opened the door. “We haven’t the facilities to house you and we simply can’t risk harboring a spy.”
“Wee’s no spy. Wee’s surrender.”
Sam pulled Marcus aside. “It could be coaxed into giving us needed intelligence on the enemy.”
“Sam,” said Marcus, “I don’t trust it. Kaileen wouldn’t have allowed it to get this far without a purpose. It’s a spy.”
“I am sure you are right, but that is all the more reason to try to learn what Kaileen is up to.”
“Yes, yes. But we are not jailers. There is no place secure enough to keep it.” Marcus shook his head.
“There is a back room with no windows. We can put a lock on it, and I can monitor its movements.”
“Sam, you are tracking the Temporal around the world until they can be collected. In addition, you are watching for any incoming enemies. Can you add one more thing without exhausting yourself?”
“If I can’t, then we just kick our guest out, or...let Ian have him.”
Marcus gave Sam a serious frown before nodding in agreement.
Chapter Twelve
The V-22 Osprey was capable of speeds of up to three hundred miles per hour—twice as fast as a conventional helicopter. The unique tiltrotor technology blended the vertical lift of a helicopter with the speed, altitude, and range of a fixed-wing aircraft. The Osprey was minutes from landing.
Inside the cabin, the noise cancellation of Sergeant Scott Dixon’s headphones failed to adequately dampen the roar of the engines and the incessant chopping of the three-bladed, thirty-eight foot propellers. But for the moment, it was as if the noise didn’t exist. The mystery surrounding the mission was far more distracting.
The sparse lighting barely penetrated the darkness. It was night inside as well as out. Despite the Osprey’s twenty-four troop capacity, Dixon could just make out the lightly illuminated faces of the three other Marines that made up his team, the only other passengers. They were on the opposite side of the aircraft resting and waiting.
It was his thirtieth birthday, and he had a smirky grin on his face. He wasn’t sure what or who it was that they were to pick up, but he doubted it could be as interesting as the party the boys were planning for his return. Even still, he had little doubt that this job was important.
He and his team had been briefed—by a Colonel, no less—only a few hours before to be prepped and ready to go. The team had then been immediately isolated from the rest of the base. Their cells, radios, and laptops were sequestrated. For the past five hours, the team had been effectively cut off from the world. It wasn’t exactly the day before D-Day, but the total secrecy was unusual.
They knew nothing more than their final destination: Hydra, Greece—an island near Athens—and they only learned that after takeoff.
In his eight years in the Marines, Dixon had never been given so little information to work with. Should he be expecting trouble? An absurd thought crossed his mind: Could it actually be a surprise party for his birthday? He was known for off duty pranks and extravagance. No doubt scaring the wits out of him would be an excellent way to simultaneously get back at him while also throwing him a party to be remembered.
He felt the aircraft tilt as it prepared for landing. He knew whatever was waiting for them would soon be revealed. His fingers absentmindedly patted his holstered pistol as the colonel’s voice roared through his headphones.
“All right ladies, I just got our final orders. The package is a man named Ricardo. He should be alone—this airport is decommissioned and deserted, but just in case there is any confusion, he will be wearing a red shirt and a touristy straw hat. This is a pick-up-and-go mission. No sightseeing, no jabbering on about the weather. Get him, and then get him back here. Immediate resistance isn’t expected, but the package is extremely valuable and we are to take no chances. After I give the word, I want
“Wee’s no spy. Wee’s surrender.”
Sam pulled Marcus aside. “It could be coaxed into giving us needed intelligence on the enemy.”
“Sam,” said Marcus, “I don’t trust it. Kaileen wouldn’t have allowed it to get this far without a purpose. It’s a spy.”
“I am sure you are right, but that is all the more reason to try to learn what Kaileen is up to.”
“Yes, yes. But we are not jailers. There is no place secure enough to keep it.” Marcus shook his head.
“There is a back room with no windows. We can put a lock on it, and I can monitor its movements.”
“Sam, you are tracking the Temporal around the world until they can be collected. In addition, you are watching for any incoming enemies. Can you add one more thing without exhausting yourself?”
“If I can’t, then we just kick our guest out, or...let Ian have him.”
Marcus gave Sam a serious frown before nodding in agreement.
Chapter Twelve
The V-22 Osprey was capable of speeds of up to three hundred miles per hour—twice as fast as a conventional helicopter. The unique tiltrotor technology blended the vertical lift of a helicopter with the speed, altitude, and range of a fixed-wing aircraft. The Osprey was minutes from landing.
Inside the cabin, the noise cancellation of Sergeant Scott Dixon’s headphones failed to adequately dampen the roar of the engines and the incessant chopping of the three-bladed, thirty-eight foot propellers. But for the moment, it was as if the noise didn’t exist. The mystery surrounding the mission was far more distracting.
The sparse lighting barely penetrated the darkness. It was night inside as well as out. Despite the Osprey’s twenty-four troop capacity, Dixon could just make out the lightly illuminated faces of the three other Marines that made up his team, the only other passengers. They were on the opposite side of the aircraft resting and waiting.
It was his thirtieth birthday, and he had a smirky grin on his face. He wasn’t sure what or who it was that they were to pick up, but he doubted it could be as interesting as the party the boys were planning for his return. Even still, he had little doubt that this job was important.
He and his team had been briefed—by a Colonel, no less—only a few hours before to be prepped and ready to go. The team had then been immediately isolated from the rest of the base. Their cells, radios, and laptops were sequestrated. For the past five hours, the team had been effectively cut off from the world. It wasn’t exactly the day before D-Day, but the total secrecy was unusual.
They knew nothing more than their final destination: Hydra, Greece—an island near Athens—and they only learned that after takeoff.
In his eight years in the Marines, Dixon had never been given so little information to work with. Should he be expecting trouble? An absurd thought crossed his mind: Could it actually be a surprise party for his birthday? He was known for off duty pranks and extravagance. No doubt scaring the wits out of him would be an excellent way to simultaneously get back at him while also throwing him a party to be remembered.
He felt the aircraft tilt as it prepared for landing. He knew whatever was waiting for them would soon be revealed. His fingers absentmindedly patted his holstered pistol as the colonel’s voice roared through his headphones.
“All right ladies, I just got our final orders. The package is a man named Ricardo. He should be alone—this airport is decommissioned and deserted, but just in case there is any confusion, he will be wearing a red shirt and a touristy straw hat. This is a pick-up-and-go mission. No sightseeing, no jabbering on about the weather. Get him, and then get him back here. Immediate resistance isn’t expected, but the package is extremely valuable and we are to take no chances. After I give the word, I want
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