Page 51 of Dark Rebel’s Reckoning (The Children Of The Gods #93)

51

MAX

M ax's phone buzzed just as he was helping Fenella and Ell-rom clear the last of the dinner dishes. He pulled it from his pocket, noting the late hour.

A text from Onegus. Mission briefing in Kian's old office. Bring Kyra. Video conference in twenty minutes.

He glanced across the room to Kyra, who was sitting with the girls. Her expression was soft as she listened to them share memories of their homes. The tenderness in her eyes touched him, making his chest expand with feelings for this incredible woman and her young charges.

"Hey," he called, hating to interrupt the moment but knowing they should be getting ready. "Onegus wants us downstairs. Mission briefing in twenty. Just enough time to grab a quick cup of coffee for a pick-me-up and head out."

As Kyra looked up, her expression transformed, and instead of the caring aunt of a moment ago, he was now looking at the rebel leader.

"Is the rest of the team on its way?" she asked.

"Video conference," Max clarified. "The others are meeting in Kian's office in the village."

She nodded, turning back to the girls with a gentle smile. "I need to go, and it will probably take a while. Go to sleep, okay? I'll see you in the morning before we leave."

"Is Jasmine going to stay with us?" Arezoo asked.

"Yes. She and Ell-rom will probably take you to the village, but I'm not sure how soon they will have a house ready for us, so it might happen after I return."

Arezoo nodded. "Is Jasmine going to tell us what's happening?"

Kyra shifted her gaze to Max. "I don't know the procedures."

"I will call her with updates," he said. "Don't worry, girls. We have a great team, and we will bring your mothers to you provided that they want to come. We are not going to force anyone."

There was so much hope in those four sets of eyes, and Max hoped he wasn't making promises he couldn't keep.

"Here are your coffees." Jasmine handed each of them a cup. "Take them with you. You don't want to keep the others waiting."

"Good point." Max took the cup from her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"Ready?" he asked Kyra.

She nodded. "Let's go."

They rode the elevator down in companionable silence, Max keenly aware of her presence beside him. The determination radiating from her slender frame was almost palpable. She might look delicate, but there was steel in her spine that he admired. He considered pulling her in for a kiss and easing some of her tension, but he had a feeling she wouldn't appreciate that right now.

Maybe later.

Maybe she would like to do more than kissing.

There was nothing better for releasing stress before a mission than a good session in bed, but given what Kyra had been through, she probably wasn't ready for that.

Even an obtuse knucklehead like him knew that.

"How is the claustrophobia?" he asked instead.

"Strangely absent." She chuckled. "I guess the anxious energy before a complicated mission burns through irrational fears. Besides, it's not claustrophobia. It's being underground that bothers me. I don't like rooms without windows."

It probably had to do with her imprisonment, but he wasn't going to probe. Perhaps sometime in the future she would talk to him, after she'd had enough time to compartmentalize her experiences, so opening one can of worms didn't release them all.

The doors to Kian's office were never locked, and as they walked in, Max flicked on the lights and headed straight for the desk where a laptop had been left to be used for video conferences.

"This is such a nice office." Kyra took a seat next to the conference table. "It seems like such a waste that it's rarely used. Can't someone else use it as their office while Kian is in the village?"

He turned to look at her over his shoulder. "Would you like it to be yours?"

She laughed. "To do what? Manage my rebels from afar? Besides, if I ever have an office, I want it to have a window."

He turned on the screen, checked his phone's wireless connection to the laptop, and then joined Kyra at the conference table.

He glanced at the clock to check the time when the call came through, and the large screen over Kian's desk flickered to life, revealing Kian's office in the village.

Kian sat at the head of the other conference table, which wasn't nearly as fancy and as big as this one. He was flanked by Onegus on one side and Turner on the other. Jade and her Kra-ell team took the other seats.

"Good evening," Kian greeted them. "Kyra, let me introduce Turner, the man I turn to whenever I need strategic advice or connections anywhere around the globe."

Turner smiled and lifted his hand. "Welcome to the clan, Kyra. I'm looking forward to seeing you in the village."

"Thank you." She smiled back. "I can't wait to see it."

"Let's get started," Onegus said. "Turner has intelligence from his contacts in Tehran." The chief waved a hand at the strategist. "Turner, go ahead."

"The good news is that so far, none of the other children have been taken."

"And the bad news?" Max asked.

"The families have arranged for additional security," Turner said. "Soldiers are now posted at all four residences. The missing girls' parents are trying to keep the disappearances quiet, but they're understandably distraught, and they have been making inquiries through various channels."

"What kind of inquiries?" Kyra asked.

"Official and unofficial," Turner said. "Fareed, Soraya's husband, is a commander in the Revolutionary Guard. He's the one who brought in the security personnel, and he also has powerful connections enabling him to pull a lot of strings. The fact that his own daughters have been taken might ruin his military career. He failed to protect them in his own home."

The dude couldn't have prevented Doomers from taking the girls even if he'd posted guards inside the house twenty-four seven.

"I assume they have surveillance cameras in the house," Max said.

Turner nodded. "Everyone has them these days, but the Doomers destroyed them. Fareed has no idea who took his daughters and their cousin. At first, they thought that the girls had escaped, but since they didn't take any belongings with them, that idea was dismissed. Fareed suspects either rebels or criminals, and he is waiting for a ransom demand."

Max exchanged a glance with Kyra. That complicated things. Her sisters and their children were being watched.

"My contact believes that the increased security is why no attempt has been made on the other children yet," Turner continued. "There are simply too many eyes on them at the moment."

"Is there anything your contact can do to protect them?" Kyra asked.

Turner shook his head. "They're human, and they can't protect against Doomers. Humans have no defense against immortals with even elementary mind control abilities."

"Which brings us to a tactical consideration," Onegus interjected. "The presence of these guards means that we need Yamanu. Max's shrouding and thralling abilities aren't strong enough to cover a large group, and neither is Jade's compulsion. Drova is still recovering from her bullet wound, so she can't join this time."

"You are right," Max agreed with the chief. "We can't do this without Yamanu."

"I'm calling him now," Kian said. "I hoped we would find another way, but it is what it is."

A moment later another window opened on the screen, revealing Yamanu.

"What's up, boss? Are we being invaded?" He then noticed who else was on the video conference in progress. "Ah. I see. You need me to go to Iran again."

"The extraction of Kyra's family is more complex than initially anticipated," the chief said.

Yamanu sighed. "I heard that the team is leaving tomorrow morning."

"That's right," Onegus confirmed. "If we are lucky, we will get the kids before the Doomers apprehend them, or we will dispose of the Doomers and leave the kids where they are."

Kyra frowned. "That wasn't part of the plan."

Kian shifted his gaze to her. "The kids are young, Kyra. Eight to fifteen. It's better for them to stay with their families."

"I want to get my sisters out as well. Just one of the husbands is decent enough to consider leaving them be, but they are the couple with the two daughters, who are most in danger. We need to get them out."

Kian raked his fingers through his hair. "We'll leave the decision up to them if that's possible. But if we can't eliminate Durhad's cronies, we will have to take Yasmin and her family whether they want to come or not."

"Okay," Onegus said. "Now, let's talk strategy." He looked at Kyra. "Which sister should we approach first?"

Kyra didn't hesitate. "Soraya and Rana—the mothers of the girls we rescued. They'll be desperate for news, and with their daughters already gone, they'll be more receptive to what I have to tell them."

"Their husbands will be complications," Turner noted. "Especially Fareed with his Revolutionary Guard connections."

"There's also the issue of surveillance," Max added. "With that level of security, their homes are being monitored, possibly bugged."

"It would be easy for me to make contact with them by myself," Kyra said. "Dressed in traditional garb, a chador or burka, I'd blend in, just another female relative coming to offer support."

"You can use the bathroom with water running to talk to them inside the house, or you can take them outside for a walk," Max suggested. "Something casual that wouldn't arouse suspicion."

"I need to think about a good excuse," Kyra said. "I'll have something ready by the time we get there. I'll just need to stop in a store to get what I need for camouflage."

"You've obviously done this type of work before," Turner commented.

The ghost of a smile crossed Kyra's face. "Many times."

On screen, Jade shifted impatiently. "What is our extraction plan once we make contact? Even with Yamanu's shrouding, their absence will be noticed."

"Not necessarily," Yamanu said. "I can plant all kinds of things in the guards' heads. Like one sister visiting the other, and vice versa. By the time they untangle the web, we will be gone."

Max took the idea and ran with it. "There are also doctor's appointments, shopping trips, and other seemingly legitimate reasons. You can shroud each group as they move to the extraction point."

"Where do we come in?" Jade asked. "From what I've heard so far, you don't need us."

"If the Doomers show up, your job will be to dispatch them," the chief said. "And since we don't know how many of them you'll encounter, I'd rather you had enough on your team to take on as many as might show up."

Jade leaned back in her chair. "We are not attacking an entire stronghold like we did in Tahav. I think I can make do with just Dima and Anton." She turned to the female warriors. "Unless you are eager to come."

"I liked it," Rishba said. "The village is so boring."

"I also want to come," Asuka said.

The other two shrugged, indicating that they didn't mind either way.

"Okay then," Jade said. "Rishba, Asuka, Dima, and Anton. That's more than enough."

Max wasn't sure she was right, but since Onegus and Kian seemed to agree, he didn't comment.

"Speed is crucial," Onegus said. "We go in, make contact, and extract as quickly as possible. Ideally within a forty-eight-hour window or less."

"That's ambitious," Max said, mentally running through the logistics. Coordinating the movement of multiple families across Tehran without detection would be challenging, to say the least.

"It has to be quick," Kyra said softly. "The longer we wait, the more time the Doomers have to make their move."

She was right, of course.

"What about transport on the ground?" Max asked. "We'll need multiple vehicles, safe houses, a secure route to the extraction point."

"Already arranged." Turner tapped his yellow pad with his pen. "We have a large safe house for you and several vehicles."

They continued hashing out details for another thirty minutes or so—contingency plans, communication protocols, equipment needs. Max contributed where appropriate, and so did Kyra.

She was definitely in her element—strategic planning, identifying vulnerabilities, anticipating obstacles.

His warrior queen.

It struck him again how perfectly matched they were. Both fighters, both willing to risk everything for those they considered family or helpless. The thought sent a warm current through his chest that had nothing to do with physical attraction.

Well, there was always that, but this was different. It had an additional dimension to it. A sense of his very soul expanding. This was a new sensation for him and now that he owned it, he vowed to do all he could to preserve and nourish it.

Finally, Onegus glanced at his watch. "We should wrap this up. You all need rest before tomorrow. Ten hundred hours at the airstrip."