Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
The fact that Hunter sat on the other side of Paxton still with the implants in his face making him look like a Kurjan was an abomination. Hunter was a demon-vampire mix and had undergone surgery to appear Kurjan. He’d been undercover since he was sixteen years old. Deceiver.
If Pax noticed Vero’s tension, he didn’t let on. “Tell me again about the helicopter’s camouflage,” he said.
Vero rolled his shoulders to loosen them before the battle to come. “The exterior is enveloped in an adaptive camouflage that renders the helicopter invisible to radar and the naked eye.”
Paxton shook his head. “That’s awesome, but what I want to know is how.”
“Oh,” Vero said. “I created a heat-dissipating system that cools exhaust emissions and eliminates any infrared signatures that might expose us. In addition, the external panels project images of the surrounding environment and render the aircraft invisible to the naked eye. Nobody knows we’re coming and nobody knows we’re here.”
Hunter leaned forward to look at Vero across Paxton’s broad chest. “I knew you were the smartest guy around. When you said you were working on a top secret project, I had no idea it would be something this cool.”
Vero stared at him implacably. “I didn’t trust you as much as you thought I did.” He turned his gaze back to watch the enemy on the screen, addressing Hunter for the first time in three weeks..
Paxton cut him a look but remained silent.
“All right, boys,” Hope’s chipper voice came through his ear-comm. “You’re about a minute away.”
Vero jolted, then regained his composure. It was an odd experience to hear a female voice coming through the comm lines during a mission. According to Paxton, his young mate had the most strategic mind in the entire Realm.
“Vero, you good?” she asked.
Why was she singling him out? “Affirmative,” he said.
“Wonderful. I made sure that you had two of the Realm’s newest knives in your pack. I want your opinion about them.”
Paxton stretched out his legs. “What about me?”
“You got one too,” she said, chuckling. “But you’re not as accustomed to the Kurjan fighting methods as Vero.”
Yeah, that’s because Vero was fighting against his own people. His shoulders stiffened.
Paxton cracked his knuckles. “I’m reading twenty-two heat signatures on the screen, but the picture is fuzzing in and out.”
“I can’t help that,” Hope said. “Our satellites are out of range, and the ones we’ve hacked are moving and rather out of date. Plus, there’s quite the heavy cloud cover, but I can confirm the twenty-two heat signatures. It looks to me like there are two main structures and then several smaller tents scattered around. These folks are just setting up a camp.”
Paxton nodded. “Tell us about their location.”
“They’re in Kelly Creek, a small unincorporated area in the middle of the mountains. It’s going to be cold,” Hope said slowly. “It’s pretty much exactly what you suspected.”
The monitor in front of them fuzzed again.
“Our screen has gone blind,” Pax said. “Tell me what you see.”
Rapid typing came over the line. “I can tell you what I saw five minutes ago. It looks like there are twelve heat signatures in the structure closest to the river. They’re not moving much, and my guess is that these are the captured women. It’s after midnight there, so everyone’s asleep.”
It had taken them about two hours to reach the destination. “What about the other structure?” Vero asked.
More typing came across the line. “I see six people prone, obviously sleeping.”
“So that’s eighteen. We’re missing four,” Hunter said.
“Yes. I’d say those four are patrolling. We saw some movement before we lost the feed,” Hope said.
Vero ensured his combat boots were tightly secured.
“All right,” Paxton said. “Stay in my ear, baby.”
“Always,” Hope said cheerfully.
Vero frowned at the still-fuzzy screen. What would it be like to be that close to a female? He wasn’t entirely sure he’d allow his mate to be part of the fighting force, but then again, Hope remained safely back at headquarters. He had to admit the plan she put together was excellent.
The pilot motioned toward them. “Thirty seconds.”
Vero hefted to his feet, securing his knives in the sheaths strapped to his legs. He had one gun at the back of his waist, which shot green lasers that would turn into metal upon hitting immortal flesh. His knives and one sword provided additional protection for him. The only method to eliminate one of his enemies was beheading.
“I’d rather not kill anybody,” he said somberly.
Pax stood and headed toward the back hatch. “Agreed. The mission is to rescue the kidnapped humans and leave the Kurjans alone, hoping they might someday rejoin the Kurjan nation. Since we’ve destroyed the Kurjan ability to track enhanced females on the planet by decimating that program in all satellites, they won’t be able to continue down their current path.”
Hunter reached the hatch first and hit the button so it would slowly open. “In position now.”