Page 86 of Revenge of the Blood Pack

"Whatcha doing?"

"Thinking of baseball stats… it tends to help when the Big Guy is at attention when there's no commander present." His eyes flash open. "Not that you're not a commander, you're very commanding, but if I want to keep the Big Guy, I need him to settle down before those two get back."

My cheeks are hot. "Understood."

He goes back to squeezing his eyes closed and bouncing on his heels. Despite the best of intentions, I study Big Guy, an aptly named fellow, waiting for something to happen. Like confetti exploding from it, I don't know.

"It helps if you don't stare." He doesn't open his eyes when he says it, but I still force my gaze onto a spot on the wall.

"Okay, disaster averted," he says, cracking his knuckles. "Time for work."

Trying to pretend like I'm not mortified, I say, “I’ll admit, I’m a little curious what you’ve been up to on here.”

He grins. "Come hang out," he says, and then heads for his laptop.

After dragging a second chair up beside him, I hesitate, unsure of what he’s invited me to do exactly. I look down at him and he looks back at me and a glint in his eye glimmers like Venus in the evening blue sky.

“You want to see it?”

I grin.You bet I do. Whatever it is. “Sure.”

My gaze lingers on his face a moment longer before turning back to the computer screen, on which a satellite image of a forest appears. “This,” he says with a hint of pride, “is the Raven Pack’s home.”

What the fuck?

I lean closer and realize it’s not a picture, it’s a video feed. Tiny figures like black dots traverse roadways that cut through the woods. They pass between structures tucked in amongst the trees. “Whoa, is that?—”

“Live? Mhm. Just hacked a few satellite systems to gain access to their feeds.”

I cut my eyes to his again, appreciating their dual colors. “Think you’re pretty slick, huh?”

He shrugs. “Must be worth something,” he replies with a smirk. “Besides, not even the Enforcers can do what I’m doing.” Expanding the window, he zooms in on the screen to reveal more detail of the site.

My stomach flips. This is what Max meant. Just by controlling myself, we've learned where they are and can see what they're doing. Patience is going to reward a safer escape for my people and sweeter justice for these bastards. Max mightdrive me crazy sometimes, but I’m grateful to him for not letting me go in hot… something that probably would have led to me screwing everything up.

Like a soaring eagle, I watch the Raven Pack’s movements while he continues, “I estimate there are about a hundred members of their pack. That’s based on an analysis of several days’ worth of monitoring, which involved reaching back in the data logs. Pretty tricky. Here, and here,” he touches his index finger to two points on the screen, “they post sentries. These rotate with another three, here, here, and here, in a predictable pattern.”

As I observe them, I can see groupings clustered together, two larger figures surrounded by several smaller ones. I realize these are families. I squint to better appreciate the finer details captured by the satellite’s camera: the father’s paunch, the daughter’s tangled hair. “This is incredible,” I whisper in awe.

“Yeah, remarkable, the spytech available to any curious party with the know-how to hack it.”

“Who owns these satellites you’re hacking?”

“Various governments.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Can they tell you’re breaking in?”

“No,” he replies confidently. “I’m very discreet.”

An idea occurs to me. “How much can you see with these satellites you hack into?”

“Everything,” he says. “But if it’s Area 51 you’re interested in, I’d be remiss if I didn’t warn you, everything exciting happens below the surface.”

I shake my head. “No, someplace else.”

I point him in the direction of my home, knowing the coordinates from some old maps my home always kept hanging in our dining room. He takes no time at all, pulling up another live feed. My heart sinks in anticipation, but when the town appears, I’m shocked by what I find. Instead of the rubble Iremember, structures have been rebuilt. Not the whole town, but several structures, and repairs have been made to the buildings and streets. There isn't any evidence of the nightmare that occurred.

Someone’s been rehabilitating the place.

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