Chapter 13

THIRTEEN

FRIDAY, 6:00 A.M.

Juliette stayed up all night on watch duty, paying extra attention to Ivy's room. That girl was a handful but had passed out in the guest room bed without any further incidents.

The coffee pot sputtered. The smell of fresh coffee sent her to her happy place. Juliette watched out the kitchen window. Caleb dozed on the couch, and Ivy still hadn't emerged from her room.

Noelle came out of her room, dressed and ready to take over watch duties. She grabbed a cup of coffee and sat at the table. Alana would be by later with some supplies.

"You two are really good together," Noelle said. "I can see why you held out."

She glanced at Caleb, who was sleeping like a rock.

"I didn't hold out." She joined Noelle at the table. "It just wasn't the right time."

"And is now a better time? Because he makes you smile in ways I've never seen."

Juliette shrugged. "We've both changed over the years. Maybe it's possible to explore a relationship." Oh, how she wanted that to be true. A second chance with Caleb.

But he'd already said their kiss was a mistake.

Noelle changed the subject. "What I wouldn't give for a run."

"I know. This morning is the perfect weather. Cool, with a mist blanketing the yard. Everything is so still and peaceful."

Then a chill crept up her spine. Why was it so still?

"I can't remember the last time I saw the two FBI agents on patrol. They took shifts all night." She moved to the window and peeked out the blinds. The agents had been hanging out in their SUV when not actively patrolling.

The car was there, but with the tinted windows, she couldn't see if the two agents were in the vehicle.

Noelle had put down her coffee and joined Juliette. "I don't like this."

Juliette agreed. Something was off. "You stay here, and I'll go outside and check on the agents. I'll bring them some coffee. I'm sure everything is fine."

She poured two mugs and was grateful they'd given her the alarm code. She tapped in the six-digit number, and the alarm chirped off. Neither Caleb nor Ivy stirred. They needed the rest. She heard the beep as Noelle locked the door and reset the alarm.

She headed out the front door with the mugs in hand and approached the passenger side of the SUV. The car was running, but as she peered through the windshield, it didn't look like the driver was moving. The rest of the tinted windows made it hard to see, but as she got close, she noted the agent in the driver's seat was slumped against the wheel.

The coffee mugs hit the sidewalk and shattered. In a fraction of a second, Juliette's gun was in her hands, and she ducked behind the passenger side door. She opened it to peer inside the car. The driver's lifeless eyes stared back at her, and blood streaked down the side of his face. No need to check his pulse. The man was gone. No passenger.

She surveyed the area and didn't see any movement, so she sprinted through the front yard and bolted to the door. Noelle opened it the second Juliette arrived.

"We've got to go," she said.

Caleb jumped up off the couch, ready for action.

"What's wrong?" he asked. He grabbed his Glock off the end table and crept next to the sliding glass door. Noelle returned to the living room with a sleepy Ivy.

Juliette kept an eye on the front yard and heard Caleb take a sharp breath. "FBI agent, down on the ground. He's not moving. Blood on the concrete walkway outside of the patio could mean a gunshot wound to the head."

"The other is dead in the car. Same wound."

Caleb motioned for Ivy to stand behind him. The girl trembled but complied without saying a word. Juliette watched out the front window for any signs of movement. A car parked across the street three doors down had her concerned.

She held her breath, willing her pounding pulse to steady. "We've got company." The car door opened. A man dressed in all black slipped out and stood in the shadows of the neighbor's shrubbery, creeping closer to the safe house. Sunlight glinted off the gun in his hand.

"The front is not an acceptable escape route," she announced and flanked the other side of the sliding glass door, across from Caleb.

She fixed her eyes on him. "Do you think we should make a run for it?" she asked. Somehow that didn't feel safe, but with the man creeping around the front yard, what options did they have?

Caleb held up one finger. "Listen. What's that noise?"

Juliette swiveled her head, trying to locate the source of the high buzzing sound. She dashed to the front window to keep a visual on the intruder. She didn't see anything in the front yard, but the humming grew louder, like a swarm of bees. Or maybe it was—"It's a drone," Ivy said. Juliette watched as a mechanical box with four propellers dropped into view of the window. She raced back to the sliding glass door and caught Caleb's attention. "We've got to go. The drone has a gun mounted on it."

Noelle darted to the back bedroom and returned with two shotguns. "I thought we might need extra protection, so I packed accordingly." She handed one to Caleb and stood against the wall with Ivy, all of them staying well away from being seen in the window. Caleb gave Juliette a tight nod. "We'll run through the yard to the fence at the back. There are some trees that will offer limited protection, but there is a house about a quarter mile back. Maybe we can get help."

"But that drone is going to target us the second it spots us."

Caleb racked his gun. "You and Ivy run. Noelle and I will take care of the drone."

Shots rang out, and the picture window in the front of the house exploded. They dove for the ground, glass fragments flying everywhere. Juliette met Caleb's eyes. "It's now or never."

At Caleb's nudge, Ivy crawled across the floor next to Juliette. Juliette squatted by the door and cracked it open. She froze. "Do you hear that?" The humming sound intensified.

Caleb stood, sticking to the wall while trying to stay out of view from both the front window and the sliding door. He parted the blind slats to take a peek. "I don't see the drone," Caleb whispered.

"It's drones," Ivy said. "Plural."

No time to argue about a plan that put them all in the direct line of fire, because based on the sound, the hackers had sent a drone army to attack them. Caleb could defend himself. But Ivy? The girl put on a brave face, but this was more than any twelve-year-old should have to deal with. They needed to run across the patio to the yard, but that would take them right past the fallen agent.

"Ivy, we're going to run." Juliette stood and pulled Ivy up. "Look straight ahead. Focus on the rooftop of the house at the end of the pasture. Aim for the small group of trees near the fence."

Juliette nodded to Caleb, and he moved into position behind her, with Noelle guarding the rear. Ivy wrapped her hand around Juliette's arm.

They all stepped onto the patio and froze.

"What's going on?" Juliette's whisper was lost in the steady thrumming noise. They clung to the side of the house, under the awning of the patio. Multiple drones descended across the backyard. There had to be at least twenty of them dropping out of the sky, lining up in a grid-like pattern across the lawn.

"It looks like a chess board," Ivy whispered. "They're quadcopters. Expensive."

The whirring stopped as the black rectangle machines with four propellors settled into the grass, unnerving Juliette more than the incessant noise. They stared down at the drone army parked across the backyard.

"It's like a scene from a science fiction movie. What are they waiting for?" Juliette asked.

Caleb's face paled. "Us."

* * *

FRIDAY, 6:15 A.M.

Caleb could only rationalize one reason these terrorists would blanket a bunch of sophisticated drones across the backyard of the safe house in three-foot intervals.

"Bombs," Caleb said. "They've strapped these drones with something. Probably C-4. We're going to be walking through land mines to get out of the yard."

"You've got to be kidding me." Juliette's wide eyes conveyed the danger of this situation, because if Hazard Pay was spooked, Caleb was downright terrified.

He watched Juliette shield Ivy from the fallen agent on the patio with her body.

Armed drones in the front yard. Landmine drones in the back. They were sandwiched in the safe house.

"They're FPV drones," Ivy whispered, staring at the sky. When Juliette's mouth hung open in confusion, Ivy clarified. "FPV stands for First Person View. No radio frequencies or GPS. They're being piloted by remote control. Which means the bad guys are close. And probably more drones are coming."

"But what do they want?" Juliette scanned the sky for more signs of trouble. "Do they want to trap us, flush us out into the open, or kill us?"

"At this point," Caleb said, "it's a toss-up. If they think Ivy knows something, they wouldn't strike this hard. But my gut says they want to chase us out of the house."

Whirring propellors announced the arrival of more gun drones, confirming Ivy's guess. Caleb counted three of them. But more could be waiting on the other side of the house. "They're trying to drive us out of the house and through the yard." He racked the shotgun. "You're going to have to take Ivy and run. The second you step into that yard, the gun drones will go after you. I'll take them down, but you'll have to dodge the land mines. Unless we can stop the drone pilot, our only other option is to get to safety."

Juliette hesitated, then nodded. They both knew this was their only chance.

Caleb prayed. Because if anything happened to either Ivy or Juliette…

With one hand, Caleb counted down. Three…two… On one, Juliette hoisted Ivy onto her back and moved toward the edge of the stone patio. Caleb and Noelle aimed shotguns at the sky and watched for any signs of movement.

Dear God, please let this work.

Juliette took off at a fast clip, and Caleb watched her weave around the first drone. The buzzing intensified, and Caleb turned his head to watch behind himself. One of the drones gave chase, heading straight for Juliette and Ivy.

Juliette sped up, mindful of where the drones were strategically placed throughout the yard. She wouldn't be able to steer clear of all of them. Caleb aimed and fired at the one stalking Juliette and Ivy, taking off two of its four propellers. The machine lilted to one side and tumbled out of the sky before it could get off a shot.

Caleb's head throbbed from the gunshot explosion. This was their lives, not some video game. He lowered the gun and flexed his fingers, itching to get his hands on the drone pilot. But these cowards hid behind screens.

Juliette weaved through the drones on the ground, and he followed in her trail. She slowed to avoid stepping on a drone. Noelle hung back by the house, patrolling the skies.

"I don't like this," Caleb said. "What if they detonate all at once?"

Juliette grunted and shifted Ivy's weight on her back. "Don't even say that."

Another thump-thump-thump and Caleb's heart stopped. Behind them, two more gunship drones rose over the house.

"Run!" Caleb yelled, and Juliette took off while Caleb spun and faced off with the two warships. A crash sounded as Noelle's shot took down one of the drones.

The drone chased Juliette, and Caleb shot at the descending invader. It exploded in the air. Juliette had made it halfway through the land-mine drone maze, and Caleb needed to help her. He didn't trust that one of these bombs wouldn't detonate, and that might set off a chain reaction. He couldn't watch the sky and the ground.

"Go," Noelle said. "Watch Juliette's back, and I'll defend from here."

He was so thankful for all of the Elite Guardians. "Don't forget about the man prowling about. And we still don't have eyes on the drone operator. Be careful." He took off running after Jules, following the same path. But before he reached her position, he stopped short. One of the drones nearest him on the ground lit up with a red blinking light. He changed direction and ran away from the activated drone.

The earth rumbled, and heat seared his back. The drone exploded in a fireball, taking out the yard around it but not touching the other drones. At least the others hadn't detonated. These guys wanted to play with Caleb and Juliette to drive them out into the open. How had they figured out where the safe house was?

Caleb's skin pricked with goosebumps at the sound of more beeping, and several other red lights appeared.

"Keep moving!" Caleb yelled. Booms rang out from Noelle's shotguns while she took down more drones.

They sprinted for the back fence, weaving in and out of the land-mine drones. Trees dotted the fence line and might give them some semblance of protection from the air attack. Another explosion sent them ducking from falling debris. Gunshots rang out, and Caleb didn't even stop to look. They hit the six-foot picket fence, and Caleb climbed up first. At least the horses had scattered, although they might have made good getaway transportation.

He reached back and grabbed Ivy from Juliette, hoisting her to the top of the fence. Ivy hopped up and over, and he reached a hand to pull Juliette. Bullets pinged off the side of the fence.

Juliette's feet hit the ground with a thud, and while Caleb straddled the top of the fence, he took aim at the last air drone. Firing twice, he nailed it center mass, sending splinters of plastic material flying. The fragments took a nosedive and crashed onto one of the land-mine drones, creating a yellow and red fireball.

Caleb jumped off the fence and ran. More land mines exploded, sending pebbles and earth pieces high into the air. Despite some tree covering, debris rained down around them. Smoke from the charred plastic burned his nostrils and stung his eyes.

Whirring sounded behind him, and Caleb turned. Two more gun drones patrolled the edge of the property.

Juliette slowed her pace. "I don't think the drones can navigate through the trees."

"That makes sense if they're being piloted by remote control," Ivy said.

Juliette relaxed her shoulders, the tension in her face easing a bit. "If we walk straight back, we should come out at the neighboring house."

Caleb frowned. "But that would also be where they would expect us to exit. And we lose the tree covering."

Juliette put her hands on her hips, not bothering to mask her frustration. "You've got me. This is the first drone attack slash land-mine encounter I've ever tried to outrun. I must have been sick the day the Army had their class on outrunning a robot invasion."

Caleb suppressed a smile. It was good to see Juliette's feisty spirit return. The churning of the drone propellers kept humming as they pushed farther through the patch of trees toward the roofline of the neighbor's house. But they soon came to the end of the wooded area that separated the two houses.

"Is there a road on the other side of this property?" Juliette asked. "I'm sure you memorized the map of the entire area."

Before Caleb could respond, Ivy said, "If we walk point seven miles north, we'll come out on Magnolia Ave." Caleb and Juliette both gaped at Ivy. "What?" she said. "I checked the map before I snuck out. I'm not that dumb."

"Well, that's my girl." Caleb slung his arm around his niece.

Juliette checked her phone. "Finally. A signal. I'll text Alana for backup and let Agent McGregor know we've been attacked." Her phone pinged. "Alana was bringing my car to me this morning. She's already on her way. I'll tell her to meet us at the house on Magnolia."

They took a chance and raced for the patio of the house.

Juliette stood on her tiptoes, cupping her face with her hands to peer through the sliding glass door. "I don't see any signs of life. Maybe this is a summer home for someone. It's as nice as the safe house before drones went all scorched-earth on the place."

Caleb gave the door a heavy knock, but no one responded. "At least we're not putting anyone else in danger, but we still need to find a way out. We can't hide here. It would be too obvious."

"The drones are still patrolling the area," Juliette said. "It's only a matter of time before they discover us here."

Caleb nodded. "Let's move to the front of the house and see if they have a car or some kind of vehicle we can…um…borrow." He didn't want to trespass on someone's private property and then steal, but they needed to leave the area.

Juliette looked like she wanted to argue about the plan but offered no alternatives. Caleb watched the skies, and they smashed themselves against the wall of the house and crept toward the front.

Sirens wailed in the distance, signifying help would soon arrive, but they didn't have time to wait around.

They rounded the corner of the house, and Caleb spotted an older model sedan parked in the driveway. The buzz of drones had died down, but he refused to let his guard down for a second.

Juliette dashed to the car and found the driver's door unlocked. "Yes! It's an old car. Should be easy to hotwire, and won't have GPS for someone to trace. Win-win."

Caleb tossed her a Swiss Army tool he fished out of his pocket, and she caught it over the roof of the car. In no time she had the dashboard removed with the tiny screwdriver, and she connected wires until the engine purred to life. Caleb and Ivy jumped in.

"Let's get out of here," Jules said.

"I'm glad those days in the motor pool taught you a thing or two about hot-wiring a car," Caleb said as Juliette backed out of the long driveway.

"Thank goodness it's not a current model, or we'd still be sitting there."

When she hit the street, she let out a yelp.

Directly in front of their windshield hovered a drone with a gun mounted underneath it, blocking their escape.