Other hybrids frowned at him, but no one challenged him. Tiberius might be laid back, but he could take almost anyone in Alpha Squad. There was a reason he was one of Maximus’s lieutenants.
Cornelius, standing across the room, folded his arms and shook his head. “I wouldn’t get too comfortable, and I don’t believe the intel is old. If anything, I think we should assume the enemy is still here and entrenching themselves because of their losses elsewhere. We need to follow this up quickly before they can finish preparing for raids.”
Maximus nodded his agreement. “I’ve already got a meeting scheduled with a local informant, but it’s not until this evening. I’ll take CJ as backup.”
CJ chuckled. “Sounds fun. Is this going to involve a lot of questions or lot of threats?”
“Depends on the informant, but this is a good lead.” Maximus swept the rest of the room with his commanding gaze. “Until we confirm the Phoenix Corps isn’t here, we’ll presume they are. So, no, we’re not going to enjoy our time here. We’re going to assume they’re keeping an eye out for hybrids and government agents.” He frowned at Tiberius who shrugged his shoulders and didn’t stop smiling. “The rest of you need to get to prepping and checking our gear. I want the smaller drones and cameras set up in the area to monitor all paths to our rooms and the parking lot. If the Corps is here, it’s not impossible they discovered we’re coming, and we don’t want to get caught with our pants down. We don’t want a van full of mercs showing up and gunning us all down while we’re asleep.”
“It’s a seedy motel,” Tiberius said. “I think this is exactly the kind of place we’d get caught with our pants down.”
Maximus stared him down. It wasn’t the time for jokes. “Everyone has their orders. And keep your contacts in at all times. I don’t care if you see humans with amber contacts.”
“If we’re that worried about being on the defense, shouldn’t we keep them out and rely on sunglasses, so we can drop them quickly?” Cornelius asked, gesturing to his eyes. “Even if they take down our gear, we have our senses, and we’re losing some of that advantage with those contacts.”
“This isn’t like most of our missions,” Maximus said. “It’s going to require a little more... finesse. You have your orders. Inventory your gear, and get the surveillance equipment ready. I’m sure you all can set things up without getting spotted, and if not, then whatever’s left of the Phoenix Corps is going to be disappointed in their former tools.”
* * *
Stepping into the darkened bar, Maximus wrinkled his nose as the intermingling stink of men who needed showers and acrid half-burned food laid siege to his sensitive nostrils. The stench had assaulted him in the parking lot, but it was now almost overwhelming. It was a cosmic joke that the twelve Alpha Squad hybrids could no longer depend on their noses to lead them to their destined mates, but their enhanced smell would subject them to every other unpleasant scent in the world.
CJ snickered at half-burned out neon lights behind the bar. “This place has seen better days. I think those days were fifty years ago, but…”
Maximus surveyed the bar. Even with his contacts in, the dim light presented no challenge. It might as well have been noon on a cloudless day. His gaze lingered on a smiling, greasy man in a loud Aloha shirt in the corner. The man matched the description of the informant. Anywhere else the bright yellow shirt might have been the opposite of stealth, but many men in the bar, even the ones with jagged scars on their faces and arms, were in similar attire.
Glints of steel from knives and guns poked out from jackets or waistbands. Maximus took mental note of the positions of the tables and chairs in case he needed to throw them later. He never underestimated the usefulness of pieces of furniture as projectiles. They’d saved his life more than once, and it could be fun to crack a table over a man’s head.
With a grunt, Maximus nodded to CJ. “Stay outside and keep an eye out.”
“You sure?” CJ asked, looking dubious.
“If I can’t take one asshole in a bar, I might as well give up.”
“You sure this isn’t a Corps trap?” CJ raised an eyebrow.
“No, but it’s not like you’re on another island.” Maximus grinned. “If you think there’s trouble, come back in and start throwing people through windows. If it is them, they’ll probably show up with big numbers from outside and force their way in, not sit there and risk us sniffing something out suspicious.”
“I don’t know if I can hear anything with all this music, but your call,” CJ mumbled. He shrugged and headed outside.
Maximus maneuvered through the bar toward the informant’s table, his movements slow, almost menacing. The room was filled with tough-looking men and women covered in tattoos and large muscles, but no one spared him more than the briefest of glances. Some people turned their heads to ensure they didn’t appear to be challenging him. He wasn’t there for a fight, but on some level, they understood there was an alpha predator in their midst. It was like he told the mugger. There was always someone higher on the food chain.
He arrived at the table and nodded to the man. “You’re Ken?”
The man at the table picked up his drink, a dark brown-colored liquor, and took a sip. “I’m not going to bother asking who you are. I
