His worried glance made me want to smile. I wasn't sure who was more worried about whom.
We hurried down the road, noting the deserted feel of the area. No cars parked at the curbs, no bikes forgotten in front yards. Two blocks over, we headed down another quiet street, this one slightly more populated, with a few lights on up and down the road as the sun began to set, bringing with it the cool relief of night.
Sunset seemed appropriate considering the spectacularly horrible end to the day. Loki had decimated the White House and I couldn't even put the words together to describe how I felt about that.
We stopped in front of an old, dilapidated house and the President inhaled, the air rattling in his lungs. "They blew it up. I can't believe they blew up the White House," he whispered. Ditto, Sir. Then he sighed and stared at me, his golden-brown eyes flat with shock. "I guess this means it's all true. All the ridiculous things you told me are true. If I'd only-"
I met his gaze, my feelings clear in my eyes. "You could not have known they'd do that. And to be honest, I didn't suspect they would either. We assumed they wanted to get inside but to blow it up? No. That I didn't foresee." My throat felt raw from either the gas or the coughing it had caused.
The President didn't respond and I didn't expect him to, either. It was probably too much for anyone to absorb so quickly.
A monument had just been destroyed, a monument that had also been his home. A symbol of freedom had just been obliterated and it was easy to see the signs in that.
Loki was trying to undermine the stability of the free world, to instill fear in the same way that terrorists did. In fact, what he'd done had been an act of terrorism. Everything he did was in the pursuit of one goal; winning the great war, a war he was bringing to Midgard. And in his quest to win that war, entire countries will be brought to their knees on Loki's whim.
I shook my head and swallowed the gritty feeling in my throat as Joshua and I turned to study the house. A rundown Victorian, it looked abandoned, garden dried and almost non-existent, its weather-board peeling, roof looking like it was missing a few too many tiles. The only thing that was missing was the 'Marked for Demolition' sign.
With a glance at the President, I asked, "Doesn't anyone live here anymore?"
He shook his head. "Not since my grandmother died. I own the place, but I chose to let it decline, at least on the outside. It discourages reporters. No self-respecting President would stay in a property that looks like this."
I nodded, impressed at his cunning. This man was not to be underestimated. "Good thinking." I gave him a short nod and glanced at Joshua.
He touched his comm. "Derek, are we good to go?"
Derek's voice crackled over the airwaves, setting my ear abuzz. "No heat signatures, so yes, all clear."
Then, Joshua gave the sign, and pointed at the house. We headed to the property, two dozen warriors, one god and one President. As we closed in, I pressed my comm. "We need a perimeter check, and a good number of guards around the property. No blind spots please."
"Will do," said Fen, his voice distorted by the communications device.
"Derek, can you get some cameras set up discreetly?" I asked.
"I'll get right on it," he said, sounding a little too excited for the occasion, but I didn't say anything. We needed a little enthusiasm right now and if Derek was the only one enthused by his role then I'd happily take it.
At the door, the President punched in his access code into a small keypad, then waited as a panel opened and a small plate extended from the wall. A soft beep sounded and he placed his thumb on the pad. The device buzzed as it scanned his thumbprint, then beeped softly. The scanner disappeared into the panel and a dull click emanated from the lock.
The President pushed the door open and entered the hallway, with six warriors, led by Joshua and Aimee, brushing past him, spreading out as they ran up the faded oak staircase and down the bare wood floors of the hall and into the doorways flanking it on both sides. He looked at them, slightly annoyed, his spine stiffening.
"They have to check the place