Aiding the Dragon (Stonefire Dragons 7)

She stood and picked up the headset that patched through to Kerrin. “Kerrin, give me a minute to get everyone ready before we start.”

“Just give the word, Brenna. I’ll flip the switch as soon as you do,” Kerrin answered.

She looked to Lyall. “Is all of the vital equipment protected and the necessary shields placed around central command?” He nodded.

That meant if everything went according to plan, Kerrin’s device wouldn’t affect the protected electronics.

Brenna switched the frequency to one that would broadcast to the entire clan as well as to the observation platforms. “Jabberwocky.”

That was the current code word used for any clan emergency and signaled to everyone that something was about to happen. While it changed every few weeks, Brenna rather liked it. However, if she were in charge, she would have certain words for certain types of emergencies. She’d bring up the idea to Killian once he showed his face again.

She connected again with Kerrin. “Okay. Flip the switch in sixty seconds. Once it’s done, send out your volunteers to scour the area for downed machines.”

“Understood.”

Kerrin’s device would emit an electromagnetic pulse, or EMP, that should knock out any electronic device within a certain radius. He and his team had set them up at strategic locations around the clan and surrounding areas. The hope was that they could knock some of the machines—they didn’t yet know if they were drones—out of the sky and study them. Arabella MacLeod, on Lochguard, was waiting to try and hack the operating system and information of one of them, too, if Kerrin’s plan succeeded.

Crossing her fingers, she counted to sixty and waited for news from Kerrin. As the minutes ticked by, she wondered if something had gone wrong. Then a call came in on the main line and she answered it. “Yes?”

“This is Kerrin. It worked, although with a much smaller range than I had anticipated. I’ll have to tweak a few things later. Still, we’re going out to search now.”

“Update me every five minutes or with every find you come across,” Brenna said. “There may be enemies hiding in the forests. Be careful and don’t be afraid to signal a Protector for help. You have your set of flares, right? Since their mobile phones probably won’t work.”

“Yes, I have everything. You’ll hear from me soon.”

He hung up and Brenna let out a sigh of relief. She looked to Orla. “Kerrin said it was mostly a success. It seems the shields placed around central command worked, too. He and his teams are looking for any downed foreign objects now.”

Orla tilted her head. “Let’s hope they find one of those bloody things. If this Arabella can trace back locations, then we can take care of the pests.”

“Arabella said it was only maybe possible, depending on the sophistication of the

hardware. It’s also not an exact science,” Brenna pointed out.

Orla waved a hand in dismissal. “No matter. These drone-whatever things can’t be cheap. If we confiscate a few and can set them back for a while, that’s good enough for now.” She pointed at Brenna. “Now, go eat something. You’ve been working nonstop and need the rest.”

“I can’t possibly—”

“Don’t argue with me, child. I won’t keel over in the next twenty minutes. I can keep an eye and ear on what’s going on. If there’s any change, I’ll send someone to fetch you.”

Her dragon spoke up. We can trust Orla. Make sure to take care of us, too. Glenlough needs us, and if you want to stay, we need to prove ourselves vital to them.

Too tired to argue, Brenna waved goodbye to Orla and trekked toward the storage area stocked with instant meals for Protectors on duty.

Orla was right, she needed the energy. The day was long from over and just because she hadn’t been born on Glenlough didn’t mean she didn’t care fiercely for the clan. Besides, if she couldn’t help keep it in one piece, she would be sent back to Stonefire. And as much as she loved her home, Brenna had several reasons for staying with Glenlough, both for herself and for achieving her desired future.

She couldn’t afford to fail them.

~~~

Teagan clicked off her phone and closed her eyes.

The DDA wasn’t happy.

Not just because two dragon-shifters were dead or that she’d had a public brawl with Hugh in dragon form, but the law dictated that the DDA would contact the other clans to report the deaths of their leaders.

Considering that the DDA preferred to stay out of clan politics, they were now going to be more involved than they had been in decades.

Her beast growled. It’s their job. They don’t deserve our worry.