Page 36 of Scarred Sunrise

Chapter 16

Stepping out into the fresh,fragrant autumn air everything seemed more vibrant, more vital in some way, and Smithy knew that was in part because of Lizzie. Sharing the experience of her niece being born more than a week ago now had opened up a vault inside him, allowing him to start letting go of his preconceptions and fears.

Working with Doc Lawson was really helping too, and he could finally see glimpses of the man he was before war and killing had warped him into a simile of who he wanted to be.

His phone rang as he was going to the car and he answered, noting it was Zack. “Hey, Zack.”

“You need to get to Fortis. We found the lab and are putting a plan together to go in tonight.”

Every muscle and sinew in his body tightened at the words as he felt apprehension like the warning of a storm prickle up his neck. “I’m on my way.”

Smithy hung up and took a second to try and grasp the free feeling he’d had just moments ago, but it was just outside his grasp. Dialling his phone, he held it to his ear, the tension settling the second he heard her sexy, lyrical voice in his ear.

“I was just thinking about you.”

He closed his eyes to take in the words and the intense joy that rippled through him at the sound. “Yeah, what were you thinking about? Was it how many times I made you come on my tongue last night?”

He heard the slight hitch in her breathing and had to clench the steering wheel as desire punched him in the balls as he remembered her moans and her sweet taste.

“Well no, I wasn’t thinking of that, but I am now, so thanks for that.”

He let a chuckle free. “So why was I on your mind?”

“Well, I was wondering if you wanted to come for dinner tonight and spend some time with me and Mateo?”

Warmth suffused him as she gave him more and more, first trusting him again after all the times he’d fucked up and now risking the most precious person in her life and trusting him to do the right thing. “I’d love that, but I just got a call from Zack. They found the lab.”

“Oh wow, that’s big news.”

“Yeah it is, and he wants to hit it tonight.”

“That makes sense.”

“You should probably go stay at the Estate with Meg but let me speak with Zack and see what they plan for your sisters.”

“Okay.”

It was one word, but it held a wealth of meaning to him, trust, calm, courage. She was letting him keep her safe. “I should go.”

“Stay safe, Ty.”

“I will.”

He wanted to say more, to tell her he loved her, but the words still sat there like lead in his throat, as if an invisible hand was choking them back.

He looked at the phone one more time before he drove towards Fortis. When he arrived, he saw Zin’s bike, Daniel’s and Dane’s cars, and Zack’s Range Rover. He tipped his head in greeting as he passed Celeste and moved straight for the conference room. He saw Kanan and Nate were also there, but there was no sign of Will or Drew, or Jack’s team.

“Hey, what do we know?” Smithy spun a chair, straddling, and draping his arms over the back, feeling too amped up to just sit like an average person. Zack flicked the remote and the screen filled with aerial shots of a small village. “This is the Isle of Cosa, a tiny isle off the coast of Cornwall. It was abandoned in the late 1830s by the last thirty-five residents.”

Smithy glanced at Zack then back to the screen where he could see a small village of stone-built homes that were well preserved considering they were abandoned.

“Last night Ava had a breakthrough with the Thracian text and Cosa is named as the beginning of the Divine Watchers. I know we thought the Watchers were much newer than that, but it seems that the cornerstone of their beliefs began here on Cosa by a man named Rev Edmund John Smythe who lived on Cosa during the 1300s.”

Smithy felt the silence weigh heavy on the room as they all tried to process the news.

“Is that where she is?” Smithy asked, heat burning through his veins as the thrill of the hunt surged through him.

“We believe she is, and that it’s the most likely place for the lab too. Will has a drone up now using the equipment at Eidolon. He’s going to contact us as soon as he has a visual.”