Phantom Game (GhostWalkers 18)

Are they staying to the main trail? Camellia asked. Did any of them appear suspicious when they crossed our trail? I wiped our tracks on the ground and through the brush and did my best with scent, but air is still the most difficult for me to manipulate.

Kyle nodded. They’re on the main trail. None of them noticed any tracks, and two in particular seem to be looking, although just in general I think, not because they believe anyone was watching them. They have one “sniffer.” He’s always testing the air. They’re coming up on the ravine. It’s deep, but not very wide. Not like the gorge we jumped. Mostly rock. There’s a large tree down, and they’ve stopped to maneuver it into position to use it as a bridge.

Jonas relayed the information to Ryland and Kaden. They couldn’t hear Kyle, and Jonas didn’t necessarily want to try to explain how Kyle was getting the information.

Again, there was that brief silence before Ryland spoke. These men are enhanced, and they didn’t jump the ravine? How wide is the ravine?

Sixteen feet, Jonas relayed. The second-in-command leapt thirty feet vertical. Kyle saw him do it.

When they let the tree trunk go, it smashed to pieces and fell into the ravine. Crawley just took off down into the ravine. He didn’t even try to jump it or find another bridge, Kyle said. The others have followed him down. The steep incline hasn’t deterred them or slowed them by much.

Do you recognize any of the soldiers? Kaden asked.

Jonas relayed the question to Kyle, who replied in the negative. None of them, Kaden. But we have to go. We need to find a place to intercept them. Once we have more information, we’ll get it to you, but prepare for war. If you decide it’s too dangerous to send Daniel and Lily away, stash them somewhere safe.

Keep the team alive, Jonas, Ryland ordered.

Always.

9

The morning sun beamed down through the forest canopy, streaking rays to spotlight the dense fog that rolled along the ground in grayish-lavender clouds. The fog crept along the forest floor, barely covering the vegetation in some places and in others rising up to form thick banks of fog that were impossible to see through.

Crawley glanced back at the men running behind him. This side of the mountain was steep with ravines and thick, nearly impenetrable brush in places. They were keeping to a game trail that was barely discernible. The attack was orchestrated purposely from this side of the mountain because it would be unexpected. His men were stoic as he expected, even in the nasty and unexpected fog from hell.

The trail veered slightly and he glanced at his GPS again. He’d studied the maps given to him and this didn’t feel right. He kept directions in his head easily. He never got lost, not in deserts or jungles. The GPS wasn’t making sense. The trail continued to wind through a grove of trees and then was in the open for a moment. He felt a little better about that. When he pulled up the maps in his mind, he recalled a small clearing. Nothing was ever the same on the ground.

Dex moved up to join him, matching his pace so they ran side by side. “Something’s off, Crawley. Really off. I think we should stop again and let Hound and Bear do their thing. We’ve got time.”

Crawley shook his head. “I got word from Shaker. They’re dropping the troops in earlier than we thought. They’ll be here in four days, and we still don’t have information on either of the two fortresses. Shaker says to get it for him. You know what that means. Four days isn’t much time. We’ve got to get Lily and her kid out of the line of fire. Just sneak and peek, like we were ordered at the other fortress, and get the hell out.”

Crawley knew he sounded grim, but he felt that way. Initially, he’d been sure they could get in and out of both fortresses, no problem. Surveil the fortresses, stage some sort of diversion so they could pop in and grab Lily and her kid, plus kill a few easy targets and disappear. But that initial confidence had evaporated, and his opinion of this mission had done a complete one-eighty. An inexplicable sense of dread had come over him. Like Dex, he had a bad feeling something was off; he just didn’t know what it was.

They were out of the small clearing and back on the narrow, twisting path that went through the trees. The game trail was so narrow, it forced Dex to drop behind Crawley. The damn fog was rolling around like it was boiling up from a witch’s cauldron, tumbling over and over like high waves at sea. There was no wind. Not even a breeze to move the dark lavender-tinged fog around.