasn’t. I—”

  “Stop arguing. We have work to do.”

  Dani knelt and dug through her pack. “They’re hitting Bangor tonight.”

  “I heard. Hurry.”

  “Don’t rush me.”

  “We’re right between the real comm tower and the air traffic tower. When those blow, we don’t want to be between them. Hurry.”

  Dani removed the charges from her pack and used her teeth to remove her gloves. She spit the gloves out and adjusted the wires on the units.

  The fallen Warden’s body began to glow, and Dani’s eyes fell on her body as it writhed inside her armor. Based on her now much smaller body size, Dani guessed the woman returned to a child’s age after regen.

  “Pay attention to what you’re doing, Dani.” Gavin shifted closer to the Warden and wrapped a wire around her neck until the glow faded.

  Dani stared at the little body inside the oversize Warden armor. She flinched when Gavin touched her hand.

  “I know all you see is that I killed a child, but you must remember she is still a Warden, a target, regardless of age. Focus on your work. That’s your only job.”

  Dani nodded and blinked several times to try to clear her mind.

  Gavin removed charges from his pack, and Dani continued to prep her own explosives. Once finished, she scooped her devices into her hands. “I’ll cover the interior. Let’s go.”

  CHAPTER

  43

  “This weather is horrible.” Curtis stood at the windows in Rowan’s office that faced the south, but all he saw was the blowing snow swirling past the glass. “Can’t see a damn thing.”

  “What are the odds my troops are keeping watch like they should?” Rowan organized and straightened various items on his desk again.

  “There’s a minus twenty-five wind chill, Rowan.”

  “I don’t care. Ready one of the trucks. I’ll make rounds to remind them not to slack off.”

  “We have almost two feet of snow on the ground now, not including the drifts and the remaining foot yet to fall. The plows stopped because they couldn’t keep up with the snowfall.”

  Rowan left his desk to stand at the window too. The snow blocked his views of everything, and he frowned. “Trees and snow. I hate this state.”

  Curtis chuckled. “And you’re interested in a post in Canada? It’s more trees and more snow there.”

  “Quebec City and Montreal are still bigger cities than this one.”

  “Agreed. Bangor is smaller than Portland, though.”

  “Bangor is a pain in my ass.”

  “You make Bangor a pain in your ass. It’s a nothing town that you’re only slightly less obsessed with than you are with finding the girl.”

  Rowan turned and stared at his friend.

  Curtis shrugged. “Just being honest.”

  Rowan grunted in response and left the window. He retrieved his coat and pulled it on.

  “Where are you going?”

  “To make rounds where I can. We still have snow machines that can handle the deeper snow.”

  Curtis groaned but followed his superior. As they walked down the corridor, one of Curtis’s aides rushed up to him and handed him a palm-sized panel.

  “What is this?” Curtis asked.

  “Intel reports from across the state, sir,” the young man replied. “It mentions Bangor.”

  “Thank you,” Curtis said. He dismissed the aide and scrolled through the report while Rowan waited.

  Rowan shifted with impatience. “Anything of interest?”

  “Not really. The usual stuff. Wait.” He passed the panel to Rowan and pointed to a particular paragraph. “Read this part.”

  “Commonwealth troops have been observed actively training with resident Brigands in the town and completing military maneuvers,” Rowan said, reading from the report. “They have a cache of weapons but exact numbers are undetermined. Their intent of training is unknown but is likely for the defense of Bangor.” He shook the panel at Curtis angrily. “Fuck. The groups united anyway. I specifically didn’t want this to happen. Why is this information only coming in now? How old is it?”

  “Keep reading.”

  Rowan sighed and returned his attention to the report. “Blah, blah, blah. Lieutenant Colonel Catherine Houston of the CNA leads the Commonwealth division and a former military member turned Brigand, Gavin Marcus, leads the civilian troops.” Rowan lifted his eyes from the report. “Houston’s the one that was in charge of the MPs here when we took over. The CNA rolled right over and let us in without much of a fight that day. I’m not worried about her.”

  Curtis gestured toward the panel.

  Rowan glanced back down at the report. “Both are assisted by various leaders in the Commonwealth and Brigand communities. Marcus is closely assisted by fellow Brigands Jace Ireland and a woman named Dani, last name unknown. …” He reread the last sentence again before turning to Curtis. “Dani.”

  “It might not be the girl you’re looking for, Rowan.”

  He grinned and gave the panel back to Curtis. “It’s her. It has to be.”

  “We’ll find out when we hit them in the spring.”

  “Fuck the spring.” Rowan spun and headed down the corridor in the direction they’d come from with long, determined strides.

  Curtis jogged to catch up. “Where are you going?”

  “Change of plans. I don’t need to inspect the soldiers on watch. I want troops to load the helos. We’re going to Bangor tonight.”

  “You don’t have orders to attack.”

  “I’ve received intel indicating a significant threat to the Warden initiatives regarding Earth. I have the authority to act on that threat.”

  “You’re stretching the boundaries of that authority. Let me contact Boston, sir. If you attack without clearance, you can be stripped of your post here.”

  “No one, not even the CNA, wants Portland. The vice regent sits in Boston and has never bothered to make the short flight here to see everything that we do. Without me, the Wardens don’t get new tech. They can’t strip me of anything. I’m attacking Bangor now.”

  “We’re in the middle of a blizzard!”

  “We can fly in the snow.”

  “This is more than a passing squall or snow.”

  “Get the birds ready, Curtis. We leave as soon as we stow our gear and troops are on board.”

  “If we wait a couple of hours, the worst of the storm will be over.”

  “Within an hour. That time is non-negotiable.”

  “Sir—”

  “Do it, or I’ll find someone who can.”

  Curtis nodded. “Yes, sir. Within an hour.”

  “Good. You’re in charge of the base until I return,” Rowan said. He’d never slowed his pace during the conversation, and they were already close to the barracks where his elite Wardens were housed. Like hi
m, they were always ready and willing to attack the CNA and Brigands. A little snow and cold wouldn’t bother them. They could leave, capture Dani, burn Bangor, and be back in Portland before this storm was done. Boston wouldn’t know until it was over. He might receive a reprimand for disobeying the order to wait until the spring, but he didn’t care. He’d gotten enough commendations over the course of his career to cancel out a negative mark for attacking a town he technically had permission to attack. He could also fudge some numbers regarding the weapons stores they had in Bangor to further justify the trip.

  As expected, his elite troops were eager to gear up for an easy trouncing of Bangor. They stood at attention while he walked among them.

  “The weather could be better, but none of us are worried about a few snowflakes, are we?”

  “No, sir!” they shouted in unison.

  “Bangor Brigands and Commonwealth troops have been training together, and our sources say they’re making significant progress,” Rowan said. His troops would never know that he was lying a bit—and even if they did find out, they wouldn’t care. “Our task is to destroy that progress; burn it to the ground.”

  “Yes, sir!” they said as a collective.

  “There is a woman there helping them, a Brigand. Her name is Dani, no recorded last name. Find and capture her alive. She has important intel on the inner circles of the Brigands, so no harm is to come to her. Once we have her, we incinerate Bangor. Capture what Echoes you can, but that is not our main objective. The woman is the one I need captured at any cost.”

  “Sir, do you have an image or description of her?” one of the Wardens asked.

  “No. The only description we have is over a decade old. But Bangor isn’t that big. Round up the locals and interrogate them to find out where she is.”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Gear up, and get on the helos ASAP. I’m going with you.”

  Though the prep time took longer than he wanted, by Warden standards, his team was ready in record time. Rowan strode toward the running helicopter wearing his body armor, a quake rifle slung across his back. He carried his helmet and used his hand to keep the swirling, wind-whipped snow out of his eyes as he neared the bird. The storm had intensified, but he had four helos loaded with troops and weapons.