Page 34 of Dan

“They didn’t need to,” smiled Antoine. “Chief and Gator placed trackers on the back of their shoulders. Injected. Undetectable.”

“God, I love the shit we do,” smirked Dan. “Good. That means we can track where they’re going.”

“Already doing it,” said Tanner. “They’ve left the office building and are headed back to their hotel, I would assume. We’ll follow their trail and see where it takes them. In the meantime, I’m trying to track down all the illegitimate children of Baker, the former owner of Faser. He had a stable full of them. The one that was tracking Sara after the incident in New Mexico, I think her name was Jeanette, was placed in a maximum-security psychiatric facility. She died a few years back, but there could be more.”

“Funny how life always comes back around in a big old fucking circle,” frowned Nine. “We thought we ended this shit.”

“It may not be the same thing, Nine,” said Hiro. “This could be something completely different, especially considering where Finley’s talents lie.”

“I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head. “Microchips, flooding the coastal area to flush us out. Literally, all of it seems too coincidental. Anything unusual on the chips you grabbed, Trak?”

“Nothing on initial inspection,” he said, holding them out for Ryan to see. “A good squeeze between my fingers, and they’d crumble. I think they were trying to make them so quickly and so cheaply the quality suffered.”

“We’ll take a look at them in the labs at G.R.I.P. I think what we have to figure out is who is playing with us here. Someone wanted to flood the entire southern coastal area to bring us out of hiding, plus YZX wants to do business with G.R.I.P. on the missile systems,afterthey bought GAM Labs to force their daughter to work with them. That’s a lot of crazy wrapped up in one thing.”

“Maybe they’re not connected,” said Nine. “Maybe the chips for the missile systems are something different.”

“It’s a possibility but seems unlikely. It seems obvious that they wanted whatever is being held in Finley’s brain. It all feels like too much of a coincidence,” said Ryan.

“Do you think this flood system of hers will actually work?” asked Dan, looking back at her sleeping form.

“I think it damn sure will, no pun intended. It’s not going to prevent all flooding in the area, but it will protect the most vulnerable of our islands and inland spaces. Grant is going to have to hire an entire structural engineering construction division for this, but he’s already got a hundred guys lined up that need work. We’re talking about a long-term project that could last years.

“We’ll need to do it in phases, with the most vulnerable islands being tested first. I know we can’t prevent all of the flooding, but this could revolutionize what G.R.I.P. has to offer the world,” said Doug.

“That’s good news. Maybe by next spring, we’ll have some relief from some of the hurricanes. In the meantime,” said Ryan, “I’m here to support her in any way we can. Let’s keep her mind off her parents until we figure this shit out.”

By the time they landed at Belle Fleur, Finley was awake and ready to be home. She could already smell the evening meal and was practically running toward the cafeteria.

“Fin! Fin, wait!” yelled Dan.

“I’m hungry!” she called back. Dan could only laugh, shaking his head.

“Welcome to my world, brother,” said Aiden. “When Brit is hungry, get the hell out of her way.”

“They’re both such little bitty people,” said Dan. “I mean, that woman outeats me, and I’m damn near two hundred and fifty pounds. The other night she went back for seconds, thirds, and fourths, and I’m pretty damn sure she was eyeing fifths.”

“Yep,” smirked Aiden.

It wasn’t by coincidence that they found Brit and Finley seated together, enjoying their double plates of food. They moaned and groaned as if they were having sex with one another. Dan and Aiden looked at each other, then looked away, clearing their throats.

“Right, well, we’ll just pretend we’re not hearing that.”

“Roger that, brother,” smirked Aiden. “Babe? You getting enough to eat?”

“Don’t mess with me, Aiden. You know I didn’t get my afternoon snack. Besides, tonight is my favorite. Steaks smothered in gravy, onions, and mushrooms with buttery mashed potatoes, crispy green beans with almonds, and Mama Irene’s coconut cake.”

“Don’t forget the hot buttered rolls,” said Finley, covering her mouth as she chewed and talked at the same time.

“Yeah,” nodded Brit. “And the hot buttered rolls. I wish I knew what they did to the rolls to make them so good.” Aiden kissed his wife on the forehead.

“Enjoy, babe. I’m going to get me a plate before it’s gone.”

“Me, too,” smiled Dan.

“What did you find?” asked Aiden.

“We’re not sure. There was a shit-ton of information from a case the team worked on more than thirty years ago. I think Finley’s great-uncle, or half-great-uncle, might have been the start of all of this. It looks like her father admired his uncle more than his own father.”

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