Chapter 10
Chapter ten
“I go through all that trouble of making sure I had a uniform with me, and it turns out I could have saved myself the trouble,” Darwin muttered, frowning down at the cheap three-piece suit they’d given him to wear.
Simon’s mouth twitched. He was sitting on the bench beside Darwin in the military cargo truck and reached out to grab the side rail as the vehicle tilted sharply on the rough terrain they were crossing.
“I think you look good playing the part of a drug lord. You just act like the helpless kingpin you’re supposed to be. The rest of us will keep you safe.”
“Speak for yourself,” Lennox said with a laugh from the bench seat on the other side of the truck bed, where he sat with Trace, Dean, and Colt. “I’m kind of looking forward to seeing Darwin running around like a chicken hoping to avoid being tagged by this Genesis drone.”
That earned him a few laughs from the other guys, even as the truck bounced and nearly threw all of them off their seats.
Darwin winced as his shoulder slammed into the cargo bed’s side rail, checking to make sure he hadn’t ripped his borrowed suit for this next phase of the Genesis Project test. Fortunately, it seemed like the cheap material of the suit jacket was intact.
According to the instructions Seth had given them, Darwin was playing the part of a dangerous drug lord trying to escape across open ground while protected by his elite security detail.
Genesis would be tracking and engaging them in the darkness throughout the test. During the briefing, he and his Teammates had been concerned the drone would be shooting at them with live ammo, but Seth quickly informed them that Genesis would be using high-velocity paintball rounds.
That was a relief. Still, nobody liked the idea of being shot at, especially when the thing shooting at you was impossible to see or hear.
Now that they knew what they were dealing with, it was getting difficult to ignore that Genesis was, in reality, an assassination drone.
Which was more than a little unsettling.
And based on how hard it’d been to locate the damn thing the first time around, Darwin wasn’t holding out much hope he and his Team would even know the drone was on them until it was too late.
“It looks like we can keep to the trees for the majority of the way to the pickup zone,” Trace said, gazing at the map of the island he’d spread out on his lap.
“But there isn’t much cover for the last kilometer or so of the approach to Jackson Hill.
We’re going to be in trouble if that drone catches us in the open. ”
“I think that’s a given.” Colt frowned. “If anything, the drone will probably wait to hit us until we get to the part of the route when we’re sitting ducks.”
Darwin leaned over to look at the map along with everyone else.
Jackson Hill was the tallest point on San Nicolas Island, and the designated end point for tonight’s exercise.
Once he and his Team reached the hilltop, the test would be over.
But studying the map now––and all the open area they’d have to cross––Darwin couldn’t help but think this event was going to go poorly.
“What did Katrina say when you told her you had to leave?” Lennox asked.
Darwin glanced at him. “She sounded disappointed, but knew I might have to leave to come out here at some point. I promised her I’d be back as soon as I could.”
“How’s the destination wedding going?” Colt asked.
He snorted. “Other than the dead body we stumbled over in the vineyard? It’s going pretty great.”
“Wait. What?” Simon did a double-take. “Someone died at the wedding? Seriously?”
Darwin filled them in on everything that had happened, including finding Arthur’s body, his suspicions about Jameson, Rhett, and Upton, and thinking Silas and Harold looked familiar.
“And you still can’t remember where you saw them?” Dean asked.
Darwin shook his head. “Kyla is doing a background check on everyone, so I’m hoping that will help.”
“I can’t imagine Katrina is thrilled you think her father and brother might be involved in murder,” Lennox said.
“About that.” Darwin winced. “I conveniently forgot to tell Katrina that I asked Kyla to check into her father and brother.”
Dean’s brow furrowed. “Call me old-fashioned, but it doesn’t seem like a good idea to hide something like that from her. She’s going to be pissed when she finds out.”
“In retrospect, I know it’s probably not my brightest idea,” Darwin agreed. “Honestly, I didn’t think it was a big deal when Kyla suggested poking around in their background at the same time. If I’m lucky, she won’t learn anything incriminating, and it’ll never come out at all.”
“And if Kyla finds out Katrina’s brother and father are involved in that guy’s murder?” Dean said.
“Then I’ll have to tell Katrina the truth, and deal with the fallout,” Darwin said, even as he prayed it didn’t come to that.
“Okay, putting that potential land mine aside for the time being,” Lennox said, “how’s everything else going with Katrina?”
Darwin’s mouth curved. “We’ve been having a really good time together.
I mean, I could do without some of the games we have to play with the other guests, but I can’t complain since it gives me a chance to spend a lot of time with Katrina.
I know we just started dating and all, but she’s the kind of woman I could see myself falling for. ”
“Wow,” Simon said. “That was fast.”
“I guess,” Darwin admitted. “But when you know, you know.”
“Does she feel the same?” Trace asked.
Darwin thought for a moment. “I think so. At least, it feels that way. Unfortunately, there’s another guy at the wedding from her past who wants back in her life, and that’s made me start doubting things a little. It doesn’t help that her mother keeps trying to get Katrina and Upton together.”
Simon stared. “Is this the same Upton you think might have murdered Arthur?”
“The one and only.”
“Well, that’s messed up,” Dean muttered.
“Does Katrina seem interested in him?” Simon asked.
“Not really. She thinks he’s kind of a doofus. Unfortunately, he also has a lot more in common with Katrina than I ever will.”
“Like what?” Trace asked.
“They grew up in the same world in terms of money, education, family expectations, and that kind of stuff. Hell, they both even recognize all that fancy food rich people eat. She might be fine with me at the moment, but what about in the future? Wouldn’t she rather be with someone who complements her better? ”
Simon frowned. “Are you sure Katrina didn’t invite you to the wedding to make this guy jealous? My sister had a friend who did that once. It’d certainly explain why someone like her would bother with someone like you.”
Crap. He’d never once considered the possibility Katrina was using him. Maybe not to make Upton jealous, because she genuinely didn’t seem to like the guy much. He could also be a murderer, so there was that. But what about to get back at her parents?
“Knock it off, Simon,” Lennox snapped before glaring at Darwin.
“And you, get your head out of your ass and stop worrying about crap that doesn’t matter.
Katrina asked you to go to her sister’s wedding because she’s into you, not to make some other guy jealous.
And if she thinks you think that, you’re going to blow this. ”
His buddy had a point. He needed to stop being paranoid. Katrina had never given him any reason to think she wasn’t genuinely interested in him.
Before Darwin could reply, the truck ground to an abrupt stop.
“Looks like we’re here,” he said.
Darwin climbed out of the truck along with the other guys, thrilled to be finished with the conversation about Katrina and Upton. His buddies had given him a lot to think about, both good and bad. But right now, he needed to focus on this next phase of the Genesis Project test.
They spent a few minutes getting their radios and other tactical gear ready.
It took longer to make sure the Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System equipment was properly mounted on their rifles.
MILES was the military’s version of laser tag, used for training scenarios when live ammo would be too dangerous.
In this case, the Genesis drone would be equipped with sensors that would register a strike if the laser emitters on the SEAL’s weapons hit them directly.
Even though the Genesis itself would only be using paintball marking ammunition, he and the other guys would be wearing tactical vests, helmets, and eye protection to protect them from the paintball rounds.
“Alpha Team.” Seth’s voice suddenly crackled through Darwin’s earbud. “The test begins now. Move to the extraction point by any route you chose. Stealth or speed. Your call.”
“Let’s move,” Lennox called out, motioning toward the closest section of trees. “Darwin stays in the center as we move. We’ll take a circuitous route that will put us on a southern approach to Jackson Hill. Verbal communication only after contact.”
Then they were moving, Lennox and the other guys focusing their attention outward as they slipped through the trees at a rapid pace. Darwin stayed in the middle, even as he chaffed at the idea that they were “risking” their lives to protect him.
As they moved silently through the darkness, Darwin kept his eyes peeled behind his NVGs and his ears open for any unusual sounds, knowing his Teammates were doing the same. They made good time, eating up the distance between them and the extraction point, even though they were being hunted.
Yet for all their alertness, none of them had a clue that danger was lurking until Darwin felt a stinging impact in the middle of his back and heard the thud of the paintball.
“Behind us!” he called out, spinning to look for the drone.
He couldn’t believe the thing had been able to slip under the tree canopy without them seeing or hearing anything. There was no other explanation, though.