Zoey Avenger (Incubatti Series Book 2) (38 page)

“Never thought I’d say this, but Cambions look like fairies compared to Olivia,” Gin agreed.

Vikki handed Zoey the schematics to the facility where Declan reported Olivia was supposed to be tonight.

Zoey studied them. “I’ve never seen this location before. Southern Fairfax County,” she said.

Vikki hunched close to her. “Me neither. Either it’s relatively new or super old.”

“The Professor might know.” Zoey traced the perimeter with a finger. “Hey, V, there used to be a prison there, right? Might make for an insanely isolated location.”

“Yeah,” Chrissy said from the passenger seat, a map pulled up on her laptop. “It closed over ten years ago and most the land was sold off for subdivisions, except for the central prison center, which is supposedly abandoned. It’s haunted, too.”

“Ghosts and Olivia,” Vikki murmured. “Fitting.”

“There’s a lot of open ground to cover,” Zoey said, taking in the area surrounding the prison. “I’m not a fan of being exposed like this.”

“We’ll need a topographical map to find terrain features likely to hide us.”

“Like this?” Chrissy passed them her iPad.

“Perfect!” Zoey exclaimed, accepting it. She and Vikki evaluated the area in silence.

A text popped up on Chrissy’s iPad.

Tomorrow at noon is fine. The contact was labeled as GB.

“Chrissy’s got a date!” Zoey called.

“It’s not a date. It’s work,” came the acerbic response.

Smiling, Zoey focused back on her task.

“How sure are we that the Sucubatti won’t try to wipe us out after this?” Ginny asked, joining them.

“I’m not concerned about whether they do or not,” Zoey replied in a hard tone. “Olivia is a problem. We need to get rid of her.”

“Declan is taking care of the Cambions,” Vikki said. “Hopefully.”

Zoey glanced at her. “He will,” she said quietly. “I trust him.”

Vikki smiled. “How’re the remaining Halflings?” she asked Ginny.

“Tiff says good. She’s doping the shit out of them to make sure they’re good for tonight. We have about twenty.”

“So few,” Zoey said, her humor fleeing. A vision of the trench flashed through her mind, and her resolution to exact revenge solidified. “And one we think is diming us out, which means we can’t tell them what we’re planning.”

“I have a lead on that,” Chrissy volunteered. “I’ve been tracking everyone via their cells over the past week, assuming whoever it is, she’s too smart to call Olivia. It took some waiting but last night, I figured out who it was.”

“Was that before or after the Halflings were found?”

“After. And she hasn’t returned.”

“Who?” Zoey demanded.

“Jess.”

It took a moment for Zoey to recall the brunette. “She and Wendy had an issue, right?”

“Yeah,” Vikki said, frowning. “She’s been with us for about two weeks. The timing makes sense. I mean, we started seeing Sucubatti scouts shortly after we picked up Jess on a raid of a Sucubatti safehouse.”

“I can’t believe …” Zoey drifted off. “I can’t think about it.” With a growl, she leaned back. “Anyone else go anywhere suspicious?”

“It’s hard to tell. You all were moving like crazy the past week. The only reason I picked up that it was her was because she went out and didn’t comeback.” Chrissy lifted her laptop to show them a map of the DC area. It was crisscrossed with hundreds of lines, each marking the movement of one Halfling.

“Even if that’s the case, I want to keep tonight a secret,” Zoey said. “The core members know. The others think we’re going on a Cambion raid. Got it?”

The women around her nodded.

“Now, we need to figure out what it’ll take to breach this place.” Shifting forward once more, she began the task of predicting what kind of site it was, so she knew what sort of fortifications to expect. Blind missions were always the most hazardous, but no part of her was willing to see what Olivia had planned after the Halfling incident. Their reconnaissance would consist of about fifteen minutes advance notice. “This is gonna be one hell of a mission.”

“And I’m running point, since you’re the one who’s preggers,” Vikki told her.

“Fuck no.”

“Ready? One, two, three.”

They slapped closed fists onto their palms three times and then displayed the results. Zoey had chosen paper and Vikki scissors.

“Dammit!” Zoey grumbled.

“Ha! You always lose, Z.”

“Fine. You run point. But I get Olivia.”

“Fair enough.”

The atmosphere in the van was tense, but no one voiced their fears about running into an army of succubae or the heavy sorrow of knowing it was too late to save all but twenty Halflings.

They settled into making preparations. Zoey’s mind went to tomorrow and the thought that, if she made it that far, it likely meant she had a future with Declan. Tonight was a hurdle she didn’t know for sure she’d defeat, but she found herself praying she did.

Chapter Twenty Five: Zoey Avenger

“Comms check,” Zoey ordered quietly from the back of the darkened van.

Vikki, Tiff, Ginny and Chrissy checked in. She half-listened, readying her weapons and memorizing the route of advance they’d chosen for the compound. The Halfling driving pulled the van to a halt and killed the engine, extinguishing the light inside the cargo bay.

Zoey opened the door and dropped to her feet, taking in the facility at the center of a compound the size of two football fields. Floodlights lit up the perimeter, which was lined by a chain link fence. They had left the main road for a slow journey through the forest to reach a hill overlooking their target in order to make last minute adjustments to their plan.

“We’re not alone,” Vikki said.

Zoey turned away from the bright compound to see the three other vans lined up alongside hers. Beyond them was a sight she’d been too preoccupied to notice.

Declan. He stood at the head of a car, hands on hips, immaculately dressed in a suit with his unreadable Enforcer mask on. Her insides bloomed into warmth, her skin growing sensitive fast and her blood on fire. He stood with more people than she expected to see: his eight brothers, his father, Lydia and a face she loathed to see, Paul.

Vikki, Tiff and Ginny joined her, their focus drawn by the immense amount of restrained power rolling off the powerful incubuses.

“Shit,” she murmured. After a brief hesitation, Zoey strode forward, unease and desire stirring in a volatile combination within her.

Declan moved away from the group and met her halfway between their parties, his scent and heat washing over her in a way that made her thighs tremble in anticipation. His eyes were golden in the light of the nearby compound.

“Trust me, Zoey,” he started. “I’m not here to stop you.”

She shivered at the intensity of their connection. It made her want to take his hand so they were touching and never leave his side again. “Why is Paul here?”

“He and my brothers are here to ensure none of his Cambions disobey the Council’s directive not to interfere in Sucubatti business,” Declan said smoothly. “And so I can keep an eye on him.”

She managed not to smile.

“I told you. I’d clear the path for you.” Tenderness lit in his eyes. “My father wanted to make sure you come away with Olivia’s head. Once you do, the Incubatti Council is willing to remove the warrant they issued for you.”

Zoey glanced past him at Ethan, who was in much better shape than he had been the last time they met. She lifted her chin in greeting, and he nodded in response, features grim. “I’ll bring him her head,” she said. “For your mother’s sake.”

“You know.”

Zoey looked up at her soul-mate. By his expression, he’d been told the secret the Professor said none of Ethan’s son knew. “Yeah,” she murmured. “I do.”

“Then you know how worried I am.” Declan’s tone was hushed, a flicker of concern piercing his façade.

“I got this.”

“I know. I’m still worried.”

“This might help. Or scare you more.” Zoey handed him an ear bud. “You can listen. Just don’t get in my way, and I might come over tonight.”

“When this is over, you aren’t leaving my bed for a fucking week, Zoey.”

She studied him, loving the depth of his emotion for her yet concerned about the mission that stood between them. “We’ll see.” With a wink, she spun away and left him standing. “Lydia, come on!”

The blonde Halfling responded immediately, trotting to reach Zoey. Wes cursed, and Lydia grinned.

“You okay?” Zoey gave her a sidelong look.

“Mostly.”

“You’re on comms and operations, Commander.” Zoey handed her the iPad with the details of their raid listed, along with maps showing locations of all members.

Lydia accepted it, her features lighting up. Chrissy joined them.

“And you’re in charge of this.” Zoey handed her a small, remote detonation device. “We’re blowing this place to hell. When the charges are in place, they’ll light up on the screen. I alone give the order to go. Code word Rock. If the mission is compromised, code word is Paper. If I’m under duress and being forced to give the code word, it’s Scissors.”

“Got it.” Lydia accepted the communications headset from Chrissy. “Hey girls!”

The other core members greeted her. Zoey smiled, happy her family was back together again. The infectious, upbeat flow of energy among them boosted her hopes.

“We ready for this?” A tremor of excitement, tinged with fear and a little desperation, went through her.

The others nodded.

“Everyone has an energy shot mixed with adrenaline in a shot, compliments of Chrissy. You’re your armbands on,” Zoey said. “Assume your positions.”

Without another word, the five members split up. Vikki took her team of Halflings to the point position at one corner of the compound, while Ginny and Tiff moved quickly down the hill to their assigned corners.

“Set, Wendy?” Zoey asked, crouching beside the sniper assigned to the hill.

“Yeah.”

Zoey watched the other teams move into place. Chrissy and Lydia shifted into position at the van, each monitoring two teams. The Professor emerged from the passenger seat of a van and joined Zoey. She rose.

“Be careful, dear,” he said, grave gaze on the compound.

“Never,” she replied. “This ends with her death or mine. There’s no other solution.”

His dark eyes shifted to her.

“I’ve always loved you, Alexander,” Zoey said and waved her team into place. “Take care of Declan if anything bad happens.”

“Of course. But I believe only you can do that, Zoey.”

She gave a quick smile and started towards the trail leading down the hill. Afraid she’d cry or lose her focus if she looked at Declan again, she whispered instead. “I love you, Declan.”

I know, Zoey.

She sighed at the influx of sex energy he sent. It filled her, sharpened her concentration and gave her the sense of giddy invincibility.

Zoey led her team down the hill and towards the fencing to her assigned point, the one farthest from the hill, and crouched. Adrenaline shot through her, and she awaited the signal.

“Electrical fence down in three, two, one,” Chrissy said.

The hum of electricity vanished. Two Halflings snapped links in the fence with sharpen bolt cutters to create a hole large enough for a person.

“Moving in,” Vikki reported.

Zoey waited, eyes roving the area around them. “Chrissy, the cameras on this corner are still up.”

“Working on it,” came the preoccupied response. 

“Gin, you’ve got movement. Some sort of guard on a smoke break,” Lydia warned them. “V, keep south to avoid detection. Tiff, you’ve got the guard. Zoey, go in ten.”

Zoey began a slow countdown.

“Cameras down,” Chrissy said.

At the end of her count, Zoey and her team slid through the fence into the compound. There were no buildings or terrain features large enough to hide them in the fifty yards between Zoey and the central compound. They sprinted to the side of the building and stopped when they reached the concrete wall.

“Good!” Zoey reported breathlessly. “Proceeding to west entrance.”

“Guard down.”

“No security systems on doors.”

“We’re in.”

Zoey processed the reports absently as she moved to the door assigned to them to infiltrate. She was going in on the ground floor of the four story building on the side thought to house the boiler room and air conditioning systems. Zoey tested the door and found it locked before motioning to a Halfling to use a lock pick set to open it.

“Wendy, take out the sentry,” Lydia ordered. “No idea where she came from.”

Zoey didn’t hear the report of a weapon but knew Wendy wasn’t one to miss, or she wouldn’t be assigned to the sniper position.

Someone followed you, Declan’s whisper slid through her.