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The snow was relentless for the forty-eight hours, but the backs of both of their necks were itching and a restlessness had settled over their camp.
“I know Atticus wants us to stay put,” Nate said, rubbing his hand over his eyes. “But my gut is saying that we need to get out of here. The snow is still coming down, but it’s not harsh and the sun will rise soon. I’m too old for this. I miss my bed.”
He’d just woken from a couple of hours of sleep while she’d kept watch, and her lips twitched at his grumpiness.
“My gut is in the same place yours is,” she said. “We’ve got time to refuel and pack up before we head out.”
He grunted and said, “I’ll do a perimeter check and then call Atticus and let him know there will be a change of plans. Maybe you could make more coffee.”
She hid her smile and built up the fire. Nate was a cheerful and good-humored guy for the most part, and Eden appreciated that he could go from relaxed to business in the blink of an eye, but she’d learned that coffee definitely helped keep him at his best. Morning was not his best time.
Once she got the coffee going she got up and stretched before making her own perimeter sweep. There was nothing but white in all directions for miles. And there was nothing but silence. It truly felt like the end of the world. But there was something lurking—something waiting. She could feel it on the back of her neck. And she’d learned never to ignore those feelings. Nate was right. They needed to get out of there.
She went back inside the abandoned saloon, noticing Nate had already returned and was helping himself to the coffee. He handed her a small tin cup filled with black liquid and closed his eyes with pleasure as he took his first sip.
“It’s nice to know you have a weakness,” she said. “Do you lose all your spy superpowers if your caffeine levels get too low?”
“Look at you making a joke,” he said. “I’m so proud. I’ve been told I’m a bad influence.”
Her mouth twitched, but she didn’t let herself smile all the way. Old habits were hard to break.
“It’s all clear out there,” she said. “There’s nothing for miles. And no tracks but ours. The dogs are calm and don’t seem disturbed. But—”
“Yeah, I know,” Nate said.
She rolled the knots from her shoulders. “The only question is where are we going from here? The End of the World is the trap Jonah set up for us. I can’t imagine there’s too many places for cover along the way.” She sighed. “I hate the snow. We should have brought more firepower.”
Nate stood in front of the table where she’d laid out all their weapons. They were each carrying their personal pieces, but there were backups, plenty of magazines, a couple of hand grenades, and the two H&K MP5 submachine guns.
She’d stripped out of her heavy coat, leaving her only in the black ski pants and the matching thermal top. She braided her hair and pulled a black watch cap low over her ears. Nate was dressed identically to her. Neither of them wanted to have to fight with the weight of extra clothing if they needed to move quickly.
“Jonah is a ghost,” she said. “Obviously. Wide-open territory isn’t going to faze him. And if he can get the Russians to take us out for him more’s the better. We’re right where he wants us to be. He’s lasted asProteusfor as long as he has for a reason.”
The sat phone buzzed against the warped wooden table and Nate hit the button so it was on speaker.
Atticus’s voice filled the room. “You’ve got incoming heat, and they’re moving fast. Cyph was finally able to get the satellite imaging up and running.”
“Not my fault, man,” Cal said. “I had to hack into NASA and the Pentagon to get them, but I’m your eyes now.”
“It looks like you’ve got a six-man team bearing down. They’re about five kilometers out,” Atticus said.
“Nothing like short notice,” Nate said. “They’re practically right on top of us.” Nate pulled the strap of the MP5 over his shoulder and let it hang in front of him. “Better to take them out here than in the middle of nowhere with nothing but spruce trees for cover.”
Eden grabbed extra magazines from the table and took the other MP5, though she didn’t bother with the strap because it would only get in her way.
“We can use the area to our advantage,” Nate said. “We’ve been here long enough to get acclimated.”
“We need to split up,” she said, knowing how his mind worked well enough to guess the game plan. “One of the buildings across the street has good coverage. I’ll take point there.”
Nate pocketed the two grenades and checked the magazine in his Glock, putting it in his pocket when he saw it was only half full. He grabbed another and popped it in, chambering a bullet.
“I’m going to set the dogs loose. Joe said they were trained to find their way home. I don’t want them caught here.”
Adrenaline pumped through her system with the force of a thousand men. The dogs were their only transportation. Without them they were going to have a hell of a time tracking down Salt. But there wasn’t time to argue, and she knew he was right, so she nodded and took off out the front door to the building she’d marked on the opposite side of the street.
* * *
Nate released the dogs and gave them the command Joe had told him to send them home, and he barely made it back under cover before he heard the low buzz of engines in the distance.
