The Pyramid Chronicles: Fortuna Guard (#2) [MOVING JUNE 30]

Chapter Two: Missing Pieces

Ash couldn't help but roll his eyes as Eric and Adam disappeared into the jetchopper cockpit. They couldn't possibly think they'd be able to fly the thing, did they?

Then again, even Seth could fly the choppers. And it only took the new recruits a quick lesson to manage basic flight. Scorpion engineers had designed the aircraft to be as easy as possible for altered to take on missions.

Ash let his wall collapse. As the water flooded the roof beneath him, he stormed forward to the chopper doorway. He grabbed the side and pulled himself up. "What the hell do you think you're—?"

The engine came to life with a roar. Ash lunged forward and summoned a whip of water but stopped himself from swinging it at Eric and Adam. Eric whirled around and eyed the water hovering in the air.

"Careful," Eric said. "Wouldn't want to break the controls, right?"

Ash narrowed his eyes. "You're going to crash and burn, Eric."

"I think I've got the gist of it. Nice of you to label everything." Eric grabbed a lever and pushed it up. The chopper lifted a few inches off the ground.

Ash's mind raced. He couldn't fight them in the air, or he'd risk the chopper crashing and killing them all.

And an altered was more valuable than a chopper.

With a swipe of his hand, Ash let the water dissipate. The chopper rose a couple feet. Now or never. He turned and jumped out the open doorway, landed back on the hotel roof, and broke into a run toward the door.

This was a massive inconvenience, but not the end of the world. Ash only hoped the two didn't crash the chopper on their way out.

It was annoyingly impressive how much they'd improved over the past month, especially without a more experienced altered to train them. And Claudia still expressed interest in recruiting Eric, so maybe hoping he'd eventually join Scorpion wasn't that crazy of a thing to do.

Ash raced down the hotel stairs, listening for any signs of fighting. Wren would have called him if she'd found the altered. But she also would have called if Sam and Veronica had gotten away with the girl first. Either no one had found her yet, or there was a fight happening somewhere.

Finally, distant shouts reached Ash's ears. He left the stairwell and raced across the second floor. At the other end of the building, he rounded a corner. His jaw clenched. Damn it.

Wren was climbing to her feet in the middle of the hallway, and the soldiers Ash had sent to help lay around her, metal limps snapped at odd angles. Only two were in good enough condition to stand next to Wren.

"Where did they go?" Ash demanded.

Wren jutted a thumb toward an exit behind her, at the end of the hall. "I found the geokinetic girl, but they took her from me and went out that exit. Veronica kept me on the ground and Sam smashed up the soldiers on the way out."

"What are you waiting for?" Ash ran past her. "It's not over yet! Come on!"

Wren groaned. "Is it really worth it for one girl?"

"I said come on!"

Ash threw the open the exit door and emerged on a landing. Stairs led down to the sidewalk below, where Sam and Veronica stood next to a pale, brown-haired girl. All three stared up at the jetchopper that now hovered above the street.

Unbelievable. They were going to get away again. And Claudia was going to be pissed.

In the past month, Scorpion had snagged quite a few recruits before the Fortuna Guard could get to them first. But Claudia was still furious every time they lost one. After watching them succeed effortlessly for so many years, she refused to understand why they failed so often against other altered.