Chapter Ten
Finding the location of the Hunter settlement had been easy enough, but after a week of nightly surveillance, the news wasn’t good.
What Mackenna had described as an inn had turned out to be a two-story cabin in the center of an old campground. A dozen or more trails wound through the complex, and they’d counted eight additional, smaller cabins hidden in the surrounding trees.
Cade had never believed in fate. He’d always subscribed to the idea that everyone made their own destiny, and a series of coincidences was just that. Coincidences. After seeing the campgrounds, the distance and terrain Mackenna had to cover to reach the little-used highway at the exact right moment, he wasn’t so sure about that anymore.
They had all assumed that with her injuries she couldn’t have made it more than a couple of miles on foot. In actuality, she had covered more than seven miles through dense forest and rocky hills.
He’d met a lot of people over his life. Some assholes. Some saints. Many who had embodied courage, strength, and resilience. Few of them had left an impression on him the way Mackenna had.
She might not be a soldier, but she was one hell of a warrior.
With his arms wrapped securely around his mate, he leaned back against the wall of the conference room and settled in for the meeting. With nearly half their team out on patrol, there were plenty of chairs, but he was too restless to sit.
“It’s not going to be easy,” Lynk said as he unfolded the map and spread it out on the table. “We’re definitely outnumbered, and from what we’ve seen, outgunned as well.”
“There are no fences or gates,” Deke added as he stepped forward and stabbed the map with his index finger. “Mountains are here, here, and here. Completely impassable.” He moved his finger to the north side of the camp. “This forest here is the most likely place for the Wild Hunt Mack talked about. It’s the most easily defended, and there would be almost no chance of escape.”
“Which means, almost no chance for rescue.” Deidra squeezed in between the two males, the end of her braid falling over her shoulder as she leaned forward. “With that being said, it is, unfortunately, our only option.”
Deke looked around the room and shook his head. “The main building is too well guarded. Even if we could get in, the likelihood of finding the prisoners, freeing them, and getting everyone out before we’re overrun is basically nil.”
“Okay.” Leaning back in his seat at the head of the table, Luca templed his fingers under his chin. “Impossible circumstances. Small chance for success.” He shook his head. “Is this a risk we’re willing to take, or do we sit this one out?”
A few people in the room tensed, but no one rushed to throw in their support. Cade couldn’t say he blamed them. It might be the Revenant’s mission to protect the innocents of the world, and any one of them would give their life for the cause, but that didn’t mean they were suicidal.
Some battles couldn’t be won. Some shouldn’t even be fought. If they all got themselves killed, the mission failed, no one was rescued, and there would be no one left to face the next threat, or the one after that.
Because there would always be a threat. There would always be those who took pleasure in the suffering of others. Men and women who enjoyed the elevated status the new regime afforded them. Those who hunted with extreme prejudice, who used their misguided dogmas to justify their inhumanity.
“I’m not one to just walk away,” Deidra said when it appeared no one else was willing to offer their opinion. “In this case, I honestly don’t see how we pull this off.”
Luca dropped his hands and sat forward, scanning the room. “Anyone think we can?”
No one said anything for a long time. When someone finally spoke, it was the last person he would have expected.
“The problem here is that you need two teams. One to fight the Hunters, and another to extract the prisoners.” Abby rose from her chair, though she was so petite, it hardly made a difference. “Clearly, we need another team.”
Cade didn’t even know why she was in the meeting. Even if they figured out a way to pull this off, it wasn’t as if she would be going into the camp with them.
“There is no other team.” Unwinding one arm from around Mackenna’s waist, he swept it out to the side. “This is it. We’re it.”
“The only team of Revenant,” she corrected without looking at him. “Look.” Sliding the map in front of her, she pointed to the big, red X where they’d marked the main building of the compound. “There’s a little service road about six miles to the west. Probably used by forest rangers. It won’t be easy, but you can access it from the north woods.”
Luca followed her finger across the map. “So, you’re saying we wait until the full moon, until the Wild Hunt.”
She nodded. “Getting into the building isn’t an option, so we wait. We have them bring the prisoners to us.”
Cade frowned as he listened to her speak. Since when had she become an expert in battle strategy? “That’s still only one piece of the puzzle. Where do you suppose we find another team to distract the Hunters while we’re leading injured and starving captives out of the wood?”
And why the fuck was he asking her?
She eyed him as she slid her finger south on the map. “Aspen. We’ll need to confirm, but I can almost guarantee the ski resorts have been turned into Coalition settlements.”
Since he had no idea what that had to do with anything, he just stared at her.
“If there’s anyone who hates Hunters more than
