Exit 9

whispered, “The other guy’s dead. I’d say he cracked his head against the wall.”

“Dammit,” Ash said. That was a mess they didn’t need.

“I wouldn’t worry too much. I don’t think these guys were just burglars.”

“Why not?”

Pax held up his hand. In it was a small notebook. He opened it to a page near the back, and showed it to Ash. There was a date, a number, and the words: 7 MEN 1 WOMEN, PLUS 2 MAN FLIGHT CREW. Pax pointed at the second item. “That’s the tail number of our jet.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’ve flown in the thing nearly a hundred times. Yeah, I’m sure. Now take a look at this.” He flipped back to earlier pages in the book. It was a log with more dates, both arrival and departing; plane numbers; and passenger descriptions. “He’s been tracking visitors. I’ll bet this is everyone who’s set foot in this town since he’s been here.” He paused, and locked eyes with Ash. “I think they’re with the Project.”

Ash looked at the book, and pointed at several dots that were printed at the end of each entry. “What are these?”

“I’m not sure. But if I had to guess, I’d say those were times they reported in.”

Ash flipped to the last entry. Theirs. At the end was a blue dot.

With a nod, he walked back over to their captive. He motioned for Chloe to remove her foot, then crouched down beside the intruder, making sure the man could see the notebook in his hand.

“I have a very simple question for you. Where is Bluebird?”

“Bluebird? What’s that?” The response was automatic, too quick.

Ash opened the notebook to the page containing the team’s information. He tapped the blue dot. “What did you tell them?”

The guy snorted and shook his head, but kept his lips sealed this time.

Ash stood up and looked over at Browne and Solomon. “Search him.”

They pulled the intruder to his feet and checked him over, but the only items they found were a pistol, a flashlight, and a key ring with four keys on it.

“Where is Bluebird?” Ash asked the man again.

For a second it looked like the intruder was going to deny any knowledge of the Project’s base again, but then he smirked and said, “You really expect me to tell you?”

“It would be better for you if you did.”

The man laughed. “You’re all going to die, you know that? All of you. There’s nothing you can do!”

Without warning, he lashed out to the side, knocking Solomon backward, then ran for the door. Ash and Browne sprinted after him. The intruder reached the mudroom five seconds before the others. He raced to the main door and threw it open.

Neither Ash nor Browne were dressed for the outside, and would risk serious exposure if they stepped into the Arctic night for more than a few seconds.

With no choice, Ash returned to the other room, where he threw on heavier pants and a jacket, and yanked on his boots without tying them.

“Take this,” Pax said. He tossed one of the pistols through the air.

Ash grabbed it in mid-stride and headed for the main door. Browne was standing just inside, holding the door partially open.

“Which way did he go?”

“Left,” Browne said.

Ash ran out the door.

The cold was like a wall, slapping him hard and nearly stealing his ability to breathe. He forced himself forward, ignoring the shock, and focused only on finding the man. If the intruder really was part of the Project, they had to stop him before he could report back to his bosses. If that happened, their mission would be compromised, and their minimal chance of success would drop to zero.

CF Guest Quarters was located at the northern end of Grise Fiord, not far from the landing strip. The bulk of the town-not much to begin with-was to the left on the other side of a short bridge.

Ash ran as fast as his loose boots let him, his gaze on the road ahead, looking for the man in the darkness. Wind was whipping around him, sending up swirls of ice and snow, and playing tricks with the shadows.

He had just crossed the bridge when he heard someone running up behind him. He twisted around, thinking maybe he’d somehow passed the man, but the person was too small.

Chloe, he realized. In her hand was a gun.

With a nod of acknowledgment, he started off again, his run turning more into a jog as the cold zapped the energy out of him. Even then, within half a minute, he was in the main part of town.

Here and there, lights shone outside some of the buildings. Each structure was raised above the ground, making them all look like they’d fit better in a mobile home park farther south than this northern bit of barren island. Even the church looked like a shoebox on a wooden stand.

The road ahead was split, one part continuing straight and paralleling the coast, while the other curled to the left, back to a few other buildings on the eastern side of town. He glanced at Chloe and pointed for her to take the coast road. He then followed the curve.

Where is this guy, dammit?

It wasn’t that big of a place. Ash doubted there were even one hundred buildings in the whole area. He was also confident the man couldn’t have gone into any of the buildings unseen.

Stopping in front of the church, he looked around.

Nothing. Just night and snow and frigid cold. He was the only one-

Wait. Something had moved behind a large storage tank to his right.

He ran toward it, stumbling once but managing to remain on his feet. As he neared the tank, he saw another behind it, and there, outlined against the side of the second tank, was the intruder.

Breathing hard, the best Ash could muster was a quick walk, but it was faster than the other man, who could do no better than to shuffle around the tank. Soon, Ash could hear the man breathing.

“Stop!” he yelled when only fifteen feet separated them.

The intruder looked back, but kept moving.

Ash raised the gun. “I will shoot you.”

The threat did nothing to stop the other man.

On willpower alone, Ash increased his speed until he caught up to the man. He reached out and grabbed the back of the guy’s jacket. The intruder tried to pull away, but Ash held tight.

In a desperate move, the guy spun around and threw himself at Ash. Ash’s feet slipped on the icy snow, and they both slammed to the ground. The man grabbed the barrel of the gun and twisted the weapon, popping it free. Ash tried to snatch it back, but the man pushed away, creating a few feet of distance between them.

Ash scrambled to his right, wanting to get behind the cover of the tank, but knowing he wouldn’t make it in time. When the gun went off, he tensed, waiting for the bullet to hit.

It never did.

He looked back.

The man was sprawled on the ground, a hole in his head.

Chloe was about thirty feet away, her pistol in her hand. “You all right?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Ash huffed, climbing to his feet. “Thanks.”

She shrugged. “That’s like a dozen you owe me now.”

“How do you figure that?”

“I’m rounding up.”

They hid the two bodies under the CF Guest Quarters. Come summer, if it warmed up enough, the smell of the thawing corpses would signal their location. Hopefully, there would still be someone alive in Grise Fiord to notice.