Page 47 of Trigger Discipline
“I don’t have any fucking idea.”
Phin huffed. “That’s better than anything we’ve gotten before. What do we do?”
Blake swallowed. “I don’t know. There’s got to be an energy source somewhere, right? Probably near the shield.”
Judd pulled out a map and smoothed it out on the floor in front of Victoria so she didn’t have to get up. “Where is the barrier?”
Victoria pointed to a triangular section that started between Baltimore and Washington, then followed the coast. Taking a sharp left at Norfolk, her finger rose up to Harrisonburg and then tracked back to DC.
Judd leaned over the map, studying it. “Did you see anything when you flew by? Any kind of battery or energy source?”
Victoria made a face. “I wasn’t exactly looking. Kind of busy threading the needle and avoiding shrapnel from my wingmen’s planes.”
“Put the claws away, Danger Tits, I was just asking.” Judd ignored the angry spluttering coming from the pilot. “Commander, I need to get eyes on the barrier.”
Gabriel’s face was blank, but it was obvious he was considering what Judd said.
“Sitting here with our thumbs up our asses ain’t doing shit. You brought me for recon, so let me recon. We need intel. If we’re going to get our boys back in the fight, they need to know what the hell is coming out of that ship.”
“Judd—”
“I know. It’s a dumb move to leave the safety of the station, but I’m a dumb motherfucker, so what you going do?” he flashed a grin without a hint of shame.
Victoria stood, resting her weight on her good leg. “I can take you to the shield. And before you say anything about my leg, I’m the only one who knows its exact location.”
Gabriel looked like he wanted to put his head in a blender, but he nodded tersely, lips pressed together tightly. Blake knew he was loath to let his team separate, especially without any means of contact. But the mission was first.
“I’ll go, too,” Scott said, sitting up slowly. His muscles had stiffened, and his face was pale. His brain had taken a hard knock.
“Sit down,” Blake snapped.
Scott snarled. “I’m going.”
“Oh? Are you? Stand up then.”
Eyes bright with malice, Scott buried his fingers into the arm of the couch and tried to push himself up. Arms wobbling, he got about halfway before his face went slack and he fell back, eyes blinking against impending unconsciousness.
Blake resisted rolling his eyes. “That was just sad.”
Scott managed to bare his teeth before falling back into the cushions.
“I’ll go,” he offered, ignoring Tommy’s squeak of protest. “I know the city. And you’ll need someone to drive so you can do the whole soldier thing.”
Tommy grabbed his shirt as he tried to stand, but Blake shook him off. “Stop,” he said, voice softening when he saw the look on his face. “You need to stay here and keep these morons alive, okay?”
It wasn’t a great argument, but Tommy nodded slowly, guilt swimming in his pretty brown eyes.
Blake moved away from the group and began cherrypicking through his jump bag, trying to see what he should take and what he wanted to leave. The blood in his veins was buzzing, but he was grateful to have a plan. Something to do.
Gabriel crouched beside him. He inhaled to begin speaking, but Blake slingshot a latex glove at his face.
“I swear to god if you start some dramatic ass speech, I will stab you with my trauma shears.”
He shook his head faintly, but the look on Blake’s face kept him quiet.
“The mission, right?”
Inhaling deeply, Gabriel finally seemed to agree. “Tomorrow morning, then.”