“Good,” Noah’s voice came through the earpiece. “You’re green.”
The van rolled forward.
Avery crouched on the floor in the back with Jackson, Cal, Colt, and Garrett. The space smelled faintly of oil and metal. She couldn’t see much from where she was, just flashes of the road through a slit between the seats. The cloaking sheet lay folded beside them, ready to be pulled over once they neared the meet point.
Jackson leaned close, his voice low. “I don’t want you taking any unnecessary chances out there.”
She turned her head toward him, eyes steady even in the dim light. “Then do the same,” she whispered.
He almost smiled, but the tension in his gut held it back, and he focused on the drive, on the mission. The van hummed over the rough county road, every turn bringing them closer to the rest stop.
In another few minutes, the real test would start.
Noah’s voice came through Jackson’s earpiece, low but tight. “I just got feedback from the drone.”
Jackson’s pulse picked up. “Talk to me.”
“There’s an old barn about a quarter mile from the rest stop,” Noah explained. Papers rustled faintly behind his words, the sound of quick movement in the operations room. “It looks active. Fresh tire tracks, new padlock on the doors, and movement on thermal.”
Jackson’s jaw clenched. “Hostages?”
“Can’t confirm,” Noah said, “but it’s our best lead so far.” A pause stretched before Noah added, “I’m sending a second team there now. If they find the hostages, we may not need Isla to make contact.”
That stirred a small surge of hope, thin but real. Jackson glanced toward the front. Isla kept her eyes on the road, but he saw her hands tighten on the wheel. Avery, crouched beside him, looked up with a silent question in her eyes.
The van bumped along the uneven road, every second stretching longer than it should. Jackson prayed the drone was right. Because if the hostages weren’t in that barn, Isla was about to drive straight into a kill zone.
Jackson watched the live feed from the drone flicker on the small screen mounted near the dash. Nothing but the cracked highway ahead and brush on both sides. The barn wasn’t visible from here, but the second team was closing in.
Noah’s voice came through again. “Still no visual confirmation. Keep heading to the rest stop, but stay alert. I don’t like how quiet it is out there.”
“Copy that,” Jackson said.
Isla’s hands stayed tight on the wheel. The van rumbled down the narrow road, dirt and gravel kicking up behind them. Cal checked his weapon. Garrett gave a short nod. The tension in the back was thick enough to choke on.
Jackson scanned the tree line through the slit in the front partition. He couldn’t shake the feeling that eyes were on them. The van hit another bump, and Avery grabbed his arm to steadyherself. Her skin was cold. He gave her a quick nod, the only reassurance he could offer.
“Half a mile out,” Isla said quietly.
Then movement caught Jackson’s eye.
Something ahead. A figure stumbling into view.
He leaned forward. “Hold up. We’ve got someone on the road.”
Isla slowed, and Jackson soon saw a man, running toward them, bloodied and battered. Jackson recognized the face in an instant.
Mick Barker.
Jackson barely had time to react before the world blew apart.
A grenade hit the asphalt between Mick and the van, exploding in a roar of fire and dirt. The blast rocked the vehicle, throwing Jackson hard against the seat as shrapnel and debris rained across the windshield.
Chapter Fourteen
The blast hit like a hammer. The van jolted hard, throwing Avery forward. Isla slammed on the brakes, tires screaming against the pavement.
Dirt and debris pelted the windshield, clouding everything in a thick haze. The smell of smoke and burned asphalt filled the air. Avery’s ears rang so loud it drowned out her own breathing.