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Chapter 44: Jamie, Abner
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2022-11-24 14:23:06Related chapters
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 45: Tabby
Friday. Unknown.TABBY SAT BACK AGAINST the wall, her mind still sluggish as she fought to work through everything Abner had told her. It wasn't far off from what Baruti and Sammy had speculated the man was working on. It was much more ominous coming from the madman himself. And she had a feeling he wasn't telling her everything."Walk," someone snapped.She leaned forward, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.Abner had her in what looked like his lab or a workshop. It was an L-shaped space. From where she sat in the off-shoot space with her back to the wall she could see clear to the end of the long room."Roll her in here. Come on," the same voice said.Tabby watched as the same teenage boy who'd attacked Quentin led a man into the room, hands bound and ankles hobbled.Wait.She knew that man, too.It was Gazi Polat. The man Jamie and everyone else was trying to find. And he was here.Behind them a little girl pushed a woman in a wheelchair.
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 46: Jamie
Friday. New York City.JAMIE GOT OUT OF the SUV at the corner near the hotel, pulled the hood on his jacket up and started walking.He had pulled a number of children out of harm's way. They were often the innocent targets of evil men or bargaining chips used to extort money. Today was the first time he'd hunted a kid.As best anyone could tell, the boy's name was Nate Cox. He'd been taken from his family two years ago and never seen since. Until today.Diha was a miracle maker. She'd lost the girls that had taken part in Tabby's abduction, so instead of searching endlessly for where they might be, she'd tracked the girls to where they'd been. Which had led to a lonely stretch of urban road on the very outskirts of the city where the two girls had paused to talk to three boys also wearing uniforms. One of them was Rodney, who'd also taken part in Tabby's abduction. The second boy's face was hard to make out under a baseball cap, but then there was Nate. Fair complexion, neat
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 47: Tabby
Friday. Unknown.TABBY HELD HER BREATH and eyed the Taser in Abner's hand. He had her chain in the other. Her cells were still jumping and twitching from the last use of the thing. But all that talk had worked.Abner fastened the other end of her handcuffs to a short chain attached to the legs of a heavy wooden desk. She'd never move the thing on her own, but she was also no longer at risk of electrocution."Sit." He gestured at an ancient rolling chair that had seen better decades.She perched on the edge, easing her weight onto the seat a little at a time.Abner placed his free hand on his knee, putting them at almost eye level. "Don't make me regret this.""You won't."She'd offered him tiny bits of help. Like unhooking the battery allowed him to tinker without risking the whole system if he messed up. But it also meant the drones would have to cycle through a very long boot up process that would delay any sort of use.Abner turned his back toward her.She watch
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 48: Jamie
Friday. Slide Mountain Wilderness, NY.NEARLY SIX HOURS LATER, they had a location. Or at least they hoped they had one.Jamie didn't quite understand the techno-jargon Diha had thrown at them. What he did know was that backtracking the signal on Nate's cell phone to a location deep in the woods of rural New York was equal parts a guessing game and following the digital breadcrumbs.Nate's story made Jamie all that much more determined to find Tabby and the missing children. Abner was brainwashing the kids, making them believe their families were dead or didn't want them, that their future was with him. It was disgusting to think about how much of these children's lives and innocence had been lost. The worst part was still to come according to Nate.After the satellites came down and the world descended into chaos resulting in the deaths of millions if not billions, Abner had another plan. One to repopulate the country using those same children.Kids having kids.Deep do
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 49: Tabby, Jamie
TABBY NEEDED TO THINK of something to offer Abner, some bit of advice, but she was running out of material. She eyed the drone. He'd removed some of the inner compartments, making room for the drone to carry more. But more what? Was it too much to hope that he'd underestimated how much the additional stuff might weigh? If the drone were loaded down too much, it wouldn't reach its peak altitude.An EMP set off at a lower altitude would cause damage, of that she had no doubt, but not the wider-scale disaster she'd feared. Then again, they still didn't know exactly what Abner was planning. It was all guesswork."Father? Father!" Rodney rushed back into the room."You can't run around yelling," Abner snapped."Someone's coming, up the back way. Two trucks." The boy's wide, fearful eyes made even Tabby's heart leap."What's going on? Who are they?" she asked. What were the chances it was Jamie?Abner stared at Rodney for a moment."No," Abner whispered."They're almost here.
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 50: Tabby, Abner
TABBY PULLED AGAINST THE man wearing black holding her arm. Dalton has moved to the complete opposite side of the vehicle, as far from her as he could get.This wasn't right. None of this was right. These people didn't have badges, they weren't with the task force, and Jamie wasn't there. She wanted to see Jamie."Dalton?" She glanced at him wringing his hands. "Dalton, what's going on?"He opened his mouth.The man behind him reached up and smacked Dalton in the head. "Don't say a damn word."Dalton sent her a look that was tinged with fear and desperation.Her mouth went dry as she realized she wasn't getting out of this situation alive. Neither was Dalton.The farther she allowed this vehicle to get from that building the less chance she had of staying alive. No one had been able to find her abductors, but they were looking for Abner. They didn't know to look for these people. No one would ever find her.She sucked in a deep breath and knew what she had to do.This
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 51: Dalton
Friday. Unknown.DALTON WASN'T SURE HOW he could sweat and freeze at the same time, but it was happening.What the fuck was going on?He was in deep shit. The kind he wasn't sure he could get out of.How long had he been here?When he'd demanded a lawyer, the woman had laughed at him.Laughed.At him.This couldn't be good.Dalton bobbed his knee and stared at a spot across the room. He wasn't sure how many hours had passed, only that his legs were beginning to go numb and he couldn't feel his toes.The door opened, startling him out of his trancelike daze. A tall black woman with short, wispy hair strode in, a file folder under her arm.She'd laughed at him.He glared at her, hating her already."Dalton Astor, I am Agent Zora Clark." She set the folder on the desk."Where's my lawyer? I have rights.""No, not anymore." She placed her fingertips on the file folder. "The little evidence I have so far is enough to bury you for the rest of your life. I'm o
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 52: Jamie
"Let me see?" Jamie hooked his fingers in hers.Tabby let him pull her to him to examine her wrist. Not only was the area burned, but it was also bruised."The badge fell off earlier. It just wouldn't stay on," she muttered."How about I help you out then?" He grabbed her shampoo with his left hand."You don't-""Just let me?" He was desperate to do something right.She blinked at him a few times. "Okay."Tabby turned in place.Jamie had a little experience washing little girl's hair. Between his sister and their cousins, he'd done this a few times. Still, with Tabby the simple act of lathering shampoo in her hair felt like sharing something far more personal."How is it one of your idiot ex-girlfriends didn't marry you already?" Tabby huffed. There was something under her words, something she was trying to hide.Jamie wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her back to his front. "They weren't you.""Of course they weren't. There's only one of me.""Rinse?"
Last Updated : 2022-11-24
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Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 374: Quentin, Epilogue
A week later...QUENTIN WISHED HE COULD savor this moment. He slapped the cuffs on the pint-sized asshole who'd had Candi's life in the palm of his hand that fateful night. Was it just a week ago?This should be more satisfying.It was, in a way.Eleven perfectly timed arrests effectively cut off all the heads of Metis. According to Nadine's notes, there was still one unknown head of the organization out there. But they were not alone. Metis itself wouldn't be ordering the death of anyone else. But it didn't bring Nadine back. It didn't restore the time Quentin had lost with Candi. It did make the world a little better, and in the end that's what mattered. Nadine's final acts were all about sacrifice and justice.Quentin stepped back as the FBI agents continued doing their job.He'd been granted permission to be here. As CIA, he had no jurisdiction nor the ability to make an arrest. Still, putting those cuffs on the little asshole felt good.Nadine would be pleased.
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 373: Candi
Sunday. Clementine Baker's Home, Washington, DC.CANDI CLUTCHED Q'S HAND in both of hers. "Is this it?""Yeah," he whispered.They stared at the moderate sized home in a DC suburb. Now and wind pelted them. Her teeth chattered. And yet, it felt good. The bone chilling cold reminded her that she was alive."Are we going to knock?" she asked."No. Come on. The FBI lookouts know why we're here."Q led her through the yard and a side gate. A uniformed police officer sat at the first-floor window watching them. Q nodded. Candi lifted a hand, but let it drop to her side without actually waving."This way."Solar lights chased away the shadows, making it less ominous. In a few hours, the world would wake up to a blanket of new snow. A clean slate.Candi didn't know how to feel right now.On one hand, they'd found Nadine. They'd done what they'd set out to do.But, Nadine was dead. Her final act had been to save Q and give them the means with which to combat two threat
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 372: Quentin
Small hands shoved Quentin sideways a second before bullets erupted into the night.Quentin yelled. It was mixed rage and fear. He staggered sideways, only for Nadine to shove at him again."Move, damn it," she barked.They dove behind the shelter of a single boulder. This side of the creek the ground was rockier.Quentin yanked his sidearm out of his holster and sucked down air.Unlike the men at their back, Quentin didn't have unlimited ammunition. Not unless he took theirs."Give me a gun," Nadine hissed.He still couldn't trust her. "No.""Damn you," she growled."Come out and it'll be quick," a voice called out.Nadine laid a finger across her lips and stared him down.He opened his mouth, but she spoke first."You can't think I'm that stupid," she said. With her other hand she pointed back down the way they'd come.She wanted him to go to the creek?"I think you know what your options are," the man called out.Quentin's head knew he couldn't trust Na
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 371: Quentin
Saturday. Harper's Ferry, VA.QUENTIN KEPT AN ARM right around Nadine and held to the broken stub of a branch. The ground beneath them had started to crumble. He wasn't convinced that they'd keep their perch if he let go.Damn it.Every time they made a move someone was in their path. And it wasn't always the same pair.Were all six circling him and Nadine? Did that mean they'd captured Candi? Or had she gotten away?He'd heard a couple of shots off in the distance. Could it be...?No.He had to keep his mind here and now.Quentin strained to hear anything. A leaf on the wind. The crunch of a boot. Something.To Nadine's credit, even her breathing was soundless.Could he trust her to not turn on him?He didn't think so.She leaned toward him until she could whisper ever so faintly in his ear. "Now."He understood her meaning. They were both watching and waiting for an opening. Words were unnecessary risks.One thing was certain, he could trust Nadine to h
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 370: Candi
Candi's heart raced as she watched the man kneel by the bag and yank the zipper.She lunged left, behind a tree and drew her weapon.Overhead, there was no mistaking the whining whirl of helicopter blades. It might not be anyone friendly, but DC was about a half hour away by air. They'd called Q's contacts about forty-five minutes ago.Could that be help? More enemies? Something else?She didn't know, but she had to hope. She had to believe this wasn't how it was going to end."Hey!" the man barked. "Get back out here.""Keep the cash and let me go, no one has to know." She clicked the safety off the gun.Candi had mostly blocked out the fact that she'd shot and killed someone after being kidnapped. Now, it was on repeat in her mind.Could she do it again?If she got to tell Q she loved him-again-she'd pull the trigger.Her hands shook.The leaves rustled underfoot, allowing her to track the man's movements. She shifted around the tree, keeping it between them.
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 369: Candi
Saturday. Harper's Ferry, VA.CANDI CROUCHED BETWEEN THE rotted out remnants of a tree and a dense holly bush. This was as close as she could get to the house without being seen.Where had Q and Nadine gotten to?Candi had run out of the house, unable to hear anything beyond the blood pumping in her ears. She'd pushed ahead, convinced those men were right behind her. The only thought in her head was that she couldn't lag behind or else Q would have to leave her.Only, it had happened the other way around.She didn't know when or how Q got separated from her, but when she'd paused to turn around and look, he was gone.Her teeth chattered together. Had something been on the news about a cold front? The winter had been awfully mild so far. It would be their luck for snow to settle in today.Please, no...Where were they?She cautiously peered out through the branches.All but one of the men who'd arrived at the house had gone into the woods.Was this a bad idea?
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 368: Nadine
Friday. Harper's Ferry, VA.THIS WAS A DISASTER of her making.The stitch in Nadine's side felt like a knife was being plunged into her. That, or her scar tissue was warning her about the turning weather. The warm spell was most certainly over."This way," Quentin whispered.Her heart twinged.This was her fault.She was going to get this boy killed. And for what?Over the years, she'd lost her focus. She'd become a leaf, being blown about with no respite. She'd done things to stay afloat, things she regretted.Like involving Quentin.He didn't know it yet, but she wasn't leaving this forest alive."Shit," Quentin muttered."What-?"She never got the question out. Her foot slipped on the underbrush then she tripped on a root. Only, the ground wasn't where she thought it should be. She pitched forward and just kept going. Her shoulder hit the steep incline first, then the rest of her. Limbs tore at her clothing. Rocks scraped her skin. Something rubbery smacke
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 367: Quentin
Friday. Safe House, Unknown, VA.QUENTIN HELD TIGHT TO Candi's hand. He kept glancing at her to make sure she was really there and he hadn't imagined her dramatic return. He had the urge to leave Nadine here and run away with Candi, somewhere it would be just the two of them forever.Instead, he secured the front door then stood in the entry staring at her."And here I thought you'd finally grown a brain," Nadine said dryly.Candi held up her other hand, extending just her middle finger in Nadine's direction.Quentin's phone buzzed. He knew before he pulled it out that it was Wesley. Quentin turned the screen toward Candi. She shrugged and didn't offer any insight into what he should say or do.He clicked the answer button and put it on speaker."Wesley, hey.""Is she there?" Wesley's voice was flat, emotionless.Quentin glanced at Candi. "Yeah."Wesley sighed heavily. "Damn it.""You're on speaker," Candi said."Do you have any idea what I sacrificed to help
Aegis Group Task Force Chapter 366: Candi
Friday.CANDI SLUMPED DOWN A bit more. Wesley gripped the steering wheel like he was on a race course. From where she sat, she could see the speed wavering between five and ten over the speed limit.He couldn't wait to get away from Q.Her heart nearly seized up just thinking that.She wrapped her arms around her more tightly, as if she could hold herself together with strength alone.It felt like history repeating itself.She had to leave because of Nadine for her own good.While Q remained where he was.Candi understood his resolve to carry through with his job. She really did. But her heart couldn't help but feel abandoned. Again.Q had chosen Nadine once over her, and now it was happening again.Yes, Candi knew it was different. This was about doing the right thing and protecting themselves."You're awfully quiet," Wesley finally said."Know your audience," she mumbled.He glanced at her. His sunglasses hid his eyes and made it impossible to guess at wh
