Warrior Rogue (The Drift Lords Series) (36 page)

She stood and smoothed down her cropped tan pants. “I’m glad Dad has things under control now with the company back on track. The capital from Yeager Investments will put us on solid ground. Cousin Clifford no longer poses a threat.”

“Thank God we dodged that bullet.” Her mother rose and tucked a tendril of hair behind her ear. “I hope you forgive Dad and me for not telling you about the adoption sooner. You know we love you as our own child.”

“I do.” Jen hugged her. Despite her prejudices, Lydia tried to be a good mother. She just deluded herself into thinking her advice was for Jen’s benefit. “I have an appointment in town later this morning for our upcoming trunk show and then I’m leaving to head north. I’ll take my Lexus.”

She didn’t need a car in New York and kept it parked at home. To her annoyance, Paz had taken their loaner. What would she say to Ted?

“Won’t you be flying back to Manhattan?”

“I have to go somewhere else first. Tell Dad goodbye for me.” He’d gone to work early that morning to get things rolling with their new opportunities.

Jen packed a suitcase and then headed out to see her client. Hours later, she turned onto the highway toward Orlando.

She couldn’t believe she hadn’t told Paz about her adoption. It showed what little regard she’d had for him to focus only on his personal attributes. She’d become as much a snob as her parents. Guilt weighed her down and gnawed at her stomach as she drove north.

By the time she arrived in Central Florida, Saturday traffic on I-4 crawled in both directions. Exhaustion claimed her as she reached the safe house and knocked on the front door. She wasn’t tired from the three hour drive but from anxiety over Paz’s reception when he saw her on the doorstep.

Nira greeted her. “Why, hello, Jen. We didn’t expect to see you back so soon.”

“Is Paz here?” she asked in a hoarse voice.

“I’m sorry, but he hasn’t checked in. We thought he was still with you.”

“No, he left yesterday. Where could he have gone? Did Zohar give him a new assignment?”

“I don’t think so, but let’s ask the prince. Come on in.”

Zohar denied contact with Paz and gathered his team. When they were seated, he paced the living room, riffling his fingers through his hair.

“He’s not answering his comm unit, and his locator beacon has ceased functioning or else he’s deactivated it.”

Nira, Yaron, Jen, and Lord Magnor sat around with worried frowns. Dal was busy assembling his energy weapon in a bedroom converted into a laboratory. His muttered curses sounded from down the hall.

“Paz mentioned that General Morar was establishing a new recruitment center in Florida.” Jen clasped her hands in her lap. “What if he’s gone there to confront the Trollek commander on his own?”

“Fires of Agathorn, he’ll be killed.” Zohar stared at her in consternation.

“We must go after him.” Magnor, standing, grabbed for his cloak draped over a chair.

“Our priority is to destroy the rift generator.” Zohar’s authoritative tone resounded through the room.

“Holy Guacamole, you can’t be serious.” Nira shot to her feet and prodded his chest. “You wouldn’t abandon a member of your team. Leave no one behind, remember?”

He gazed at her in exasperation. “As soon as Dal completes his device, we will deploy it. That is our prime objective.”

“Fine, but until then, we can help Paz.” Nira’s keen gaze swung to Jen. “Did you two have an argument?”

Jen gaped at her. “How did you know?”

“He’d only be so dumb if he was trying to prove something. Paz can be impulsive, but he wouldn’t knowingly walk into the lion’s den unprepared, unless—”

“I never meant for him to put his life in danger.” Her voice cracked. “Please, help me find him.”

It was her fault for driving him away. She prided herself on her self-reliance, but this was one time when she couldn’t manage alone. Maybe it wasn’t so bad to be a team player. Maybe she should learn how to be one herself.

****

Paz cut a hole in the wire fence surrounding the Trolleks’ proposed new theme park at Tampa Bay. It was just past dawn on Sunday morning. Hopefully, any construction workers would be off for the day.

The invaders had purchased this acreage for an attraction to rival Busch Gardens. According to the advance publicity by their front company, they planned to include thrill rides, live performances by popular bands, shops and restaurants, plus animal exhibits and other zoological wonders.

After he’d left Jen’s house and driven to Florida’s west coast, Paz had cashed one of the kewa stones Zohar had given him and used the money to buy supplies. From a hotel room, he’d hacked into city government files to access the park’s proposed site plan. He figured whatever the Trolleks built here would in reality be more extensive. Likely any documents they’d filed were just smokescreen.

As commander of the Earth-bound Trollek army, General Morar would be present to supervise the center’s initial construction. This gave Paz the perfect opportunity to take him out. Despite his differences with Jen, he still intended to protect her. This was the only way she’d be safe.

Paz knew he was an idiot for coming here alone and not summoning his team for backup. But they were busy building the destructive device to take out the rifts. That was their prime objective, and rightfully so. Besides, he didn’t want to involve anyone else. This mission was personal.

Wishing to remain under the radar, so to speak, he’d deactivated his locator beacon and turned off his wrist comm. If he survived, he’d accept the consequences for insubordination at that time.

After shoving his backpack through the gap in the perimeter fence, he fitted himself between the cut edges, careful not to snag his assault vest. No high tech security systems here. The Trolleks must have other priorities or else they didn’t expect the locals to pose a threat.

He’d entered the construction site through the northeast quadrant, the main entrance and visitor parking lot being further south. A forest of pine trees blocked his view forward.

Slinging his sack over his shoulders, he advanced slowly through the woods, well aware that cameras could be hidden among the trees. His boots crunched on dead pine needles. The debris could hide trip wires, so he placed his feet carefully. The fresh pine scent cleared his nose. He didn’t detect any cors particles. So far, so good.

He emerged from the copse of trees and scooted down a hill. A high wall faced him with barbed wire on top. He’d need his grappling gear and work gloves.

Fifteen minutes later, he stood on the other side gaping at the recreation of a Viking village. The thatched roof structures appeared deserted, but he checked the empty buildings and narrow lanes with his spare Monix T-6 laser pistol in hand. Its heavy weight reassured him.

Sweat poured down his back. In ninety-plus degree heat, his vest felt like a personal sauna.

At the opposite end of the quiet village, he faced another high concrete wall. He paused in the shadows to take out a bottle of water and pour the liquid down his throat. Was he missing the mark here? Were the Trolleks working underground to build a series of utility tunnels beneath the theme park?

He put away the bottle and scratched at a bug bite on his arm.
Maug
mosquitoes. He could live without those pesky insects.

He adjusted the bulky pack on his back. Besides neutralizing Morar, he intended to set charges and take out the entire site, or at least the portal. Trolleks would have to vector in from somewhere else to staff this place.

Once over the wall, he surveyed the area beyond. His heart lurched at the sight that met him. A vast sandy field stretched ahead with row upon row of solar panels aligned toward the west. These panels rose on silver pedestals looking like elongated sheet music stands. Not a single weed or bush sprouted in the aisles between them.

To the right of this array stood an outdoor amphitheater. Its arched white dome gleamed in the sunlight. Presumably the dirt expanse in front was destined for seats. On his left, a cylindrical stone tower rose several stories high. It was shaped like a ridged goblet with a flat top.

In the far western corner, behind the solar panels, stood a three-story rectangular building. A hive of activity circulated around this structure. He took out his long-range scope for a better view.

A scruffy group of humans labored under the direction of uniformed Trollek troops. They dug some sort of trench. Other slaves unloaded supplies from parked trucks and carted them into the building.

He scowled in puzzlement. Other than the recreated village, there didn’t appear to be anything comparable to the site plan. So if not a theme park consistent with other Trollek recruitment centers, what was the purpose of this facility?

The jamming device his team had destroyed at Drift World had been powered by a confluence of ocean currents and solar energy. Could they be attempting to construct something similar here? But that wouldn’t make sense. His team had already pinpointed the rifts. So why wasn’t General Morar busy bolstering defenses at Shirajo Manor instead of appearing here? What was so important about this site?

Paz contemplated notifying Zohar, but he needed evidence of this place’s true function. He had to get inside that rectangular building, and only one way presented itself.

He shed his backpack and assault vest, reluctant to leave his gear behind, but he had no choice. His gaze zeroed in on a dead tree stump. He’d leave his equipment beside it as a marker.

His burden lightened, he zigzagged across the sandy ground, veered around the tower, and approached the workers by the bunker’s loading bay. When an opening occurred, he slipped into their line and copied their actions.

Each man grabbed a carton from an open truck and then headed inside the structure. The work crew wore street clothes so he blended in with his black jeans and matching T-shirt.

Focusing his gaze straight ahead and slouching his shoulders, he shuffled by a couple of armed Trollek sentries. His group entered a cavernous space with crisscrossing pipes, metal grating, conduits, and steel. Two other levels rose above the ground floor via interior stairs. Some of the space around the inside perimeter was delegated to offices.

Clanking and grinding noises nearly drowned out the orders barked by the Trollek overseers. Paz dumped his box in a separate storeroom with the others as directed. When his fellow humans turned to leave, he dodged behind a tall stack of cartons. He wouldn’t have much time to see what was going on before the next group arrived. He planned to exit the same way he’d come in.

A guard had the bad luck to stride into the room at that moment. Paz made quick work of flooring him. He wriggled his fingers, tingling from the impact of flesh to flesh. Thank the stars he’d remembered to polarize himself that morning so he didn’t have to worry about being confounded.

Having a sentry lying at his feet changed his plans. Paz grabbed the beefy fellow by the ankles, dragged him into a corner, and then stripped off his outer clothes. Now he needed a place to hide the guy. His gaze alighted on a nearby box with the proper dimensions. He pulled out the dagger strapped inside his boot and cut it open. After shoving the Trollek inside, he donned the beast’s uniform and hat, pulling the brim low.

Outside in the hall, he climbed a set of metal stairs. At the top landing, he peered over the rail at the vast interior illuminated by warehouse-type lighting. He noticed a huge white bifurcated pipe. His gaze followed where it joined into one piece and thrust toward the opposite side of the room. There it disappeared into the wall.

With a purposeful stride, he advanced along the third level catwalk until he came to an office. It had a glass wall so the occupant could inspect the big hall. The other side held a view of the solar panel field. When no one appeared to be near, he slipped inside. A black leather seating arrangement filled one corner in the office. Files, cabinets, and a wide desk completed the furnishings.

Paz aimed for a row of lit displays on a wall. His heart quickened as he studied them. One was a plant schematic. His pulse throbbing in his neck, he traced the blue, white, and red demarcations. As he had guessed, tunnels ran between the structures but he still couldn’t fathom the facility’s purpose.

Wait, some of those designs looked familiar. A frown creased his brow and dread pitted his gut. Oh, no. Suddenly, he knew what the enemy planned to do.

Further inspection revealed the big pipe led to a room with a circulating mechanism, the source of the clanging noise. At the far end, this room narrowed to a tunnel where steam hissed from overhead conduits and metal barrels rode on a conveyor belt toward an unknown destination.

Paz’s blood ran cold as he put the pieces together.

The pistons and steam-driven devices, the solar panels, the sun, and the nearby Gulf waters. The amphitheater shaped like a giant arch and the parade field in front of it. The presence of General Morar and his elite troops. He bet if he’d opened one of those cartons in the storeroom, it would contain calculator components and broken mirror parts.

Hounds of Hel, the Trolleks were constructing a supergate, a portal much bigger than previous ones and at a more strategic location. Once activated, this gate would permit the Trollek army to invade the country on a massive scale.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Paz considered how to prevent the Trolleks from activating their supergate. His best bet would be to divert the plant’s stored energy so when they turned on their rift generator, an explosion would result. He’d brought along some dythium charges. Those should do the job.

The rectangular building served as a storage tank for the voltage produced by the solar panels. He wasn’t sure what purpose that outside tower served, but it was tied into the network. He’d take a look over there later.

Inside the room with the metal barrels, he strode down a catwalk along one wall. The barrels sat on a conveyor belt that led to a closed circular door at the far end. All was quiet for now. He selected a barrel in a central location, pasted on his charges, and wired them together.