Chapter 28 - Olivia

Bigby "docked" the boat on a tiny island in the middle of the lake. We're on the far side, and the tracker indicates that the commander's ship is on the other side of the island, so, with any luck, they won't have seen us approaching. We get off the boat, watching as it awkwardly sinks into the lake, tilted on its side.

"Too bad," Bigby mutters, but Percy is already making his way through the thicket of trees, directly toward the other boat. It only takes us a few minutes to climb the hill and walk through the woods before another beach appears, and we see the boat docked there—actually docked, not crashed into the rocks.

It's enormous—practically a yacht, and from this distance, we can see several people wandering around on the deck, even through the dark.

"How's the scent cover?" Bigby asks, taking a deep breath through his nose. "I can't smell you guys."

"You, either," Byron says, nodding. "Must be good, then."

"Alright," Percy says, "where's the insert?"

"Off the left side," Bigby says, pointing, "you see that ladder hanging down? I'm thinking we grab that, go in through that porthole."

"Think you'll fit?" Byron asks, and Bigby punches him on the shoulder.

I stand there, watching them gear up, preparing to go, planning their method of attack, and it dawns on me: I'm not ready for this.

"—I'll tail, you lead—"

"Byron," I hiss, and he holds his hand up, like he's eating and trying to finish his bite, except he, Bigby, and Percy are making their plans, and it's suddenly vital to me that they don't include me.

"…pin them?"

"Byron."

"—while I cover the six."

"Byron!"

They all spin to look at me, and I clear my throat, heat rushing over my cheeks. Earlier, Byron tried to put a knife in my hand, and something about it felt so out of place that I nearly dropped it in the dirt.

The only reason I wanted to go in the field in the first place was because I couldn't stand hanging around in Rosecreek, being around Byron, seeing him around, and being faced with the fact that he wanted nothing to do with me.

But that's not really what I wanted. I watched Veronica as she moved through each room, completely at home, finding it so easy to slip into that role. I kept wishing I could be back behind the scenes, working with code. Watching the others as it played out.

"Byron," I say, pulling him aside and shaking my head. "I can't go in there."

"Come on, Liv," he says, "I told you—"

"No, I know, but listen," I say, shaking my head and squeezing his arm. "This isn't about my ego, or about what I'm capable of. It's about rescuing Veronica successfully. Without anyone getting hurt. And I think I'm going to be a lot more help out here, watching from the skies."

"Dude," Percy says, gesturing to Byron from a few paces away. "You coming?"

"I'll be good out here," I say, swallowing and holding my hand out. "Give me your laptop. I'll try to get into the yacht's systems and see how I can help."

Byron glances between me and the guys, who are becoming more impatient as time goes on.

"Fuck," he says, finally, sounding like he doesn't want to leave me behind.

"I'll drag you down," I say, "and I don't want to risk Veronica's safety."

"No, it's fair," Byron says, swallowing and handing over his laptop bag. After a moment, he steps forward, grabbing my cheeks and kissing me hard, like I did to him in the car. "Stay hidden," he says. "Okay?"

"Okay," I say, smiling and setting my forehead against his for a moment before he turns and joins the other two guys. I watch as they creep down the side of the hill, moving quickly over the beach and finding the edge of the boat.

They quickly climb the ladder, slipping through a window into the main area. Once they're out of sight, and I'm alone in the trees, a feeling of deep unease settles over me, but I shake it away.

I pull out the laptop, sit down on the ground, and tablet, and get to work, finding a signal from the boat and using it to work my way inside. Once I'm into the Wi-Fi network, it's not hard to weasel into the cameras and other safety systems, which are all conveniently connected. This boat is just as tech-equipped as the one we stole, and I look through what I have access to gleefully.

Navigation, temperature, lighting, emergency systems—I can control everything the onboard computer does, including biometrics. I quickly tap over to the pack's database and upload our biometrics into the computer, enabling Byron, Bigby, and Percy to use their retinas and thumbprints to get through the various security checkpoints.

When I glance back at the laptop, where I have the cameras pulled up, I see Byron go through one of the doors, then turn and flash a thumbs-up at the camera. It makes me smile.

I doubt this boat has an onboard security guard, but in case it does, I set the frames to freeze when the guys are in them, so they show a stagnant screen but return to normal after they pass through, showing the regular patrons.

Looking through the map and cameras, I quickly locate the commander and Veronica. She's tied down to a cot, a gag in her mouth, and the sight of it makes me instantly angry. There's some sort of I.V. hooked up to her, and my heart rate increases. A quick search online tells me that disconnecting certain substances too suddenly can send the body into shock, and I can't zoom in close enough to see what's on the bag.

Veronica's in the main cabin, I send , gagged and tied down. Some sort of I.V. in her—check to make sure it's just saline before disconnecting .

10-4 , Byron sends back.

I'm clicking back over to the ship's inventory, wondering if I can figure out what's in Veronica's I.V. that way, when I hear a twig snap somewhere behind me.

I may not have spent enough time training before entering the field, but I know a suspicious twig snap when I hear one. I freeze, my breathing going quiet, trying to figure out what to do. I can't leave the laptop or tablet here—they're too valuable. I need to keep an eye on the boys, on Veronica, do what I can to get them out okay.

As slowly as I can, I slip my tablet into Byron's laptop bag, then slide my tablet in after. I grimace as I get to my feet, desperately trying to make the least amount of noise as I can. At a loss for where to go, I look up and realize I could climb a tree, sit on a lower branch, and maybe be out of direct sight of anyone patrolling out here.

I've just thrown the bag over my shoulder, notching my foot onto a divot in the bark, when someone behind me says, "Olivia?"

" Zane ?"

I turn, mouth open, when I see Byron's brother standing there, holding a little throwing knife in his right hand. He's sweaty, his black hair plastered to his forehead, and something looks a little off about him, but he's here.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I ask, eyes wide as I look at him. He glances between me and the boat, his eyes as calculating as Byron's.

"That's my brother," he says, finally, his voice choked. "I'm not letting him walk into a death trap. Come on."

"No, I'll stay out here," I say, patting the laptop bag. "Can you give me a hand? I'm going to climb into the tree just in case anyone else comes along."

"Liv," Zane says, raising his eyebrows at me. "They're going to need your help in there. Come on."

"No, you don't understand," I say, sighing, "I don't think fieldwork is for me. I'm more help out here, where I can—"

I stop when he moves forward, easily grabbing me and jabbing me in the thigh with something that pinches, then releases.

"Ow, fuck, Zane, what the—"

He spins me around, holding the knife against my throat. It's like my body shuts down, completely and totally shocked at the turn of events.

"You can never make anything easy, can you?" he mutters in my ear, and his breath is foul. I wrinkle my nose, feeling sick.

"What did you stick me with?"

"Just a little something to keep you from chatting with Byron," he mutters, before digging his elbow into my back.

"What are you—"

"Shut the fuck up," he says, "I am so fucking tired of you messing everything up. Now, walk."

Tears prick in my eyes as he pushes me forward, forcing me toward the boat. Byron was right—I don't know Zane, but I wanted to trust him so badly that I ignored Byron's warnings. I stumble down the beach, my feet getting lost in the sand, tears streaming down my face.

I feel stupid. Mortified. Once again, I'm the reason a mission is going to shit, except this time, it might be Veronica and her baby to pay the consequences. This time, it's worse than being cursed—this might be the downfall of the entire team.