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“I’d say so,” Eden chimed in. “I would’ve put a bullet in you by now.”
Nate barked out a laugh and watched the smile tug at Eden’s lips. “Signing out and turning comm units on. Watch our backs out there. He’s not going to play nice.”
“Roger that.”
Eden checked her watch as it beeped and coordinates began coming through, and then she took the earpiece Nate handed her and put it in her ear, closing her hand over it so no one could hear.
“Cal said we’re supposed to capture Salt,” she said. “I’m not doing that. Ican’tdo that. He has to die.”
“I’m not going to tell you what you should do,” Nate said. “That’s a choice you’ll have to make. But I’ll have your back either way.”
She nodded and put in the earpiece.
“Checking in with control,” Nate said, once his own was in place.
“Reading you loud and clear,” Cal said. “You guys keep the sexy talk to a minimum. Though I’ve got to be transparent, Kane. I’ve got twenty bucks riding on whether or not you shoot him down if Nate makes a move. I heard he was quite entranced by your picture. It’s not often our boy strikes out at the plate. I wish I could be there in person to collect my winnings.”
“You’re going to lose that bet,” Eden said. “We’re already talking marriage. We’re honeymooning in Costa Rica.”
Cal snorted and said, “Good one,” obviously thinking she was joking.
They collected weapons and checked ammo, and put on their heavy jackets and hats for the ride.
“Our Russian friends had excellent taste in transportation,” she said, eyeing the snowmobiles at the end of the street. “These even have heated seats.”
“I think they’d want us to have them,” Nate said, spinning the MR5 around so it hung on his back. “There’s no snow in hell. You ready?”
She nodded and straddled the red snowmobile, turning the key and listening to the engine purr. There was plenty of fuel, and she made sure her weapons were adjusted for easy access. Nate did the same and gave her a thumbs-up as he pressed down the accelerator and they left Devil’s Mining Camp.
“I’m going to miss that place,” he said. “It was starting to grow on me. Maybe we should honeymoon here. We could probably buy the whole town.”
“You’re a laugh a minute,” she said. “Look at these tracks. Jonah has been circling us, probably since the time we arrived. If the End of the World is close by he would’ve been able to bunker down when the weather hit. Always a step ahead.”
“This is his territory,” Nate said. “What he’s not expecting is someone like Cal about to ruin all his plans.”
“That’s me,” Cal said in their earpieces. “Ruiner of plans. Just ask my mother almost every holiday.”
They used the coordinates on their watches to keep on course, and the watch buzzed as soon as they hit the perimeter of their destination. They brought the snowmobiles to a stop and Eden looked around in all directions.
“We’ve got a small problem here, Cyph,” Nate said. “We’re at the end of our destination and there is nothing here but snow. A lot of snow. Mounds of snow. There are snowmobile tracks all across and back again, but there’s no sign of any kind of structure.”
“That’s the tricky part,” Cal said. “You’re standing right on top of it. Now we just have to figure out how to get you in.”
“You don’t know how?” Nate asked incredulously.
“I’m working on it. You guys always expect the impossible, and nothing is ever that easy.”
“My apologies,” Nate said. “Just take your time while we stand here and twiddle our thumbs.”
“I do have good news,” Cal said. “I broke the codes for his antipersonnel explosives so the ones he has are no longer operable. Atticus is making the call to the SEALs so they can locate the ships and remove the devices. So all you have to do is make the capture. Atticus wants me to remind you to bring him in alive if possible. The CIA has gotten word somehow that Salt is in the wind. We think your Russian intelligence boys tipped them off to complicate things.”
“We’ll deal with it when it comes to that,” Nate said, reaching over to squeeze Eden’s hand, but she was like a statue and he could see the pain on her face. “You’ve got to have some idea how to get inside this building. The snow is piled in an unusual pattern, almost a spiral shape, but I’m still not seeing a door or any signs of concrete or metal. I’m afraid to take the snowmobiles too close.”
“Leave them where you are and go by foot,” Cal said. “Maybe you’ll trigger something.”
“I triggered a land mine not too long ago,” Eden said. “I’d prefer not to do that again.”
“I meant a keypad or some kind of activation pad for entry. Geez you guys are way too serious.”
