Page 80 of Guarded from Havoc

I exchange a quick glance with Niall, then Matt. “Are we ready, then?”

They both nod. “Let’s do this.”

Getting through the fence is almost anticlimactic this time. Instead of shorting it out using supplies I scavenged in the woods, I have the tools necessary to cut the current in less than a minute. Using wire cutters, we easily create an opening in the fence, so we can walk right through instead of climbing over it.

Once inside, Matt and Niall both turn to me. “You take the lead,” Matt says. “You’re the one who knows what to expect.”

Well. Sort of. I know there will be traps. What kind, I’m not sure. But one thing I do know is I won’t fall prey to any of them. Not when I have so much back at home to look forward to.

“Got it,” I reply. “Matt, you’ve got the drone detector. Keep an eye out for that. Just because I never came across one on the island doesn’t mean there won’t be any this time.”

“Niall,” I continue, “use the metal detector to search for tripwires in tall grasses. Or anything hidden in lower branches of the trees, like the wire net I saw the first time.”

Niall lifts his chin. “Got it.”

Fortunately, with a long range metal detector, we won’t have to be reliant on our vision to spot traps, like before.

“I’ve got the mine detector,” I add. “I wouldn’t put it past this fucker to have mines buried in here. And probably not even armed properly.”

Plan decided, we exchange another set of quick nods and set out again. Headed northeast, where Rafe and his found captive are supposed to be waiting for us.

We move through the woods without needing to talk. Not after all the years in Special Forces, and definitely not after working so closely for Blade and Arrow. By now, we can communicate simply by a raised brow or a chin lift, or by one of the many hand signals we used in our ops.

Do weneedto be silent? I’d like to think not. I’d like to think the threat of someone coming after us is gone. But I can’t forget that man on the island; the one with the rock.

And I can’t eliminate the chance that the man Dante and Rhi have in custody might not have an accomplice wandering around in here.

Pausing, I hold up my hand in a raised fist, the signal to stop. Then I pull out my thermal camera and scan our surroundings. To our right, I see two heat signatures, which I assume are Rafe and the person he has with him. Further back, to the north, are two more—most likely Tyler and the woman he found.

Slowly turning in a circle, I pick up two more signatures off to the far left, towards the northwest quadrant. Hopefully two captives and not tangos, gunning for us.

“I’ve got six live bodies so far,” I report. “If it’s like the last game, that would fit. I just hope there weren’t more to start, and we got here too late to save them.”

“Tyler and Rafe were only taken last night,” Matt says. “They weren’t even dropped here an hour ago. The game just started.Hopefully…” He sighs. His shoulders slump. “I hope we didn’t lose anyone, either.”

But there’s no way to know right now. All we can do is move forward. Find the people who are alive and get the fuck out of here.

On our way to Rafe, we bypass one of those damned tripwires and a cluster of mines poorly hidden in a patch of disturbed soil. I use the same trick as I did before, throwing branches at the traps to trigger them while we stand a safe distance away. Because the fewer active traps means the safer it’ll be for the police and FBI, when they get here.

As the tripwire bursts into a ribbon of flame, Niall grimaces. “Fuck,” he mutters. “I can’t believe you had to face this shit by yourself.” A pause, and then, “Not that you couldn’t. But dammit, I wish I could have been there to have your six.”

When we finally reach Rafe, one of the bands around my chest drops away.

Rafe waves to us and claps the frightened-looking guy standing beside him on the shoulder. “Took you guys long enough,” Rafe jokes. Then his smile sobers. “Did you locate the source? Is the FBI on their way?”

“No.” I flash him a thin smile. “The fucker’s here. Watching outside the fence. Dante and Rhiannon got him. That piece of garbage won’t hurt anyone again.”

The poor guy with Rafe bursts into tears.

Niall exchanges a look between the four of us. “I think we should get this guy out as quickly as possible. How about if me and Rafe take him to meet up with Tyler? It’s”—he pulls out his phone to check it—“less than three hundred yards from here. Then we’ll make a beeline for the far side of the fence. Wait there unless you need backup.”

“Sounds good,” I agree.

Matt nods.

With another round of chin lifts, we set off again, Rafe and Niall to the north, while Matt and I head to the west.

Now that Niall’s not with us anymore, I pull out my own metal detector. With that in one hand, the mine detector in the other, I’m at a disadvantage defending myself. But with Matt at my six, just like he’s been for over a decade, I’m not worried. It’s not the first time I’ve trusted him with my life, just as he’s trusted me.

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