Cade heard the electronic whirr, but he didn’t see anything. Before he could question what was going on, three silver balls the size of his fist dropped out of the trees and exploded with a series of loud bangs and blinding lights. The flashes weren’t lethal, but given the location of the explosions—only a couple of feet in front of the wire—it wasn’t hard to guess their purpose.
“Duck the wire,” the stranger said, still oddly calm under the circumstances, “the explosions drive you back for a second go.”
Cade’s training told him to shoot the guy where he stood and keep going, but his conscience staid his hand. He was supposed to be one of the good guys. Shooting this stranger who had, so far, done nothing threatening didn’t sit right.
Still, he remained wary. “Who are you?”
“Sergeant Michael Dominguez.”
Cade narrowed his eyes, growing more confused by the second. The rank meant nothing to him. Dominguez could be Coalition, Revenant, former United States military, or none of the above.
The sergeant smirked. “You’re trying to decide if you should trust me.”
Not true. Cade instinctively distrusted him. He was more so trying to work out if killing him would be considered justified. “Who the fuck are you?”
“I already told you, amigo.”
“Right. Try again.” Damn it, he didn’t have time for this shit. “Why did you help me?”
“There’s no time,” he said, echoing Cade’s thoughts. “I can explain later.”
“You can explain now, or I can put a bullet in your head. Your choice, friend.”
Dominguez considered him for a moment, then dipped his head curtly. “I’m the one who left the cage unlocked so the she-wolf could escape.”
He said it as if he thought the information would soften Cade toward him. He was mistaken. In fact, he was deadly mistaken, because there was no possible way he could know that Cade or the rest of the team had any connection to Mackenna. Not unless they’d been watching her.
If they’d been watching her, watching the Revenant, the Hunters had known they were coming. Dominguez hadn’t helped Mackenna escape. He had intentionally set her free.
It all made sense now. How easily they’d been able to access the service road. The lack of resistance at the edge of the forest. Hell, the Hunters had probably been the ones stealing from the grocers, making them responsible for the Coalition patrols at the hospital. They’d dangled the worm and lured them in, but how?
No one except members of the Revenant knew about the plan. Even Dr. Lancaster hadn’t been privy to all the details until just hours before they’d set out for the camp. Cade knew his team. He trusted them.
“You won’t blindly trust someone just because they claim to be Revenant, but you trust your friends.”
Mackenna’s words rang in his ears, bringing with them sudden and infuriating clarity. “Seth Barnes.”
He’d been such an idiot. Barnes had appeared at the hospital two days after Mackenna. He’d claimed to be coming from a safe house in Wyoming, and not a single person had questioned him, but they should have.
They’d searched for him for days when he’d gone missing. They’d even started making plans to check some of the ARC controlled towns near the safe house for him, and the bastard was probably right there in the forest with them. Cade hoped he was the one to find him.
Dominguez stiffened at the name, and the smile slid off his face as he jerked his arm up to take aim. He was fast, moving with a fluidity that only came from years of training.
Cade was faster.
The shot reverberated through the trees, and the bullet found its mark, snapping the sergeant’s head back and dropping him to the ground. Before he’d even finished falling, Cade had the two-way radio off his belt. They were supposed to be for emergencies only since, by their very function, they drew too much attention, but the need for stealth didn’t matter anymore.
“They know we’re here!” he yelled into the handset as he darted off into the trees. “They knew we were coming. Fall back! Everyone get the hell out of there!”
His words echoed close by, followed by a burst of static. Changing directions, he ran east, calling out for anyone in the area.
“Cade!” Bleeding from a gash on her forehead, Thea scrambled up a slight incline toward him, three males following in her wake.
Another voice called his name as well, this one from the opposite direction. A moment later, Rhys emerged through the trees with Luca, both of them leading a group of seven captives. They, too, looked the worse for wear, which was probably why neither of them realized they were marching straight into danger until it was too late.
Their only warning was a metallic click, just a small noise on the edge of hearing. Luca yelled for everyone to get down, but frightened people never made the best listeners. So, it was two of the male captives who took the brunt of the attack as noxious fog assaulted the group from both sides.
The shrieks were haunting, but Cade could do nothing as he watched the skin literally melt from the men’s faces. Cursing, Rhys grabbed the nearest female and tackled her to the ground, but he wasn’t quick enough, and he screamed in agony as the aerosol swept over his back. The gas ate away his shirt within seconds, and huge, white blisters erupted across his skin a moment later.
“Rhys!”
“No!” Cade’s heart hammered up into his throat when the female dropped
