4. ARCHER

4

ARCHER

Dean Doukas gets on the phone with me with all his drunk entitlement.

“Da fuck, Archer? I didn’t sign up to live in a war zone.”

A trust fund kid, can’t you tell? Privileged—check. Entitled—check. No ambitions besides partying—check.

I didn’t understand why he chose to stay at Ayana after the Change. He could’ve gone to Australia or South America, where his parents had relocated. But hey, Ayana used to be paradise.

Dean is already toasted, slurring just slightly. “I’m out, Archer. This shithole is no fun. I need clearance for my helicopter.” Correction—his dad’s.

“I’ll get it sorted. When?”

“Tonight.”

“Huh, fast. Good luck.”

“I don’t need luck. You do.”

This is the third aircraft coming and leaving today. The rumor about Maddy and Raven’s kidnapping spread through the resort like a brushfire. Fifteen people from Ayana left Zion in the last four days. I don’t blame them. Ayana is becoming a dangerous place. Anyone with money and connections can buy their way through the world lockdown and choose a safer place to live.

It’s been five days since Raven’s disappearance. We call it “disappearance” because no one wants to see this for what it is. Raven was probably executed. Either in the jungle, where the meeting took place, or he was taken to town so that Butcher could enjoy the show. I hope that they are keeping him alive so they can use him to barter.

I called Butcher as the team and I sat in my office. Butcher didn’t respond. Didn’t answer my texts either when I bluntly asked him what he did with Raven and that I want him back at all cost.

There’s nothing else I can do. Meanwhile, guilt weighs down on me like a giant concrete block. I keep replaying that day in my mind, wondering if I should’ve sent men after Raven despite his orders. Would that have changed things? Would that have caused more casualties? Would that have killed Maddy-Milena? I told her the truth—I promised Raven that, no matter what happens to him, I will keep her safe. And that’s the only thing that keeps me from feeling like a complete piece of shit.

I’m not alone. The rest of the team feels the same. There’s tangible gloom among us when we gather for meetings and the first question is, “Any updates from the IT team?”

Regarding Raven. We all know that, but we stopped saying his name.

We are in my office again, as is the daily routine. Marlow, Bishop, Ortiz, and several senior IT members.

Tsariuk comes on video chat. “I have my guys in town,” he says. “They communicate with me by satellite phone. Said one guy was eliminated.”

“Eliminated?”

“Gone. Butcher is doing the cleaning. He kills men left and right. I will sort that out with Butcher personally one day. But the news is—no news. Unfortunately. No word about Raven. Nothing. Not a single lead. Butcher and his men are hush-hush about what went on in the jungle. No one saw Raven being brought to Port Mrei.”

“But his body was never found,” I say. “What do you do with the body? If that was an execution, why isn’t anyone talking? Bragging? Boasting? No rumors?”

“No. That is a good sign. But… Your guy Skiba is in Port Mrei.”

We all exchange looks, though the news still doesn’t tell us what happened to Raven.

“So, here is the thing. If my guys in Port Mrei cannot get a whiff of Raven, my IT team cannot do anything, either. There is only one way to go about it.”

We stare at him in silence. “And?” I probe.

“We will send an armed team, get some of Butcher’s men, interrogate them.”

Ortiz shakes his head. “We are not sending our men to their deaths.”

“Who said your men?” Tsariuk asks calmly, and we all exchange looks. “I will send my team. Not to their death, Mr. Ortiz, but to do their job. Professionally.”

This is an insult to our security team, but the cocky fucker can do whatever he wants with his.

“You are that invested in Raven?” I know the answer, but I really want this Russian Tony Stark to admit that he is changing his ways.

“My daughter is,” he says dryly. There, I knew it. “What she wants—she gets.”

Hail Milena-Maddy Tsariuk! Atta girl!

“I am flying to Zion,” Tsariuk announces.

The last news comes as no shock but makes everyone in the room acutely aware that things are about to take a whole new direction.

“In two days,” I inform Kat when she comes to my office when the meeting is over and everyone leaves.

She sucks in her lips. I can’t tell if she is nervous or uneasy. Sure, Tsariuk made a deal with Raven and, consequently, me. Sure, his main agenda is to see his daughter. But who is to say he won’t bring men who would seize control over Ayana? If Raven were here, he could have navigated the situation properly. But he isn’t. That trust fund he set up with the lawyer—turned out it was the right precaution.

“Fuck,” I hiss, gripping the back of my neck with locked hands. I feel like doing something reckless. I want to send all the guards to Port Mrei and shoot the fucking Butcher gang mercilessly, in their faces, execution-style, like they did with Raven.

I want to see Raven’s body, if that’s what it came down to, and apologize and apologize and say I’m fucking sorry for failing him. As Raven’s friend, I fucked up. I did. I like Maddy a lot, but if it were up to me, I’d sacrifice my men and her and myself for a chance to rescue Raven.

A knock at the door, and Margot walks in.

Kat doesn’t react, deep in her thoughts. It’s peculiar that these two somehow get along. No, that’s not the right word. They tolerate each other, and even talk calmly when it comes to Ayana’s business. Margot doesn’t mention that Kat cut off her hair. To be honest, Margot looks fantastic with her pink bob haircut. Or maybe it is because she is not bitter or spiteful lately. Surprising really.

Raven was right—when Margot got stuck in the jungle during the storm and ended up at Bishop’s cabin, something went down. I didn’t even know about it until Raven brought it up. When I confronted Bishop, he only smiled confidently. “I’m working on it.”

“Working on what?”

He grinned. “Those long legs and pretty mouth.”

I laughed. “Good for you, man. Who would’ve thought?”

“Did you know that she is fucking brilliant, too? Not just in bed.”

I laughed again. “She is.”

Margot is smart. However, she was trained by her parents to prioritize looks over intelligence. And she learned how to be a cunt to people. That’s her weapon.

Bishop didn’t elaborate on the story. I didn’t ask. But I always knew that skillfully used hands and cock can cure any bad attitude. My girlfriend is a prime example.

This time, Margot comes with unsettling news. “You don’t answer your phone, Archer. There is a situation at the port.”

“Again?”

“Again.”

It’s another attack. Somehow, since Raven’s disappearance, everything is going fucking berserk. Two days after he went missing, there was a major attack on the port. Several of our guards were killed. A number of Butcher’s men, too. I made an executive decision to shut the port down.

So, yes, that’s the reason people are leaving Ayana. Port Mrei is completely cut off from any shipments. It will only be a few months before the town starts falling apart and reaches a humanitarian crisis. But we have no other option until Butcher backs away and we strike a new deal. Until then, we are in lockdown.

What does that mean for us?

Number one, supply boats now come to Ayana directly.

Two, the port is only patrolled by a few of our guards to prevent illegal shipments from coming to Port Mrei.

Three, a new surveillance perimeter is shrinking toward Ayana. A guard tower at the Divide was attacked the other day. Then a block post on the way to town. Both remained in place, but one guard was severely injured.

Fucking hell.

I can’t ask for help either. The arms deals Raven transferred to Tsariuk came with the wrath of South Africa and the US. We lost more funds. Tsariuk said we would discuss it when he gets here. It doesn’t sound very promising. And if he takes Maddy from Zion—he could, because if Raven is dead, she has nothing of interest here—he would leave Zion to its own devices. And then the rest of us would have to leave.

I deal with the attack on the port for an hour. The Center is grim lately. The IT guys work overtime. So do the security guards. The Lab is on pause, dozens of scientists on temporary leave.

And Ayana is turning into a ghost town. Hundreds of staff who used to service this luxury resort, mostly from Port Mrei, are blocked from entering it. No one is coming from Port Mrei.

This is worse than we’ve ever expected.

The sun is setting when I finally get to my villa. Kat left the Center earlier to make dinner. That’s our new reality. Restaurants are closed. Staff is non-existent, except for the ones who reside at Ayana.

I pour myself cognac, walk out onto the deck, and study the aerial view of the peaceful slopes of bungalows and villas, surrounded by beautiful gardens and pools, all the way down to the beach. There is no music booming from any of the villas, and the boats and yachts in the ocean are quiet. It’s beautiful but eerie.

My phone rings. It’s the airfield asking for the clearance for the helicopter leaving—Dean Doukas and his father’s pilot.

I say, “They are good.”

I take a sip of cognac as I study my infinity pool and the ocean below. It will hurt if we all have to leave this island. I already feel like I failed. And not just those who live at Ayana. Even the ones with no money would be given an opportunity to move to one of the “safe” countries if we have to flee.

I failed Raven. My chest burns again at the thought that I overlooked the security issues that led to what happened to him. Months ago, he sent an army to save Kat and me from the Ashlands. And I couldn’t do that for him. I feel like shit. I want to get drunk. I want to do drugs. I want to forget. But most of all, I want the guilt to go away.

The next truth is much harsher—I failed Port Mrei. There was a time I didn’t give a shit about that town. We gave the locals work. We used them. It was a win-win.

But if we abandon Ayana, Butcher and his thugs will live in our luxury villas, dealing, trading, enslaving the locals, raping and robbing. This island will turn into slums.

Kat’s familiar arms wrap around my middle from behind. “You okay?”

My wild thing is the person who always carries me through the tough times. Moreover, when Kat is with me, I feel I can handle anything. I hope I can.

“Yeah,” I lie.

I pull her into me, wrap my arm around her shoulders, and she leans into me as we watch Ayana glow in the setting sun.

It’s a beautiful island with so many opportunities. But somewhere on this island, there is cancer. It spreads its metastases with astonishing speed. And somehow, we failed to find the cure.

The sound of the helicopter rising in the air makes us raise our faces to the sky.

“Dean Doukas is leaving,” I say.

“Traitor,” Kat blurts out.

I chuckle. “Nah. He just wants to be safe. I don’t blame him. Many others will leave. We just have to accept that.”

The helicopter passes over Ayana, a black bird against the blue-pinkish sky.

“Bye, asshole,” Kat says, waving her hand at the helicopter. “I never liked him.”

I smile. Thank God for this wild girl. One word from her can completely turn my shitty mood 180 degrees.

“How about we make tonight a date night?” I ask. “Dinner, movie.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah? Maybe try the upside-down pose again?”

“Shut up!” She slaps me playfully.

I grin at the horizon, the dark dot of the helicopter that looks like a bug flying North over Port Mrei.

Suddenly, a dark streak shoots out of Port Mrei. It has a white smoky tail, zooming fast through the air.

In seconds, it collides with the helicopter. A bright flash with a loud bang illuminates the sky as the helicopter explodes.

Everything gets dizzy.

My heart floors.

I hold my breath, eyes widening at the fire blooming in the sky where Dean Doukas just was.

“Holy fuck,” Kat whispers.

Both of us stare in shock as blood pounds in my ears.

My phone rings.

I already know what’s coming, but I pick it up anyway to the grim news, “Someone just blew up Dean’s helicopter. Someone from Port Mrei.”