9. Jackson
Chapter nine
Jackson
The boat tips and sways over the rolling waves of the ocean. It’s quiet. Only the motor of the fishing vessel and the water slapping the sides can be heard around us.
No one’s said a word since we landed at the southernmost tip of Key West.
Hope is a dangerous feeling that’s burrowed its way into each of us. The scientist could have outdated information. I’m confident he didn’t lie about what he did have, but it’s been some time since he was last involved in this area of GE. The probability that Raegan will be on one of these three islands is slim.
Aiden, who would normally be the voice of reason, hasn’t said anything to dissuade our hope that we’ve finally found her.
I try to be realistic as well most times, but I can’t afford for this information to be wrong.
The two months she’s been with GE is already unacceptable.
If she’s not there…
I can’t go back. If I have to kill everyone, island by island until I find her, then that’s what I’ll do.
I close my eyes and lean against the side of the boat, tugging my hood down to further shadow my face even though it’s the middle of the night. The moment I let my eyes rest for more than a second, sleep immediately tries to pull me under. The rocking motion combined with the sound of water work to lull my mind.
I’ve hardly slept in the last two months, letting my body take only what it needed when I had nothing better to do but wait for my next target to arrive. Otherwise, sleep has been an inconvenience I can’t afford to give too much time right now.
I’ll sleep for days once I have my little one safe in my arms, where she belongs.
“Are you sure you’re up for this?” Aiden questions from above me.
I crack an eye open to peer at him. His expression is tight. I noticed it had been that way since he came back with Dane after locking Vera up and then demanding that we leave right away.
I hadn’t bothered questioning it since he had been the one forcing me to rest in the first place. If he changed his mind and wanted to leave sooner, then I wouldn’t interfere. I could find out what made him alter his plan later. Getting Raegan is all that matters right now.
I smirk. “We’re getting her back,” I assure him, because I know exactly what he’s thinking right now. That I’m too exhausted to be of any use to them. That I’ll slip up and we’ll miss this chance. He would rather bench me on the sidelines and do this without me than risk mistakes.
He’s just as desperate for her to come home as the rest of us.
But he doesn’t need to worry about me.
I know once I see her, that everything will come into focus, no matter how tired I am.
Aiden watches me for another second, then nods and returns to Reid’s side at the wheel. Kellan’s pacing at the bow in what little room there is to do so, and Dane’s sitting on the bench opposite me, his hands fisted on his thighs, foot bouncing.
I close my eyes once more to take advantage of what downtime remains.
“We’re close to the first island,” Reid reports sometime later. His words break through the fog of sleep I’d been wrapped in, and I lift my head to check our surroundings.
The moon’s barely a sliver of light tonight, and even the stars are dark from cloud cover. I can make out a dark shadow off Dane’s side of the boat in the distance that could be land, but we’re still too far from it for me to be sure.
“Kill the motor. Jack, you’re up,” Aiden commands.
Dropping a hand over the side, I draw air in a rush at the back of the boat. A sailboat would have been our best option, but this was the first and simplest one at the docks.
Once we’re close enough, Kellan tosses the anchor over the side. Dane digs into his pocket and holds out something. “Take this and snap it around the first Ethernet cable you find.”
I nod and pocket the tiny piece of technology. He flips open his laptop, and Aiden steps between us.
“Here’s your comms.” He hands me an earpiece. “Tell us what’s going on and if you think she’s here. Remember, we’re not moving in until we know she’s on the island. We have three to check, so let’s not waste time if she’s not here.”
The earpiece fits snugly in my ear before I press the tiny button to turn it on. There’s a small beep, and then I hear an echo of Aiden’s voice. “Reid. Are you ready?”
The probationary Guild member steps forward with a nod. “Ready.” Reid frowns when he looks at the growing smirk on my face, but he’s smart enough not to comment. He and I don’t know each other well yet, so this mini team up will be interesting. He’s been working with Aiden and the others while I’ve been off hunting, and he’s apparently won Aiden’s trust during that time.
If he doesn’t get in my way, I don’t care if he’ll be joining me.
“Grab my shoulder. And don’t let go before I tell you to,” Reid reminds me, his tone stoic. I’m curious for a second about what he thinks we’re going to do, and then I realize that I don’t care so long as he doesn’t try to betray us.
Placing my hand on his shoulder, my other readies a handful of throwing knives.
This is it.
I’m getting her back.
The rage I’ve been holding back slips through my veins like sweet venom, filling me up in a rush of adrenaline that sets my heart racing. A warm buzz settles beneath my skin. A violent dance of energy that demands to be released.
The air thins, and then the world tilts off-balance before my feet land on firm sand. My body takes longer to catch up to where I’m standing, but I use my gift to steady myself and stay upright.
Reid’s eyebrows pop up as he looks at me. “Most people fall down.”
I don’t bother responding. He’ll learn soon enough that I’m hardly ever put into the category of “most people.”
“Hey! You!” someone shouts further down the beach.
“Shit. What are we going to—Hello?” Reid calls out, but I’m already airborne. The guy has his focus on Reid now, so it gives me the perfect opportunity to send my knives at him from above.
The first one catches in his throat, cutting off any further sound, and it’s followed by another two to the chest. He drops to the ground, and I land in a crouch next to him.
“What was that?” Dane’s voice sounds from the earpiece.
“Nothing,” I answer calmly.
Reid strides over as I tug the blades free. His gaze travels from the dead security guard to me. “It’s handled,” he answers into his own comms.
“What’s handled?” Dane angrily whispers.
“Quiet, Dane,” Aiden cuts in. “If they said they’re fine, then they’re fine. We shouldn’t distract them.”
I ignore them and point my finger at the dead guy while looking at Reid. “Take his key card.”
Thankfully, he doesn’t waste time arguing or demanding more information. He works quickly to divest the guard of his card, flashlight, and taser gun, then faces me when he’s ready.
My hand raises, sending air beneath the dead body, and then I push him out over the ocean far enough that he won’t come rolling in overnight.
Reid grunts but keeps his thoughts to himself.
We make it to the nearest building, where I dispose of another guard at the door. Reid scans the tag from the first guard to open the door while I send the second security guard out to sea with the first.
The room we enter is dark, with random blinking green and red lights. Reid clicks on the flashlight to reveal an office. With computers.
Good.
I pull out the clip Dane had given me and search for the cable he needs in the nearest computer. Once it snaps on, I speak to the others on the boat. “Got you a computer.”
“Fuck, yes,” Dane murmurs. The comms fill with the sound of his typing as he breaks into their network.
With that task complete, Reid and I separate to clear the rest of the building. There’s no one inside, so we move on to the next one.
This one has a few more guards posted and security cameras every twenty feet. “Cameras,” I share in a raised whisper.
“Got it,” Dane confirms.
Reid shifts next to me on the roof of the first building. “What’s the plan?”
“Kill them,” I answer easily.
“We’re further from the beach, and there are more of them. How are you going to bring them there without wasting time?”
“I’m not.” I wave my hand at the bushes and scrub surrounding the building. “Hide them in there.”
He scowls. “I’m not here as your lackey. I can fight, too.”
Tilting my head, I regard him warily. “Mm. Why are you here, then?”
“What? I’m here to get you on and off the island faster without you wasting your gift.”
Not necessary, but it made Aiden feel better.
“No. Why are you helping us? What do you want?”
“Jack,” Aiden warns through the comms. “Now’s not the time for that. You can ask him whatever you want after we’ve gotten Raegan home.”
Reid and I stare silently at one another.
“Cameras are on a loop and I’ve blocked their radios. You’re clear,” Dane reports.
My lips twist up in a smirk now that time’s run out for Reid to answer. He’s hiding something. That much is certain.
I nudge him off the roof, letting him fall by gravity first before I catch him just above the ground. He curses at me, but I’m already airborne and attacking the guards in rapid succession. I drop in front of one of them, finishing the kill with the slash of a knife.
The rest of the guards rush at me, and I use my gift to enhance my speed. My strength. To send my fist flying with a force strong enough to break bone. My body is fast and light enough that fighting more than one assailant at a time is more like a coordinated dance between me and them.
I could send my knives at them like the others, but I need the outlet for some of my frustration. I’ve bottled it up for so long that I’m spiraling in it. My fists and knives attack mercilessly, and I revel in their pain and bloodshed.
This is what happens when you take her from me. When you touch what belongs to me .
The last guard hits the sand.
I survey the area once again to make sure there are no others, then stop on Reid. His lips are pressed into a hard line as he takes in the bodies lying around me. Then his blue gaze finds mine. “I’m not dragging every single one of these away. You’re helping.”
I chuckle softly. Fair point.
He drags three away by the time I have the rest hidden in the scrub, and then I wave my hand with a breeze to cover any lingering signs of blood in the sand. We’ll hopefully be long gone with Raegan by the time anyone on these islands wakes up to see anything, but there could always be more guards or the stray scientist working late at night.
Reid flashes the badge at the door to let us in. This time, the room looks more like a hotel lobby, with counters and computers on one side and a large living area on the other. We share a look. If she’s going to be somewhere sleeping, this is most likely it.
“We haven’t found anything about Raegan in their computers yet. Have you seen anything?” Aiden asks.
I hum. “Not sure yet.”
The first floor has all common areas. A kitchen, cafeteria, library, and offices. We head up the floors, scanning for bedrooms until we finally make it to a floor that has them. It’s easy to tell them apart from the others considering the hallway wall is see-through like glass.
“We found the prisoners,” Reid murmurs behind me to the others on the boat, no doubt.
He swipes the guard’s card through the keypad beside the door of the nearest room. A low, double beep and red light respond. His brow furrows. “We need a scientist’s badge.”
I focus on the face of the sleeping person in each room, using my gift to let me hop more swiftly from room to room.
“Where are you going?” Reid whispers harshly. “Aren’t we going to free them?”
“They’re not her.”
“So, you’re just going to leave them here?” he pushes.
I glance over my shoulder at him. He’s still stopped in front of the first room down the hallway.
Aiden speaks up while I continue checking through the rooms. “You told me you have a limitation with how many people you can transport over large distances, Reid. The mission was about getting Raegan out safely. We’ll have to come back another time for the rest.”
I don’t check again to see if Reid’s decided to keep following me or not. A pile of blonde hair in one room stops me in my tracks. Everything else about the person is covered, and the room is bare of any clues about who’s inside.
Little one.
I buffer the surrounding air to keep sound inside, then stab my knife into the wall. It’s not glass, or it would have broken within a couple of strikes, but it slowly begins to crack with the force of the wind strengthening my swing. Again. And again.
My arm tires from the motion, but a hole finally appears among the cracks and I’m able to break it large enough for me to squeeze through.
Bending over the sleeping figure, I stroke the blonde hair from the girl’s face.
It’s not her.