“Yep,” Edilio said. “We’re ready for that.”
Taylor wondered what they were talking about, but it wasn’t time for twenty questions.
The Jeep careened around the curve and hurtled down the hill to the gate. Edilio slammed on the brakes. Dekka’s SUV barely had time to avoid piling into them. The third vehicle followed more slowly.
Sam jumped out. Dekka leaped while her own car was still moving.
Both pelted down the hill.
Taylor heard Sam yelling instructions to Dekka. Seconds later the truck, tons of steel, floated up off the ground.
Taylor saw the two thugs gaping up at it.
Sam raised his hands. “Guys?” he said to the two startled thugs. “Way I see it, you have a choice. Drop your guns, run away, and live. Or point those guns my way and burn.”
The two guns clattered on the pavement. The two boys stuck their arms in the air.
“You have anything we can eat?” one asked.
Dekka dropped the truck back into place.
It made a huge noise, smashing, bouncing but remaining upright.
“Have you seen Brianna?” Dekka asked them.
“No,” the boy said.
“But if she tried to go after them inside, she’s not coming back,” the other said, trying to sound tough, even though his hands were in the air.
“Taylor,” Sam said. “Double-check the guardhouse.”
Taylor bounced into the guardhouse. She was on a hair trigger, ready to bounce back out again. But she saw no one inside.
Outside, through the window, she saw Edilio’s soldiers piling out of the last car, machine guns ready. Howard stepped out of the SUV, scared, cringing. And slowly, like he was an old man with arthritis, came Orc. Howard was a tiny shadow beside him.
Taylor bounced to them.
“No one’s in the guardhouse,” Taylor reported. “And no Brianna.”
Dekka looked at Sam. “If anyone’s hurt that girl, they don’t get the chance to walk away.”
“Dekka, we need to play this smart,” Sam said.
“No, Sam,” Dekka said with sudden, savage ferocity. “Anyone who hurts that girl dies.”
Taylor expected Sam to put Dekka in her place. Instead, he said, “We all love her, Dekka. We’ll do what’s right.”
Taylor bounced next to Dekka. She put her hand on Dekka’s strong shoulder. The girl was trembling.
TWENTY-FOUR
18 HOURS, 1 MINUTE
SAM WISHED CAINE would come out after him. That would be best. That would be the thing. A straight-up fight, out in the open. Last time they’d had that fight, Sam had won.
But Caine wasn’t going to step outside.
The fight had barely begun and already he had lost Brianna.
Poor Breeze.
“What do we do?” Edilio asked. He was at Sam’s side. Edilio was always at his side, and Sam was profoundly grateful for that. But right this moment, standing here in the shadow of the hulking power plant, with images of Brianna filling the next hole in the town plaza, he wished Edilio would shut up and leave him in peace.
But Sam was the guy who made decisions. Win or lose. Right or wrong. Life or death.
“I should have brought Astrid along,” Sam said. “She knows the plant better than either of us do.”
“They gotta be in the control room,” Edilio said. “Whatever Caine is up to, he’d want to have the control room.”
“Yeah.”
“Only two ways in, as far as I remember. Either in through the turbine building or back through all the offices. They’ll have both covered.”
“Yeah.”
“Kind of narrow hallways from either direction. Come through the turbine room, maybe they won’t want to get crazy and do anything that messes up the plant, right?”
Sam looked at him sharply. “You’re right. That makes sense. I should have thought of it. Caine doesn’t want the plant destroyed.”
Edilio shrugged. “Hey, man, I’m not just your good-looking Mexican sidekick.”
Sam smiled. “You’re not Mexican. You’re Honduran.”
“Oh, yeah,” Edilio said dryly. “Sometimes I forget.” Then, serious again, he said, “Caine didn’t come here to wreck the place. He came here to take it over, use it somehow. Boy doesn’t want to sit in the dark any more than we do.”
“But he’ll do what he has to,” Sam said.
“Yeah. If the other choice is him coming out peacefully and letting us lock him up, or . . .”
Howard sidled up. “We standing around here all night or what? Orc’s, like, let’s do this or let me go home and go to sleep.”
“I kind of thought we’d take a couple of minutes to think it over,” Sam snarled. “We’ve probably lost Breeze. But if you’d rather just have Orc go barreling in there alone, fine.”
“No, man,” Howard said, backing down quickly.
Sam laid his hand on Edilio’s shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. “He may have hostages.”
“Yeah,” Edilio agreed. “My guys. Mike and Mickey and Brittney and Josh.”
“Okay, as long as we understand,” Sam said. He made eye contact with Edilio. Edilio gave just the slightest nod in return.
“Here’s my plan. Taylor bounces in, carries a shotgun, starts to blast. One, two, three rounds, then bounces out. At that point we hit them all together, straight through the turbine room.”
“Yep,” Edilio said. “Straight through the turbine room.”
Taylor wondered what they were talking about, but it wasn’t time for twenty questions.
The Jeep careened around the curve and hurtled down the hill to the gate. Edilio slammed on the brakes. Dekka’s SUV barely had time to avoid piling into them. The third vehicle followed more slowly.
Sam jumped out. Dekka leaped while her own car was still moving.
Both pelted down the hill.
Taylor heard Sam yelling instructions to Dekka. Seconds later the truck, tons of steel, floated up off the ground.
Taylor saw the two thugs gaping up at it.
Sam raised his hands. “Guys?” he said to the two startled thugs. “Way I see it, you have a choice. Drop your guns, run away, and live. Or point those guns my way and burn.”
The two guns clattered on the pavement. The two boys stuck their arms in the air.
“You have anything we can eat?” one asked.
Dekka dropped the truck back into place.
It made a huge noise, smashing, bouncing but remaining upright.
“Have you seen Brianna?” Dekka asked them.
“No,” the boy said.
“But if she tried to go after them inside, she’s not coming back,” the other said, trying to sound tough, even though his hands were in the air.
“Taylor,” Sam said. “Double-check the guardhouse.”
Taylor bounced into the guardhouse. She was on a hair trigger, ready to bounce back out again. But she saw no one inside.
Outside, through the window, she saw Edilio’s soldiers piling out of the last car, machine guns ready. Howard stepped out of the SUV, scared, cringing. And slowly, like he was an old man with arthritis, came Orc. Howard was a tiny shadow beside him.
Taylor bounced to them.
“No one’s in the guardhouse,” Taylor reported. “And no Brianna.”
Dekka looked at Sam. “If anyone’s hurt that girl, they don’t get the chance to walk away.”
“Dekka, we need to play this smart,” Sam said.
“No, Sam,” Dekka said with sudden, savage ferocity. “Anyone who hurts that girl dies.”
Taylor expected Sam to put Dekka in her place. Instead, he said, “We all love her, Dekka. We’ll do what’s right.”
Taylor bounced next to Dekka. She put her hand on Dekka’s strong shoulder. The girl was trembling.
TWENTY-FOUR
18 HOURS, 1 MINUTE
SAM WISHED CAINE would come out after him. That would be best. That would be the thing. A straight-up fight, out in the open. Last time they’d had that fight, Sam had won.
But Caine wasn’t going to step outside.
The fight had barely begun and already he had lost Brianna.
Poor Breeze.
“What do we do?” Edilio asked. He was at Sam’s side. Edilio was always at his side, and Sam was profoundly grateful for that. But right this moment, standing here in the shadow of the hulking power plant, with images of Brianna filling the next hole in the town plaza, he wished Edilio would shut up and leave him in peace.
But Sam was the guy who made decisions. Win or lose. Right or wrong. Life or death.
“I should have brought Astrid along,” Sam said. “She knows the plant better than either of us do.”
“They gotta be in the control room,” Edilio said. “Whatever Caine is up to, he’d want to have the control room.”
“Yeah.”
“Only two ways in, as far as I remember. Either in through the turbine building or back through all the offices. They’ll have both covered.”
“Yeah.”
“Kind of narrow hallways from either direction. Come through the turbine room, maybe they won’t want to get crazy and do anything that messes up the plant, right?”
Sam looked at him sharply. “You’re right. That makes sense. I should have thought of it. Caine doesn’t want the plant destroyed.”
Edilio shrugged. “Hey, man, I’m not just your good-looking Mexican sidekick.”
Sam smiled. “You’re not Mexican. You’re Honduran.”
“Oh, yeah,” Edilio said dryly. “Sometimes I forget.” Then, serious again, he said, “Caine didn’t come here to wreck the place. He came here to take it over, use it somehow. Boy doesn’t want to sit in the dark any more than we do.”
“But he’ll do what he has to,” Sam said.
“Yeah. If the other choice is him coming out peacefully and letting us lock him up, or . . .”
Howard sidled up. “We standing around here all night or what? Orc’s, like, let’s do this or let me go home and go to sleep.”
“I kind of thought we’d take a couple of minutes to think it over,” Sam snarled. “We’ve probably lost Breeze. But if you’d rather just have Orc go barreling in there alone, fine.”
“No, man,” Howard said, backing down quickly.
Sam laid his hand on Edilio’s shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. “He may have hostages.”
“Yeah,” Edilio agreed. “My guys. Mike and Mickey and Brittney and Josh.”
“Okay, as long as we understand,” Sam said. He made eye contact with Edilio. Edilio gave just the slightest nod in return.
“Here’s my plan. Taylor bounces in, carries a shotgun, starts to blast. One, two, three rounds, then bounces out. At that point we hit them all together, straight through the turbine room.”
“Yep,” Edilio said. “Straight through the turbine room.”
