“All right. Then we’re ready.” Looking around at the small group of three soldiers and two dragons, Garret nodded and stepped back toward the trees at the edge of the road. “Dawn is an hour away,” he announced, slipping into the role of squad commander like it was nothing. “And it’ll take that long to reach the second entrance. Let’s go.”
As we started off, Riley suddenly reached out, catching Mist by the arm and making her turn. For a moment, the two of them stared at each other, seeming to forget the world around them. My pulse skipped a beat at the emotions flaring between the two, at the way Riley gazed at Mist like he would never see her again.
Could he be…? My heart throbbed as I hurried after Garret and the others, but not in the way I thought it might. Though the tug of the Sallith’tahn was still there, weak but persistent, both sides of myself had chosen the soldier. Dragon instincts stirred, more curious than jealous at the thought of Cobalt with another dragon, but mostly I was happy for them, for Riley in particular. The worry on his face, and the way Mist gazed back at him—it was more than concern for a teammate. They might not know it themselves, but they felt something for each other, something more than friendship, trust and the begrudging respect each had for the other Basilisk.
But I knew why they would resist getting close to anyone right before the final battle, and I ached for them both. Nothing about this was certain, except the knowledge that there would be casualties before the night was over. I desperately hoped they would survive. We had all suffered, but Riley had experienced so much loss in such a short time; he deserved to find happiness with someone.
“Be careful, Mist,” I heard him whisper as I entered the trees after the soldiers. “Come back alive.”
“I will,” Mist answered quietly, “but only if you promise to do the same.”
Riley’s answer was too soft for me to hear, and I didn’t want to stop to look back at them, so I continued to follow Garret and the soldiers. A few seconds later, the Basilisk appeared beside me, her expression somber. She caught my gaze and raised a brow, but I didn’t say anything about the conversation with Riley, and neither did she.
Together, we slipped through the shadowy undergrowth of the forest toward our final destination.
GARRET
“There it is.”
Crouched behind a tree at the base of the mountain, I raised my night-vision goggles and scanned the area. At one point, part of the forest had been cleared away, as a large swath of land in front of the mountain was flat and empty of trees, though nature was steadily creeping back again. Debris was scattered throughout the area; tires, car parts and rusting metal barrels lay in the dirt, covered with weeds and vines, and a badly decayed wooden cart was overturned in a ditch, falling to pieces. Past a faded, nearly unreadable Danger! No Trespassing sign at the entrance, a gaping oval tunnel had been carved into the side of the mountain.
“Well, we found it,” Tristan muttered after taking the night-vision goggles from me and sweeping the area himself. “I don’t see any guards, though I’m not certain if that’s a good thing or not.”
“It’s not.” Mist crouched beside us, peering at the entrance with narrowed blue eyes. “Talon doesn’t leave anything unguarded,” she said, taking the goggles from Tristan. “Especially if it’s an entrance to one of their top-secret laboratories. I’m guessing this isn’t an entrance so much as an exit—a bolt hole, should they need to get out quickly. There might even be several of these scattered throughout the mountain.” She lowered the goggles and gave me and Tristan a sideways look. “In case St. George comes storming through the front door.”
Behind us, Peter Matthews snickered. “So even way out here in the middle of nowhere, with an underground lab and an army of giant demon lizards waiting to take over the world, Talon is still scared of us. Good to know they have their priorities straight.”
I ignored him. “Do you see any cameras or security?” I asked Mist, who continued to scan the area with the night-vision lenses.
She shook her head. “No. Nothing.” Frowning, she handed me the goggles again. “That’s…worrisome. An iron padlocked gate can’t be the only thing between us and the entrance to the lab.”
“So what if it isn’t?” Matthews snapped. “Just give the assault team the signal to go. They attack the front gates, fire a couple rockets, and Talon won’t be looking at its back doors for long.”
“No,” Mist said calmly. “Once the attack begins, Talon will go into lockdown mode. We can’t risk tipping them off until we’re sure we can get inside, or the attack out front will be for nothing.”
“All right, lizard. So how the hell are we going to do that exactly?”
She gave him a brief, disdainful look and stepped away. “Wait here. I’ll check it out myself.”
“You?” Matthews voice had a hard edge to it. “I don’t think so. Like we’re going to let a former Talon spy tell us if the entrance to their top-secret facility is safe to approach.” There was a metallic click, as if he had raised his gun. “You’re staying right here, where we can see you.”
“Matthews,” I growled, turning to glare at him. “Stand down. You don’t make that decision. I do.”
He glared back at me, his mouth twisting in a sneer. “Commander,” he said, making the word sound like an insult, “you’re not seriously thinking of letting this lizard go off on her own? She could waltz right into the lab to let all the guards know we’re right behind her and to shoot us as soon as we come in.”
“Wow,” Ember commented, looking at Mist. “That is one elaborate plan. You’ve been with us all this time and went through all this trouble, just to betray us in the end. You should have just shot us all in the back while we were on our way here and saved Talon the effort.”
“Indeed,” Mist deadpanned. “Why didn’t I think of that earlier?”
Tristan snorted, sounding like he was trying to cover up a laugh, and I narrowed my eyes at Matthews. “Mist,” I said, not taking my eyes from the soldier. “Go ahead. We’ll wait for you here. Just be careful.”
Matthews made a disgusted noise but backed off. Mist nodded once to me, turned and slipped into the darkness like a ghost. I raised the night lenses again to scan the entrance and surrounding area for guards, cameras or hidden threats, but continued to see nothing.
I didn’t see Mist, either, though I knew she had to be approaching the mine shaft. As we waited, the minutes ticked by, and the Basilisk did not return.
Matthews gave a soft, menacing chuckle and shook his head. “I told you, Sebastian,” he said, his voice full of ugly triumph. “The bitch has gone to warn the rest of Talon that we’re here. You can’t trust a lizard.”
Ember growled softly. “Give her time. She’ll be back.”
“Says the other dragon in the party,” Matthews sneered. “And we don’t have time. The assault team is waiting for our signal to start the attack.”
Tristan gave him an annoyed look, but then glanced worriedly at the sky. “Garret, I hate to say this, but he’s right. Martin told us an hour, and it’s almost dawn. We need to move.”
I sighed. “Two minutes,” I said. Matthews’s jaw tightened, and he took a breath to argue, but I overrode him. “That’s an order, soldier.”
“Fine, Sebastian,” Peter Matthews said in a hostile voice. “But I hope you remember this when the lizards fuck our entire mission in the back. Tell your dragons hello when they send you to hell.”
“Tell them yourself,” said a voice, and Mist materialized behind us. “Because you would be the first to go. Sorry it took a while,” she told me, ignoring the glare from Matthews. “I ran into something…well, not unexpected, but troublesome.”
“What happened?” I asked her. She frowned.
“Better that you see for yourself. There are no cameras or guards, so we’re safe for the moment.”