Operation: Marauder

Chapter 14

Zoey watched Rowan and his men turn back down the hallway. He didn't say a word. She had seen something in his eyes, a fire that burned bright and fiercely; it seemed to make his eyes appear more purple. She thought he might make Sergeant Timber go away, like Mave had, and finally talk to her. But then he yanked his gaze from her and walked away.

That was the last time she gave a guy a second chance. Or a third. She didn't care what was going on, it didn't give Rowan the right to ignore her. She thought he cared about her, that they had shared a connection. Nope. She was an idiot, apparently desperate for any man to love her.

Angry at him and herself, she marched back to Jack's room. The shower was on when she arrived, so instead of being furious in the shower, she plopped down on the couch and fumed at the ceiling.

Jack came out of the bathroom minutes later, slipping into his military grade jacket as he headed for the door. Zoey sat up, wanting to talk to him, but he waved her off. "I have to go. The boys have something urgent they want to talk about."

"But you've been working all day!"

Hand on the doorknob, he stopped to look at her. "This is important, Zoe. I don't have the luxury of time off."

He left her feeling more like a child he was stuck to babysit than his sister who needed protection. She hated it. Hated this place and everyone in it. She wasn't a child. She could take care of herself. Had been up until she decided to trust Rowan. It had been a mistake to come here, but now she doubted she could escape.

She paced around the room, biding her time, really, because what else was she going to do? Jump out the window? There was no window. Overpower Timber? It had been years since she had practiced martial arts; he could probably stop her in five seconds flat. She could read her novels, pretend to be in a fantasy land with dragons, charming princes, and kick ass heroines. But she had been stupid and selected romance novels, at the time in the mood to be swept away into a man's arms, even if he was a fantasy man.

So what did she settle with? What she did best. Dog-fighting alien ships threatening to invade Earth in Jack's simulator; to really out her in the mood, she had the good old "Master of Puppets" album rocking in her ears.

Until she was interrupted by a knock on her door.

Frowning, she got up from the chair, realised she had been sitting in it for quite some time when her back cracked, and stretched her arms over her head. When she bent down to stretch her legs, she saw the piece of paper that had been slipped under her door.

Want to try out the real thing? the note read. Follow these instructions exactly.

The instructions were detailed directions through the base with landmarks, times to stop and wait for a patrol, and when the shift change for Timber was supposed to take place.

In exactly three minutes.

It wasn't enough time for her to decide if she wanted to blindly trust this person, but what did she have to lose? If she got caught, she could say she got lost looking for the cafeteria, and Timber hadn't been outside when she left.

Three minutes passed. Time to decide.

Holding the note close, she peeked outside the room. Timber was gone. The instructions said to follow the hallway and take the first right, so she shut the door softly behind her and went. There, she had to wait a minute while a patrol passed by. She plastered herself against the wall, willing herself to be invisible. There was no need. The two soldiers went on without looking back at her. She checked the note for the next set of directions and followed them word for word.