The Pyramid Chronicles: Fortuna Guard (#2)

Chapter Thirty-Two: Family Matters

Early evening turned the forest outside Willow's window gold. Trees swayed in the gentle breeze beneath her gaze. The dark horizon warned the wind would become something much worse before long.

Willow turned over a USB in her hand. Less than an hour earlier, she'd used it to slip a program onto one of the lab computers. Her code would stay hidden, all but impossible to find, until she activated it remotely. After that, the technicians might spot it and shut it down. Whether or not they figured it out before she pulled all of their data would remain to be seen.

It was a backup plan. A risky one, but she didn't want this all to be for nothing. In a few minutes, she'd be leaving for a scholarship interview. A real one. And she was beginning to think she might not come back.

Time to go. Willow grabbed her backpack, threw the USB in, and slipped out of her room.

Her path up to the roof took her past the training room. Ash stood outside the doors, leaning against the wall, reading something on his phone. As Willow passed, he looked up. "Where are you going?"

"College stuff." Willow paused and shot him a suspicious look. "Why?"

"Oh. Nothing." Ash slid his phone in his pocket. "I just thought you might be going to the lab." After a moment, he added, "You don't know what they're doing with Wren over there, do you?"

Willow frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The Director dragged her off to the lab almost a week ago."

Willow had thought it was strange she hadn't seen Wren around lately, but she'd been too focused on her work to give it much thought. "I haven't been to the main lab yet," she told Ash. "I don't know all of the projects they're running over there."

Ash nodded, stepped away from the wall, and entered the training room without another word.

Slightly unsettled, Willow continued on to the roof.

The Director waited by one of the choppers, sinking sun reflecting off his goggles. "Ready?" he asked as Willow approached.

"Yep."

"Good. Four soldiers will fly you out and drop you off. Call if there are any issues."

"Great. Thanks." Willow adjusted her backpack strap. "Hey, did something happen with Wren Cartwright?"

"Hm? Oh, she's helping with a project at the lab." The Director waved his hand and walked towards the door inside. "But it's biology related. Not your department."

"Of course," Willow muttered. As the roof door clicked shut, she pulled out her phone and unlocked it. Opened her contacts. Stared at Adam's phone number.

The sound of another helicopter in the distance reached her ears. She wouldn't have given it much thought if the soldiers around her hadn't turned their attention and guns toward it.

The chopper passed without incident.

"Are you ready to board?" the soldier standing by the chopper door asked.

"Sorry. Yes." Why was she apologizing to a robot? Willow shook off her anxiety as she climbed into the jetchopper. While one of the soldiers started the engine, she leaned back and peered out the window, still eyeing the helicopter fading in the distance.

It was growing bigger again. Coming back their way.

The Scorpion chopper rose into the air, shifted into a jet, and shot off, leaving the ordinary helicopter in the dust. Willow turned away from the window. No reason to panic. Yet. Who would be after her anyway? SCI?