operation at the mine and use backup detonation triggers if necessary.
“You’ll lose her after this,” Pierce said, following her movement into the forest with his fingertip. “But, if we know she went into the woods, she went missing somewhere between here and the rendezvous point. Where was that?”
Cipher swiped the screen and pulled up a map of the terrain. He inputted the rendezvous point coordinates that were in her asset file and plotted them onto the mountain map. “Here.”
“Shit,” Pierce cursed. “That’s a long way on foot. She didn’t seem wounded,” he added. “She must have been in fairly good condition when she set out to meet her pickup.”
“Maybe,” Cipher agreed uncertainly. His brain raced as he tried to come up with a way to find her. He could send drones out to search for heat signatures, but there were a lot of animals on the mountain. It would take time to sort out human and animal signatures. He could use drones to search for her clothing colors, but she was wearing drab neutral tones that melded into the forest like the most perfect camouflage.
What else could he try? Think. Think.
“The camera and the comm device,” he shouted. “They have trackers in them. If she has them with her, I’ll be able to find her.”
“It’s worth a try.”
While he searched for the identification numbers of the equipment she had been issued, Cipher let his mind wander to the most likely possibility. She was probably hurt and bleeding somewhere on the mountain. The second mostly likely possibility was that she had been captured by someone else. If they found the gear on her, they would know she was worth something. They might take her to the Splinters, but there would be a bigger payday if she was brought to one of their outposts or ships.
He waited for the trackers on the devices to populate the map and refused to think about what would happen if she had been grabbed by skin traders. She was young, healthy and beautiful. The amount of money some sick fuck would pay to use her body was astronomical. I have to find her.
“There,” Pierce said and tapped the screen. “Shit, she’s high up that mountain.”
“Which means I better start running,” Cipher declared as he rose from the uncomfortable chair. “I need a rifle and some gear.”
“You don’t have clearance.” Pierce wasn’t rejecting his request. He was pointing out the facts. “You’ll get dragged in front of the review board if you chase after her alone.”
“Probably,” he agreed, “but I’m not leaving her there.”
Pierce studied him intently and then nodded. “I’ll get you some gear and try to retroactively get permission for your side mission.”
“But?”
“You’ll have to bring her back to the ship and collar her,” Pierce stated. “They’ll forgive you for going after a bride.”
Cipher nodded, fully aware that was the one option to keep his ass out of the clink. He logged out of the system and followed Pierce to the armory of the command ship. Once Pierce unlocked the door, he grabbed the requested gear and handed it over. “Rifle. Side arm. Survival pack.”
Cipher made quick work of strapping on his gear. As he set up his watch to track the equipment Brook had, he asked, “If I need a quick exfil?”
“I’ll make sure you have one,” Pierce promised. “You can use one of our secure channels. How about five?”
“Five it is.” Cipher adjusted the setting on his headgear and pressed his earbud into place. “I’ll keep you updated.”
“Don’t get killed,” Pierce ordered, trailing him out of the armory. “If you do, Raze will kill me. Torment will have to kill Raze. Venom will kill Torment. Terror will kill Venom. It will be a shit show of death. Stay alive and bring back your girl.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Quick on his feet, Cipher ran into the woods. He wasn’t the fastest man on the SRU, but he wasn’t the slowest either. He had always been better at long distances and endurance races. Running up a damn mountain fit both of those criteria. Even so, he reminded himself that he was no good to Brook if he arrived worn out and unable to defend or carry her.
Slowing his pace, he worked his way through the trees and brush. The thinner air was hard on his lungs, but he remembered his training and kept his breaths deliberate and measured. Up and up, he climbed, checking his watch and staying on the straightest path to where the equipment