Nick's heart took a wild leap in his chest as the image of a dead Kay, lying boneless on the filthy alley asphalt, blossomed in his head. He turned to his guys. "Can we read Bud Morrison into this? He'll be involved in the investigation anyway. Once we call it in."
Captain Bud Morrison was his boss's friend, and a man widely assumed to be in the running for next Chief of Police. Bud wouldn't break the law for them but he might be persuaded to bend it a little if there were national security implications. And bio-weaponry definitely qualified as a national security issue.
"Yeah." Jacko checked his watch, spun his index finger in the air. "Ladies," he looked at Kay, "and lady, time to go. Metal and I exit, heading west. Nick, you exit after 15 mikes and head north, Joe will head east. We've all got secure comms. Nick, you have a lot of tactical gear in your vehicle, including a DD. Fucker's using a drone, we'll fuck with him." Jacko's eyes slid to Kay. "Sorry."
Her mouth thinned. "Whoever the fucker is who killed Mike deserves to be fucked. I don't know what a DD is, but if it works to bring down a drone, that's great."
Nick held open the passenger door for her. "It's sort of a ray gun, called a DroneDefender. Will bring a drone down within 400 yards." And man, was he glad to have it in the back of the vehicle.
Kay stood in the vee of the open passenger door and looked at Metal, Jacko, and Joe. "I don't know how to thank you guys," she said quietly.
Metal shrugged. "Felicity would have my head-or worse, my balls-if I didn't help you. And as far as these other guys," he indicated Jacko and Joe with a long finger, "we're a team. Where Nick goes, we go."
Joe handed out comms to Metal and Jacko. Nick put his earbud in, tapped it. "Felicity, you online?"
"Yes. And I've got the overhead drone in sight. I'll guide you. Give my love to Kay. We'll be in touch once you guys are at the Grange." Suddenly, Nick could hear a smile in her voice. "Let me know what Kay thinks of it. Watch your back, Nick. I'm holding you directly responsible for Kay's safety."
"You got it," Nick said, glancing at Kay. Scared, but standing straight, ready to face danger. He held her gaze as he added, "Nothing's going to happen to Kay on my watch."
Metal got into his vehicle, Jacko behind the wheel. They were all good drivers, had all taken combat driving courses, but Jacko was in a class of his own. He would be the first out, Felicity guiding him. If there were problems, if they were ambushed, Jacko would take care of it. All their vehicles were armored and had run-flat tires.
Jacko's vehicle headed out, up the ramp and out of sight. Three minutes later, they heard Felicity's voice over the comms. "Drone's still there, guys. High enough to keep an eye on all exits. If they are looking for her, they'll probably expect her to be on foot."
"Roger that," Nick said, and Kay looked at him sharply. She didn't have a comms unit. She wasn't part of the tactical team, Nick and the crew was. Her part would come later, up at the Grange, trying to figure the clusterfuck out. Nick's job was to get her there and keep her safe.
"The drone still there?" she asked softly.
Nick nodded. "Yeah. Buckle up."
They waited in silence until Nick heard Felicity's voice in his ear. "Nick, go. I've sent to your GPS a route out to the Grange that crosses some camera dead zones. Joe will follow you out in fifteen. Let's mess with the drone's head. We'll talk when you and Kay get to the Grange. I'll see how fast I can decrypt that flash drive. Avengers, assemble!"
Nick took the earbud out. If anyone needed to communicate, they could text him. He looked over at Kay, pale and scared but holding herself together. He leaned over to buckle her in, pressed a quick kiss to her mouth and said, "Let's roll."
She nodded.
He drove the SUV up the ramp and out into the bright sunshine. Somewhere above them, a drone was seeking out Kay. Good luck with that, Nick thought. All ASI vehicle windows were coated with a special resin that blocked anyone from seeing inside. What looked like normal windows were as impenetrable as walls.
He stopped for a second at the top of the ramp. Jacko and Metal had gone left. He took a right at the street and headed out.
Oliver Baker studied the tablet resting against the steering wheel of his SUV. The screen was split, the left-hand side showing the aerial view above a city block comprising a hotel, restaurant, a conference center and a department store. The screen on the right-hand side showed a loop of video of the takedown of Jeremy Robsen, aka Mike Hammer.