Rogue (Book 2) (The Omega Group) Read online

  The man made no comment. Carter watched the shooter’s eyes as he spoke, waiting for the telltale signs of fear. So far, nothing. Time to kick it up a notch.

  “And when I say super-talented, I mean it. Hell, I’m Havasupai and those guys make me look like a Chia pet.”

  There it is. It was obvious that this guy knew, and believed, the Havasupai legends because his eyes widened ever so slightly, then focused on the ground.

  The sound of a chopper approaching halted their one-sided conversation. Both Carter and Jackie looked to the sky, momentarily distracted by the interruption. That moment was all it took. The man shoved Jackie into Carter’s chest, sending them both toppling to the ground.

  Then the unexpected happened. One minute the man was running away as fast as his two feet would take him. The next, his two feet were replaced by four paws, and his speed increased exponentially. Jackie raised her weapon and fired, but the impact had virtually no effect. Within seconds, the shooter was safely in the woods that surrounded the airport.

  “Well, that’s new,” Han said as he caught up to them. “I didn’t know your people could shift into bears, too.”

  Carter stared off into the woods, his brain trying to catch up with what his eyes had just seen. “We can’t.”

  Chapter 3

  Two men in camouflage, who must have acclimated to the heat to still be standing upright, walked over to them from the helicopter that landed moments before. “Please come with us,” the taller one said. Then both men turned, and walked away.

  Han chuckled as they followed, mumbling under his breath, “I take it manners didn’t make the list of attributes they’re trying to develop in the Super Soldier program.”

  “You’re a little late, soldier,” Carter was in a mood after their run-in with the shooter and was itching to take out his frustration on someone.

  “No, sir. You were early.”

  The chopper’s rotors were in full swing and everyone instinctively ducked low when they entered, even though their heads were nowhere near the danger zone. The pilot finished his pre-flight checklist as they each buckled in.

  “I’ll need all of you to read this and sign at the bottom.” The tall soldier handed each of them a clipboard with several sheets of paper attached and a pen.

  Carter tried to hand his papers back immediately. “We have top-secret clearance, Sergeant.”

  “Not for this you don’t.”

  The Omega Group agents looked at each other, shrugged, and began the arduous task of reading the non-disclosure agreement in front of them. Although it was several pages of legalese, when Carter finished reading he figured it could have easily been boiled down to one sentence. “If you breathe a word of what you see here to anyone—ever—you will spend the rest of your natural life locked away in a secret prison.”

  Once the soldier held all three of the signed documents in his hand, he signaled the pilot to take off. Carter took a last look at the woods out the window as the chopper slowly rose into the sky. Maybe he’d get lucky and spot the guy.

  But it wasn’t a guy he spotted. Instead, a woman, tall and slender, came out from behind a tree and walked toward the tarmac. She looked up at the helicopter as though she could sense Carter watching her. The sun highlighted a bright white flower that was tucked behind her ear. The sight of that flower brought with it a rush of memories. Some of the best—and worst—of Carter’s life. Of course, that girl below them wasn’t Gina. She’d been gone for a long time. He shook his head to rid himself of the memories brought on by being so close to home. Get your head in the game, Carter thought to himself.

  The flight was short, and in a few minutes they were hovering over a large forest about ten miles past the canyon. “I thought your facility was located at the North Rim,” Carter said.

  “It is,” the sergeant replied. “This is just the entrance.”

  It was obvious the soldier had an aversion to conversation, and the other one may have lacked even the ability to speak, so Carter held his tongue.

  When the helicopter landed in a natural clearing, the group made their way to a small cement building, almost completely covered in foliage, situated just inside the tree line. The sole feature of the building was a heavy metal door, the sort usually found on old bomb shelters. The sergeant entered an impossibly long code on the keypad, and the door swung, unassisted, inward.

  Once they were all inside, the sergeant stepped up to another keypad on the far wall and entered another code. With the hiss of an airlock seal, the metal door behind them swung closed, while a set of elevator doors opened in front of them. Without a word, the sergeant stepped into the oversized elevator with the rest of the group following closely behind. Carter noticed that there were no buttons on the wall, yet the elevator was already descending. When the doors opened onto a cavernous room carved into the rock, Carter got the distinct impression that he was Alice emerging from the rabbit hole.

  Golf carts lined the walls and the group joined Sergeant “whatever-his-name-was” in the closest one. There was almost no noise as they made their way through the long tunnel. Electric lights, strung at ten-foot intervals along the ceiling, barely made a dent in the darkness.

  Carter could feel his heart rate increasing with every mile. He’d never been one for cramped spaces. Not because of some childhood trauma like falling in a well, but because, since the day he was born, he’d spent most of his life outside. The only time he stayed inside was to sleep—and sometimes not even then. Now, he could feel the wolf inside him fighting to get out. Its natural instincts were the same as Carter’s, and it definitely wanted to get topside.

  Han grabbed his shoulder and stared at him. “Are you holding it together?”

  “Yeah. I’m okay.”

  The other soldier turned in his seat to look at Carter and spoke for the first time. “Don’t worry. Lots of people get freaked out in this tunnel. We’re almost there, though.”

  That didn’t make Carter feel any better, but the kid was true to his word. As the end of the tunnel approached, a large, well-lit room came into view. There were at least a dozen people milling about. Some wore military fatigues and others lab coats. When they parked the golf cart, the young soldier plugged it into a charging station saying, “Welcome to Oz.”

  “I assume you don’t get many visitors down here.” Jackie looked around the room at all of the people staring quizzically at them.

  An unknown voice boomed from behind them. “No, ma’am. We don’t.”

  The sudden interruption had them spinning on their heels. The voice belonged to a man in his mid to late fifties with close-cropped brown hair that had just begun to gray at his temples.

  He reached out and shook Carter’s hand with a firm grip. “I’m General Eryk Persaud. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “And you, General. I’m Carter Mockta, this is Han Li and Jackie Barns.”

  After pleasantries and handshakes were exchanged, the general turned his focus back to Carter. “Mockta? That’s Navajo, isn’t it?”

  Carter was impressed. Most people couldn’t tell an Apache from a Cherokee. “Havasupai, actually.”

  “Really? And you’re with the Omega Group? I thought your tribe stayed closer to home.”

  Carter’s jaw clenched. “I’m the exception, sir.”

  An easy smile graced the general’s face. “I guess this is a homecoming for you, then. How was your flight?”

  Carter couldn’t get into the details of their encounter at the airport, but he needed the general’s help, so he gave a watered down version. “We had a little trouble after we landed. Someone took a few pot shots at the jet. No one was hurt, and we never got a good look at the shooter before he disappeared into the woods, but our plane could use some repairs before it heads back to Jacksonville this evening.”

  “Not a problem,” the general said. “I’ll have some guys head over to the airport right now and take care of any damage.” He nodded to the sergeant who grabbed his phone and gave
the orders. “You sure you’re okay?”

  “We’re fine. Really. Do you mind if we ask you a few questions?”

  “Not at all. Where would you like to start? Director Finley told me about the unusual happenings out there, but I have to admit that we’ve been a little busy down here and haven’t had the time to investigate.”

  “What exactly have you been working on, General?” Carter didn’t want to insult the man by insinuating that his work had anything to do with the problems, but it did seem like an obvious assumption.

  “I know what you’re thinking, but you’re barking up the wrong tree. There is no way that anything we’re doing down here could be affecting the world up there. We’re completely self-contained and our security measures are top notch.”

  Han interrupted. “Um, sir? The entrance we came through was well-camouflaged, but I wouldn’t call it overly secure.”

  “Yes, well, that’s because you were invited guests. That area of the park has been off limits to everyone, including park personnel, for over ninety years. Some bullshit about unstable land and rockslides. Even if a hiker did get curious, he’d never get within two miles of that entrance. We’ve got the entire area wired for surveillance. Anyone steps foot inside our perimeter and they’re met with one of our security forces, dressed as park rangers of course, and politely asked to return to the trails. Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best.”

  Carter couldn’t argue that point. He’d grown up here and never thought to question why most of the north side of the canyon was closed to visitors. He’d heard the rumors about the supposed excavation of caverns found in 1908 by the Smithsonian Museum. A front-page article in one of the local newspapers at the time discussed their findings in great detail. Huge caverns, burial tombs, Egyptian artifacts—all the stuff that mysteries were made of. It turned out to be just another crazy conspiracy theory.

  Or was it? He was currently standing in a huge cavern that no one knew existed, hidden inside the north rim of the canyon. It occurred to Carter that perhaps, when this was over, he would check into Area 51.

  “We have two lines of research, running parallel, in development here,” the general said. “First, we have our MDS program. That’s the Metabolically Dominant Soldier program. We’re working on ways to increase speed, strength, stamina, and healing in our men. Second, we’ve got our tech program. No matter how physically superior our soldiers are, they still require the best in protection and weaponry. We’ve got computer-controlled liquid body armor that’s as light and flexible as cloth but turns as hard as steel when it detects a bullet strike. We’re also working on giving that same suit reflective properties that will render the wearer almost invisible. We’ve got Spring Walker Boots in development that mechanically mimic the enlarged Achilles tendons in kangaroos and will allow our boys to run at speeds up to twenty-five miles per hour. In a nutshell, we’re bringing the comic book super-hero to life.”

  Carter was stunned, and by the looks on his companion’s faces, he wasn’t alone. “How long have you been working on this stuff?”

  “I’ve been running it for eight years now, but the program itself dates back to the Second World War. We were responsible for short-wave radios, radar, spy satellites, GPS, lasers, drones, and a whole lot more.”

  “All of those things revolutionized the way we fought wars.” Jackie’s voice was filled with the same awe Carter felt.

  “Yes, they did. What we’re working on now will, hopefully, do the same. And save a lot of lives, too. I’d be happy to give you a tour of our facility if you like.”

  Although there was nothing Carter would have liked more than to see this stuff for himself, he had more pressing matters to deal with. “I appreciate the offer, General, but we really need to focus on what’s happening topside. Have you, or your people, noticed anything unusual in the area lately?”

  The general thought for a moment before answering. “No one here’s reported anything like the auras Director Finley spoke of, but there’s definitely been more violent crime since the Yavapai arrived.”

  Carter couldn’t hide his shock. “The Yavapai are back? When did that happen?”

  “I’m sorry. I assumed you knew. They’ve been living on the Navajo reservation for several months now. They kept pretty much to themselves at first, but the bad blood between your tribe and theirs has been escalating. I can’t imagine that they have anything to do with what you guys are here for, though. It’s just been petty theft and a few bar fights.”

  Carter knew there was probably a lot more to it than that, but he couldn’t discuss his suspicions there. Although General Persaud knew the Omega Group handled sensitive situations, he was definitely not in the loop with regards to its member’s preternatural origins. “Thank you for your help, General. We’d better be going. Any chance your helicopter pilot could drop us at Supai Village?”

  “He’s ready and waiting as we speak. If you change your mind about the tour, let me know. It’s not often I get to share what we’re doing down here.”

  “Will do, General. Please keep me informed if you come across any more information.” They exchanged business cards and pleasantries, then the Omega agents were escorted topside.

  Chapter 4

  Although Supai Village had become a tourist destination for the many hikers that spent their vacations at the canyon, there were still no roads leading to it. You either took a less-than-leisurely eight-mile stroll, or, if you were lucky, you hopped a ride on a helicopter.

  The village itself was a weird mixture of the old and new, neither seeming comfortable with the other’s existence. The simplistic lodge, café, and convenience store struggled for inclusion while surrounded by pack mule trains and the rugged terrain of the red rocks.

  Carter, Han, and Jackie distinguished themselves as obvious outsiders as they pulled their roller suitcases across the uneven ground. The original plan of checking into an area hotel before starting their investigation fell by the wayside when they were sidetracked by their visit with General Persaud. This was not how Carter envisioned returning to his reservation.

  “Well, if it isn’t Carter Mockta gracing us with his presence. To what do we owe the pleasure?” The familiar voice grated on Carter’s nerves as he struggled to control his temper.

  “Good to see you, too, Bill. We need to see the chief, then we’ll be on our way.” Carter never broke eye contact with his former best friend as Bill sauntered arrogantly toward him. It was a distorted version of the childhood staring game that Carter had no intention of losing. “The sooner you tell me where he is, the sooner we’ll be gone.”

  “He is where he always is at this time of day. Or have you already forgotten our ways?” The sneer on Bill’s face was yet another reason why Carter stayed as far away from his family home as possible. Not that he needed more reasons.

  Without another word, Carter led his companions to the lodge. “We’ll need to leave our bags here. The chief spends most afternoons at the falls, so we’re in for a bit of a hike.” The receptionist at the lodge was much friendlier than he expected and allowed them to use the restrooms to change into hiking gear, and to store their bags behind her counter. For a small fee of course.

  At that time of day, the long trail from Supai Village to the falls would be all but deserted. Even the most hardened hikers tended to keep their travel scheduled to the early morning or late evening—when the sun was less hostile. The solitude was exactly what the team needed.

  When they were far enough away from the village, Jackie started the conversation. “So, what’s the deal with the Yavapai tribe? You seemed shocked when the general mentioned them.”

  Carter took a moment to gather his thoughts, doing his best to keep them away from Gina. “There’s a long history there. Really long. There are a lot of Pai tribes, most of which have peacefully coexisted for over a thousand years. The Yavapai are a different story. If you believe the legends, they were driven out of this area by the other tribes centuries ago. T
hey lost their homes and became nomads, moving from place to place, never settling down.”

  “That’s awful,” Jackie said.

  “Not when you consider what they did to earn their expulsion. They were always on the warpath, never satisfied with what they had and always looking to take from others. Their warriors decimated so many tribes, mine included. In fact, legend has it, that’s how we became shape-shifters. They say our god felt sorry for us when we were almost wiped out by the Yavapai and gave the men of our tribe this ability so we could fight back. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but I do know the Yavapai believe it. Our two tribes have been bitter enemies for a very, very long time.”

  Han chimed in with his usual wit. “So, you’ve got a Hatfield and McCoy situation. Any chance it has something to do with what’s been going on here?”

  “I’m not sure. But what happened at the airport makes me think it might. That guy was Native American and he shifted into a bear. The Yavapai have spent over a thousand years trying to obtain that ability. If they somehow got it, they would definitely come back here to get their revenge.”

  “Well, on the bright side, at least now we have a suspect. How much further to the falls?” Although Jackie was in peak physical condition, she was not an outdoorswoman and was clearly hating every second of this hike.

  “Not too much further,” Carter lied. They hadn’t even reached the campground yet and their destination, Beaver Falls, was another four miles past that.

  The longer they walked, the less they spoke. Both Han and Jackie seemed distracted by the incredible scenery around them. Even Jackie looked, at times, to be enjoying herself. When they reached Mooney Falls, however, and she saw the precarious rock wall she was going to have to climb down, she gave Carter a look that said, “I hate you.”

  Carter didn’t take offense. Although he loved the adrenaline rush that descent always provided him, he understood that most people would feel the way she did.