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  Satisfied, he hurried back to the cockpit and sat down. The jet was now growing quickly close to the ground, landing off in an empty park near to Martha’s estate. It was the closest landing spot they could find without coming down in private gardens or on someone’s roof.

  They were past the point of aerial detection now, however, and so Ragan breathed a little easier. As long as they could get in and out before first light, they wouldn’t have to worry about any early morning runners or dog-walkers bumping into the jet. With his usual precision, Tanner measured things out nice and gently and lowered the jet onto the ground, its legs extending and landing softly in the earth. The spot was covered by trees to one side, and with a little bit of extra manoeuvring, Tanner managed to slide the falcon a little tighter in, sneaking it under cover.

  It would have to do.

  The engines were shut off, though the falcon’s cloaking function remained active. It would be sufficient to shield it from any passing eyes, and drones if there happened to be any, particularly with night to help with the disguise. The group gathered in the belly of the jet, where Tanner quickly pulled on his combat gear, hoisted his rifle to his shoulder, and joined the others.

  “Right,” said Ragan. “We’re a few minutes from the estate’s outer walls. We know the layout, so let’s get quickly into position. I have my scanner, and Chloe has Remus, but we all have our own eyes too. Use them. When we reach the recon point, Chloe will send Remus in for a recce. We act from there. Let’s go.”

  He nodded, and the others did the same. They were quickly becoming a tight group, and Chloe was slotting in rather nicely. In fact, she’d began to serve some essential functions. Without Remus, any probe of the grounds and mansion would come with far greater risk. With him, they could stay safe beyond the outer wall, and only act if deemed appropriate based on his discoveries.

  They moved towards the door, Nadia stepping towards the controls. It slid up, the ramp not extending this time as they jumped down onto the soft grass, one after the other. Ragan landed with a light thud as a cool sweep of air came flowing on the breeze, rustling through the leaves and flicking at Chloe’s hair. She absentmindedly gathered it into a ponytail and tucked it into her gear, as she was prone to do.

  Without requiring an order, she then set about summoning Remus, who took off from her shoulder and adopted his drone form, moving off into the trees. Ragan tapped his scanning lens, and together the troop moved carefully forwards, their sleek black uniforms helping them blend seamlessly into the night.

  It was silent here, almost eerily so. From their studies of the map and surrounding area, they’d discovered that most of the residences here were set within large grounds, creating a significant amount of open land for a relatively small number of local inhabitants. That made Ragan wonder what the point in this park was. With every mansion surrounded by dozens of acres of garden, it seemed redundant to have a public plot here too.

  They moved on, passing the occasional path, rounding a little lake, and venturing towards their chosen spot. Set within a cluster of trees just beyond the walls of the estate, they could see the main gate into the grounds a hundred or so metres away to the right. It was large, wrought iron, and guarded by several armed men. Ragan’s experience told him that several armed guards at the gate usually meant that there would be many more inside, both on patrol around the perimeter and grounds, and perhaps even within the central residence itself.

  The group stopped, joining into a crouched huddle.

  “I count four at the gate,” said Nadia, eyes keen. “There’s gotta be a dozen or two inside then. That’s indicting.”

  “Hmmm,” said Ragan, thinking on the same lines. That many people protecting a private residence? Clearly the owner was worried about something to have hired this much security. “It’s a good thing,” he went on. “If there was nothing to hide here, or nothing to protect, then security wouldn’t be nearly this heavy.” He felt a light thrill ripple through him. “We might get lucky. She might be here.”

  Four sets of eyes lit with a renewed purpose. Their efforts over the course of the day and night had been somewhat deflating so far. But this…well, it gave them hope, and that was all they could ask for.

  “OK, Chloe,” Ragan said. “Send him in. Let’s see what we can find.”

  Chloe nodded stiffly, and Remus swept quickly forward, reaching the ten foot wall, topped with electric wire and razor sharp spikes, and flew over it without issue. He activated his cloaking function as he did, disappearing to all but Chloe’s sight.

  “Godspeed, little man,” murmured Tanner, watching the drone depart.

  Now all looked at Chloe, as she closed her eyes, taking in Remus’ perception. Ragan stared at her, still so taken by this unique relationship she had with her drone, this linking of their nanites that gave them such a wonderful set of powers, such a charming connection.

  He turned his eyes towards the gate again; the soldiers seemed to be busying themselves with something. One moved towards a little intercom unit set within the pillar the gate was attached to. He listened for a moment, and then turned back to the other three guards, speaking a few hurried words.

  “Something’s going on,” whispered Ragan, watching on. The others looked over, excluding Chloe, whose eyes remained closed. “Chloe, what do you see?”

  Eyes shut tight, a frown was drawing in Chloe’s brow. A whisper drifted from her lips.

  “Remus is approaching the front of the house,” she said. “It’s…massive. Stately. There are gardens everywhere. Wait…” The others waited for her to continue. “…It looks like there are people coming out of the main house. Staff members, I think.”

  “Guards?” whispered Ragan.

  “I see…four,” she said, nodding slightly. “No, more than that. Remus is picking up others with his sensors. Seven guards in the immediate vicinity; four outside the main house, three others on patrol. All heavily armed.”

  The others grimaced collectively. Ragan glanced back over towards the gate, which was beginning to open up. Further down the track away from the estate, the light groans of an engine sounded, joined by the gentle crunch of tyres on dirt.

  “Someone’s coming,” said Nadia. She had the sharpest sight of them all. Staying in a crouch, she changed her position, looking through the trees. “It…it looks like a medical transport, in its terrestrial configuration.”

  Ragan frowned, and looked again to Chloe.

  “What’s happening now?” he whispered.

  “There are others coming out of the house,” she said. She scrunched her eyes up tighter. “Nurses, I think. And…there’s a stretcher, a medical bed. It’s being wheeled out towards the courtyard.”

  “Who’s on it?” asked Ragan sharply.

  “I don’t know,” said Chloe. “Looks like a child, young. A girl, blonde hair. She’s pale…sick.”

  The others looked at each other, confused.

  From down the track, the medical transport now came into view, sleek and white and currently configured to drive and not fly. It had the capability of transforming into an airborne transport, of course, though it wasn’t always used, depending on the situation. Unless an emergency, they’d commonly drive to save power.

  It reached the gate, the guards stepping aside to let it pass through. Then they quickly gathered again, the gate grinding shut. All eyes went to Chloe once more.

  “There’s a medical transport coming,” Ragan said. “Do you see it?”

  He watched as Chloe tipped her head a little to the right, mentally commanding Remus to turn back. She nodded a second later, eyes still locked shut.

  “Yeah, it’s coming from the gate,” she whispered. “The nurses are waiting in the courtyard, prepping the medical bed to be carried on board. Some of the guards are helping…” She stopped again, waiting for the ambulance to reach the front of the house. “…It’s there,” she continued, relaying everything to the others. “They’re loading the girl aboard now. They look tired, li
ke they’ve only just been woken up. But…it doesn’t seem like an emergency either.”

  She dipped her head a little to the left, then back to the right, surveying the area.

  “Looks like the ambulance is changing to its airborne setting,” she whispered. “They’re flying from here. The nurses look upset, one in particular. She’s crying heavily. She’s quite young…”

  “Can Remus tag her?” asked Ragan.

  Chloe nodded, paused a moment, and then spoke again.

  “It’s done. He’ll track her position wherever she goes.”

  “What are you thinking, Ragan?” asked Nadia.

  “I’m just curious,” he said, eyes narrow. “If we want to get in there and speak to someone, she’s a good bet. People are often more pliable when upset.”

  “So who do you think the girl is?” asked Tanner. “Does Martha have a daughter?”

  Ragan shook his head.

  “I’m not sure. She never seemed very open about her family life.”

  “OK,” came Chloe’s voice again. “The medical transport is taking off. It looks to be turning eastwards, out towards the lake. It’s going slowly but…yeah, definitely to the lake.”

  “Lake Michigan?” asked Tanner. “Why would they head out there? It’s empty water for a hundred miles.”

  “Yeah, you’d think if the girl’s sick, they’d go to a hospital in the city,” suggested Nadia. “Something’s not adding up here.”

  She was right. Something felt off. Ragan turned to his thoughts for a moment, thinking. Was this girl really Martha’s daughter? If she was being given such treatment, rushed away in the dead of night, then surely she was of some importance. The way the staff gathered, the way the nurses were upset. Only a figure of real consequence would garner that reaction.

  But where was she being taken? Tanner was right, the lake was empty. There was nothing out there, and certainly no hospitals. What was going on?

  He turned back to Chloe.

  “Update?”

  “The staff are going back inside,” she whispered. “They look exhausted. Three guards still patrolling around the perimeter of the mansion. Remus has spotted a couple more further away in the grounds. The four from outside the house…two are going inside, two are staying at the entrance…”

  “And there are four at the gate,” said Nadia. “That makes, what, thirteen in total?”

  Chloe nodded, eyes closed.

  “That Remus has spotted so far, yes. His scans are also finding cameras and motion sensors around the grounds, particularly closer to the outer perimeter.”

  “How did Remus get past those?” asked Tanner.

  “His cloaking function makes him invisible to all cameras and sensors,” said Chloe.

  “Smart fella.”

  Chloe, eyes tight, smiled.

  “OK, anything else?” asked Ragan. “No sign of Martha then?”

  Chloe shook her head.

  “Nothing,” she said. “If she was here, then surely she’d have been down there outside the house too.”

  “Especially if it is her daughter,” added Nadia. “Whoever the girl is, she’s important. Daughter or not, Martha would have been there if she was on site.”

  Ragan grunted. Then he exclaimed, cursing quietly under his breath.

  “What’s up?” asked Nadia.

  “That transport,” he said. “If it is Martha’s daughter, and she’s sick, maybe they’re taking her to her mother. We should have been thinking quicker. We could have followed it.”

  “We still could?” said Nadia. “Rush back to the falcon and…”

  “It’s too late,” interrupted Ragan. “Anyway we’re here now, so need to make the most of it before first light.”

  “You’re still thinking of infiltrating?” queried Tanner.

  “Of course,” said Ragan briskly. “That nurse could provide information. Or we might find something else inside. Chloe, can you send Remus in to scan?”

  She shook her head.

  “The door’s shut now. Unless there’s a window open somewhere, he can’t get inside without help. I’ll send him around the mansion to check, but it’s a chilly night, so unlikely.”

  “OK,” said Ragan, turning again to Tanner and Nadia. “Cliff, do you mind staying out here with Chloe? I’m not risking her being unprotected like last time with Mikel. You never know, he might be lurking about in the shadows somewhere.”

  “I can take care of myself,” said Chloe defensively. Ragan turned to find that she’d opened her eyes, leaving Remus to work alone for the time being.

  “I know you can,” said Ragan softly. “But there’s no sense in all of us rushing in there, and we could really use you and Remus to guide us, tell us where the guards are, motion sensors, cameras, things like that.”

  “Fine,” said Chloe. She seemed a little hurt, as if her only contribution in missions like this was as a lookout, using Remus as her eyes in the sky. She really shouldn’t, Ragan knew. It was a unique skill and highly valuable to the team.

  He turned to Tanner.

  “You OK with staying here?” he asked.

  Tanner shrugged.

  “Sure. If Mikel is around, I’d like first crack at him. Otherwise, I’m not great with sneaking. Stealth was never my strong suit. More of a guns blazing sort of guy, me. I’ll keep an eye out from here, and watch the guards at the gate. If there’s trouble, I’ll take them out and enter from there.”

  “With non-lethals,” Ragan was quick to say. “We don’t want any casualties here. We use our knock-out rounds if we can.”

  “Fine,” said Tanner, begrudgingly. “But if shit hits the fan, I’m turning to live ammo.”

  “Fair enough.”

  “And me?” asked Nadia, drawing Ragan’s eye.

  “You’re with me,” said Ragan. “If we speak with any female staff in there, a woman’s touch might work better. You’d get through to her better than me. I suspect they’ll be heading back to bed now - there’s still some time before first light - so hopefully we’ll catch them napping. Literally.”

  He turned once more to Chloe.

  “The nurse,” he said. “Has Remus still got her location?”

  Chloe sighed and shut her eyes, refocusing. She took a moment before nodding.

  “Looks like she’s gone up the central staircase in the main lobby, down a corridor to the left. She’s in a room.”

  “Alone?” Ragan asked.

  “Yeah. Two guards in the lobby, and two outside the main house. Probably not the best way in.”

  Tanner made a huffing noise.

  “There are only thirteen of them, you said. And normal soldiers probably. Why not just take them out, starting at the gate. Forget all this talk of sneaking around.”

  “We don’t want to alert anyone inside the house, Cliff,” said Nadia, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Jeez, you’re such a grunt. No finesse to your work at all.”

  “Finesse? There’s no finesse in our work, Nadia. We kill. There’s nothing subtle about that.”

  “A debate for another time,” cut in Ragan, shooting admonishing glances. “Chloe, have you found a good way in? Somewhere without cameras and motion sensors?”

  “There’s a spot a little way to the west,” she said. “There’s a camera overlooking a section of wall, but no other sensors. I can have Remus zap the camera, disabling it for a moment. As long as you can vault over it, you should have enough time to get in.”

  “Shouldn’t be a problem,” said Ragan. “Good work. OK, you’ve got us on comms, so keep us updated. Try to find a way up to that nurse that doesn’t involve going through the front of the house. Tanner, keep an eye out.”

  Ragan looked at Nadia, and both of them pulled down their helmets, before turning west and moving quickly towards the wall.

  13

  Chloe crouched beside a tree, hidden in the shadow, watching from Remus’ perspective as Ragan and Nadia vaulted the wall, one after another. A second or two
ago, she’d commanded Remus to gather his little electrical charge, and zap the camera, disabling it for them to get through. It seemed to work.

  With a mighty leap, she saw first Ragan, then Nadia, rush up the side of the wall, clear the electric wire and perilous spikes, and come down on the other side, landing softly in the dirt, one knee to the ground, bodies hunched low. It was a rather breathtaking sight, watching these two highly trained super-soldiers go to work.

  Within a moment of landing, they were zipping forward, their nanite-augmented speed and strength allowing them to move at pace as they ventured towards the nearest cover. They reached a row of hedges, set around an area of beautiful gardens and flower beds, and stopped, their combat suits blending so well with the darkness as to render them almost invisible.

  Remus’ vision, thankfully, wasn’t exactly human. With a few tweaks, he was able to hone in on their heat signatures, overlaying them upon their black-clad frames, making them glow more clearly in the darkness. It was a useful function that Chloe barely ever used. Missions like this were, well…rather alien to her.

  She heard Ragan’s voice whisper down comms.

  “OK, Chloe, where to next?” he whispered. She imagined he had his scanning lens activated, helping to guide his path, but wished for additional support from Remus’ lofty vantage. Currently, the drone was floating a dozen metres above them, and half a dozen metres ahead, scanning for nearby obstacles that they might want to avoid.

  There was a guard wandering wearily off to the left, just at the other end of the gardens. His pattern of walking suggested his route was taking him in their direction, probably doing a circuit around the hedge.

  Chloe relayed the information.

  They moved off again, working quickly but quietly through the estate, the mansion still a little way away. The grounds were enormous, a staggering allotment for anyone to own, particularly within such proximity to Chicago to the south. Chloe didn’t know much about Martha - beyond her being a traitorous snake who masqueraded as someone so kind and affable - but she’d gathered that she was clearly extremely wealthy, and highly influential around these parts. This estate was a clear sign of that wealth, and by the sounds of it, only one of many, many properties she and her family owned within the area.