Invasion (The Alien Wars #1) (8 page)

The man had short-cropped hair, tattoos on his arms, and a scar across his left cheek. He stared at Kenneth and then at
Logan
. “Are you the men that took out my searchlight?”

“It wasn’t me,”
Logan
said.

“It wasn’t, huh? But it was one of your buddies?”

Logan
didn’t answer.

“
Betcha
I can make him talk.” one of the lackeys snickered.

The boss grinned.
“No, not yet.
Take them to see Captain Burke. He’ll know what to do with ’
em
.”

As the brothers were led away, the man glanced around the darkened airport. “And put some patrols out. I want their friends caught pronto.”

Derek wasn’t one to give up easily, but after searching the runway for ten minutes, he had to admit that Molly wasn’t there.

Xavier anxiously studied his watch. “Come on, it’s time to go.”

Dejected, Derek followed Xavier back the way they had come. “What do you think happened to the others?”

“No idea, but I hope they made it back to the vehicle,” Xavier said.

Derek frowned. By the tone of Xavier’s voice, it was clear that he wasn’t very hopeful. He clutched his hand cannon tighter and followed the man past various hangars.

A Humvee roared past several times, and they had to stop and hide. Other times a sentry strolled past, but they were easy to avoid since Xavier still had the night-vision goggles on.

They had to take a detour to avoid the hangar that the men were guarding, so they were behind schedule when they arrived back at the vehicle. Fortunately, it was still there, but there was no sign of Logan or Kenneth.

Xavier peered around the area with his goggles. “There’s no one in sight.”

“Maybe they’re delayed,” Derek said.

“We’re behind schedule as it is. If they’re not here by now, it’s because they can’t be here.” Xavier paused and thought. “I don’t want to take any risks, but I think I’ll take one last look around.”

“Isn’t that taking a risk?” Derek asked.

“Well, yes, but not so much if I go alone,” Xavier said.

“Alone?”

“Yes. Don’t you know how to drive the Land Rover?”

Derek nodded absently.

“Okay. Give me twenty minutes. If I’m not back by then, take the vehicle and get out of here.”

“But what if—”

“No buts.” Xavier went to the trunk, took two grenades, and pocketed them. He then took the sniper rifle and hung it over his shoulder. “I’ll whistle when I come back. If I don’t, it means it isn’t me.”

Xavier hadn’t wanted to tell Derek anything, but he had a feeling that he would find Logan and Kenneth at the lit up hangar.

That was the place they’d be taken to if they’d been captured, and if they hadn’t been captured, that was the only place at the airport that’d have intrigued them enough for them to miss the deadline. With a heavy heart, he hurried toward the hangar.

Derek watched him go. He sat and waited. Maybe it was because it was
nighttime
and it was time to sleep, but as he lay there, his eyelids got heavy and he leaned against the car door.

Before long, he had slumped to the ground and closed his eyes. He had no idea how long it had been, but awakened by a noise, he stood up, only to stare into the barrel of a rifle.

~*~*~

Xavier had been right to assume that Logan and Kenneth were in trouble. He could see them as they stood outside of the lighted hangar. Guarded by two men and with their hands high above their heads, there was no chance that they could escape by themselves.

He wished he had a better angle from where he was, but he was grateful for the ladder he had found, which allowed him to lie down on the nearby roof. Not once had he seen anyone look up, and he hoped that it’d stay this way until he left the area.

Xavier tensed as the hanger doors suddenly swung open and he was able to see what was in the building.

He had suspected as much, but he hadn’t really thought it would be there. Sitting in the middle of the large hangar was an alien craft, the same type that
Logan
had nicknamed the Striker. It must have crashed through the roof, judging by the marks on the ground and how the upper half seemed in relatively good condition. But the bottom half was another story. It was damaged, but exactly how much he couldn’t be certain.

Xavier hadn’t seen many of these machines—in fact, this was the closest he’d ever come to one—but he did know that, unlike planes, they didn’t have landing gear. If the rare survivors were to be believed, it landed like a helicopter and took off just like one. To him, it just looked like a classic UFO, as it was round in shape.

Xavier could see a number of men who appeared to be trying to fix it. He had no idea why, since he’d yet to hear of a human who could fly one, but it was now obvious why this airport was guarded like
Fort
Knox
. Whoever had control of the airspace would control the land, and a craft like that would certainly go a long way in winning the war in the sky.

He looked at Logan and Kenneth and saw that they were being led to a truck. A plan began to form in his mind. Hurrying to the side of the roof that had the ladder, he spotted two figures through his night-vision goggles. He studied the figures and saw that one had his hands up.

As they approached, he saw that the prisoner was Derek. He cursed to himself. He would have to free the boy before he could free the others. Taking his pistol, he attached a silencer and aimed the weapon at the man’s head. He would only get one shot at this, so he couldn’t afford to miss.

He waited until they passed right below him before he fired. The man collapsed to the ground. Derek glanced around, wondering what was going on.

Xavier whispered to him, “Derek, up here.”

Derek looked up and gave a thin smile. “Thanks.”

“Go back to the vehicle and drive it here pronto.”

Derek nodded.
“Will do.”

As the boy rushed off, Xavier went to work. Hurrying back to the other side of the roof, he peered at the hangar. He saw the truck was getting ready to go. He wished he had more than one option, but he didn’t. He had no idea how many guards there’d be in the back of the vehicle, but he had to take the chance.

The seconds ticked by as the truck got ready to depart. As the engine started, Xavier left his position and made his way off the roof.

As his feet touched the ground, the Land Rover roared up. Xavier jumped into the front passenger side. “A truck will be coming around the corner in just a few seconds. Give it five seconds or so before you follow it.”

Xavier placed the sniper rifle in the backseat, took the two grenades out of his pocket, and put them on the dashboard. “When I give the command, gun the engine and get me as close as you can to the side of the truck.”

As the vehicle roared past, Derek asked, “Why don’t we do it now?”

“Have to
wait,
otherwise we’ll have the soldiers right on our backs.” Xavier reached into the back and grabbed an AR-15.
Logan
had taken one, but luckily, he had another. He needed an assault rifle and this would do nicely.

After waiting a few more seconds, Xavier tilted his head down. “Go!”

The Land Rover roared after the truck. The vehicle wasn't going that fast, so it only took a matter of seconds for the Land Rover to pull up beside the front passenger seat.

Xavier pulled the pin on one of the grenades and threw it through the open window. Deciding to throw another one in for good measure, he did just that before he yelled for Derek to slow down.

Muffled shouts rang out, and then an explosion lifted the night’s skirt as the grenade detonated. The truck skidded to the left and smashed into the side of a half burnt–out hangar. A moment later, the second
boomstick
joined the party.

After pulling up a short distance away, Derek jumped out and watched as Xavier took the AR-15 and blasted the men as they climbed out the back.

As their bodies crumbled, Xavier tactically reloaded. “
Logan
! Kenneth!”

There was silence as two figures sprang out of the vehicle. As they trotted over, Xavier breathed a sigh of relief.

“Good to see you, Xavier. I was getting a bit worried,” Kenneth said.

“Hurry and get in the Land Rover. It won’t be long until someone discovers what’s happened.” Xavier hurried back to the vehicle and sat in the driver’s seat. Derek jumped in the back while
Logan
took the front.

Xavier gunned the engine. “I’ll go through the same hole we came in through. Hopefully there won’t be anyone there.”

For the next minute, everyone was on alert. But as the Land Rover left the airport, they started to relax. There was still a roadblock in place near the entrance, so Xavier drove west, hoping to go north as soon as the road was quiet enough.

~*~*~

Xavier stopped the Land Rover as he reached the outskirts of
Daly City
. He looked back at Derek. “Do you recognize where we are?”

Derek looked out of the window. It took a few moments, but then he nodded. “Yes. If we continue going straight for a few blocks or so and then turn right, we should reach the house.”

Xavier looked in the
rearview
mirror. Nothing could be seen, so he put the car in gear and drove off. It was an anxious few moments as the blocks ticked off. As Derek shook his head every time they passed an intersection, Xavier wondered if he was lost.

A moment later, Derek grinned as he saw a signpost. “Turn right, here.”

Xavier headed down the road and stopped outside number forty-two. Everyone climbed out and stared at the darkened house.

“It looks empty,”
Logan
said.

“It isn’t as though they’re going to be waving a light around.” Kenneth turned to Derek. “How do we get in?”

Derek walked toward the house. “We’ll go in through the back.”

Xavier reached inside the car, took out a pistol, and put it in his pocket. He then pulled out two flashlights. He handed one to
Logan
. “Let’s go.”

Logan
followed the two across the street and down the path alongside the house, stopping when he got to the back door. He put his head up against it and listened. No sound could be heard. He was just about to ask Derek if he had a key when the boy reached underneath a flowerpot and pulled one out.

Derek walked up the steps and put the key in the door. Turning the knob, he slowly creaked open the door.

With the AR-15 held tightly in his hand,
Logan
stepped inside. It was completely dark, so he switched on the flashlight.
“So now what?
Sweep the house first?”

Xavier nodded. “We’ll split up. Derek, come with me.”

While Logan and Kenneth searched the ground floor, the others went upstairs. They’d just finished searching most of the rooms and had regrouped in the dining room, when Kenneth paused. “Do you hear that?”

Logan
nodded. The faint noise had come from somewhere in the room. As it sounded again, he realized what it was. “It’s a cat.” He strode forward and shined the light behind a sofa. There was a white Persian cat. “I was right.”

Derek walked over and saw the animal. “Hey, that’s the cat from two doors down.”

“I wonder what he’s doing here.”
Logan
bent down and picked up the furry creature. Stroking the fur, he noticed that the animal was in pretty good condition. “Someone must be feeding it.” He placed the animal back down and walked back to the basement door. He tried to open it. It was locked.