Infection Runs Deep

CHAPTER FORTY -TWO: RIGHT ON

Sitting in the golf cart left me bored out of my mind.

"I need to make a call," Warner said, leaving me behind to my own devices as he disappeared into the control tower.

A call? About what? Not to mention that the phones didn't work anyway.

I tapped my fingers against the steering wheel, my brain racing over every situation that could possibly go wrong. After the longest fifteen minutes of my life, Warner waved from the top of the control tower.

The control towers were composed of a slate colored stone, built with a square base that opened up into a small room at the top. A metal shingle roof held up by supports in each corner blocked cover from the sun and the elements, but not from the wind. There was no glass surrounding them, leaving them open and free to shoot. It was a glorified balcony that functioned as a sniper's nest.

Two flanked every gate like an extra pair of guards, though these were smaller than the ones at the main gate. Less room for soldiers and supplies. Since this side of the base faced nothing but an endless expanse of trees, it made sense to me.

Warner disappeared from the top, striding through the bottom doors of the tower to get to me. If the guard watching the door had any concerns with my presence, he didn't bother to act on them.

"Good news and bad news." Warner slid onto the cart beside me. "Do you have a preference on which I tell you first?"

"How bad is the bad news?" I asked, not really sure that I wanted to know.

"We'll start with the good news, then," Warner said, which was not very reassuring. "Good news is that I heard from Mark."

He looked at me like that was supposed to have some sort of meaning. "Who is Mark?"

Warner furrowed his brows. "You know Mark. He usually is on guard duty at Cal Hall where you've been staying."

"Oh," I said, covering my mouth with my hand. I knew who he was talking about and I felt horrible that I didn't remember the guy instantly. In my defense, it was my first day on the base and I was a bit of a hot mess. "Yeah, yeah, Mark Reyes, right?"

"Yeah," Warner said, his eyes lightening. "He's been stationed at the admin building since we've been back to base. I got in touch with him about Ian and Luke." He took a long deep breath before continuing. "This is where the bad news comes in. Ian didn't cut all the wires and stuff. The op is still on."

"I hoped for the best and planned for the worst," I said. "I didn't expect him to. I had a bad fee that we were probably going to need to do it tonight."

"That's not all the bad news."

I nodded as I pursed my lips. "It never is just one thing, is it?"

"There are more guards slated for duty tonight. This place is going to be crawling with people."

"How are we going to get into the control tower?"

"That brings me to my other piece of good news," Warner said with a big smile.

"I love good news."

His grin widened at my words, but it slipped quickly. "I told Mark about the op."

My jaw dropped. "What?"

"Like us, he was pretty pissed. Started cussing out the Colonel in Spanish and everything."

"Why is this good news?"

"Because he's discreetly getting the word out to some of the other guards. If we can get them on our side..."

I threw my arms around Warner in excitement. "You're a genius. We wouldn't have to worry about getting in at all. They'd let us in or even do it themselves if we asked."