Page 37 of Defended By the SEAL
“Let’s move,” he said, grabbing his gear and heading for the door. Icy wind hit him like a wall as he stepped outside, but he didn’t slow, determination driving him forward.
The men trudged toward the house, the snow deep and the wind relentless. The sight of the warm glow from the windows spurred them forward, though the storm clawed at every step. By the time they reached the door, they were nearly frozen, but Champion wasted no time knocking.
The door creaked open, and Charlotte’s face appeared, pale and strained. Relief flickered across her features. “Thank God you guys are here. Come in.”
Champion stepped inside, his eyes scanning the room. “Where’s Cowboy?”
“He went to the lighthouse almost ages ago and hasn’t come back.” Charlotte shook her head, the concern on her face more alarming than her words. “I was just about to go lookingfor him.”
That was fucking concerning. Champion scowled. “What about Deke and Booger?”
She cocked her head to the side. “What about them?”
“They aren’t here?” asked Austin.
Now Charlotte looked decidedly sick. “No. I haven’t seen anyone but you.”
Champion’s gut tightened. According to his GPS, the others should have gotten here before Austin and him. They got to the island at least half an hour ago. He checked his watch to see their proximity to his location on its tiny screen. According to the app, the only HERO Force members within fifty miles were Austin and himself.
Cowboy, Deke, and Booger were all unaccounted for. His stomach sank with the certainty of imminent danger. “They’re no longer transmitting a signal. Either Deke and Booger have straight-up disappeared, or we’ve got company on this island—and Deke and Booger are the first to meet our mystery guest.”
20
The wind howled like a living thing, clawing at them as Champion, Austin, and Charlotte trudged through the knee-deep snow toward the lighthouse. Every step was a battle, the icy drifts dragging at their boots and threatening to swallow them whole. The storm hadn’t let up for a second, turning the world into a featureless white void. Charlotte pulled her scarf tighter around her face, her teeth chattering as she fought to keep up with the two men.
Her chest tightened. The thought of Cowboy—alone, hurt, maybe worse—made her legs push forward despite the exhaustion burning her muscles. “He’s probably back at the house by now, wondering why we’re the idiots out here, freezing to death.” She didn’t believe it, but she wanted to.
“Maybe,” Champion said, though his tone wasn’t any more convincing than her own.
Austin’s flashlight beam cut through the swirling snow, illuminating the faint outline of the lighthouse up ahead. It loomed like a dark sentinel against the blizzard, the stonewalls battered by the relentless wind. Charlotte shivered, not just from the cold, but from the eerie aura of the place.
As they reached the base of the lighthouse, Champion motioned for them to stop. He pulled out his handgun, his movements precise despite the biting cold. “Stay close. We don’t know what we’re walking into.”
Austin nodded, his own weapon at the ready, while Charlotte tightened her grip on the flashlight she carried. It wasn’t much, but she’d bash someone over the head with it if she had to.
A heavy wooden door creaked open under Champion’s hand, revealing a dark, icy interior. The wind immediately died down, the thick stone walls muffling the storm to a distant roar. A resounding silence inside was oppressive, broken only by the crunch of their boots on the frosted floor.
Charlotte shone her flashlight around the entryway, the beam illuminating the spiral staircase leading upward and the faint dusting of snow that had blown in through cracks in the door. “Leo?” she called, her voice echoing off the stone walls.
Nothing.
Champion motioned for them to spread out, keeping within sight of each other. They moved cautiously through the lower level, their flashlights sweeping over every corner. The faint, acrid tang of somethingmetallic lingered in the air, making Charlotte’s nose wrinkle. She didn’t know what it was, but it felt wrong.
“Upstairs,” Champion said, nodding toward the staircase.
They ascended slowly, each step creaking under their weight. Charlotte’s pulse quickened with every turn of the spiral, her flashlight bouncing shadows across the walls. Austin broke off to explore the lower gallery, while she and Champion continued to the top.
When finally she entered the small, empty room, her hopes disappeared in an instant. No one was here. The lantern mechanism stood in the center, its rusted gears silent and still. Broken glass littered the floor near the windows, snow drifting through the jagged openings. Where could he be?
Austin’s voice echoed through the lighthouse. “The gallery is clear. You find anything?”
Champion and Charlotte shared a look. “Not a goddamn th—” Champion’s words were cut off by the sound of a distant crash below, and they flew down the steps, shadows dancing on the imposing stone walls from the jostling of their flashlights. She reached the bottom of the stairs just a step behind Champion, who held his weapon at the ready.
“It sounded like it came from behind this wall,” said Austin, his fingers tracing the mortared joints. “There has to be a hidden door or compartment.”
Charlotte’s breaths came in quick puffs as she ran her fingers over the rough surface, searching for clues. They were considering giving up when she found a large fieldstone tucked into the wall beneath the shadow of the stairs, empty space where solid mortar should have been. “I think I found something.”
Austin moved in front of her. He turned to Champion. “Cover me.” With the other man ready with his weapon trained on the wall, Austin worked to pry loose stones from the wall one by one, until a wooden door was revealed.
