Chapter 54 - Breach at Lake Tahoe
"Ethan, secure our communications link!" I barked, pivoting toward the window as the Vienna rain lashed against the glass. "Get me a direct uplink to Marcus Vance and the federal quick-reaction force stationed in Sacramento."
"Trying!" Ethan’s fingers flew across his mobile terminal, but the screen flickered violently before plunging into a wall of static. "We're being jammed. Heavy electronic warfare suites. They’ve locked down the regional civilian relay towers."
Elena struggled to her feet, clutching a nearby desk for balance. "Krovos doesn't just want revenge, Commander. He wants the microchip David gave you. He knows David had a secondary backup hidden inside your primary residential estate—your home in Lake Tahoe."
The pieces clicked together with terrifying clarity. The attack on the Sovereign Dawn was a distraction, or at least part of a multi-tiered contingency plan. While we were celebrating the end of the war on a cargo ship in the North Sea, the real vanguard was moving in on the one place we thought was safe.
"We need a transport," I said, holstering my weapon and grabbing my tactical rig. "Now. Private charter out of Vienna International, wheels up in thirty minutes."
"It won't be that easy," Elena warned, pointing toward the street below.
Through the rain-streaked window, two armored tactical vehicles pulled up to the curb outside the safehouse, disgorging a dozen heavily armed operatives who immediately established a perimeter around the building. Krovos's cleaning crew had arrived to finish the job.
May you like
"They've boxed us in," Ethan said, pulling a spare magazine from his vest and slamming it home. "Looks like we're fighting our way out through the front door."
"No," I replied, a grim smile touching my lips as I pulled a breaching charge from my pack. "We go through the roof. Welcome back to active duty, team."
