Page 47 of Pressure Point (Lantern Beach Blackout: Detonation #2)

CHAPTER

FORTY-SEVEN

Three days later, Quinn made her way downstairs at the Blackout Headquarters.

It had survived the storm.

In fact, the whole island had survived the storm. There were no casualties—unless you included Agent Hughes. Some homes, buildings, and piers had been damaged. But Quinn could live with that.

Six Sigma operatives had been taken into custody, though last she’d heard none of them were talking.

She wasn’t surprised. But at least they’d been stopped.

And she felt fairly certain that the equipment they’d been working to develop had also been destroyed. She prayed no one was ever able to recreate it.

Because that kind of knowledge in the wrong hands could be deadly.

What she thought she’d remembered had been correct.

She’d started out as a budding but brilliant meteorologist. The CIA had seen something in her and recruited her for a special assignment.

They needed someone with her specialty to go find out what kind of program Russia was working to develop concerning weather control.

It was faster to train her as an agent than it would be to train an agent in weather science.

She’d accepted the assignment—she’d been the perfect candidate. Her mom had died when she was a toddler, and her father passed from a heart attack when she was in high school. She had no siblings, no attachments.

She’d spent two years in Russia infiltrating the government program they’d started there. Though her flashbacks had made her believe she’d killed someone, she actually hadn’t taken any lives. She’d only obtained information about what they were doing and passed that on to her handler.

Because of the nature of her work, she’d had to change her identity. Her fingerprints had even been hidden from all databases.

If the Russians had found out, they’d want revenge.

So she’d become a new person and had begun working for NOAA, which was where she’d met Dr. Hartwell.

She could remember Dr. Hartwell studying storm models and becoming concerned. That was when they’d gone down to Florida to study the hurricane about to hit the Bahamas. That was also when Dr. Hartman had been abducted.

She’d taken his van and escaped. He’d warned her that someone was on the inside, so she hadn’t known who she could trust.

When she heard about the new storm forming in the Atlantic, she’d done the projections. She’d known where it might hit.

That was why she’d gone to Lantern Beach. She’d hidden that van in the woods near the lighthouse so she could monitor things.

But before she could accomplish too much, those people had found her.

They’d abducted her, taken her to the island near Lantern Beach, and tried to force her to perfect their program. She’d refused.

When she’d found the right opportunity, she’d run. She hadn’t swum all the way across the water, but she’d stolen a boat.

Sigma’s men had chased her down. When she’d reached Lantern Beach, she’d tried to run. But she’d fallen and hit her head.

That was when she’d run into Atlas—a real godsend.

She reached the bottom of the stairs, and her face lit with a smile when she spotted Atlas waiting for her there.

He still looked as handsome as ever.

The past few days had been a whirlwind. They’d been questioned by every possible investigative agency. Just last night they’d been able to return here.

She and Atlas hadn’t had a good chance to talk—not just the two of them.

But today, they would.

He reached for her hand, and she slipped hers inside his. “Want to go for a walk?”

“No breakfast?”

“I already have that covered. Trust me.”

She did trust him. He’d proven himself time and time again.

He led her outside to the gazebo.

A table had been set up there with two covered plates.

“Fancy,” she murmured.

“Not fancy. Not really. But at least it’s private.”

She sat across from him and took the cover off her plate. Eggs, bacon, and toast waited for her there.

He’d remembered this was the breakfast she’d liked.

“It looks delicious,” she murmured.

He took her hand, and they prayed before starting to eat.

“So, how have you been?” he started.

“I’m so glad this is all over with and that I have my memories back.”

He smiled. “Me too.”

Her own smile slipped before she asked her next question. “How’s everything been since . . . since you saw Noreen again? I’m sure that wasn’t easy.”

He shrugged. “It wasn’t. But I actually feel like I have some closure now. It always bothered me that she’d gotten away without any repercussions. Now I know she’ll be in prison for a long, long time.”

“That’s good then.” Her gaze traveled across the water, and she remembered that day when she’d taken down the copter. “Did you ever figure out what the explosives were for in the helicopter?”

“No one is talking, of course,” Atlas told her. “But I suspect Sigma wanted to have the explosives on hand just in case things went south with this storm.”

“Not to bomb Blackout?”

“Maybe. But I think they wanted the hurricane to take us out first.”

“I guess that makes sense.” She paused, piece of bacon in midair. “Do we know why they targeted the Bahamas yet? I haven’t been able to figure that out.”

“We’re still working out those details. But if they targeted Lantern Beach in order to get to us, then they probably targeted the Bahamas for the same reason.

There’s still so much we’re trying to uncover about the organization.

They’re still active and still a threat. There are still more agents out there.”

“Including maybe one in your midst?” She frowned at the thought.

His expression sobered. “Unfortunately, yes. We’re still keeping our eyes open. But nothing has happened lately. Maybe that’s a good sign.”

They both knew, however, that could be just because whoever was the mole didn’t want to be found.

She didn’t say that aloud, however.

“So, Quinn, I know we haven’t known each other very long, but in so many ways it feels like a lifetime.”

“Yes, it does.”

“I wrote something for you.”

Her eyebrows flung upward. “Did you?”

“I did. Would you like to hear it?”

“I’d love to.”

He pulled out a piece of paper and cleared his throat as he looked at the words there.

“I used to think storms were meant to destroy,

That hurricanes only brought chaos and fear.

But you taught me that even the wildest winds

Can clean the air, make the path ahead clear.

You came to me lost in a tempest of lies,

Your memories scattered like leaves in the gale.

But beneath all the thunder, I found something true?—

A heart that no storm could diminish or pale.

They tried to remake you, to twist who you are,

To turn your bright mind into weaponry dark.

But love is the anchor that holds through the storm,

And you are the lighthouse that guides my heart home.”

Her hand went over her mouth. “Oh, Atlas . . . that’s beautiful.”

He grinned. “Its beauty doesn’t compare to you.”

She tilted her head. From some men, that would sound like a line.

But not from Atlas. Sincerity captured his every word.

Quinn had always thought of pressure points in meteorological terms—the precise atmospheric conditions where small changes could trigger massive storms. But sitting here with Atlas, she realized there were emotional pressure points too.

Moments where the slightest shift in trust, in understanding, in love, could change everything. They'd found each other at exactly the right moment, when both their hearts were ready for the storm of falling in love.

Of course, Lantern Beach had been the ultimate pressure point. It had been the precise location where Sigma’s weather weapon, her recovered memories, and her love for Atlas had all converged.

One small island where the slightest change in any variable could have meant disaster or salvation.

But like any good meteorologist, she’d learned to read the signs. And all the atmospheric conditions had been perfect for something beautiful to grow from the storm.

~~~

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Coming next: Ground Zero.