Summer Lane

STATE OF ALLIANCE

For my favorite sailor, Grandpa Pete.

Anchors aweigh and go Navy!

Prologue

One more minute. That was all.

The figure sat on the corner of the rooftop, watching the clouds drift over the pure white dome of the Capitol Building. Wrapped in a scarf, gloves and black attire, it was impossible to tell whether or not it was a man or a woman. Just a shadowy figure crouched down, waiting. Nervous anxiety pooled in the pit of the person’s stomach, building and then subsiding as the countdown narrowed.

Twenty, nineteen, eighteen, seventeen…

Trembling hands curled around the black optics sitting on the corner of the roof. Stay steady, the person kept thinking. This is an important job.

Ten, nine, eight, seven…

Sweat dripped down the shadow’s forehead.

Three, two, one…

A flash of light. Something streaked through the air. It came fast. Too fast for the human eye to catch. But to the person crouched on the roof, it was obviously there. They had been waiting for it. They recognized it.

The Capitol Building — so pristine and beautiful against the deep blue sky — shattered. It happened in slow motion at first. A gaping, jagged hole opened in the dome, coughing up billows of dust and falling shards of metal and concrete. There was a massive groan, as if the Capitol itself was lamenting the wound that had just been inflicted on its exterior.

Half of the dome collapsed inward, crushing those inside. A wall of black smoke swept over the boundaries of Capitol Park, consuming everything in its path with dark, stifling darkness. There was screaming. Sirens. Cries of agony.

And on the rooftop, the figure was already gone.

Chapter One

Sacramento, California

This can’t be happening.

Black, acrid smoke clogs my nostrils and burns my throat. I stumble backward and trip on a step. I hit the ground, rolling onto my hands and knees, deafened by the blast.

I grab the railing on the front steps of the Capitol Building. I glimpse the blue sky through the smoke swirling above my head. Which way is up? Which way is down?

I sprint down the steps and head to the corner of Capitol Park. Here, the smoke is not so thick. Fire engines and ambulances bounce to a stop, a sea of flashing lights and rescue workers made up of citizens, militiamen and the National Guard.

Chris Young is standing here, six foot four, dressed in black, shouting orders.

“This is our Emergency Command Post!” he yells above the chaos, making a fist. “Incoming rescue crews come through here. Where are my scouts?” A group of militiamen raise their hands. Two of them, I recognize. Uriah True — tall, dark-haired and handsome. And Alexander Ramos, all business. Not the least bit rattled. “Good,” Chris says. “Assemble a Hasty Rescue unit and assess the perimeter.”

“Yes, sir,” Alexander replies.

He gathers a team and they move toward the Capitol Building, becoming blurry images in the smoke. Chris continues to shout orders, directing the incoming militiamen. I push my way through the crowd and grab his arm.

I tell him, “The dome didn’t totally collapse.”

Chris nods, electric green eyes sparking with determination. With anger.

“Yes,” he says.

“We can’t save everyone,” I reply, yelling above the sound of the screaming sirens and shouts of the rescue workers and soldiers. “We’ve got to prioritize!”

Chris is barely containing his fury. He points to a sergeant.

“You,” he says. “Get some help and scout for a secondary. There could be more explosives timed to kill rescue workers.” He turns. “Assess your survivors,” he commands, the next rescue team coming to the Emergency Command Post — the ECP. They are lined up, waiting for the scouts to come back with information on the damage to the building. “Category A stays where they are. Category C can wait. Category Bs are your priority. Move out, let’s go.”

Category A are survivors that are already dead. Category Bs are those that need immediate help — those that have a better chance of survival. Those survivors are rescued first. Category C are the survivors that are not in immediate danger.

Without this structure, half of our rescue teams would be dragging dead bodies out of the burning building while living survivors screamed for help. It keeps the crews organized and prioritized.

From the smoke, Alexander Ramos and Uriah True emerge with their scouting unit, reporting back to Chris. “The structure is shaky,” Alexander announces. “There are a lot of people buried in there.”

“We’re going to need more manpower,” Chris replies. “Rescue teams, you’ve got a green light. Go!”

I turn to a team of militiamen and begin giving orders, passing along Chris’s commands, stressing the importance of following the triage structure in the hours that are to come. “Get your heads straight, ladies and gentlemen,” I shout. “Go in, find your category B survivors and get them out. We do this quickly and efficiently. Let’s move!”

I keep talking, passing along commands and orders to every rescue team that comes through the ECP. The hot, choking smoke makes dialogue a challenge. Perspiration coats the back of my neck. My hair sticks to my forehead. I am in the zone, barking orders and overseeing these rescue teams. It is the only thing that keeps me focused. Keeps me from panicking.

Because my father was inside the Capitol Building when it collapsed.

Where do I begin? Last December, an electromagnetic pulse destroyed modern society as we know it. The United States of America collapsed. A foreign invasion force called Omega rolled over our borders, massacred millions of people, and attempted a total takeover. So far, we’ve been able to push them back… but only so far.

Who am I? Cassidy Hart. Militia member. Sniper. Commander.

And now, Senator, representing the new government of California.

In the last year, I’ve had to do things that I never thought a twenty year-old woman would have to do. Fight a war. Live on a battlefield. Watch my friends and comrades die brutal deaths. Rescue the love of my life, Chris Young, from the horror of an Omega prison.

Nothing has been easy.

California was invaded by a million-man Chinese foot army. Chris and I — and our militias — joined the National Guard to help push them out of the Central Valley. We succeeded and temporarily halted Omega’s advance into our homeland. But they will be back, and there are a million more troops where those came from. Omega is made up of an alliance of countries. So far, we know that Russia, China, North Korea and possibly Syria are involved.

After I rescued Chris from a POW prison, we came back to Sacramento, California with our militia to rejoin the National Guard and meet with other militia and military commanders in the state to decide whether or not California would join something called the Pacific Northwest Alliance. The Alliance is comprised of Mexico, Canada, Oregon and Washington. A united western front against the Omega invasion on the Pacific coast.

I was nominated to be Senator Pro Tem. It will be my job to represent California in our negotiations with the Alliance. I am nervous that I won’t be able to measure up to the expectations of those that are counting on me to be a good spokesperson for the state. After all, I’m only twenty. But I have had more combat experience than most.

War does that, I guess.

There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered. What dark power is ultimately behind Omega? How many troops are we really facing? Will the United States military ever fully recover from this invasion? Will we be able to rebuild our cities if we are successful in this war?

Will we survive?

Will I survive?

Everything has changed. There is no electricity, no commonplace technology. No computers, no cellphones. No grocery stores or hospitals. No laws or officers to enforce them. What we once knew no longer exists. It’s a brand new world. A world of day-to-day survival and warfare. A world of kill or be killed. It’s brutal. It’s eons different than the lifestyle that I used to live, huddled in a corner of Culver City, California, surfing the Internet for employment opportunities.

I am a fighter, now. Nothing stands in my way.

I am capable. I am fast. I am smart.

But I am not invincible. All of the skill and knowledge in the world can end with a single bullet — a fact that I can personally attest to. I have seen many people die in the field. It’s what has hardened me. Changed me. Seeing death shifts your focus in a way that nothing else can.

My love for my father, for Chris Young, and for my friends is what keeps me going. Their lives and their love is what I fight for.

This is a final stand. If we lose to Omega, the world will no longer be the same. The United States of America will cease to exist. We will be enslaved or terminated. So many innocents have already died.

I will do everything I can to help win this war.

And if that means that I must sacrifice my life, so be it.

There is nothing else I would rather die for.

It has been two hours. Two grueling, horrifying hours. Most of the smoke and dust have settled, and the ravaged dome of the Capitol Building is fully visible for the world to see. The fire is out, thanks to the rescue crews, and dozens of Category B survivors are being loaded into waiting trucks, Humvees and retrofitted jeeps. It’s makeshift, but the rescue effort is effective. We are more organized than I anticipated.

It gives me hope amidst the massive devastation.

I have been helping the rescue crews take survivors out of the building. I have crawled under concrete blocks and heavy support beams. My left arm is bloody, scraped up. A rescue team member cleaned and wrapped it for me.

“Cassidy,” Uriah says, approaching me. His black hair is covered with white ash. He looks as exhausted as I feel.

Was I really giving a speech in the Senate Chambers just a few hours ago?

“What’s up?” I ask, bending at the waist, resting my hands on my knees.

“Our Cat Bs are all taken care of,” he says. “We’re moving onto the next phase.”

“Okay,” I nod. “I’m ready.”

I stand up, sucking in a deep breath. Uriah briefly squeezes my shoulder.

“We will survive this,” he says softly.

I don’t smile. I can’t. I just squeeze his shoulder in return and make my way toward the medical vehicles. The survivors here have a myriad of injuries. Open wounds, missing appendages, burned eyes, scorched skin and crushed bones. Many of them are unconscious, but some of them are alive, screaming. It chills me to the bone, standing there, looking at the living hell that Omega has created here.

“You okay?”

A strong hand takes my arm. I look at Chris. He is smeared with dirt and soot, but, as always, he is calm and steady. Like a rock.

“Yeah,” I say. “You?”

“Fine.” He pauses and takes a look at the Capitol Building. “This wasn’t a bomb from the inside of the building,” he tells me. “This was an exterior attack.”

“So somebody bombed us from the air?”

“My guess is that it was a missile.”

“Oh, my god.” I run a hand through my hair. “What do we do, Chris?”

“We keep working on getting these survivors out, and we discuss our theories afterward,” he replies. “You’re doing great, Cassie.” He presses a quick kiss into my hair, and then he’s gone. Again.

I sigh.

I move toward a group of rescue workers hauling in the last of the Category B survivors. Some of them are maimed beyond recognition. The sweetish scent of burnt flesh almost makes me gag, but I have been doing this sort of thing long enough that I know how to hold it in.

They lay two men on a stretcher. One of them is conscious. The other one is unmoving, and I watch as somebody nods sadly, and they pull a tarp over his body. Dead.

I am about to turn away and head back into the Capitol Building when a familiar figure catches my eye. Angela Wright, a militia commander. The mother of Vera Wright, a Lieutenant in my militia.

Angela is lying on her back on the cement. Her jacket is soaked in blood, and so is her face, but I recognize her unmistakable coif of silver white hair. Shocked to see her like this, I walk toward her and kneel down. Tears come to my eyes. While I am barely on civil terms with Vera, Angela is a good woman who has my respect. She has always stood up for me.

“Angela?” I say, touching her hands.

She blinks up at me, coughing. Blood dribbles out the side of her mouth, and I realize that her chest has been ripped open. She must have been crushed when the dome collapsed.

She is dying.

“Angela, I’m so sorry,” I breathe.

She knows who I am. I can see the recognition on her face, even beneath the blood. She barely squeezes my fingers and spits up more blood.

“Cassidy,” she coughs. “I… you have to…”

“Angela, it’s going to be okay,” I lie. “You’re going to be fine.”

“I’m going to… die,” she heaves.

“Listen… Chris… he’s good… no matter what you’re told. He’s… good.”

“I know, I know,” I say, leaning over her. Confused, slightly, by her words. But I say nothing. People rush around me, and for a brief moments, I shut it out.

“You… hang on… to that,” she sighs. She grips my hand a little tighter, taking a shuddering breath. It must be painful. At least one of her lungs has been punctured. “Don’t… give up.” The whisper of a smile spreads across her lips. “You’ll be… a great senator. And Vera… tell her… I’m sorry.”

“I’ll tell her,” I promise, my voice breaking.

“Keep up the good fight,” Angela says.

Her final words are clear and firm. She gives one last, long breath, and then she is gone. Her expression becomes slack and her eyes glaze over. I stifle a sob and gently close her eyes, folding Angela’s hands on her stomach.

We have lost so much already.

Why do we keep losing more?

I am still wiping the tears from my eyes when a second explosion hits the east side of the Capitol Building. It is just like the first, filling the air with debris, ripping the building to shreds. Black smoke rolls over the park — again — and I am knocked off my feet by the shockwave of the detonation. Chunks of concrete crash to the ground. I kneel by Angela’s still, pale body, covering her and the back of my neck with my hands.

I unroll the scarf tied around my arm and tighten it around my mouth as the dust cloud hits. My heart slams against my ribcage, adrenaline keeping the terror from overcoming my senses.

A second attack, I think. How many more are coming? Where are our defenses?

I take a moment to orient myself. The smoke, the shockwave, the searing pain in my ears from the deafening explosion… I concentrate on a single point, focus my breathing, and crawl forward. Shards of metal, nails and bits of concrete sail through the air, so I keep my head down. The flashing lights of the rescue vehicles are dim. I blindly crawl toward a parked ambulance and huddle behind it, protected from the full blunt force of the tide of debris.

When the worst passes, I stand up.

Come on, keep moving. You can do this, Cassidy.

This time, the rescue teams are already in place and they are moving forward. “Chris!” I yell into the radio on my belt. “Chris! Alpha One?”

Radio silence.

Wherever Chris is, he cannot answer me.

I forget the radio and assess my surroundings. I realize two things: First, another attack could happen at any moment, in any place. Second, we have been completely taken by surprise.

Thank God our rescue units are good at what they do.

Thank God we have Chris Young on our side.

I find the ECP at the edge of the park, locating Chris. I run to him, yelling above the noise, “What do we do? If they’re sending cruise missiles, how can we defend ourselves?”

Chris’s hair is hanging in greasy strands as he takes my arm.

“The Air Force will take care of it,” he assures me, but there is a level of doubt in his voice. “We need to check the building again for survivors.”

“The building was evacuated by the time the second missile hit.”

“We have to check anyway.”

I look to the sky, terrified that I am going to see a cruise missile heading toward us, detonating right on top of our heads.

What could we really do to stop it? Nothing.

“Let’s go!” Chris tells the rescue units assembling once again at the ECP. “You know the drill. We’ve got a job to do.”

War never ends, I think.

I say, “I haven’t found my father yet!”

Chris squeezes my shoulder.

“We will,” he promises.

But I know better. You can’t make promises during war.

You can only give people hope.

Chapter Two

By the time evening settles in, we have finished rescuing the survivors from the Capitol Building. I am standing several blocks away from what’s left, studying the damage from a distance. Chris is right. This was an attack from the outside. We were hit with something from beyond the city.

How could Omega launch a missile without us even detecting it?

“Now, what have we got here?”

The voice is familiar. I meet Manny’s gaze. Tall, tanned, wild-haired Manny. His flight cap is sticking out of the pocket of his leather jacket. His wrinkled face is dusted with ash and dirt, like me.

“Hey,” I say.

“Did you find your father?” he asks.

I lower my head.

“No.”

The full impact of those words sears a hole in my heart. If my father is dead… then the last remnants of my family is truly gone. Forever. This realization is jarring, like a punch in the gut. I inhale sharply and look at the sky.

Please. Don’t be dead. Don’t do this to me.

I do not want to deal with the reality of this situation right now. The possibility of me finally snapping — of cracking under pressure — is very real. Manny folds his arms across his chest, following my line of sight. “Lots of men and women aren’t identified yet,” he says. “He’s probably in the medical center right now.”

“Don’t get your hopes up.”

“It’s not my hopes that need to be upped.” He raises an eyebrow. “Cassidy, my girl. What’s on your mind?”

“What makes you think something’s on my mind?”

He gives me a look. I roll my eyes.

“Fine,” I say. “I was just thinking… if this was a cruise missile, like Chris said, then that means it was probably launched from the coast. Omega has been shipping troops in from the coastline, right?”

“True, true,” Manny agrees. “And…?”

“So what’s keeping them from destroying the entire city?”

“Retaliation from the Alliance, probably,” Manny shrugs. “And let’s not forget, more often than not, where you find a cruise missile, you find a laser designator.”

“Which means…?”

“Somebody was probably pointing a laser at the dome before it hit. The missile will follow the laser’s path to the T. Of course, there are cruise missiles with internal GPS systems built into the weapon itself. But it’d be interesting to find out if someone was helping the missile along.”

“You’re saying somebody inside the city guided the missile here?”

Manny lifts his palms up.

“We’ve had traitors before. Wouldn’t surprise me a bit.” He sits down on the curb. I join him, looking down the long, lonely boulevard of Capitol Mall, my gaze drifting to the yellow bridge crossing the Sacramento River. The fortifications have been doubled in the last few hours.

“Manny?” I say.

He waits for me to speak. I place both hands on the cement and take a deep breath. “Angela’s dead,” I say.

“I know.”

“It was hard, seeing her die like that.” I shake my head. “People keep dying. Good people. It’s not fair.”

“Life is not a game that’s ever been played fairly,” Manny replies. “Life’s a brutal match of tug of war. Some of the nicest people get trampled by the team with the biggest players.”

I blink back tears. I don’t want to talk about death anymore.

“Vera told me that Angela Wright knew Chris before the Collapse,” I continue. “She told me that Chris was married.”

Manny doesn’t react. He just waits.

“Chris said it’s true,” I go on, biting my lip. “I don’t know what to think.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t be thinking about it at all,” Manny replies. “Our past lives are exactly that: the past. Dwelling on what was isn’t a wise thing to do, my girl. It’ll distract from what’s important now.”

“But our pasts shape our present,” I argue. “Manny, what if Chris is still legally married to this woman? It would change everything.”

“It would change nothing.”

Manny places his hand on my knee. A firm, steady grip.

“What you need to do, my girl, is talk to Chris about this,” he advises. “But I think you and I could both agree that the attack today, taking care of the wounded and making sure your father are okay are our priorities.” He pauses. “And let’s not forget that you’re our new Senator in the negotiations with the Alliance.” He tips his head, mock-bowing. “An honor to be in your presence, madam.”

I lightly slap his arm.

“Ha,” I say. And then I sigh. “You’re right.”

“Of course I’m right. I’m always right.” He winks. “Mostly.”

“This could change everything I know about him,” I whisper.

Manny shakes his head slowly.

“No,” he says. “It only changes what you think you know. Chris will always be a good man.”

Chris is good. That’s what Angela told me before she died.

“Thanks for listening,” I tell Manny.

Manny nods understandingly. He puts an arm around my shoulders and gives me a quick squeeze. “I suggest you get over to the medical center and look for your father,” he says. “You won’t help anybody sitting on this curb.”

I stand up.

“You have such a way of inspiring people.”

“I know. It’s in my blood.” He musses his long gray hair. “Now go on.”

I step off the curb and walk away, putting distance between me and the eccentric pilot sitting on the sidewalk.

“How come you’re allowed to sit on the curb and do nothing?” I tease.

“Because I’m older and wiser than you are,” Manny replies. “But mostly because I’m older and my back hurts.” He waves me off. “Goodnight, my girl.”

I shove my hands in my pockets.

“Goodnight, Manny,” I say.

The Medical Center is about a mile away from the Capitol Building. It is at least seven stories high, with white walls and cement. Old Sutter General Hospital. I hitch a ride with the militia on the way over, parting ways in the parking lot. When I approach the front entrance, there are hundreds of people. Rescue workers, militiamen and women, National Guard patrols and civilian volunteers who are working at the hospital.

I go in the main entrance. The posted guards wave me through. Everything is linoleum flooring and bright, generator-powered lights. Everything in the city is running on backup generators, fueled by diesel and gasoline, precious commodities in a time like this. The acidic stench of blood and burnt flesh are heavy in the air. It is a scent that is all too familiar to me. One that I wish I would never have to smell again.

“Excuse me,” I tell a middle-age woman in black scrubs. “I’m Commander Hart. I’m looking for someone who was inside the Capitol Building. Where should I start?”

“Senator Hart?” the woman says, blinking. “It’s an honor, Ma’am.” She grabs my hand, smiling hopefully. “It’s a thrill to see you here.”

“Yes, well…” I clear my throat. “Thanks, but where can I start looking for survivors?”

“Second level,” she replies. “Take the stairs. The elevators are crammed with workers and wounded.”

“Thank you.”

“Senator?” She lets go of my hand. “Thank you.”

I force a weak smile, then walk away, unsure of how to respond. I find the stairwell and climb to the second story. The hospital hallway is jammed with stretchers and doctors. I haven’t seen this much activity inside a medical facility since before the EMP. I walk into the first room. It looks like it was a former physical therapy ward, but it has been cleared of all equipment. It is filled with dozens of makeshift beds and patients. State of the art medical supplies have been salvaged here, and everything is being used on these survivors. Doctors and nurses are buzzing through the rooms, checking victims, administering shots of morphine, antibiotics and more.

I go from bed to bed, scanning for my father’s face. My hopes become smaller and smaller as I look around. What if he’s not here? What if he was killed instantly in the explosion, like so many others? I wouldn’t even know if his body had been taken out with the dead.

Please, God, I pray. After everything we’ve been through… don’t let him die.

I go through four more rooms, checking the faces of each individual survivor on the beds. I do not recognize my father, and as this reality sinks in, I withdraw to the corner of the fifth room and stand. I cross my arms, blinking back angry, hurt tears.

Not like this, I think. He wasn’t meant to die anonymously.

I went through so much to find my father again after the EMP… it can’t end like this. It simply can’t.

The moans of the wounded in this ward is too much for me to handle right now, so I slip into the hall, walking through the sea of nurses and emergency workers. I feel suffocated, trapped. I push through the door at the end of the hall and enter the cold, concrete stairwell. I climb downstairs, hit the first floor, and leave the hospital. By the time I get outside, I am crying. Tears run down my face. I cannot hide them, nor do I want to.

I round the edge of the hospital and find a secluded bench, away from the commotion. I sit down and bury my face in my hands, sobbing. Desperation and fear sinks in. If my father is not found, then it will be assumed that he is dead, and that will be the end of it. His life — his work, his legacy, and his connection to me — will be severed in an instant.

My hatred for Omega burns brighter.

What will I do if he’s dead? I think. Where will I go?

The answer is simple: I will go where I am needed. That is what I have done in the past, and it’s what I should do now.

I wipe my tears away, blinking at the world with blurred vision.

I steady my breathing, slipping back into battle mode.

Into keep-it-together mode.

I stand up, and I leave the hospital.

I am walking toward the hotel where the militia officers have been quartered. The sun has set. I zip my jacket up, pausing at the corner of the block. The hotel is glimmering against the night sky, buzzing with activity at the bottom level. Where there used to be valet parking, there are armored vehicles. It’s now a fortress, surrounded by concrete T walls and armed guards manning every entry point.

By the time I reach the hotel lobby, I realize how completely exhausted I am. My steps are slow and labored. The front desk and receptionist areas are being manned by National Guardsmen.

I head to the elevator, knowing that if I don’t sleep for at least a couple of hours, I won’t be any good to anyone. The elevator arrives, and I step inside. I reach the fifteenth floor. The doors open, and for the first time in hours, there is silence. I breathe a sigh of relief and walk to my hotel room. I close the door, lock it, and lean against it. I take a deep breath and slide down to the floor, sitting on the carpet, closing my eyes.

The city streets gleam through the windows with the lights of backup generators and patrol vehicles making their rounds. The rumble of engines and buzz of voices is a soft hum through the hotel window. How do we know Omega won’t attack again? Why did they stop with just two cruise missiles? Are they playing a game with us? Cat and mouse? The game of intimidation? If it was meant to scare the crap out of us, it certainly worked.

But I don’t think that’s their game. I believe their aim is to remove our leaders, kill us off one by one, and destroy the strength of the resistance to the Omega invasion.

Am I afraid? Yes. Will I stop fighting? Never.

I collapse on the bed, laying my cheek against the scratchy bedspread. This is luxury living, compared to what I have been doing for the last year. But I don’t care about that. As I fall into an exhausted sleep, my thoughts are on my father.

Omega has taken him away from me again.

Chapter Three

When I open my eyes, I forget where I am. Am I home? Why isn’t my alarm clock going off? Has Dad left for work already? Did I oversleep?

I sit straight up, confused and disoriented.

Wait. I swing my legs around and place my boots on the floor.

I’m not home. Dad is MIA. The Capitol Building was bombed. I am a Commander and a Senator. I have responsibilities.

I stand up and open the closet. I pull out my spare uniform — basically a carbon copy of the torn and dirty combat fatigues and jacket I’m wearing — and head to the bathroom for a quick rinse.

While I am getting ready, I reflect on everything that has happened in the last twenty-four hours.

My friend Angela Wright is dead. The Capitol Building has been destroyed. Dozens of officers have been wounded. Dad is missing in action. And Chris… well, that’s not important, now.

I get dressed, comb the tangles out of my curly red hair and look at myself in the mirror.

“I can get through this,” I say aloud.

I leave the hotel room and slam the door shut behind me. I’m not just tired. I’m angry. Omega has crossed a line. Killing Angela, potentially killing my father… I have been fighting all this time for my friends and family. For the people that I care about. If they are gone, what am I supposed to do?

Fight harder, a little voice says. Hit them back twice as hard.

I step inside the elevator, exiting at the lobby. Morning sunlight is streaming through the glass windows, casting a heavenly glow on an otherwise gritty scene. Soldiers move around, rotating watches and patrols, acting with purpose and focus. I scan the crowds for familiar faces. There is nobody here that I recognize.

I reach the lobby doors and step outside, coming face to face with a young woman in a National Guard uniform. Her dark, honeyed skin blends with black hair and eyes. I stop dead in my tracks, staring for a minute, and then a smile spreads across my face.

“Sophia!”

I throw my arms around her neck and embrace her. Sophia Rodriguez. The friend who helped me survive an Omega POW slave labor camp. The friend who joined the National Guard and fought against Omega with me… and also the friend who claimed Chris was a traitor and refused to help me rescue him from Omega’s POW Holding Center in Los Angeles.

My shock and surprise at seeing her here overcomes the anger I felt the last time we were in the same room.

I pull away, noting Sophia’s pained expression.

“It’s good to see you,” I say, my smile fading.

She clears her throat.

“You survived,” she replies. There is no smile on her face.

“Yes. Operation Angel Pursuit was a success. We brought Chris back, Sophia. We did it!”

She shakes her head, not meeting my gaze.

“I was talking about the Capitol Building, actually,” she says.

“Oh.” I blink. “Yeah, I was outside when the missile hit.”

“Missile?”

“Yeah. Chris says it was probably a cruise missile.” I shrug. “He’s right. Nobody could have gotten inside the Capitol and planted a bomb that big. There’s way too much security.”

“Well. Chris would know. He always knows everything,” Sophia replies, and there is a note of sarcasm in her voice. “That’s why you rescued him from Los Angeles.”

“Sophia, what is with you?” I demand. “Chris has never done anything to you, and neither have I.”

She doesn’t answer.

So I switch tactics.

“Alexander Ramos is alive,” I say. “He was in Los Angeles. He’s here, now.”

She stares at me, and for a brief moment, I see a flash of the old Sophia. The spunky, optimistic young woman who helped me survive enslavement and countless guerilla warfare shootouts. And then she says,

“You’re lying.”

“Am I? Go to Headquarters and see for yourself.”

“But that’s impossible,” she replies, and this time, her tone is unsteady. “Alexander went MIA weeks ago.”

“Well, he’s with us now.”

“I would have known about this.”

“No. You wouldn’t.” I fold my arms. “Because you chose Colonel Rivera and the National Guard over Operation Angel Pursuit.” I shrug. “That was your choice, and now I’m just telling you what you missed.”

“If you’re lying, Cassidy—”

“—I’ve never lied to you before,” I frown. “I’ve never done anything to hurt you, Sophia.”

Her lower lip trembles.

“I need to get to Headquarters,” she mutters.

She pushes past me, leaving me alone on the sidewalk, staring after her. Dumbfounded by her behavior — and the shock of seeing her here — I barely remember how to move my legs and keep walking.

Sophia will heal, I tell myself. She just needs time. The stress of warfare just affects people in different ways.

The Headquarters Building has been moved from the Capitol to the Sacramento Convention Center. It is several blocks away, but walking in the cool morning air does a lot to clear my head.

By the time I reach the Convention Center, I am alert and centered. The long, gray building is lined with glass walls and doors. A security perimeter has been established around the block. I spot several familiar figures near the front entrance, an ornate box office with the words, Sacramento Convention Center above the entryway. An empty water fountain is sitting on the concrete, pathetic and lonely.

“Uriah,” I say.

He is clean, dark hair combed back against olive skin. He assesses me as I approach, sadness in his coal-colored eyes. “Cassidy,” he replies. “You’re okay.” I raise an eyebrow. “Where is everyone?”

Alexander Ramos and tall, blonde Derek are not here. “Alexander is inside,” Uriah explains. “Derek is at the hospital.”

“Is he hurt?” I ask, alarmed.

“Just nicked. A support beam fell on him yesterday. His arm might be broken.” He sighs. “Another one bites the dust.”

“His arm is broken,” I say. “He’s not dead. Thank God.”

“Vera is inside the Convention Center,” Uriah continues. “She’s… different. Her mother’s death. It affected her more than she would like to admit, I think.”

“Understandable,” I say.

Angela Wright is dead. Yet another one of us dies at Omega’s hands.

It infuriates me.

“They’re waiting for you inside,” Uriah says, standing straighter.

“Me?”

“You’re a Senator now, remember?” A slight smile spreads across his lips.

“How could I forget?” I gesture for him to follow me. We walk together toward the entrance of the Convention Center, entering through the doors. A huge, carpeted foyer and escalators that actually work can be found here. Doors line the walls, each one an entrance to a different floor.

“Where were you last night, Cassidy?” Uriah whispers.

“At the hospital.”

“Why?”

“I was looking for my Dad.” I shake my head. “I’d rather not talk about my father right now. I need to be calm.”

“Okay,” Uriah continues. “Let me rephrase that: why weren’t you with Chris at Headquarters last night? The officers were meeting. We needed you.”

“I had an obligation to make sure my father was alive,” I say.

Uriah closes his mouth. He understands. He always does.

“Well…” he pauses. “Is he?”

“I don’t know,” I say. “He wasn’t at the hospital. He’s still missing in action.”

He says nothing. There is a gathering of National Guardsmen in uniform at the end of the foyer. We follow them into a huge room — gray floors, gray walls, and huge skylights above our heads.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you.” Andrew jumps up from a chair. He is tall and lean, short dark hair cropped into a military buzz. He is a good man. Our so-called “tech guy.” One of the most valuable people in my platoon.

“Andrew,” I say. “What’s going on here?”

“They need you,” he replies.

“Why does everyone keep saying that?”

“Because it’s true,” Uriah points out.

I look to the front of the room. I recognize Robert Lockwood — the Pro Tem Speaker of the House. I’m glad to see that he survived the bombing. Manny is seated on a chair, watching the gathering of officers with an annoyed expression on his face.

Good old Manny. Completely anti-political.

Chris is standing with his arms folded across his broad, muscular chest, hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, his jaw taut. He is talking with Vera Wright. She looks upset, her usually pale cheeks colored with splotches of red. Chris shakes his head and gestures to the door. She fists her hands at her sides and marches away, in our direction.

“Vera, what’s wrong?” I ask her.

She doesn’t answer. She glares at me as she exits the room, never pausing to speak to anyone else. Chris looks up and catches my eye. He nods slightly and turns back to the rest of the officers.

I walk over. And then I see why Chris is so tense. Colonel Rivera — a big, blundering man with a cigar wedged between his teeth — is speaking. This is the man who denied the militias backup during a fight with Omega. This is the man who refused to send a rescue unit into Los Angeles to rescue Chris when he was captured by Omega. This is the man who will hate me for the rest of my life for disobeying his ridiculous orders to abandon Chris and deny me a rescue mission into Los Angeles, Operation Angel Pursuit.

This man is no friend of mine.

“Senator Hart,” he sneers as I enter the group. “Where have you been?”

I don’t answer his question.

Instead, I say, “Commander Young.” I nod respectfully at the love of my life, then face Robert Lockwood. He is a tall man with dark brown hair and a deep, baritone voice. “Speaker,” I say. “What’s the situation?”

“The situation,” Manny interrupts, “is that Omega launched a cruise missile from a ship just outside of the San Francisco Bay, hit the Capitol Building twice, and injured several hundred people — and killed dozens. But we already know this. The question, boys and girls, is what we’re going to do about it.”

“We double our defenses and hit back,” Colonel Rivera booms. He looks directly at me as he speaks. “Unless the Senator objects.”

I glance at Chris.

“The Senator is still a Commander, Colonel,” Chris slings back. “Don’t forget that.”

Chris’s glare is lethal, and the Colonel shuts up.

“We don’t have the resources to attack a ship in the San Francisco Bay from here,” I say, stating the obvious. “But the Alliance does. If California is going to survive, we need to join the Alliance as soon as possible.”

“Negotiations are beginning in two days,” Robert says.

“Where?”

“Monterey, California.”

“The coastline?”

Chris replies, “Monterey is heavily fortified with elements of the United States Naval Forces. Omega wouldn’t try to breach the steel ring around the bay area.”

“Omega will try anything,” Uriah points out.

“Where will the negotiations be?” I ask. “Because if Omega finds out, they could just send another cruise missile to wipe out all of the representatives from the Alliance.”

“The Naval Post Graduate School,” Chris answers. “It will be safe, trust me.”

I trust Chris. But I don’t discount Omega’s ability to screw everything up.

“How will I get there?” I press.

“By train.”

“We have a railroad?”

“It’s safer than traveling by plane right now, with Omega’s air activity getting more dangerous,” Andrew says. “We can get you there with a security detail in less than two days. You’ll be there in time for the meeting.”

Surprisingly, knowing that I am being sent on a desperate mission to save California from the devastation of Omega’s invasion doesn’t frighten me. I am no longer afraid. I am simply angry that Omega has managed to do this much damage, and I am ready to help put a final stop to it.

“You mentioned a security detail,” I say.

“Yes. When Omega finds out that we’re joining the Alliance — if they haven’t found out already — they may attempt to stop the Negotiations,” Robert answers. “And they will do that in any way they can.”

By killing the representative: Me.

“Has anyone here given any thought to the fact that there’s another traitor amongst us?” Manny interjects. “Have you told everyone what you found, Colonel Rivera?

The Colonel takes his cigar out of his mouth.

“Optics. Laser optics on the roof of a building a couple of blocks away from the Capitol,” he replies. “Someone was designating a laser at the dome.”

Ah. Manny was right.

“Are there any clues to the person’s identity?” Andrew asks.

“Nothing. Only whoever did it was most likely a good shot.” Colonel Rivera looks at me again. “You never know who you can trust in days like these.”

Please. I’m not the enemy here, Colonel.

“We’ve had traitors before,” I say, “and we’ll have them until this war is over. We have to move forward and make sure that something like this can never happen again. The first step in that strategy is getting me to Monterey so that I can negotiate with the Alliance.”

There is a pause before Chris replies,

“I agree. Our number one priority is taking care of the survivors from the bombing and getting Senator Hart to Monterey.”

“The Senator will need to leave immediately,” Robert says.

“I’m ready to go,” I answer.

“I volunteer for security detail for Senator Hart,” Andrew volunteers.

“So do I,” Uriah agrees.

“And I’ll fly overhead security,” Manny offers. “I’ll keep you updated while you’re on board the train.”

“Thank you,” I smile.

“I’ll accompany the Senator,” Chris says. “The Naval Academy and I go back a long way. I’ll be able to help.”

Robert replies, “It will be dangerous for both of you to go. You’ll make for a bigger target.”

“It’s a necessary risk,” Chris says. “I know Monterey better than anyone here.”

Robert seems to accept this. “Get the security detail ready,” he answers. “Tell the National Guard to fire up the railroad. We’ve got two days to get to Monterey Bay. And God willing, we will successfully join the Alliance before it’s too late.”

Before Omega destroys us all.

Chapter Four

When I was a child, I rode on a train at a theme park. I don’t remember the name of the park or how old I was. I just remember the train, and I remember sitting in my father’s lap as the wind tossed my hair and billows of smoke from the locomotive filled the sky.

It was magical, riding a train. It’s a memory that is ingrained in my heart. One of the few happy moments in my life before the EMP. Before everything was destroyed.

I’m standing at the window in my hotel room, overlooking the street below. The National Guard is getting the train ready — the train that will take me to Monterey Bay… and to the Alliance’s negotiation table. I’m not sure I’m cut out for this kind of thing. I’m beginning to wish that I hadn’t been nominated as a Senator.

I turn away from the window and sit down at the table. There is an old tourist booklet near the lamp. I flip it open and look through the pictures. Bright, colored photographs of families enjoying “quality time” together as they visit the city. Old Town Sacramento, Capitol Mall, The Stanford Mansion, The Governor’s Mansion… such beautiful places. And, for the time being, we have managed to preserve the city. Unlike Los Angeles, which is an empty husk — the aftereffect of a chemical weapon Omega unleashed on the populace.

I close the book.

There is an abrupt knock on the hotel door. I straighten my spine and stand up, snapping out of my reverie. I open the door. And there is Sophia. She looks uncomfortable. I am surprised — I had no idea that she was working with our militia again. When did this happen?

“Cassidy,” she says. “They’re ready for you.”

I nod slowly.

“Okay,” I reply. I grab my backpack and leave the room. I don’t look back.

Goodbye, Sacramento. Hello, Alliance.

I close the door. Sophia is standing there, tense, and I wonder why they sent her to fetch me. Surely that could have found someone else.

“Cassidy,” she says.

I meet her gaze. The hallway is quiet, empty.

“I…” she begins, then trails off. “Come on.”

“Sophia, we need to talk about this,” I say.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” She pushes the call button for the elevator. “What happened, happened. We can’t change that now.”

“I just want us to be friends again.” I offer a hopeful smile.

The elevator doors slide open, and Sophia steps inside. I do, too. The doors close, and there is a heavy silence between us. She never responds, she just stares at the wall. She moves her lips a couple of times, like she’s thinking about speaking — but she doesn’t. The elevator doors open.

“Commander Young and your security detail is waiting for you at the station,” she says. “There will be a convoy to take you there, and from that point, you’re under the protection of the militias.”

I tap the gun holstered on my hip.

We reach the bottom floor.

The doors open once again.

She nods and takes off into the lobby. I shake my head and wonder how in the world things could have gotten so messed up with Sophia. My friend. My partner.

I guess people can only take so much tragedy. Sophia’s family was living in New York at the time of the EMP, and they were killed when the city was nuked. Sophia fell in love with Alexander Ramos, who went MIA. She also loved Jeff Young — Chris’s younger brother — and he was killed in action. Sophia has had her fair share of disappointment and despair.

So have I.

Maybe I just handle it differently. I haven’t gotten to the point of no return.

Yet.

I step outside into the loading area. There are Humvees and up-armored Suburbans here. I see Vera Wright, platinum blonde hair pulled into a tight ponytail. She is waiting by an idling Humvee. I approach her, the roar of engines and chatter among the troops creating a curtain of noise.

“Vera,” I say. “I’m sorry about your mother.”

She stares at me, blue eyes vacant.

“Welcome to war,” she states coldly.

“I was with her when she died,” I continue. “She told me to tell you that she was sorry.”

Vera looks surprised — but only for a moment. She sets her jaw and opens the car door. “Everyone’s waiting for you at the station,” she says.

I exhale. Vera and I have never been friends, but the pain of losing someone that you love is not to be taken lightly. I don’t necessarily like Vera… but I understand what she is going through. It is the same thing that I went through when I saw Jeff Young die. I get a flash of my father’s face in the Capitol Building, just before it collapsed. I shudder, feeling sick. Feeling suffocated.

DO NOT THINK ABOUT HIM.

NOT UNTIL THIS IS OVER.

I inhale. In, out. In, out. I shut it down.

I briefly squeeze Vera’s shoulder and get into the front seat of the Humvee. It is a familiar spot for me. I close the door and Vera gets into the backseat. The driver door opens and Uriah climbs behind the wheel.

He looks at me, serious.

“Are you ready for this?” he asks.

“It’s just another level in the game,” I shrug.

He smiles faintly.

“That’s one way of putting it,” he comments. He hands me a stack of papers, written by hand. It is a mission roster. I skim through the names of the people on my security detail… Chris, Uriah, Sophia, Andrew… but I do not see Alexander Ramos.

“Alexander isn’t on this mission,” I state.

“Apparently not.” Uriah replies. Then, quietly,

“That won’t be easy for Sophia.”

“Welcome to war,” I say, echoing Vera’s words.

“Where is the station from here?”

“Just a couple of miles,” Uriah answers.

“Where’s Manny?”

“Ready on the flight line.” He smiles. “He’s dependable like that.”

Good old Manny.

I trace my finger along the door handle as we wait for the all-clear signal to move out. We roll out in convoy formation. Ever since the missile hit the Capitol Building, it has been painfully obvious that Omega has the ability to breach our security whenever they want. I don’t know what’s stopping Omega from leveling this entire city to the ground. The knowledge that they might strike again is frightening.

“Your security detail will be on the train with you,” Uriah explains. “If Omega finds out that we’re sending a legitimate senator to negotiate California into the Alliance, they’ll try to kill you.”

“They’ve tried to kill me plenty of times before,” I comment.

“This is different. You’ll be a bigger target.”

“That makes me feel so much better.” I bite my lip, thinking of the repercussions this will have on the rest of my life. I’m already known to them as a Militia Commander… but this is a different level of fame, so to speak. With fame comes a higher spot for me on Omega’s kill list. And people like Harry Lydell will be all too happy to try to take me down.

“Don’t worry,” Uriah says, seeing the look on my face. “You’re going to be fine.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about,” I reply.

And that’s the truth.

I’d rather be killed than lose this war.

I’m worried about our survival, not mine.

We wind through boulevards that have been secured and blockaded. I watch the buildings roll by, empty edifices now turned into part of the massive National Guard and militia fortifications. The boulevard dips under a huge underpass and we pop up by the Sacramento Courthouse, a large skyscraper with blue windows. To the left is a large, antique brick building.

The sign out front reads, Amtrak, and beside it, a new sign has been erected:

UNITED STATES MILITARY

TRANSPORTATION CENTER

We pull up through the parking lot — a maze of barricades and militia patrols. We stop at the front. Taxicabs used to sit on the curb here and wait for passengers who needed rides to their hotels. Now it is a military loading zone.

I open the door. Uriah and Vera exit with me. I cast Vera a glance, gauging her mood. She is as steely as ever.

I walk inside the station. The ceilings are huge, and every footstep and word echoes in the hollow chamber. Rows of old, wooden benches line the room. A huge mural of the breaking of the ground for the first transcontinental railroad is painted across the far wall.

I see Chris with militia members in the far corner of the station. He sees me enter and says a quick few words to the men around him, then walks toward me.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” he asks, gesturing to the vaulted ceiling.

“Yes,” I agree.

“Hey, boss,” Uriah says.

“Lieutenant True,” Chris nods. “Lieutenant Wright.”

Vera doesn’t respond. Both Uriah and Vera head toward the other side of the building, leaving me alone with Chris.

“What was she arguing with you about this morning?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

Chris shakes his head.

“It doesn’t matter right now,” he says.

“It does to me.”

“Cassie…” He sighs.

“Is she being a pain?” I demand. “Because I’ll tell her to knock it off if she is.”

“Her mother just died. Cut her some slack,” Chris answers.

“I know that. I held Angela’s hand while she was bleeding out on the sidewalk.” I take a sharp breath, realizing that my words came out harsher than I had originally intended. “I’m sorry. I’m just… I’m a little nervous, I guess. This whole negotiations thing has me wound tight.”

“You’re not the only one,” Chris says.

The thought occurs to me then that I should ask him right now about his wife. His former wife? His current wife? Whatever she is or was, I need to know the truth. Manny told me not to worry about it, but…

“I couldn’t find my father,” I say instead.

Chris’s expression conveys shock.

“Did you search the whole hospital?” he asks.

“Every room,” I answer. “Every bed. I didn’t see him. He’s not listed as a patient.”

For the first time in a very long time, Chris looks genuinely sad.

“I’m sorry, Cassie,” he says. “I’m so sorry.”

I blink back tears and stare at the ground.

“It is what it is,” I state, hollow.

“If I could fix it—”

“—But you can’t.” I swallow a lump in my throat.

“Nobody can.”

I tighten the strap of my backpack and nod toward Uriah and Vera, standing in the corner of the train station. Andrew is waiting there as well, and Sophia has popped up, too.

“Let’s go,” I say.

Chris says nothing. He merely nods and studies my face. So I stay in front of him. I don’t want him to see the hot tears burning in my eyes. Not today. I’m the Senator now, and I have to maintain the appearance of being totally calm and in control.

To me, that is irony at its cruelest.

The back of the building opens to a sprawling parking lot. Across the lot there are loading platforms for the Amtrak trains, but the directional signs have been removed, replaced with National Guard instructions and warnings. There are old Amtrak cars on the track, painted muted shades of brown and green, blending with the earth. There are anti-aircraft guns mounted to a flatbed car and men with machine guns and RPGs.

“This locomotive survived the EMP?” I ask.

“Not entirely,” Andrew explains. “Most diesel engines are hybrids — a combination of electric and diesel — and this one wasn’t any different. The National Guard retrofitted some of the locomotives to make them entirely diesel. This is one of them.”

The engine is a dull brown with dark green patches. By the time we reach the loading dock, the engine is roaring to life and the National Guard is busy assigning troops to the train.

“We’re in the middle car,” Chris says. “Your security detail will be spread out throughout the train.”

I nod, understanding.

My security detail is made up of Uriah, Andrew, Chris, Vera and almost two dozen other militiamen and women who have volunteered for this mission. It’s intense, knowing that all of the people here are risking their lives for this mission– but I know it’s not for me. It’s for the safekeeping of California as a whole. For the survival of our country.

If I think of it like that, I’ll be able to get through this, I tell myself.

The doors on the train open. I step up inside the train. The flooring and the walls are gray. The tables are gray. The seats are gray. In fact, everything looks gray.

“I don’t like the windows,” Vera comments.

The windows have been reduced to small gun ports with steel plates welded over them. The roofs of the train cars have been covered with sandbags and armed men. There is a rail car ahead on the track loaded with guns and soldiers. I peek through the small slit of a window and search the skies for Manny’s biplane. I can’t see him, but he is up there somewhere. Nearby.

“We’ll keep her away from the windows,” Chris replies.

Her, of course, means me.

“It’s all we have right now,” Chris offers, as if reading my mind.

I sigh. “Where should I sit?”

“In the corner.” Chris cracks a wry grin. There is a large table in the corner of the car, away from the windows. “Try to stay seated the whole time, if you can. The less movement there is, the less chance of anyone being able to see where you’re sitting.” He’s right.

I sit in the far seat in the corner, surrounded by more sandbags. There are papers and documents here, notebooks and pencils. Maps, outlines and mission rosters. I pick up a pencil and scan the items. I need to assemble my strategy for the negotiations, and the long train ride to Monterey is as good of a time as any.

“I want to get familiar with the layout of the train,” Andrew announces.

“You can do a recon,” Chris concedes. “Take the others with you.”

Andrew, Vera and Uriah slip out of the car, checking the other parts of the train. I stare at the emergency map on the wall, getting familiar without moving from my seat.

“I know what’s bothering you,” Chris begins as soon as we are alone. “And you need to understand that what happened in my past has nothing to do with you.”

I don’t remove my gaze from the wall. Hearing Chris talk about his past like it’s a secret, inaccessible thing makes me sick to my stomach. I’ve told him everything about me… he’s told me almost nothing about himself. I only know what I have seen.

“It has everything to do with me,” I say softly, “because I’m a part of you now.”

At this, Chris’s expression changes. He’s always so good at maintaining a poker face — never letting his true emotions shine through. But for a brief, surprising moment, he looks taken aback.

Completely surprised.

“Hey boss,” Uriah says, popping back into the car. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

Chris composes himself immediately, and the flash of emotion is gone.

“Sure,” he replies. “Coming.”

I fold my hands in my lap, clenching my jaw. After a good half an hour of getting ready, the doors on the train car slide shut and the core members of my security detail return to the train car that I am sitting in.

I wonder, briefly, what the outcome of this mission will be.

Will we fail? Will we survive?

Will I do my job correctly?

Go with your gut, common sense tells me. Plan your goals and objectives just like you’re planning a mission. Just like Operation Angel Pursuit. Know the game, and you can win. Be strategic. Be tactical. Use that pure instinct that you have on the battlefield.

Pure instinct, eh? I’d be way more comfortable staked out on a roof with a rifle. It’s what I have become used to. It’s what has become routine. But this? This is a whole new ballgame.

A lot rides on me. I know that.

I just hope I can live up to California’s expectations.

Chapter Five

“How do you think the world will end, Dad?” I ask, sitting on the stool next to the kitchen counter. Dad is opening a jar of chili, halfway listening to my chatter. “Daaaaad. Did you hear me?”

“Yes, Cassie, I heard you.” Dad opens the can and smiles. “I don’t know.”

“I know.”

“Really? Care to share?”

I push back my curly red hair and lean over the counter. All ten years of my wisdom have accumulated to come up with this theory. “Aliens,” I say.

Dad busts up laughing.

“What?” I demand. “It could happen!”

Dad shakes his head.

“It could,” he replies. “But probably not. The end of the world will likely be significantly less dramatic than an alien invasion.”

“Then how do you think it will end?”

Dad musses my hair.

“I hope it never does, kiddo.”

The first hour of the train ride is slow. In order to leave the station, we have to cross a trestle that stretches across the Sacramento River. It’s huge, old and rusty. I don’t like the looks of it. We roll along. The train sways right and left, enough to make you sick — if you’re sensitive to that sort of thing.

“Cassidy?”

The connecting doors between the cars opens. Uriah steps inside. He immediately gauges the sitting positions of Chris and myself, then raises an eyebrow. I give him a look.

“Um… I thought you might want to meet someone,” Uriah says, turning his attention completely to me. “This is Elle Costas. She has the bomb dog.”

This is a real asset for the security detail — or any military team — to have a dog that can detect explosives or poison. Dogs in warzones overseas and with local law enforcement agencies in the states have saved the lives of countless people by locating lethal explosives and caches of weapons buried in roadways and ambush points.

I sit up straight. A sleek, beautiful German Shepherd walks into the car. He is calm, trained to maintain control even in a closed, moving train car. His eyes are dark and I immediately take a liking to him. He’s wearing a black vest.

His handler is holding him by a thick leash and harness. It’s a girl. She’s young, probably in her teens. It’s hard to tell her age, exactly. Glistening black hair is cut short. Her eyes are clear and blue. There is a scar on her left cheek. A black shirt is tucked into black combat pants and boots.

“Senator Hart,” she says softly, nodding.

“Hello,” I reply. “You’re Elle?”

“Yes.”

“I like that name.” I gesture toward the dog. “What’s your dog’s name?”

“Bravo,” she says.

“How did you get into dog handling? You seem… young.”

Elle glances at Chris, who is studying her closely.

“I am young,” she replies. “I found this dog. Actually, he found me. Didn’t know he was a bomb dog at first, but the militias in the Central Valley did. They taught me how to work with him. He’s a rarity, anymore, Senator.”

I watch the dog closely. He’s a beautiful creature, really.

“This is Commander Chris Young,” I say, nodding toward Chris. “You’ve already met Uriah and the rest of the Lieutenants?”

Elle replies, “Yes.” She tilts her head toward Chris. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

Chris crosses his arms.

“How old is your dog?” he asks.

Elle shrugs. “I’m guessing three or four,” she answers.

“Interesting that he’s taken a liking to you.” Chris stands up. At six feet, four inches, he is a giant compared to the tiny Elle. She stares at him. “Take care of your dog, and he’ll take care of you.”

Chris nods at Uriah. “I’ll be back. Stay with the senator.”

He exits the train car.

“Sit down, Elle,” I say, pointing to the seat across from my table. “Tell me about yourself.”

I briefly remove my gaze from the myriad of plans and rosters on the table in front of me, focusing on the young, dark haired girl. Elle slowly takes a seat, her dog alert and calm beside her.

“Where are you from, Elle?”

A girl this young should not be alone, working with the militia and the National Guard. But here she is. I don’t ask the obvious: Where is your family? She, like me, has probably lost hers.

“Hollywood,” she replies.

“Really? I’m from Culver City,” I answer. “I was just there a couple of weeks ago,” I reply.

“In Hollywood?”

“Well, downtown Los Angeles. Toluca Lake.” I look at Uriah. “We were both there. On a mission.”

“Is there anything left?” Elle leans forward. She looks desperate. “Is the Klan still in control?”

“The Klan?”

“When I was living in Hollywood, after the EMP and the chemical weapons, most of Los Angeles was overrun by a gang called the Klan. They’re pretty brutal.” She pauses. “I was at a ranch in the Tehachapi Mountains. My Uncle’s place, after the EMP. I went back afterwards… it was empty. He was gone. Everything I thought I knew was changed. That fast.” Elle bites her lip, the ghost of bad memories dancing in her eyes.

I know that look. I’ve been there.

“Well, Mexico has been pushing Omega back in San Diego,” I say. “So maybe that’s helped get rid of the Klan. We didn’t see any sign of a gang that big when we were in Los Angeles.”

“Good. I hope they’re all gone.” Elle scratches Bravo behind the ears. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Senator. You’re famous. So is Commander Young and the Freedom Fighters.” She smiles. “A lot of people like you. They look up to you. You give them hope.”

Strong words from a young girl.

“Hope is important,” she continues, meeting my gaze.

Yes, I think. It is.

Elle nods, as if deliberately imprinting her observation in my mind.

“Uriah, I’m going into the next car,” I say.

Uriah rises and follows me. It’s odd to be protected constantly. I’m used to leading men into battle, not hiding behind them. Not that I’m actually hiding, but I feel as if I’ve been taken out of my element.

This is not what I’m used to.

I leave Elle and Bravo behind, stepping through the connecting doors. Walking on the train is similar to walking on a ship. It throws my balance off just enough so that I have to watch where I’m stepping.

Chris is standing in the center of the car, arms crossed over his broad chest. Andrew is there, as well, and so are Vera and Sophia.

“What’s up?” I ask, approaching them.

“We were just talking about Monterey,” Andrew replies. “When we get there, we’re going to try to keep you inside the Naval Academy as much as possible. It’s the safest location for you.”

“What about everyone else?” I say.

“We’ll be there with you,” Uriah replies, coming up behind me.

“And what about the other representatives?”

“They’ll be staying in the same place you are.”

I contemplate this.

“How far do we take the train?” I ask at last.

“San Jose,” Andrew answers. “And then we’ll take the convoy to Monterey.”

I nod. It sounds reasonable.

It should take just a couple of hours for the train to reach San Jose. The convoy is what will take a long time.

“Anything else I need to know before we get off the train?” I ask, looking directly at Chris. He doesn’t meet my gaze. Instead he looks out the window, a detached expression on his face.

“No,” he replies. “That’s everything.”

“Okay, then.” I turn and leave the car, heading back into the previous passenger level. Elle is still sitting there with Bravo. She looks curiously calm — happy, almost. If she’s anything like I was a few months ago, she’s just happy to be in the presence of the United States Military.

I step into the car just as the rumbling roar of an engine rips through the air. Even above the sound of the locomotive and the dramatic creak of the train cars moving on the track, I recognize the sound. It is the deafening rhythm of helicopter blades beating the air, slicing through the sky. I run to the window and crane my head to see through the small slits. I see the chopper — it is black with a single white O on the side of the door. Omega, of course.

“We’ve got company!” I yell.

But Chris already knows this. Everyone does.

Elle is on her feet, moving toward the window with Bravo. There is fear in her eyes. Her jaw goes taut. Her expression becomes stony.

“We’ve got this,” I tell her, finding strength in encouraging her.

She looks at me.

“Yes, ma’am,” she says.

The machine gun mounts on top of the roof and the plethora of soldiers should deter Omega from doing too much damage. But that is wishful thinking on my part, because I see the chopper move downward, directly parallel to the length of the train. The jarring, deafening roar of automatic weapons fire rains down on the roof of the train. It is extremely loud — like being trapped inside a tin can that’s being tossed down a hill. My ears ring and the train cars shake.

The National Guard units on top of the train return fire. The ground rumbles with each round. The chopper passes over our head with a climactic roar, pulling back into the air. Our deterrent fire drills into the side of their aircraft. I can see the bullet holes from here.

I grip the wall, worried. How many more of those choppers are out there?

The firing continues until the chopper pulls back, veering off course and disappearing into the sky until it’s nothing but a black speck in the distance. I release a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding and look back at Elle. Her expression is still closed, but her grip on Bravo’s harness is vise-like.

“We’re okay,” I tell her. “We’ve got more firepower than one chopper does.”

Elle says nothing. She steps back from the window. I turn around and look at Chris. He shakes his head.

I know what he is thinking.

There is no such thing as safe. Not anymore.

We reach San Jose. It’s similar to the train station in Sacramento. The station is tall, made of brick, and fronted with outdoor passenger platforms. When the train slows down, screeching and rumbling to a stop in a cloud of steam, everyone gets ready. My security detail gathers around me. A human shield. Guns up and ready to go. I feel trapped inside the wall. I would rather be on the outside, protecting someone else.

We move through the open doors and step onto the loading platform. The air is crisp and clean. A line of Humvees and retrofitted armored vehicles are waiting, rumbling. I am brought to an armored Suburban in the center of the lineup. The door opens, I climb in, and Uriah and Chris follow. The rest of the security detail spreads out among the cars. I see Elle.

“You,” I say. “Come with me.”

She nods. “Yes, ma’am.”

Sophia and Vera are in another vehicle.

The Suburban is air-conditioned. It smells of worn leather, sweat and gunpowder. The driver is a National Guardsman wearing dark glasses. Chris sits up front, next to him. Uriah is in the seat beside me. I am sitting in the car in uniform, armored up, gun in my lap. A Senator I may be, but I am still a Commander, and this is still a battlefield.

I look at Elle. She is quiet and observational as she sits next to her dog. The door slams shut. I ghost a small smile in her direction.

“You doing okay, Elle?” I ask.

“Yes, Senator,” she says.

“Call me Commander,” I reply.

“Yes, Commander.” Elle’s lips curve upward and she looks out the window.

The convoy rolls out.

As we pull out of the parking lot, onto the battle-scarred road, I am overcome with a profound sense of premonition. I try to shake the negative vibe, but it lingers as we hit Highway 101, southbound toward Monterey.

I want to talk to Chris about it, but now is not the time. I am on my own with this one.

The convoy keeps rolling, maintaining a steady travel time.

“Trouble ahead, Commander,” the driver says.

I take my gaze from the side window and direct it through the windshield. We are not in the front of the convoy, so I can’t see what is right in front of us. I crane my neck to see ahead of us, and I glimpse movement down the highway.

Great.

The radio crackles with activity.

“We’ve got possible rogue elements on the road ahead,” comes the report. It’s Vera. “We’re driving through, no stopping.”

Our driver tightens his grip on the wheel. Uriah releases the bolt on his rifle and tucks the stock into his shoulder. I hold my weapon, too, nervous tension tightening my muscles, sharpening my instincts.

“Omega?” Chris says into the radio.

“No. Rogue militia, maybe. Can’t tell. There’s only two people.”

“Two people?” Chris slams the radio speaker down. “Don’t stop,” he tells the driver. “No matter what. Keep going.”

We come to a small hill. The freeway curves over the knoll, giving me just enough of a view of the road before us so I can glimpse the enemy in our path. There are two pickup trucks. There is one on each side of the freeway. Two men wearing dark clothing and strips of black cloth wrapped around their heads are standing just in sight to the side of the freeway.

“Oh, my god,” I say. “It’s an ambush.”

Chris grabs the radio. “Get us out of here fast,” he says.

The convoy suddenly lurches forward. Usually a convoy moves along at pretty slow speeds — about fifteen to twenty miles per hour — but we are now speeding along, scenery flashing by the window. I brace myself.

There are six vehicles ahead of us in the lineup. I have been cleverly hidden in a dark suburban that looks like three other transports in this convoy. The first two vehicles to pass between the two pickup trucks explode.

“They’ve got triggers in the road!” Elle screams. “Stop the car!!”

The Humvee in front erupts, a fiery mass hurtling down the road. Our driver veers out of the lineup, throwing us all into the door of the Suburban, slamming on the brakes. The vehicle nearly tips sideways as he spins us into a U-turn. Another vehicle is hit.

“They’ve booby-trapped the road!” Elle yells. “Back up, back up!”

We’re trying. Most of the convoy has spun around, putting distance between the detonations and us. But honestly… there could be explosives hidden anywhere in the road, right?

We back away. Our driver spins the wheels on the Suburban, leaving black marks on the cement. My heart races as I grasp the door handle to keep from being flung to the other side of the vehicle. Elle looks at me, then at Chris.

“We’ve got to go around,” she says.

“The entire highway should have been secure,” Chris replies. “We had people check.” He looks at me. “We can’t deviate from our route. It will take too long, and there are too many risks.”

I lock gazes with Chris.

“We’ve got to push through,” I say. “We don’t have a choice.”

I look out the window. I can see Manny’s biplane flying watch over the convoy. “Get Manny on the radio,” I say. “He’s got a better visual on what’s going on down here than we do.”

Elle snaps her eyes up.

“Do you want me to check the road with Bravo?” she says. “That’s what we do. We can find the bomb triggers for you.”

I shake my head.

“Not yet. Let’s see what we’re dealing with first.”

Chris grabs the radio and contacts Manny. The connection is rife with static and the background noise of the wind whipping around the biplane.

“Manny, give me a visual,” Chris commands.

“You’ve got about a dozen unfriendly rogues on the east side of the freeway,” Manny replies, his voice crackling. “I don’t see any more than that. You’ve got more than enough manpower to take them out, but it’s the road I’m worried about. There could be more bombs.”

“We’ve already lost two vehicles,” I mutter.

Uriah shakes his head. “We can’t stop. They’ll fire on us. We have to take them out, then let Elle check the road with Bravo.”

“We’re not doing that,” I state. “We can’t stop for anything. That’s what they want us to do. They’re trying to take us all out at the same time.” I grab the radio and open my map. “We can take this side road through the coastal foothills and connect with the highway later on. It will take longer, but it will be away from the main drag. We can avoid this mess.”

“Manny,” I continue. “I’ve got a map in my hands and I see a way out of this. We’re going to backtrack to Dinosaur Point Road and take it through the hills. We can hook back up with the highway. I want you to fly ahead and keep us posted on what you see. If you see anything — even the wind blow through the trees — I want to know about it.”

“You got it, Commander,” Manny replies. “Hang tight and let me lead the way.”

I spin the map around and place my finger on a little road that winds through the hills, joining back up later with Highway 156 and Highway 101 — both viable routes into Monterey.

“We have no choice,” I say again.

Chris nods. He picks up the radio and informs the rest of the convoy of our decision. There is no argument. We will take the back roads. Manny will inform us of any activity further down the road.

My heart sinks into my stomach at the realization that at least two vehicles were blown up. At least a dozen people were killed. Vera and Sophia are okay, but there are already casualties. And we haven’t even started negotiations yet.

Chapter Six

“There she is,” Uriah mutters, whistling softly. “Beautiful.”

The ocean. It is a clear, sunny day. The white sand dunes are sparkling against the backdrop of the vast, blue Pacific Ocean. I haven’t been to the seashore in at least a year — and certainly not since the EMP and Omega invasion.

“Wow,” I breathe. “It’s stunning.”

The highway here is wide and empty, parallel to the beach. In the distance, the Monterey Peninsula is clearly visible, jutting into the harbor like the tip of a half moon. Old beachside hotels line the freeway. There are military checkpoints at regular intervals. We have spent hours navigating through the back roads, connecting with Highway 156 and southbound Highway 101, avoiding ambushes and potential problem areas. Manny has been flying in front of our convoy all day, keeping us updated on ground activity.

I touch Chris’s knee and force a smile. A bit of the tension between us dissipates. With each near-death experience, we are reminded that even if we are having difficulties in our relationship — we are glad to be alive, and we are still a team. It is an encouragement to me, even during these hard times.

I lean close to the window, almost pressing my nose against the glass as we enter the city limits. The convoy rumbles to the right-hand side of the road and we take an exit onto Del Monte. We roll through the city.

There is a jogging trail and pretty, overgrown parks. We pass three more checkpoints. There are National Guardsmen and militiamen and women everywhere, in the parks, near the buildings. The streetlights have been replaced with military intersections, with National Guard troops directing traffic, waving us through to what’s called the “staging area” for our convoy.

The road curves, and a long wrought-iron fence becomes visible. A thrill of excitement and raw anxiety shoots through me.

This is where the next chapter begins.

The convoy rolls around the curve in the road. We come to a gated entrance. The compound is surrounded with thick, green trees. I see an on-base military store and gas station, a post-office with glass windows and a large manmade pond swarming with noisy geese.

The convoy halts. We pass another checkpoint at the front guardhouse. National Guardsmen check the vehicles and ask for the identification of our senior officers. One of the younger soldiers makes eye contact with me through the window. He smiles slightly before turning away.

“They’re happy you’re here,” Uriah mutters.

“They’re happy we’re here,” I correct.

Uriah gives me a strange look and the convoy moves forward. The gate opens and we roll into a large parking lot, heavily shrouded with more of the same trees — sweet smelling coastal pines, palms and oaks. The convoy stops. The engines shut off.

It’s time to go.

Uriah holds the door open for me as I climb outside, into the clear sunlight. The air is clean. I smell the salty spray of the ocean in the wind.

Chris takes my arm and turns me toward him.

“No matter what happens,” he says quietly, “we’re a team.”

I open my mouth to reply, but I am interrupted by a harsh, “Chris Young?”

Chris removes his hand from my arm and we both look at a man approaching us. He’s tall — almost as tall as Chris — with blonde hair. His hair is so blonde, it’s nearly white. He’s dressed in dark fatigues and a blue shirt that says: SEALS.

“Devin?” Chris says.

The man stops and salutes us. Chris nods respectfully, following military protocol. And then a huge, sincere smile spreads across his face. “Devin! Son of a gun!”

He embraces the man and they start laughing. I trade a blank glance with Uriah. He shrugs. Vera, Andrew, Sophia and Elle come around the back of the convoy just in time to glimpse the two men hugging.

“I can’t believe you’re here, man,” the guy says.

“Yeah, neither can I,” Chris replies. He takes a step back and gestures to me. “Devin, this is Cassidy Hart. Cassie, this is Devin May. We went through SEAL training together.”

“Oh, back in the old days, huh?” I quip.

“Hello, gorgeous,” Devin says, taking my hand. “You always knew how to pick up a lady, Chris.” He mock kisses my hand. “This is your team?” He nods at Uriah and the rest of the crew.

“Most of them,” Chris answers.

“Well, welcome to the Naval Postgraduate School of Monterey,” Devin answers. He looks powerful, strong and… loud. “I’m Lieutenant May, but you can call me Devin, Senator.” He winks at me. “We’re going to keep you safe and sound here for the Negotiations with the Pacific Northwest Alliance, and lucky for you, I’ve been assigned to make sure you find your way around the compound without getting lost.”

“I’ve spent too much time here to get lost,” Chris replies, rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, well, I didn’t tell my superior officer that,” Devin says. “It’s a need-to-know kind of thing, don’t you think?”

I laugh.

“Okay, let’s move this party inside,” Devin says, serious. “The building’s interior is a lot safer than out here.”

“This entire city is secure,” Sophia suddenly says. “Who’s going to hurt us inside the Naval compound?”

Devin gives her a look.

“You should know better, soldier,” he answers.

I can’t disagree with that.

As we turn away from the convoy, I notice for the first time the beautiful white barrack buildings on each side of us. It’s structured like a fortress. Two buildings on each side, and in the middle, a central edifice with white, Spanish-style pillars and steps. I like it already.

“How many times have you been here?” I ask Chris.

His mood seems to have temporarily lifted, thanks to Devin’s appearance.

“Many times,” he replies.

“That’s an understatement,” Devin cuts in. “Chris and I used to hang out at Cannery Row at night. Remember, man? Those were the days.”

Chris doesn’t answer.

“Man, when they told me you’d be coming here, I couldn’t believe it was you,” Devin continues. “I mean, I’d heard about your work with the militias, but I didn’t think I’d see you again. Since the invasion, the world’s been cut down. I never see people I used to know anymore.”

Tell me about it.

We keep walking through the open courtyard between the barracks.

“This big building in the center here is called Herrmann Hall,” Devin explains, falling into step with me. “It used to be called the Del Monte Hotel before the military took it over, and then it was the on-base lodging center for Navy families and visiting SEALS like me and your boyfriend here.” He shakes his head. “Since everything went down, we’ve been using it as Headquarters in addition to lodging.”

“Are any other representatives here yet?” I ask.

“Yeah, we’ve got the reps from Oregon and Washington here,” Devin replies. “We’re still waiting on Mexico. They should be here by tonight.” Then he asks, “You’re a little young to be a senator, aren’t you? What are you… seventeen? Eighteen?”

Chris starts laughing. It’s a good sound — I’ve missed it.

“She’s twenty, Devin,” he chuckles.

“Huh.” Devin shrugs. “You don’t look it.”

I sigh.

We climb the steps into Herrmann Hall. The door is arched. Inside, I’m struck with the unique, old-fashioned vibe of the building. It’s beautiful. Dark flooring, light walls, and a wooden concierge desk. Navy officers and National Guards are manning the area. Those that are sitting down stand up immediately as Chris and I enter the room.

“As you were,” Chris says, tilting his head.

I am used to this, so I don’t flush with embarrassment like I would have in the past. Devin smirks and walks to the front desk, where a young man in the dark blue camouflage of a Navy uniform greets us.

“Tell the reps from Oregon and Washington that California just arrived,” Devin says. “This way, Senator.”

He gestures to a long, ornate hallway. The Spanish tile and blue carpet running down the center resembles the long walk into a throne room. It makes me a little uneasy.

“I’ll show you where you’ll be staying while you’re here,” Devin tells me. “Both of you. If the representative from Mexico gets here on time, we should be able to hold Negotiations as soon as tonight.”

“How are the Naval forces holding up here?” Chris asks.

“Couldn’t be better at the moment,” Devin replies. “Monterey is among the most secure military strongholds on the west coast. Omega won’t touch it right now. Their forces are concentrated down south.”

We reach the end of the hall. The main stairwell extends above us. I feel like I’m inside a castle. We climb the carpeted stairs to the next level. Up here, the halls are narrower and lit with generator-powered lights. Devin walks to the center of the hall. There are two doors.

“One room for you,” he tells Chris, “and one for the Senator. Your security detail can still do its thing. We’ve secured the entire base. The Navy’s protecting the city on the water, and the National Guard is protecting the city on the ground. You’ll be safe here.”

I raise an eyebrow.

Safe is a relative term, anymore.

“Thank you,” I say.

Devin gives me a key — it’s old fashioned, metal. I slide it into the lock in the door on the right and open it. The room is lovely, Spanish style like the rest of the building. There is a bed, chair, table and a bathroom. Wide windows overlook the huge, open courtyard between the two major halls of the connected buildings.

“We’ll notify you immediately when the representative from Mexico arrives,” Devin promises. “Do you have any questions? Anything you might need?”

I share a brief glance with Chris.

There’s nothing that I need right now, aside from rest.

“We’re set,” Chris replies. “But can I talk to you for a minute, Devin?”

Devin nods.

Andrew, Vera, Sophia, Elle and Bravo leave the room. Chris slips into the outer hall with Devin. I close the door behind them, walking to the window again. The courtyard is full of soldiers and military vehicles. It is a well-organized operation. And, unlike Sacramento, it seems to be impenetrable.

We’ll see how long that lasts.

The meeting room looks as scary as a battlefield. A long, narrow room stretches before me, huge windows covered with thick curtains. A table stretches the length of the space, modern and dark. There are thirty swiveling chairs. Chairs also line the walls of the room. The ceiling is swirling with ornate designs in burnt oranges, deep reds and gold tones. There are armed guards every few feet in the room. A huge American flag is hanging above a large piece of artwork at the opposite end of the table.

I take a deep breath.

Chris is standing behind my shoulder. Uriah, Vera, Andrew, Sophia and Devin May are to my right, remaining in a standing position. The table is relatively empty. Only four people, along with their armed escorts, are here.

I’m wearing black combat fatigues and a jacket, hair pulled tightly into a bun, armed with a handgun and a knife strapped to my hip. I walk to the table, nod at the representatives, and take a seat. There is no friendly banter or introduction. I simply sit down in the chair behind the CALIFORNIA placard.

Chris takes a seat in one of the chairs at the edges of the room. There are plenty of people gathered, listening and watching. Naval commanders, National Guard Officers, security details, armed guardsmen and militia leaders.

“Welcome, Representatives, to the Negotiations.” A tall black woman with short hair is standing at the head of the table. “I am Commander Jen Amal, leader of the California coastal militia group Seahawks. I will be the presiding mediator for these negotiations. Thank you to the Representatives who have made the long and dangerous journey to Monterey to engage in these discussions.”

A beat of silence. A bead of sweat slips down my temple.

I do not show my fear. I keep my hands folded. I am the picture of calm.

Commander Amal gestures to a short, stocky man with a gray beard. His placard says OREGON. “Senator Ken Thrawn, Commander of the Oregon militia group Titans.” He nods respectfully, and I notice that his left hand has been amputated. “Senator Nathaniel Mero, Commander of the Washington militia group Red Fox,” Amal continues, nodding at a younger man with long brown hair and a scarred, beaten face.

Commander Amal gestures next to the man with the CANADA placard, a white-haired gentleman wearing a camouflage jacket and thick black gloves. “Senator Marshal Sullivan, Commander of the Canadian militia confederation group The Strikers,” she says. Then she turns to a woman sitting behind the MEXICO placard. She is pale white with black hair and blue eyes. A deep, red scar cuts through her cheek, into her lip. And yet somehow she is still beautiful. “Senator Anita Vega, Commander of the Mexican militia group Coyotes.”

Commander Amal surveys the room and then holds an open palm in my direction. “And representing California in the these Negotiations to join the alliance is Senator Cassidy Hart, Commander of the Freedom Fighters and Operation Angel Pursuit.”

My face warms when she mentions my name. I feel slightly out of body, like I’m dreaming. I tell myself to relax. This is not a battlefield, but it might as well be. I have to go into this with the same mentality:

Keep it together. Failure is not an option.

“Senator Hart, since you are representing the state of California, the entity who wishes to join the Pacific Northwest Alliance, will you begin the Negotiations?” Commander Amal suggests.

I nod. I have been around the block when it comes to this war with Omega, so I figure… why not be direct?

“I’m representing California, as you know,” I say, projecting my voice. It echoes in the big room. “What do we have in common? We are all fighting Omega. Omega has taken everything from us — our homes, our families, our friends. Our way of life. But they haven’t taken away our will to fight, or to be free. That’s what unites us. That’s what brings us together.” I briefly lock eyes with Chris. I continue, “California, Mexico, Canada. It doesn’t matter that we’re independent countries. Right now we’re all on the same playing field. To stay alive and to maintain our freedom, California needs your help, and you need California’s help. Our coastline is huge, and we need help keeping it secure, and keeping Omega from pushing into the Central Valley and taking our agricultural resources. In helping us, you will be helping yourselves. As long as Omega can’t get a stronger foothold in California, their chances of breaking our defenses anywhere on the Pacific coast are significantly slimmer.” I hold my hands out. “It’s simple, really. We need you, you need us. It’s a win-win situation for everyone. Omega needs to be destroyed, and together, we can achieve that goal.”

Seriously. It’s not rocket science.

“And what guarantee do we have that when the war is over, California will not overstep its territorial boundaries?” Anita Vega, the representative from Mexico speaks up. “America has taken Texas and California from us in the past. Perhaps in exchange for our help you could return territory to Mexico?”

I shake my head.

“This isn’t about territorial claims or disputes,” I say. “This is about getting Omega out of our countries. This isn’t for our governments. I mean, come on. Our governments are all but destroyed. They’re a sad joke. What have they done to protect us from Omega? Nothing. The only reason we’ve got a shot is because people like you and me — average, everyday people — are taking it on themselves to grow a spine and duke it out with the bad guys.” I press my index finger on the table. “And right here is how we do it. We join forces now, and we make crushing Omega our main goal. End of story.”

“So we don’t have any prizes for anyone,” Marshal Sullivan, the representative from Canada interjects. “Which means our incentive is the same — defeating our common enemy. That strengthens our cause. I agree with Senator Hart in this. There is no other way. I see no reason to deny California membership in the Pacific Northwest Alliance. We need California as much as they need us.”

“True, but let’s say the war ends,” Anita shoots back. “Omega is hypothetically defeated and the world is restored to how it used to be. While we are rebuilding society, do we remain in an alliance, or do we break apart?”

“We’ll establish that when the war ends,” I say. “Honestly, think about how long it’s going to take to rebuild everything. I mean everything. Right now we’re running on backup generators and some emergency supplies, but it could take a hundred years to completely restart. We’ve got limited technology left. A huge chunk of the population has been wiped out. It will take time. Right now we have one priority: destroy Omega, then worry about step two.”

“I think it would be of interest to the company gathered here to note that we have had limited communication with the United Kingdom, Germany and Russia,” Ken Thrawn, the Oregon representative states, his voice deep and bellowing. “They’ve been wiped out by an EMP, as well. They are in the same boat as us. There are few places in the world that have been left untouched by the scourge of Omega, and most of those locations are completely taken over by the enemy.”

“Do you understand what I’m saying?” I ask. “We really are Earth’s last hope. If we go down, we take the last free continents on the planet down with us. Omega takes over Mexico, Canada, and the United States. They take over Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The planet is ruled by a dictatorship, we all die, and everything good goes up in flames.” I look at Chris again. His eyes are sad, knowing. “So there it is,” I say. “That’s the truth. Are you going to help us win this thing or not? Because even if you say no, even if you don’t want California in the Alliance, I’m still going to go out there and fight Omega every day until the day I die. Because they’re killing us — all of us. I know where I stand. The question is, where do you stand?”

There is a heavy silence in the room. And then Nathaniel Mero, the scarred young representative from Washington finally says something.

“The Senator is right,” he says. His voice is slightly slurred. “This is not a question of politics or revenge. This is about right and wrong. It is wrong for us to stand by and do nothing — we know this, otherwise we wouldn’t have created the Pacific Northwest Alliance. It is our moral obligation to fight for what we believe in and to defend our homeland from this invasion. We all know this. It is absolutely necessary is to allow California to join us. Our survival depends on it.”

His words hang in the air.

Let the games begin, I think.

I have done my part. Now it is in their hands.

I pray to God they do the right thing.

Chapter Seven

The Negotiations adjourn for the night. I was under the impression that my heartfelt — and, in my opinion, pretty inspiring pep talk — would open the Alliance’s arms to California. And it did, as far as I know. But the representatives will take a vote, and I will know tomorrow if California is in for sure. I am clearly not a politician, and the complexity of negotiations and strategies may always elude me, but I know the difference between right and wrong. I have common sense, and I am not afraid to draw a line in the sand. My first priority is to destroy Omega, and I will do that in any way that I can.

“You did outstanding, Cassie,” Chris says.

We are walking toward the Herrmann Hall ballroom. The hallways are lit with generator-powered lights, dull orange colors that thrum and hum against the pale walls. My fingers are still shaking and my face is warm. Public speaking has a way of doing that to me.

“Are we in?” I ask quietly.

“We’d better be,” Uriah interjects. “I don’t see any reason why they would reject us. Everyone but Anita Vega seemed pretty enthusiastic.”

“Anita was fine,” I say. “She’s just trying to negotiate.”

“I can’t believe it will take them until tomorrow to take a vote on this stupid thing,” Vera snaps. “This is a state of emergency — we’re at war. We’re either in or not. How long do they have to drag it out and talk about it?”

“Let them talk,” I reply. “We know what we need to do.”

We reach the ballroom. It’s a huge space. Generator powered lamps and lanterns light the eating area. Tables are lined with food and beverages, and officers of all colors, shapes and sizes are eating with cloth napkins on their laps.

“Very fancy,” Andrew says. “Too fancy.”

“Seems unnecessary to make everything so formal during wartime,” Sophia snorts.

I say nothing. Devin May replies,

“It’s how they keep going on, even when everything is so bad. We stick to protocol, we make things nice, and we feed our people well while we still can.” He shrugs. “Eat up, folks. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, trust me.”

The activity in the room seems to pause for a moment as the officers and troops eating dinner stop and look at our group. There are ill-concealed whispers and murmurs. I walk to the buffet table. There is meat, potatoes, vegetables and bread. I take the bare minimum — taking more than that would be selfish when supplies are so difficult to come by — and grab a cloth napkin. I find an empty table and sit near the edge of the window, overlooking the dark foliage outside.

My security detail splits in half. One half sits at the table with me and enjoys a meal — Andrew, Uriah and Vera — while the other half makes their rounds in the ballroom. Sophia is among the latter group. Chris seats himself across from me.

“You know,” he says, looking at Uriah, “when the Alliance accepts California’s proposal, things are going to change. We’ll have so much more access to better weapons and security.”

“If they accept us,” Vera mutters.

“Stop being such a pessimist,” I say. “Everything’s going to work out.”

Vera shakes her head, and I get a flash of Angela Wright’s strained, bloody face; a broken expression seconds before death. I look down at the gravy on my potatoes, my appetite evaporating.

I grab my wine glass, filled with water.

“Where’s Manny?” I ask, directing my mind elsewhere.

Uriah answers, “He’s somewhere in the compound. Probably talking with the Air Force, getting a feel for what they’re up to. You know Manny. He’s always got to be hanging around pilots.”

“Yeah, that’s a true story right—” I begin, cut off by an earsplitting bang. The wine glass in my hand shatters, sending small shards of glass across my cheek, into my hand.

I freeze. I comprehend the fact that something struck my glass, broke it, and kept traveling, hitting a man seated behind me at another table. He slumps forward and his head hits the table, blood spilling down the back of his white haired head.

I drop to my knees behind the table, speckles of blood appearing on my hand where the wine glass shattered. Uriah is on my right and Chris is crouched beneath the table. Yelling and screaming echoes loudly throughout the ballroom. I have already drawn my handgun. Adrenaline is pumping through my veins.

Chris yells, “KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN!”

Uriah takes my arm, as if attempting to steer me away from the conflict. I jerk away, glaring. I don’t need to be led like a lost schoolgirl.

I turn my head, sensing movement behind me. I see another National Guard trooper push through the crowd and lunge at me. He’s brandishing a knife. I don’t have time to fire my gun. He is too fast and too close. I roll onto my back and kick upward, smashing the heel of my boot into his hand. The knife falls from his fingers and clatters against the floor.

He keeps coming. His one hand grabs my gun, wrenching my wrist sideways. The weapons falls to the floor. He is incredibly strong and determined to kill me any way he can. His hand closes around my throat and I feel the lack of oxygen immediately. I reach for the knife on my belt but I can’t get to it. I drive my knee into his gut with all my might. He heaves and his grip loosens. His hesitation allows me the split second I need to pull my knife from my belt.

My turn.

I grip the handle firmly and drive it up into his chest. He cries out in pain and I use the strength of my legs to push his body off mine. I pull the knife out, hot blood running down my arms. He is far from dead but he is wounded. Uriah places a boot on his throat and slams the butt of his rifle into his head, knocking him out.

I breathe hard, looking around for Chris. Where is he?

He has vanished into the chaos of the ballroom. There is a struggle in the far side of the room. I raise my head above the table just enough to see Chris take someone and slam their body against the wall. The poor sucker is crushed by the sheer power of Chris’s muscle mass.

“He’s down, he’s down!” someone shouts.

I stand up.

Chris is kneeling over a thin man in a National Guard uniform. Chris’s knee is on his chest, his hand around his throat. There is a gun just out of the man’s reach. Andrew picks up the weapon, examining it closely.

“Who is he?” I breathe.

Uriah shakes his head.

“No idea,” he says. “My best guess… an Omega spy.”

“Who are you?” Chris growls.

The man laughs. It’s a cruel sound.

“You’re going to die,” he says gruffly. “All of you. You can’t stop Omega.”

He jerks his head toward me. Even though he can’t see me — or touch me — I feel like I’ve been slapped. A dark, ugly feeling of foreboding squeezes my chest like an icy fist.

Chris punches the man in the face, and he goes out like a light.

“Take him,” Chris says, rising. He looks at Uriah.

I take a few steps closer as the guards gather the man’s limp, unconscious body. As far as anyone knew, he — and the man who tried to stab me — was a soldier in the militia just like everybody else here.

Not anymore.

“I don’t get it,” I say. “He shot the man behind me.”

I turn, seeing the dead officer at the table behind ours.

“No,” Chris replies, his voice dark. “He was aiming for you.”

He places his hand on my shoulder.

We’re not safe here, either. We’re not safe anywhere.

The shooter’s name is Luther. The man who tried to stab me is in critical condition, in a jail cell somewhere. Luther is sitting in a room with concrete walls and a one-way window. I stare at him through protective glass, watching his bloodshot eyes dart to the door.

“He’s not insane,” Devin says, standing there, arms crossed. “He’s an infiltrator. An Omega hack.”

Chris pauses. “We had an infiltrator aiming a laser at the Capitol Building dome in Sacramento,” he says. “And now you’ve got an assassination attempt on a California senator inside what should be an impenetrable compound.”

“It was impenetrable,” Devin replies. “This guy is a patrol, a grounds guard. Remember Commander Amal, the Mediator in the Negotiations? She’s the Commander of the militia group Seahawks. He’s one of her men. Supposed to be trustworthy.”

“Trusting people is the first mistake we make,” I murmur. “Trust no one.”

Devin and Chris remain silent. My words sink in and I watch the spy in the interrogation chamber. He is not a psych case. He is calmly, defiantly sitting there, fully aware of what he has done.

How is Omega doing this?

How are they planting people so blatantly within our ranks?

I say, “Let’s keep our priorities straight. We’ll find out if California was accepted into the Alliance by morning. This can wait.”

“The vote was delayed,” Devin replies. “You might not find out until tomorrow afternoon.”

I sigh.

Vera is right. How long does it take to come to a decision? California should join. Period. What’s there to talk about?

We exit the room — a dark, sterile place meant for observation of those being interrogated.

“Senator, this won’t happen again,” Devin promises. “I mean, since the EMP, we haven’t had anything like this happen here. This is a freak thing.”

“My security detail will take care of it,” I tell him, smiling slightly.

In the moments after the assassination attempt, my mouth went completely dry, my hands shook and I felt slightly faint. Something about nearly being killed in a place that I trusted to be completely safe rocked my core.

I have confidence that Chris, Uriah, and the rest of my unit will keep me safe while I’m here — and not for my sake. For the sake of California.

By the time we reach our hotel rooms, Devin turns to Chris.

“Hey. Can I talk to you for a second, man?”

Chris nods. I stand at my hotel room door and watch the two of them wander to the end of the hall, still in sight but out of earshot. Judging by the expression on Chris’s face and the way Devin gestures to me, I’m guessing that they’re talking about me.

Shocker.

I roll my eyes and take my room key out of my pocket, slip it into the lock and open the door. It’s cool inside, musty. The dark wood of the bed and the table blend in with the floor. A solar-powered lantern is sitting on the table. I flick it on, giving the room a soft glow. Someone has cleaned and stocked the room for me. There are bottles of fresh water on the table, along with some energy bars and what looks like basic items for the bathroom.

Nice.

I grab a water bottle and walk to the window, instinctively pulling the curtains across the window. Since the assassination attempt in the ballroom, I haven’t been able to shake the feeling that someone is watching me. Waiting.

I pop the water bottle open just as Devin and Chris return to my room.

“Cassidy, come out in the hall for a second,” Chris says, holding his hand out.

I cross the room, step over the threshold. Elle Costas — lithe and black-haired — is standing there with Uriah on her left, a firm grip around her bomb dog’s harness.

“Elle is going to check the room,” Devin tells me. “That’s what Bravo does. Right, boy?”

He smiles at the dog.

I raise an eyebrow and Elle enters the room with the dog.

“So you think somebody planted a bomb in my room?” I ask. “Then why did you let me go inside?”

“No, not a bomb,” Devin answers. “Security is too tight on this floor.”

“Apparently people can get past security in the ballroom.”

Chris clears his throat, a subtle signal for me to shut my mouth.

“Then what’s he searching for?” I ask.

“Poisons,” Elle replies, her voice serious. “Some bomb dogs have been cross-trained to sniff out both explosives and poisons. Bravo is one of those special canines.” She gives the dog a fond look. “It’s just a precaution, Commander.”

I watch Bravo sniff through the room, using his expertly trained nose to guide him. He’s all business as Elle follows him, studying his gestures. I bring the water bottle to my lips and suddenly Chris’s hand is on my wrist, sending driblets of water down the front of my shirt.

“Hey! What are you—” I begin, but I stop.

Bravo is sitting. His posture is rigid. He is positioned next to the table and Elle is holding a water bottle in her hand. She looks at me, I look at her, and we all look at the dog.

Elle slowly reaches forward and takes my bottle from my hand. “Don’t drink it, Senator,” she advises. “Lieutenant May?”

“I’ll take care of it,” Devin says, stepping into the room, gathering the water bottles. “Don’t eat or drink anything in this room.”

“So you think it’s poisoned?”

“It could be—”

“—Who has access to my room besides you, Devin?”

He shakes his head.

“Nobody,” he says. “This shouldn’t happen. Ever.”

Already I have been nearly shot and poisoned in less than twenty-four hours.

We’re making someone angry. We’re making someone desperate.

Bring it on.

“You know, Chris is the kind of guy who does,” Jeff Young says, twirling a pocketknife in his hand. “He doesn’t say what he’s doing or why. You just know.”

“He’s never told me he loves me,” I reply.

The sky is dark. The clouds are full of rain. We are at the foot of the Tehachapi Mountains, settled in the muddy grass, waiting for Omega to make their move. We’ve only been away from Sector 20 for a couple of days. I am afraid.

“He loves you,” Jeff answers. “You know that.”

“Do I? If he loved me, he’d say so.”

Jeff snaps his knife shut and shoves it back into his pocket.

“Some people don’t say how they feel,” he sighs. “They show it.”

“It’s not normal.”

“Chris has his reasons for what he does.”

“Anything I should know about?”

Jeff shakes his head.

“It’s not my place to say,” he shrugs. “Chris will tell you when he’s ready.”

His words send a chill down my spine, as if I should expect something horrible and foreboding. Some kind of doomsday prophecy.

Because lying on my stomach in the mud with a rifle isn’t stressful enough.

“I won’t wait forever,” I whisper. “I’m only human.”

Even in the darkness, I can see Jeff’s mouth droop, a slight frown.

“Sometimes we have to wait, Cassie,” he says. “Sometimes we have to be patient.”

I don’t say what I’m thinking: I’ve been patient.

How hard can it be to tell someone you love them?

Chapter Eight

When Jeff Young died, a part of me died, too. He was a good friend to me, someone I could confide in when the going got rough. Someone who understood Chris better than I did, and someone who was there for me when Chris seemed incapable of expressing emotion.

I wish he were here right now.

I’m sitting in the hallway right outside of the meeting room where we had the Negotiations yesterday. I am wearing an armored vest, my rifle slung across my back, a handgun and a knife strapped to my hip. Uriah, Vera, Sophia, Andrew and Chris are here with me. Devin May is standing by the door, his stance similar to Chris’s.

“Why is it taking so long?” I say.

“These things take time,” Chris replies, his eyes focused straight ahead.

“How much time?”

Chris almost smiles for the first time in hours.

“As much time as they need,” he tells me.

“Well, my girl, I hear you dodged death twice last night. Is that true?”

I jump out of my chair, a smile spreading across my face. Manny walks through the doors on the far side of the hall, windblown and smelling of the outdoors. His flight cap is shoved into the pocket of his leather overcoat. I run to him and embrace him, relieved and happy to see my dear friend.

“Well, now,” he says, grinning. His weathered, wrinkled face is streaked with grease and dirt. “It’s nice to see you too, Senator.”

“I’m glad you’re here, Manny,” I reply.

“Manny,” Chris says, nodding. “Good to see you.”

Manny shakes his hand.

“So,” he says. “What are you all doing around here? Holding a communal baptism of some sort? Baptism by bullets, perhaps?”

“We’re waiting for the verdict,” Andrew answers, raising an eyebrow. “The representatives are taking a vote on California’s entry into the Alliance.”

“Ah, politics,” Manny says, making a face. “Because talking endlessly about nothing always solves the problem.”

“There’s the truth,” Vera mutters.

“Ah, Vera. Back to your usual, bubbly self,” Manny comments. “And who, may I ask, are you?” He gestures to Devin.

“Lieutenant Devin May,” Devin says, shaking Manny’s hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“I would imagine,” Manny replies. “News of dashing pilots risking life and limb for the good of their country has a way of making an impression on you.” He winks, a devilish expression on his face. “Now, back to business. Cassidy, two assassination attempts in one night?”

“Yes,” Devin interrupts. “Two assassins in the ballroom and somebody got into the Senator’s room and poisoned her water. We verified it.”

“I feel very secure in this facility, don’t you?” Manny smirks.

“I don’t know who to trust,” I say in a low voice.

Chris turns to me, a surprised expression on his face. Before he says a word, the doors to the meeting room open. Sophia and Andrew straighten up and Uriah casts a wary glance toward me.

Commander Jen Amal takes a step into the hall. She’s really a beautiful woman, tall and refined, pretty dark hair slicked down.

“Senator,” she says.

There is a long silence. Everyone in the room seems to be holding their breath.

“Well?” I ask. “Are we in?”

Amal smiles.

“Welcome to the Pacific Northwest Alliance.”

Here we go again, back in the convoy. I am sitting between Uriah and Vera. Chris is in the front seat. The other representatives/militia commanders are following us: Ken Thrawn of Oregon, Nathaniel Mero of Washington, Marshal Sullivan of Canada and Anita Vega of Mexico.

“Explain this to me again,” I say, leaning forward. Devin May is driving the Humvee, and he is talking to Chris in low tones.

“We’re going to the Defense Language Institute of Monterey,” Chris replies. His eyes are hidden behind black, tactical sunglasses. “So we can boost their morale.”

“Boost whose morale?” I demand.

“The soldiers there. The Army. The Navy.” Chris sighs. “Now that California has joined the Pacific Northwest Alliance, the entire western seaboard is united against Omega. It’s a big deal. We have a real chance to win this thing. People need to know that — they need to be inspired.”

I need to be inspired, I think.

We roll out of the front entrance of the Naval Postgraduate School, leaving the relative safety of the wrought iron fencing and patrols behind us. The town is secure, though, so that gives me a little bit of relief.

But only a little.

We follow the road, paralleling a jogging trail and beautiful, towering Eucalyptus trees. We break out of the trees, and beyond us is the harbor. The water is brilliantly blue this morning. There is no fog, only clear, crisp sunshine and puffy white clouds.

Fisherman’s Wharf extends into the water, a wooden pier dotted with harbor-view restaurants and abandoned gift shops. The parking lot is filled with military vehicles and armed military patrols.

“Things have changed, man,” Devin says. “This used to be tourist central.”

It’s War Zone Central, now, I think.

The road slopes and we dip under a huge tunnel. It’s dark and loud. I fist my hands, the contained quarters of the tunnel making me nervous. I was once inside a Humvee when it hit an IED, and the memory left its mark.

I hate being trapped in confined spaces.

We emerge from the tunnel and I exhale. Uriah nudges my shoulder.

“It’s okay,” he whispers.

I smile gratefully. Uriah. Always helpful, always caring.

We turn and begin climbing a steeper road, flashing by a bullet-riddled sign that reads:

U.S. ARMY

PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY

HOME OF THE DEFENSE LANGUAGE INSTITUTE

“So we’re making a formal announcement of California joining the Alliance?” I ask.

“Basically,” Uriah says. “It’ll be easy. All we have to do is show up.”

“And then what? We go back to Sacramento?”

Chris doesn’t respond. Maybe he doesn’t know yet.

Maybe he’s just as scared as I am.

We pull through the checkpoints at the institute. The view is spectacular. We are situated on top of a hill, overlooking the bay of Monterey. I can see the fleet of white sailboats and fishing boats bobbing in the water. The city sprawls in every direction around the peninsula, and I wonder how far our military protection really stretches? One mile out of the city? Ten?

I’d like to find out.

The convoy stops at the top of the hill, at a large green meadow. The meadow sits between old-fashioned military barracks and two small baseball diamonds. There are risers on the far side of the meadow, and in the center of the grass, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, Army and militia soldiers are standing in neat rows, forming squares of camouflaged color.

Uriah opens the door and I follow him outside. Sophia and Andrew approach us from their vehicles. Elle Costas is here with her bomb dog, Bravo, staying close to our group. The representatives from the other states and countries exit their Humvees and jeeps, as well.

We gather in a small group, just us.

“Senator Hart,” Anita Vega says. She offers her hand, glossy black hair spilling down her back. “It was an honor to work with you.”

“Likewise,” I say. “It was an honor to work with all of you.”

I look at the representatives — the disfigured face of Nathanial Mero, the aged, weathered features of Marshal Sullivan, and the burly, stocky build of Ken Thrawn.

“We’re all in this together, now,” I say.

“Let’s make Omega pay,” Nathanial answers, holding his fist in the air.

I nod.

“Alright, Commanders, Senators,” Devin says. “This way, please. Toward the podium.”

There’s a small podium near the bleachers, on which are several officers and members of militia and other paramilitary units. Chris leads the way, occasionally glancing at me, checking.

We climb the steps, lining up in a row. There is a microphone, powered by a purring generator. A reminder of our constant lack of access to instant electricity. It’s all extremely formal and, in my opinion, completely unnecessary. Now that California has joined the Alliance, it’s time to get back to work.

This war isn’t going to win itself.

Behind me, Andrew, Uriah, Sophia and Devin are branching out around the stage, disappearing from sight, making sure the perimeter is secure. Chris stands near me on the stage, hands to his side, a muscle ticking in his jaw.

Commander Jen Amal steps in front of the microphone, addressing the soldiers on the green. “To begin with,” she says. “God bless the Pacific Northwest Alliance!”

The soldiers clap and yell, pumping the air with their fists.

“Thanks to the work of the Representatives from Oregon, Washington, Canada, Mexico and California, the Golden State is now a partner in the Pacific Northwest Alliance,” she continues. “The western seaboard stands united and firm against Omega’s invasion. We will be victorious!”

The applause is thundering. My heart skips a beat, and I realize that I am inspired. Here we are, standing in a military stronghold. Omega hasn’t killed us yet. We are fighting back, and we are giving it everything we’ve got. And it hits me then that while we may not have the sheer numbers that Omega has… we’ve got the heart that they don’t. The fighting spirit.

The will to win.

I look at Chris, he looks at me. The ghost of a smile spreads across his lips. I feel a surge of hope. For us, for the country, for my father — wherever he is — and for the lives of the innocents that we’re fighting for. And then there is a gunshot.

Nathanial Mero jerks sideways, slamming into my arm, taking me to the ground. Hot blood sprays across my face, over my jacket. Chris grabs my shoulder and pulls me close to him, keeping low to the podium. Two more gunshots ring out, and I see Ken Thrawn topple over, a red blossom of blood in the center of his forehead.

All of this happens in a split second, barely enough time for me to comprehend the action. My instincts are faster than my thought process. I snap my gaze to the meadow, to the tops of the buildings. I know immediately that whoever killed Nathanial and Ken is a sniper — and a good one at that. The shot was taken from a long distance, beyond the meadow.

Around the edges of the green, security is furiously returning fire, lead for lead, bullet for bullet. But they are firing at a phantom enemy. Someone has done this stealthily, and they are staying hidden.

I stay low and follow Chris off the stage, adrenaline surging through my veins. The soldiers on the green are in full battle mode, rushing to protect the remaining representatives on the stage. I guess I am included in that group, but I don’t care. I slide my handgun out of the holster on my hip, taking cover behind the curve of the concrete podium.

“What the hell was that?” Chris growls as Devin runs around the corner.

“You tell me, man,” Devin replies, panting.

Three more gunshots, and then silence. Security detachments and guards are rolling out, scouring the premises for the shooter. Where is he? How did he get in?

How have there been three assassination attempts in less than twenty-four hours? That’s insane. That should be impossible. This city — this place — is secure!

Apparently not.

“We’ve got to get you inside,” Chris says. “And the rest of the representatives.”

“It’s not just us they’re trying to kill,” I reply. “It’s the officers — you and Devin and Uriah. The top dogs.” Chris doesn’t argue. He knows I’m right.

“Let’s go,” he says.

We start to head for the cars, but Elle appears from the other side of the Humvee that we arrived in. She screams, “Don’t!! Go back, go back!”

Bravo is barking, and Chris pulls me backward. Elle sprints across the green meadow, threading through the mass of soldiers and militiamen and women taking defensive positions against the invisible attacker.

The detonation slams through us, a daisy chain series of explosions. Pieces of twisted metal hurl through the air. Flames erupt inside the vehicles, turning them inside out, spewing hot glass and metal over the meadow. I roll behind the corner of the podium and Chris shields me with his body. Devin hunkers down. Elle stumbles and falls. Chris grabs her ankle and drags her behind the cover of the podium. I pull Elle close to my chest and we huddle up together, the heat from the flames singeing my clothes, warming my face.

Bravo stays near Elle as pieces of destroyed vehicles are flung into the sky, landing everywhere. Black, billowing waves of choking smoke spreads across the meadow. It is chaos, insanity. I can feel the sweat dripping down my chest, sticking my shirt to my skin.

“What do we do?” I ask Chris.

“We get inside,” he says, repeating his earlier plan. “We get to cover.”

I get a cold, chilling flashback of the Battle of the Grapevine. I see myself running through a huge drainage pipe, away from Jeff Young’s lifeless body, as dozens of men and women in our ranks suddenly turned on us, creating the same kind of chaos that we have here today.

“Follow me!” Chris yells. “Go!”

He’s up and running across the meadow, keeping his head down, shoulders tucked, body moving. I follow, keeping behind his shoulder, light and quick on my feet. Elle and Devin are behind me, including Bravo.

We cross the street, quickly picking our way through the carnage of the ruined convoy. My mind is reeling — how could they have all been rigged to explode at the same time? And if they were rigged, why didn’t they blow up while everyone was inside the vehicles?

There is a row of barracks here, light tan buildings in neat rows. We slip between two of them. Chris kicks the door open and we rush inside the building. The interior has been cleared out. There is nothing but rows of bunks and shuttered windows here.

“Stay here,” Chris says.

“No freaking way!” I reply, angry. “I’m a Commander, and I do not stay behind.”

Chris opens his mouth to argue but thinks better of it. He knows that I am right. He cannot protect me anymore. I am no longer his sole responsibility. Sophia and Andrew step inside the barracks. Andrew is holding a radio, streaked with grime and smoke. Sophia is heaving, a ribbon of blood slipping down the side of her neck.

“We’ve secured the area,” Andrew says. He pauses. “I think.”

“You don’t know?” Chris says. “I’ll be damned if Omega’s going to push their way into Monterey.” He walks to the door, turning to me. “Cassidy. Stay here.” Devin gives me an apologetic look and follows Chris. Apparently birds of a feather flock together.

I heave an exasperated sigh, then turn to check on Elle.

“You okay?” I ask.

She nods, a detached expression on her face.

I look at Sophia.

“Keep an eye on Elle,” I tell her.

“But I’m—”

“—Don’t argue with me, Lieutenant.” My tone is harsh. I’m in no mood to argue with Sophia. I am in charge.

I step to the threshold of the door, overlooking the meadow. The grass appears to be smoldering, covered with hot metal, patches of plants in flames. There are militiamen and National Guard patrols going through every building, checking every nook and cranny of the compound.

Whoever did this is gone.

Behind me, Bravo whines softly, deliberately sitting in one place, a position I had taken him to exhibit only when he finds explosives or poison. I look at Elle. “I don’t understand,” she says, searching the room.

There is nothing below our feet but a slab of concrete.

“I’m not babysitting,” Sophia snaps. “Andrew? Come on.”

“Sophia, Cassidy gave an order—” he begins, but Sophia storms past him anyway. Andrew shakes his head. “She’s been impossible.”

“Sorry,” Elle shrugs. “Bravo must be smelling traces of old explosives in here.”

“You sure? How come he didn’t detect the explosives in the convoy?” I ask.

“He would have.”

“So what happened?”

Sophia leaves the room, infuriated. Frustrated.

Elle stands up from her crouched position next to Bravo, and suddenly the dog relaxes. She raises a confused eyebrow. “He never makes mistakes,” she says quietly. “I think it was a daisy chain. A series of linked explosions, hard to detect. And I didn’t get a chance to check everything out when we got here, anyway.”

The fact that somebody could even get inside the Presidio to do something like that is more than merely disturbing — it’s terrifying. I take a few deep breaths.

“Stick with me, Elle,” I say.

She nods. She and Bravo follow me outside, into the clearing. The wreckage is depressing, and the bodies of the soldiers who were caught in the explosion lie twisted at unnatural angles in the grass. Elle’s face goes taut, mimicking my own expression. Like me, Elle has probably seen death on more than one occasion. It’s a scary reminder of the reality of what war is. War is death. War is bloodshed.

“It doesn’t get any easier,” I tell Elle softly. “It helps to think of why you’re here when you see this stuff. Remind yourself of the good things.”

Elle stares at me, licking her lips.

“It’ll be okay,” I say.

I walk to Chris. He looks tired. There are dark circles around his eyes, and there is nothing but sheer anger in his voice.

“Bravo caught an explosives scent in the barracks,” I tell Chris.

“I’ll have the bomb squad check it out,” Devin replies, overhearing our conversation. “My God, have we got some cleanup to do.”

His words hang awkwardly in the air. To my left, they are moving the lifeless bodies of Nathanial Mero and Ken Thrawn off the podium. There are still fresh streaks of blood on the ground from their wounds. I feel like crying, but the tears won’t come.

“How many people are dead?” I ask Chris.

He folds his arms across his chest.

“At least nine,” he answers, low. “It could have been worse, but it never should have happened in the first place.”

“I’m beginning to think there are Omega spies everywhere,” I say.

“You’re not far off,” Devin comments.

I look down at my shirt, covered with Nathanial’s blood. Droplets are still caked to my hands. I shudder and look over the Pacific Ocean.

It doesn’t matter where we are.

Omega always finds us.

Chapter Nine

It’s early. I slip out of my hotel room and shut the door behind me, clicking the lock into place. I check my weapon, my extra magazines, my knife. I am armored up. I haven’t been able to sleep. My mind keeps replaying the day’s events. Every time I close my eyes I see Nathanial dying or Ken being shot in the head.

My security detachment follows me wherever I go, no matter what time it is. They shadow me, quiet and respectful, allowing me to think, but near enough to protect me if needed. These men and women are comprised of soldiers from the Naval Postgraduate School. They are all strangers to me, and they take over my protection while my primary Lieutenants — Uriah, Vera and Sophia — are sleeping.

The hallways are silent and cold at night. There are patrols everywhere. Most of the compound is dark, due to the fact that there’s really no reason to run the generators for lights when most on the compound are asleep.

I find my way to the exit doors of Herrmann Hall, pushing them open. The air is freezing at night. A heavy, cloying fog hovers over the tips of the coastal firs and the rooftops of the buildings.

“Hey, where are you headed at this time of night?” Devin is standing at the bottom of the steps leading up to the hotel entrance. He’s got his arms crossed, jacket unbuttoned.

“Clearing my head,” I reply. “You?”

He shrugs. Yeah. The same thing.

I descend the steps, surveying the area. It’s very quiet at night — almost eerie. But I know that there are countless patrols on duty. Every square inch of the compound is being watched. Not to mention the fact that at least eight people are standing around me in my security detail, watching my every move.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Devin asks. His blonde hair looks white in the darkness. “Sleeping?”

“Yeah, somewhere around here,” I reply.

“I notice there’s a little… tension between you two.” He holds his hands up. “Tell me if I’m being out of line here and I’ll shut up, but something’s going on.”

I flash a sad smile.

“It’s war.”

“Chris is a good guy,” Devin answers. “We were good buddies back in the day. Great buddies, actually. Not surprised he became one of the leaders of the militia movement. He always had leadership in him.”

I shove my hands in my pockets, curious.

“What was he like when you knew him?” I ask. “Before all of this?”

Devin raises an eyebrow, like he knows that I am fishing for information that Chris won’t give me. And, being the good friend that he is, Devin chooses his words carefully.

“He was the same,” he answers. “He wasn’t so serious, though. The war… that changed him. Everything changed him.”

I say nothing.

“He told me he was in Afghanistan and Iraq before the EMP,” I say.

“We both were.” Devin sighs. “It doesn’t matter who you are. War changes you. For better or for worse.”

True story. I see the carnage of today’s Presidio bloodbath in my mind’s eye — and then I shove it away.

“Hey,” Devin says. “Don’t look so depressed. You’re a great Senator, and now you can go back to Sacramento as a hero. People love you already — now they’ll love you even more.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I say. “My father’s probably dead.”

Devin looks surprised.

“Chris told me about that,” he answers. “I was under the impression that he just hadn’t been found yet.”

I lift one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug.

“MIA is the same thing as being dead,” I whisper. I haven’t allowed myself to think about my father while we’ve been here. I knew that if I let my mind wander in that direction, I would be overcome with grief, and I would be off my A-game for the Negotiations.

“Hey,” Devin says, touching my shoulder. “Let’s not get doom and gloomy. Come on, I’ll show you something cool.”

He gestures for me to follow him, and I do.

I feel slightly guilty, going off with Devin in the middle of the night, leaving Chris behind in the hotel. But honestly… Chris isn’t really talking to me very much right now anyway, so here I am.

We round the back corner of the compound and Devin opens the passenger door of a retrofitted armored Jeep. “After you, my lady.”

“We’re going somewhere?” I ask.

“You’re going to like this place, I promise,” he says. For a split second, the thought occurs to me that Devin is trying to trick me — trying to lure me out of the compound and kill me outside of the school.

And then I throw the idea out the window. My security detachment is following us in two vehicles behind us. If Devin was an enemy, he wouldn’t kill me right now. He wouldn’t even try.

I hop into the passenger seat. Devin closes the door and walks around the vehicle to get behind the wheel. He grins at me, and in that moment he reminds me of Chris. It’s the same mischievous, devilish look I’m used to seeing when Chris is happy.

And those times are few and far between, anymore.

Devin turns the key in the ignition and we are rolling toward the exit. I feel a little bit of excitement. Where is he taking me?

I fold my hands on my lap and watch Devin out of the corner of my eye. His tight, methodical mannerisms, the way he scans his surroundings and the way he fists his hands at his sides are reminiscent of Chris.

Either they were much closer than I realized, or all Navy SEALS are the same.

He checks in with the guard at the checkpoint and then we’re turning right, toward the highway. “Where are we going, Devin?” I ask.

“You’ll see.” Devin smiles again. “Take my word for it, it’s going to be worth it.”

The sun is just beginning to rise, barely penetrating the coastal fog. We roll onto the onramp for Highway 1, a quaint freeway that parallels the ocean, then dives into a scenic, mountainous route along the coastline.

“This is gorgeous,” I say. “It’s like being in the mountains again.”

“That’s the charm of Monterey,” Devin replies. “We’ve got the best of both worlds.”

There is no traffic on the freeway, of course. Aside from the occasional military vehicle or checkpoint, the entire city’s traffic and tourist trade has stopped. Frozen in time. It is depressing and fascinating all at once.

After a good ten minutes winding through the small highway, it becomes a two-lane road. We bypass dead stoplights and the road dips downward, overlooking a marshy valley interspersed between the mountains.

“What is this place?” I ask.

“Carmel-by-the-Sea,” Devin replies. “Used to be the place to live. It’s like Beverly Hills but the traffic is better and there are no paparazzi.”

I laugh.

The road curves to the right. There is a sprawling, abandoned shopping center to the left. Devin takes a right and we follow a road, flashing by abandoned houses with dead grass and shriveled foliage.

“What happened to the people who lived here?” I ask. “I mean, if it’s under military protection, why is everyone gone?”

“Because Monterey wasn’t completely secure until a couple of months after the EMP,” Devin replies. “People still panicked. People still left the city. There were riots, a little bit of anarchy. But the strong military presence here kept everything from going completely under. We were able to secure the city limits and make Monterey a stronghold.” He shrugs. “It’s worked so far.”

“Except for the annoying rash of assassination attempts,” I remark.

“Yeah. Except for that.” Devin smirks. “You know, Senator, it’s not every day I get to take a pretty girl for a drive off the base. Life’s been pretty rough since everything went down.”

I give Devin a look.

“Don’t get any ideas,” I state.

“Oh, I would never do that.” Devin chuckles. “Hey, here we are.”

I lean forward as Devin slows the Jeep, making a left turn. We turn into a driveway, and I note a large adobe wall and a wall of purple bougainvillea. There are only a few military vehicles here, and it hits me then just how far away I am from the Naval Post-Graduate School… and from Chris.

Devin pulls into a parking spot. My security detachment takes the two spots to the left of Devin’s vehicle. I nod to them. “Give me some space,” I tell them, which is just a nice way of saying Stay close, but not too close. I want space to think.

“Come on,” he encourages.

I open the door and get out, the crispness of the early morning air pinching my cheeks. I can see my breath, tiny white puffs hovering in front of my mouth.

There is a small wooden door in the side of the adobe wall. It looks like an old Spanish house. There are two guards standing at the door, and they seem to know Devin. They let us pass without questioning us. I take a step inside. There are two rooms separated by an adobe wall. An old sign that reads Gift Shop hangs on the wall, but besides that, the rooms have been cleared out. They are empty, and there are armed National Guardsmen at every door.

“Come on,” Devin says, keeping the mystique going. “This way.”

I follow him through the empty rooms, through a swinging door that opens into a courtyard. There is a beautiful fountain and flowers everywhere, bursts of color enclosed behind pale yellow walls. On the right, a church building stands unapologetically against the early morning sky. There are two small bell towers and, in the center, a stained glass window in the shape of a star.

“Where are we?” I ask, struck by the melancholy silence.

“The Carmel Mission,” Devin replies, watching my face. “It’s been here in one way or another since 1771. The official title is the San Carlo Borromeo de Carmelo Mission.”

“That’s a mouthful.”

Devin grins. “You like it?”

I smile.

“Yeah,” I say. “I do.”

There is nothing but total silence here. I keep my voice low, struck with a feeling of reverence. I walk through the courtyard, past the church building, and follow a path. There is a cemetery here, filled with the headstones of deceased priests, mission Indians and workers.

“It’s so old,” I whisper. “It’s like time just froze in place here.”

“Places like this,” Devin replies, “are the places that survived the EMP the best. I mean, what adjustments would you really have to make to live here? The walls are still adobe. The garden is the same. The church will always be the church, no matter if there’s electricity or not.”

I pause at the end of the walkway. Little wooden crosses fill the dirt patch on the right hand side of the cemetery. Most of the shrubbery has died here, but there are still trees — old trees.

“Can we go inside the church?” I ask.

Devin nods.

I take the path back to the front of the building and stop at the doors. Two guards stand at the entrance. It is amazing to me how the military presence here is so strong — and yet so silent. No one has said a word to us since we arrived.

This place is sacred.

I stop and turn to the security detachment behind me.

“Wait here,” I say.

I walk through the doors and step into a long, ornate chapel. Old wooden pews stretch from here to an intricately carved backdrop with statues of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. The chapel is lit with dozens of flickering candles.

I pause at the front. A large basin sits on a pillar, filled with holy water.

I hesitate, unsure of how to proceed. Is it a sin to walk inside without washing? I don’t know.

I dip my fingers into the liquid before walking further. Devin remains at the door, watching but never moving. I slowly walk down the center aisle between the rows of pews. The ceiling is lovely, vaulted. It towers above my head, reminding me of the vastness of the sky.

It’s as if this entire place is from another world.

I stop at the end of the church. There are graves marked into the floor here, below the huge iconic carvings. Jesus’ blood runs down the side of his cross, and I swallow.

I am a soldier, and I have killed many men, and yet I have the nerve to stand in a church.

I look at the graves. One of them is marked with the name Junipero Serra. I remember his name from history class, back in elementary school. He was the Father of the missions on the California coastline. I had no idea that he was buried in this place.

I suddenly feel very unworthy of being here.

I take a step backward, overwhelmed with the events of the past few weeks. The Battle of the Grapevine, the rescue mission into Los Angeles, the journey to Sacramento, the carnage of the bombing of the Capitol Building, the disappearance of my father, the Negotiations and the assassination attempts.

I have so much blood on my hands. But I fight for freedom, so am I justified in what I’m doing? Why is standing in a church messing with my head? Hot, salty tears burn in my eyes and I fold my hands together, staring at the Jesus carving.

I whisper, “God, I’m just trying to do the right thing.”

I slowly drop down to my knees and bow my head, overcome with emotion and sadness. I’m not really sure how to pray, so I just stay there, unmoving, silent. Just feeling.

If there’s a God, I pray that he forgives us for this war.

And I pray he lets us win. Or all hope will be lost.

When I turn around, Devin is no longer standing at the entrance to the church. Chris has taken his place. I stand up, going rigid. Like I’ve been caught doing something highly private. I mean… isn’t prayer sacred?

“What are you doing here?” I ask.

“I was about to ask you the same thing.” Chris begins walking inside the church, pausing at the basin of holy water. And then he passes it and continues to stalk toward me. “What’s wrong with you Cassie? Leaving the compound without telling me?”

“I’m a Commander,” I reply. “I go where I want.”

“I noticed.” Chris stops at the tip of the front pew. A muscle is ticking in his jaw, a sign that he is very, very angry. “You have a reason for running off in the middle of the night with your security detachment?”

I swallow, choosing my words carefully.

“I just had to get out for a second, Chris,” I answer. “I needed… this.”

“What? Prayer? Faith?” Chris shakes his head. “You don’t need to leave to find that, and you certainly don’t need to leave with Devin to figure out where your head is.” He stops. “If something was bothering you, why didn’t you come talk to me? You can always talk to me, you know that.”

I give him a look.

“You haven’t been terribly accessible lately.”

“I’m not the one who’s been having the communication problem,” he replies.

I open my mouth, a thousand retorts dancing on the tip of my tongue. I could tell him that yes, this whole thing is his fault. He’s keeping secrets, he won’t tell me he loves me, and he’s been cold since I cornered him about his marriage on the train to Monterey.

But I say nothing, because sometimes that’s the best thing to do.

“So what’s the issue, Cassidy?” Chris demands.

His eyes are ringed with red, a sign of sleepless nights and crushing pressure. He is not himself. The Chris I fell in love with is patient and kind, gentle yet firm.

“What’s not the problem?” I say. My voice echoes in the church. “We’re at war.”

Chris considers this, then holds out his hand.

“You and I don’t have to be,” he answers slowly.

I lean on the wall, flickering candles throwing shadows across our faces.

“I don’t want to fight with you,” I say. “But I don’t want to force you to tell me things that you don’t want to share. I can’t be everything to you all the time. I get that. I just want to be your friend again, at least.”

As the words leave my mouth, I get a bitter taste in the back of my throat.

“We’re a little more then friends, Cassie,” Chris replies, and he smiles nervously. “You don’t have to be dramatic.”

And that’s when I see it: fear.

There is fear in Chris’s eyes.

“Why are you afraid?” I ask. “If you don’t want to lose me, tell me. If you love me, tell me! Keeping secrets and holding back words that need to be said will never help anyone, Chris. Sometimes you have to say something, or the moment will be over, and it will be too late. ”

He doesn’t move, seemingly frozen in place.

I wonder if I’ve said too much — gone too far.

Chris shakes his head, as if laughing at a private joke, and takes several steps forward, hooking his right arm around my waist, sliding his left hand behind my neck, into my hair. It seems like it has been an eternity since he has held me, and I press against him, forgetting the argument for a moment.

I just want to be.

Chris’s body is warm, and I feel comfort in his embrace. A thrill rushes down my spine. My fingers and toes tingle with the excitement of being so close to him — it has been a long time.

He kisses the side of my neck, a soft, warm touch. I wrap my arms around his neck and he draws me into a sweet, slow kiss. It’s the kind of kiss that eats you up. The kind that you feel in the pit of your stomach, in the bottom of your heart. The best kind of kiss; real, true and perfect.

It’s Chris.

He hooks his fingers through the belt loops of my fatigues and holds me closer. I taste the coffee on his breath and feel the stubble on his jaw, scratching my lips.

“Cassie,” Chris breathes, kissing my cheek. “My marriage — all of that. It’s in the past. I’m not married anymore. My wife… she died. A long time ago.” He takes a great, heaving breath. “It’s just hard for me to talk about.”

First, I feel relief: This woman doesn’t present a threat to our relationship!

And second: I had no idea Chris’s heart had been so broken in the past.

“What happened?” I ask softly.

Chris closes his eyes, kisses me again.

“She…” he begins, and trails off. “It’s a long story, Cassie. Not a pretty one.”

“You can’t protect me anymore. Not even from your past.”

He looks surprised to hear me say that. I press a deep kiss to his mouth, smiling gently. “Don’t hide from me,” I say. “We need each other. We’re a team, remember?” I hold up my hand, reminiscent of a gesture of loyalty we made to each other long ago, in a cabin in the woods… “We’re in this together.”

Chris takes my hand and kisses each knuckle, green eyes never leaving mine.

“If that’s the case—” he says, but he is interrupted.

Devin appears at the front of the church.

“Sorry to break up the love fest,” he says, his voice echoing loudly in the sanctuary. “But we have a situation.”

Out of habit — and a little bit of embarrassment — I step away from Chris. I immediately miss the warmth of his body. I feel cold already.

“What’s up?” Chris says, flushed.

“Omega ships are inbound off the coast,” Devin replies.

I stare at him, still racked with emotion.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” I mutter.

Devin shakes his head.

“I wish I was, Commander,” he says. “I really wish I was.”

Chapter Ten

We do not go back to the Naval Postgraduate School. It is still early morning when I get into an armored truck with Chris, Devin trailing behind us in the Jeep. I wonder, briefly, if Devin took me out to the mission, knowing that Chris would follow.

Hmm…

I push the thought away. I feel more at ease sitting beside Chris in the passenger seat. We are silent, but we are comfortable. And our minds are both elsewhere. I would like to know how his wife died — what’s the story there? But I will wait. At least I know that Chris is not currently married, and I no longer have to worry about the possibility of another woman ruining my relationship.

“No Omega ships have been brave enough to get close to Monterey since the EMP, according to Devin,” Chris says, breaking the silence in the car. We are driving back through the mountainous highway. Coming back, I can see the entire city, sprawling in every direction over the tips of the coastal firs and pines.

“Something’s changed in the game,” I reply.

Chris doesn’t say anything. His pensive expression says it for him:

There are rough waters ahead.

I take a deep, steadying breath as we get closer to the city. Devin takes an exit and we find ourselves on a boulevard that is fairly crowded with military vehicles.

“If this town wasn’t secured…” Chris mutters, leaving the sentence hanging.

I know what he is thinking. Being in an area filled with traffic is making him just as nervous as it’s making me. Anything could happen. There could be Omega spies or assassins hiding anywhere…

And then I tell myself to relax. I cannot control everything.

I have to trust that we’re going to be okay.

“Where is Devin taking us?” I ask at last.

“The harbor.”

His reply is simple and short. The emotional moment that we just had in the church seems to have passed, and we’re back to business. Back to the war.

The girl in me sighs. The soldier in me says, It’s about time, woman.

We take the boulevard for what seems like a long time, passing by empty seaside hotels and motels, restaurants and the occasional gas station. Most of this city is abandoned, aside from the military presence roaming the streets, making sure Omega doesn’t try to push through.

“How long are we going to stay in Monterey, Chris?” I ask.

Chris thinks about this.

“As long as they need us here,” he replies. “We’re part of the Alliance now, and we are part of the leadership that represents California. We’ll go where we need to go to stop Omega.”

“It seems like Monterey has got it pretty much together — aside from the assassination attempts,” I say, smiling wryly. “I think we would do more good back in the valley, protecting our agricultural resources and the mountains.”

“Well, it’s possible…” He shakes his head. “Forget it. We’ll go where we need to go. Right now Omega’s trying to get the west coast. I want to stop them. If we can keep the Pacific seaboard out of their hands, we’re going to be doing pretty good. We’ll actually have the upper hand.”

I don’t say what I’m thinking: What if Omega just decides to nuke us all?

What’s stopping them from doing that now?

As if reading my mind, Chris says, “They haven’t wiped us out yet because of two reasons: One, the Pacific Northwest Alliance will retaliate. We do have nuclear warheads on our side, but not as many as the enemy. We want to save those as a last resort, and Omega knows it. They also don’t want their countries wiped out by atom bombs.” He pauses. “The second reason is that they’d rather the rest of the healthy, contributing members of society be enslaved. They’ve already eliminated so much of the population — the elderly, the disabled, the very young — that they’ve got an entire country to build from scratch.”

I shudder.

Omega is evil. Through and through.

Chris touches my knee with his hand, and I wrap my fingers around his, taking comfort in his touch. Something about his presence calms me — always has, probably always will.

“So how long have you known Devin?” I ask as we take a right.

“About a decade. Before you were even in Middle School.” Chris grins. “We started in SEAL training together at the Coronado Naval Station. Wound up coming here for a postgraduate program. And Devin was a great linguist — better than me. He went to the Language Institute, where we were yesterday. That’s his strong point. Communication.”

I almost make a sarcastic comment about it not being Chris’s, but I don’t.

I know better.

“Small world,” I say.

“Not small enough,” Chris replies, sighing.

More silence. Then,

“Do you think my dad is alive?” I ask. “Be honest with me.”

Chris takes his time answering the question, glancing sideways at my expression — which I’m trying very hard to maintain.

“There’s a chance,” he replies, his voice quiet. “But don’t count on it.”

I nod. I have known this since the day the Capitol Building’s dome collapsed. I just didn’t want to admit it. Hearing it said out loud is a form of closure, of meager acceptance.

Chris continues to hold my hand.

What can you say to fix something like this, anyway?

Nothing. There are no words. There is only sadness.

“Cannery Row,” Chris says suddenly. “Haven’t been here in ages.”

We turn left from a small, packed boulevard, heading downhill. There is a large building at the end of the block. Two white smokestacks tower into the air like giant matches, contrasting against the sky. Chris follows Devin’s vehicle around the corner, past a couple of shops, then we pull up to the curb and stop.

“Here we are,” Chris murmurs.

I wonder what we are in for now.

I open the passenger door and step outside. I look down a long street. There is a red cannery building on one side and what looks like a tourist shopping center on the other. A Bubba Gump restaurant sits on the left, abandoned, a smiling shrimp sitting there, waiting for customers that will never return.

“Tourist spot?” I say.

“Yep,” Chris adds.

I follow Chris to Devin’s Jeep. There is a strong United States Naval presence here. Patrols on the sidewalks, vehicles on the streets. Guards on top of every building, keeping the area secure.

“I think it’s safer now than it was before the EMP,” Chris comments.

“True story, bro,” Devin replies. “Come on, this way. The lookout’s in the aquarium.”

They follow the sidewalk, diving between two of the bigger buildings. I’m hit in the face with a burst of cold ocean air. It whips my hair in circles. It feels good, clean. We check in before entering through a couple of glass doors. It is dark here, and we bypass abandoned counters and ticket-kiosks.

“The aquarium, huh?” I say.

“The Monterey Bay Aquarium,” Devin replies. “World famous. Or at least it used to be. The people here… they’ve been able to keep a lot of the creatures alive, like the otters and the sardines… but some of the other stuff… after the EMP, a lot of things died. Couldn’t save everything.”

We enter a large room filled with benches. A giant, life-size sculpture of a whale hangs from the ceiling. To the right, a huge, triple-paned glass tank wraps around the corner of the oversized hall. An otter happily floats on his back in the top of the tank, grasping a shellfish of some sort.

“How do they keep this place running?” I ask. “With all of the people that are dying, how can they spare water and food for animals?”

“Animals live in seawater,” Devin shrugs. “There’s no shortage of that. Most of the animals here have been released, anyway. There are a few that are kept alive because honestly, it keeps peoples’ hopes up. We can still do simple things like save otters, right?” Devin grins. “This place is run by the National Guard, and the animals are cared for by civilian volunteers, otherwise the animals left would be gone.”

I place my fingers on the glass and watch the otter from below. He’s very care-free. He looks like an aquatic teddy bear.

“Oh, to be an otter,” I mutter, only half-joking.

Devin and Chris share a knowing look and continue. The building is surprisingly crowded, brimming with militia and military activity. Soldiers are walking the halls. The aquarium gift shop has been stripped of all souvenirs. It is now a National Guard command post, manned by soldiers. The only things that remain on the walls are the aquarium directories, indicating which levels contain sharks and which contain jellyfish.

I’m still confused as to why we’re here exactly, but I trust Devin and Chris, so I follow them through the first floor, climbing a long staircase, hitting the second level. This level is divided into several sectors, and I recognize officer’s uniforms and militia leaders. I spot Anita Vega, the representative from Mexico and the Commander of the militia group Coyotes. She is standing near a wide, open window that overlooks the bay. I see her talking to Uriah, Vera and Andrew.

“What are they doing here?” I ask, surprised.

“We’re all meeting here today,” Devin explains. “Omega ships aren’t something to be taken lightly. They could be carrying a cruise missile.”

I feel nauseated.

That’s all we need. Another bombing.

I approach the group and tap Uriah on the shoulder. He smiles warmly at me.

“We were worried about you,” he states.

“I was with Devin.”

“That was Chris’s guess.” Uriah looks at Chris, who nods once. “Did he tell you what’s going on?”

“Yeah, I heard.”

“We’re practically waiting for them to kick in the front door,” Vera spits, furious. “We should take out those ships immediately. That’s what my mother would do.”

“Your mother, Lieutenant Wright, is dead,” Anita replies, short and clipped. “And regardless of what she would have done, this is not a decision that will be made based on the memory of one woman. This is a decision that will be made in the Alliance, by an elected council of representatives.”

Vera flushes. She opens her mouth to say more, but Chris holds up a hand.

And, as always, Chris is the only person in the world Vera really listens to.

“What do we know about these ships?” Chris asks.

“They’re unidentified,” Anita replies. “They’re over the horizon and they haven’t penetrated the Naval ring around Monterey… yet. Air Force patrols found them. There are three. They seem to be waiting. Just sitting and waiting. It’s very frustrating.”

“They’re there for a reason,” Devin replies.

“Obviously,” Vera says. “They’re letting us know that they’re close.”

“But why?” Anita continues. “That, my friends, is the question. Up to this point, Omega hasn’t done anything that hasn’t been calculated. The EMP, the invasion. Everything has been planned so far in advance, we should know that there could be something behind these ships that’s a lot bigger than any of us think.”

I want to roll my eyes. Anita is merely stating the obvious.

We wouldn’t be meeting here today if we were underrating Omega.

Hope for the best, get ready for the crappy.

That was my motto before the EMP, and it remains true today.

“There’s a Coast Guard Cutter that patrols the shoreline,” Devin says. “They’ve gone up the coast far enough north of Monterey that they’ve seen Omega troop movements on land. A couple of ships bringing new troops in.”

“Where is this happening?” I ask. “I thought the Alliance had secured the west coast.”

“Most of the west coast,” Anita corrects. “We don’t have the manpower to protect every square inch of territory. Besides, up until yesterday, California was not a part of the Alliance’s responsibility. Today it is, and we will do what we can to push Omega out.”

There is a moment of silence. I look out the huge, picture windows facing the bay. I can see for miles, the blue of the ocean only slightly darker than the sky today. I don’t see the Omega ships, but the knowledge that they are out there, waiting, is disconcerting.

I spot Sophia out of the corner of my eye. She is smiling at Elle, who has Bravo in tow. Andrew is approaching them, and they are all talking, friendly.

I wish I could talk like that to Sophia again.

“What do we do in the meantime?” I ask, stating the obvious. “What’s the protocol? Do we take out the ships or wait to see what’s going to happen? To be completely honest, guys, I’d rather not wait for Omega to make the first move. When they do that, people die. Good people. We should be on offense, not defense.”

Anita slowly nods.

Chris tilts his head, the ghost of a smile on his face. I know he agrees with me.

“Come on, folks,” Devin announces. “The Coast Guard is calling.”

“Say hello to the Golden Shark,” Devin says, grinning.

We are standing at the end of a pier that juts into the water, bobbing with each swell of the sea. A Coast Guard cutter is here. It’s not very big — it’s built for speed and efficiency rather than size. It is slim and white. A cabin is perched up front. Windows surround the room, so that the captain can see in all directions.

“She’s pretty,” I comment.

There is a small crew aboard. The Coast Guard team wears bright orange jackets and dark blue pants with boots. They are mostly young men, with a couple of senior officers aboard.

Chris is here with me, as is Devin, Uriah, and Andrew.

Elle, Sophia, and Anita Vega are still in the aquarium.

“Can you take us out?” I ask, a thrill of excitement rushing through me. I have never been on a boat, and this seems like the perfect opportunity. “I’d like to see what’s going on out there.”

The Coast Guard probably has better things to do than take one Senator/Commander out in the bay. But Chris shares a knowing glance with Devin, and the two nod at the same time.

“I think we can arrange that,” Devin replies.

“Really?”

“Really,” Chris replies. “You’ve got your security detachment and I think it would be good for you to see the bay and report your findings to the Alliance.”

I feel relieved. Chris is letting me go without him. Willingly.

He is trusting my instincts, trusting my ability to handle myself.

“Good,” I say. “Then let’s go out on the bay and see what we can see. I want to know where these Omega troop movements are happening.”

Devin steps onto the cutter. The Captain is a tall black man with a shaved head and glittering brown eyes. He is expressionless as Devin speaks to him, occasionally glancing at Chris and I.

“Cassidy,” Devin says. “This is Captain Adams. Captain, this is Commander Hart and Commander Young of the Freedom Fighters in the Central Valley.”

Adams salutes me.

“Welcome aboard, Commander Hart,” he says.

“Thank you, Captain,” I reply.

I look at Chris.

“Go back to the school,” I say. “I’ll take the cutter, tell you what I see on the coastline. Take Devin, Uriah and Andrew with you. I’ll just take the security detachment.”

He raises an eyebrow as if to argue the point, but thinks better of it.

“Okay,” he says at last, like the words are painful. “Be careful.”

I can tell by the expression on his face and the way that he is carrying his body that he wants to embrace me; kiss me, maybe. But he doesn’t because we are surrounded by people and now is definitely not the time.

“See you at base,” I tell Chris and Devin.

“See you, Commander,” Devin replies, winking.

Chris hesitates only a moment longer before leaving me, and that’s when I know that the suffocating tension between us has dissipated. We haven’t cleared up everything, but at least we are comfortable.

“Well, Captain,” I say. “Shall we?”

Captain Adams grins.

“We shall, Commander.”

Chapter Eleven

The salty ocean spray wets my hair and freezes my fingers, making it difficult to grasp the railing on the cutter. They call it a cutter for a reason, too. It slices through the water like a blade, bouncing and gliding and jarring all at once.

It is an entirely new sensation for me. I’ve been in planes, ridden horses in combat, gotten blown up inside of a Humvee on a battlefield… but being on a boat is different. It’s disorienting. The deck continually swells under my feet, making walking from one end of the vessel difficult when it is in motion.

A dramatic spray of water jets out behind us as we move through the cold bay, leaving a white, foamy trail of bubbles. There is a collection of rocks along the coastline up ahead, near the tip of the peninsula. Several sea lions are lounging, unconcerned with the war and everything around them. They just lie there, basking in the sunlight.

The coastline is a pencil-thin outline in the horizon. Monterey Bay is a crescent moon, and the buildings on the shoreline look like toy blocks from here.

“Commander Hart,” Captain Adams says. “Follow me.”

He is a tall, strapping man with broad shoulders. We climb the stairs to the cabin, a small compartment with a control panel and the ship’s wheel. There are windows on all sides of us, giving us a great view of the sea. I adjust the straps on my orange life jacket and assess my surroundings.

A young man with curly black hair is at the wheel, and there is another man here as well. They nod at us as we enter.

“The Golden Shark is capable of twenty-eight knots,” Captain Adams tells me, his voice loud and booming. “We’ve got a twenty-five millimeter machine gun mount and a fifty caliber machine gun. We’ve got the ability to survive on rough seas and loiter speed for eight hours.” Captain Adams folds his arms across his chest, seawater rolling down his jacket. “I’ve been up and down this coastline every day since the EMP, Commander. I wandered too far south one day and half of my crew were killed by enemy fire. Omega was coming in to Los Angeles at the time, and we barely made it out of there alive.” He shakes his head. “Since then, I haven’t seen any Omega activity this far north. Until yesterday. Those ships off the coastline and the one ship I saw about forty miles up the shoreline here So, four ships total.”

“How many troops did you see?” I ask.

“Hard to say. Probably five hundred, at least on the shoreline.” He frowns. “They weren’t hiding their presence, either. They were being shipped onto the shoreline, dropped off like a special delivery. It was like they wanted us to know they were here.”

“How far out has Monterey been secured?” I say. “I know that the city itself is locked down pretty tight, but where does the ring of military defense stop?”

Captain Adams answers, “About twenty miles out. Past that, it’s still hostile territory, in my opinion. The Central Valley is pretty secure, but San Francisco and other cities up north on the Pacific Ocean are still having a hard time. Let’s hope California joining the Alliance changes that.”

“I hope so, too, Captain,” I say.

I really do.

We speed further up the coast, the cerulean blue of the sea spectacularly beautiful in the late morning sun.

“Did you live in Monterey?” I ask Captain Adams. “Before the EMP and the invasion, I mean?”

His eyes become sad, then.

“Yes,” he replies. “I did.”

And that’s it. I wonder how many people in his life have died.

I wonder if he was married, if he had children…

“This is where we saw them,” Captain Adams says, changing the conversation. “They moved inland. The thing that gets me, though, Commander… it’s like they removed all traces of their presence. They just showed up, then disappeared.”

There is nothing special about the strip of land here. It is merely a beach. Sandy dunes precede the shore, and beyond that is the California coast.

“If there were five hundred troops, Captain,” I reply, “and they seemingly vanished without a trace, I think it’s safe to say that we’re in trouble.”

“How do you hide five hundred troops?” he mutters.

“The same way we hide our militia groups,” I say, chewing on my lower lip. “We hide in dense woodlands and abandoned areas where nobody would think to look. We attack sporadically, guerilla-warfighter style. We are seen, and then we vanish… without a trace.” I place my finger on the windowsill. “I wonder if Omega is starting to use our own tactics against us.”

Captain Adams looks interested, almost perplexed.

I am about to go into a deeper explanation when the front of the boat shudders. The entire vessel is rocked sideways, dipping the left side entirely underwater. I slide down, smacking my shoulder against the glass windows.

Captain Adams curses, regaining his balance faster than me.

“Get us out of here!” he bellows.

I crawl to my feet and stumble down the stairs, the ship still rocking back and forth under my feet. We are bobbing like a cork, and as I step foot on the deck, I see that a huge chunk of the railing is missing. I smell gunpowder, and I know that we are in trouble.

“They’re firing on us from the shore!” I yell.

“Turn this vessel around!” Captain Adams commands.

I run to the starboard side of the cutter, straining to see movement on the beach. I see nothing. And then, from behind a sand dune, a trail of smoke smears across the blue sky.

“ROCKETS!” I scream.

My God, what have we gotten ourselves into?

The cutter is still reeling from the hit, but Captain Adams and his small crew are rushing around the deck, blurs of orange and blue, running to the machinegun mount.

A machinegun won’t do a damn thing against rockets, I think. Omega is hiding behind the dunes. We can’t reach them. All we can do is get the hell out of here.

The rocket that was in the sky starts plunging down toward us. The cutter makes a U-turn in the water and the rocket hits the sea behind us, sending a wave of water over the deck. I am soaked, head to toe, freezing. I ignore it, knowing that we are not out of danger yet. The rockets are still coming.

The cutter is racing through the water. I hold onto the outside of the cabin to maintain my balance as we move, watching the skies. There are four rockets in the air, and it hits me then how odd it is that Omega would go out of its way to destroy a single Coast Guard patrol boat.

Why would they jeopardize their location?

Why wouldn’t they just let us turn around and go back to Monterey?

I am just about to come to some sort of a realization when I notice the trajectory of the third rocket. It is coming toward us quickly, and at our speed, it will hit us in just a few seconds. I yell at Captain Adams from the deck.

But it is a useless warning. He sees it, too, and it’s not like we can just slam on the brakes and stop instantly. This is a boat. It doesn’t work like that.

I know what it is about to happen. The cutter slows down substantially, but it is not enough. I look down at my orange life jacket, vaguely noting that every strap is in place. I run to the stern of the cutter, into the right corner. The rest of the crew sees the rocket, too. Captain Adams looks down at me through the window of the cabin, shaking his head. There is an expression of pure shock on his face.

The rocket hits the bow of the cutter just as I jump over the railing. My feet hit the water first, and then I am swallowed whole by the sea.

The water is shocking, freezing. My body recoils from the cold temperature, but I have no way to fight it. My head plunges underwater, soaking my hair, numbing my fingers. I have never been so cold. Even being buried in a blizzard in the mountains has nothing on this.

This is awful.

The lifejacket that I am wearing pulls me back to the surface of the water. I sputter for air, coughing and hacking, kicking my legs. My heavy combat boots make it difficult to move. Waves splash over me again and again, blurring my vision. I see the cutter, capsized a short distance from me. I see members of the Coast Guard bobbing in the water, their lifejackets the only thing keeping their dead bodies from sinking to the bottom of the sea.

“Captain Adams!” I gasp.

I don’t know why I say his name. I know that he’s dead. I know that most of the crew is gone. In fact, I don’t see any living soul other than myself. The smoldering remains of the cutter are going under fast, bubbling and sinking into the ocean. I am so cold — so completely frozen — that I barely grasp the concept that I am stranded at sea.

My breathing comes quickly, erratically. I know I am hyperventilating, but it’s difficult to fight. I feel suffocated. The cold is ripping into my chest, making my lungs ache. How long have I been floating here? Two minutes? Two years?

I don’t know.

I move my arms and try to kick toward the shoreline. It is distant but clear. It could take me hours to swim to shore with this life vest on, and I’m already fatigued.

You’re going to freeze to death, my subconscious whispers. There’s nothing you can do.

I think of Chris, a Navy SEAL. He is trained to handle dives into cold water. He is a frogman, a rare kind of soldier. I try to think like him, to reach into my memory. Has he ever told me anything about surviving in cold water?

No. Water hasn’t been something that we’ve had to deal with.

And now it is going to kill me.

I feel my limbs weaken, becoming clumsy. I force myself to swim, kicking toward shore. But I know that even if I reach the beach, I will still probably freeze to death. The water in Monterey Bay is just too cold.

It’s too cold…

The world becomes blurry and hazy. Suddenly I’m not cold, just numb. It is a painful, stinging sensation that penetrates every part of my body. I am drowsy, like I could close my eyes and sleep for a thousand years. I’m so tired. And if I sleep, I won’t be cold anymore. Suddenly the idea sounds very attractive…

I feel something clamp into the back of my lifejacket. My first thought is that I am being attacked by a shark, or eaten by a sea lion.

Do sea lions eat people? Do I even care?

Something yanks me out of the water by the collar of my jacket and the straps of my life vest. As soon as the cold ocean breeze hits my body, I am acutely aware of the cold once more. The mere numbness is gone. I am now in very real pain.

I grit my teeth and strain to focus my eyes.

I land on my back, hitting something hard. I catch an overpowering whiff of rotting fish and wet wood. I try to sit up but my body will not do what I want it to do. I can only lie there, a stiff, unmoving cadaver for all the world knows.

There is a voice and lots of movement. I see a metal railing, a pile of fish. I see what looks like some sort of a crane on the side of a wooden deck. I also catch a glimpse of a man with a wool cap pulled down around his eyes.

And then I’m out.

No more cold for me.

This is not where the story ends, I think. We will be here tomorrow.

We are in the foothills. It has been only a few months since the EMP. I still have not found my father, but I have Chris Young. He is growing on me, and I on him. I think we make a good team. I have learned a lot in just a few months about survival — what gets you killed, and what keeps you alive.

I am not naïve anymore.

I am scared. There is a difference.

My long red hair is braided back. The cold morning air nips at my cheeks. Chris is checking his backpack, counting the bullets we have left for his shotgun. One box. That’s all. We haven’t been able to find much ammunition foraging through abandoned trailers and houses in Squaw Valley. Supplies are running out. I have been depending on Chris’s hunting skills to provide us with dinner.

Wild rabbits and squirrels? Yum.

“What’s on the menu today?” I ask, just to make conversation.

“Same thing as yesterday,” Chris replies. “And the day before that.”

He’s worn holes in his dark pants, and the soles of his boots are starting to come apart. He stands tall — six feet, four inches. It’s been weeks since he’s shaved, and he’s growing quite a beard.

“Where are we going to sleep tonight?” I ask.

“Thinking a little far ahead, aren’t you, Cassie?” he asks, flashing a wry smile.

“I’m preparing.” I tap my temple. “You’ve taught me well, Sansei.”

He laughs and slings his shotgun across his back, leaning on the tree I’ve got my back against. He places his large, warm hand on the side of my cheek and kisses me. It’s a comforting gesture, sending tendrils of electricity to my toes.

“You trust me, don’t you?” he asks.

“Of course,” I reply.

“Then why are you worried?”

I shake my head. “I’m not worried.”

Chris kisses me again, and this time I bite his bottom lip ever so slightly, making him pause. He studies my face, wrapping a strand of my loose hair around his finger.

“We’re both worried,” he says softly. “There’s no shame in that.”

I want to believe him.

I’m just not ready to.

“If we find my father and your family,” I say, “that doesn’t mean that the world is going to go back to the way it was. I don’t think it will ever be the same. Too much has changed.”

“Nothing will ever be the same,” Chris replies. “But if we find the people we love we can bring the best parts of the old world into the new one.”

I smile at his logic, admiring his positive outlook.

“You’re a good man, Chris,” I state.

The words leave my mouth automatically, a statement of truth.

He kisses my forehead.

“Let’s go find food,” he says.

And then we are moving again.

I snap awake. I sit up straight, gasping for breath, expecting waves of cold seawater to rush over my head and drown the life out of me.

“Hey, now. Easy, girl. Lie back down before you hurt yourself.”

My hand flies to my belt, but my knife isn’t there. My heart flips and I jump to my feet, losing my balance. I am in a small, contained room that is rocking back and forth. I fall and hit the wall, landing on my hands and knees.

“See? What’d I tell you?”

I turn toward the voice. An old man is rising from a chair in the corner of the room, a wool cap pulled over his forehead and ears. He is grizzled, with deep lines running throughout his face. Judging by his rubber boots and baggy overalls, I instantly make the assumption that he is a fisherman.

“Who are you?” I say, rolling back to my feet, crouched on the floor like a cat. “Where am I?”

The old man has a tobacco pipe in his hand. The smoke is acrid, strong.

“Call me Jonas,” the man replies, slowly. “This is my boat, Mia Bella. You’re lucky I came along when I did, missy. Your whole crew is dead.”

My heart sinks.

“You’re a… fishing boat?”

“Sure am.” He tilts his head. “Now who are you?”

I’m not sure what to say. I look down at my body, realizing for the first time that I am not in uniform. I’m wearing old jeans and an oversized tee-shirt. My feet are covered with floppy socks. I look back at the corner of the room, where I was lying. A small cot has been layered with blankets and quilts. I spot my uniform, my gun and my knife drying on the back of a chair nearby. A small window above the bed peeks into the bay.

“How long have I been out?” I ask.

“A good while,” Jonas replies. “You were suffering from hyperthermia when I pulled you in. Saw the whole thing from a distance. The rockets, the cutter capsizing, the crew. You were the only survivor I found. You’re a lucky girl, missy.”

I frown.

“I wouldn’t put it that way, but yeah,” I whisper. “Omega didn’t fire at you?”

“The battle was long over when I got there.” Jonas raises one bushy eyebrow. “It took me about twenty minutes to come pull you out of the water. You’re lucky you’re young. My old body couldn’t have taken that long in the bay water.”

I shiver. My hands have been wrapped in cloth.

“You saved my life,” I state.

He shrugs.

“Thank you,” I say.

There’s nothing else to articulate. I am grateful to be alive, but I am sad that Captain Adams and the rest of the crew are dead.

“Any idea why Omega would fire on a Coast Guard cutter like that?” Jonas pursues. “They usually don’t bother with little patrol boats like that, there’s no reason to. It’s a dead giveaway of their position.”

A theory forms in my mind.

What if Omega knew that I was on the boat? A Commander and a Senator?

What if they went out of their way to destroy the cutter because of me?

I say nothing about this to Jonas.

“I don’t know,” I lie. “They’re Omega. That’s explanation enough.”

He doesn’t look too sure.

“You got a name, missy?” he asks, taking a drag on his pipe.

The boat bobs back and forth.

“Rachelle,” I say, thinking fast. “Rachelle Barton. I’m… with the National Guard. This was supposed to be a routine patrol, just trying to learn the ropes. I don’t understand what went wrong.” I glance sideways at my uniform. My rank is visible on the sleeve, and I hope that Jonas doesn’t know that I am bluffing.

Jonas stands from his chair.

“Sometimes things happen, honey,” he replies. “That’s life.” He pats my shoulder. “It’s just me on this boat, so I’ll take you back into Monterey Bay. That’s where I dock this vessel — does that work for you, too?”

“Yes, sir,” I say. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

He nods, opening the door. I get a glimpse of the foggy night sky and the murky waters of the Pacific Ocean.

I’ve been out a long time and he never brought the ship back to the mainland? Why would he do that?

“Your clothes should be just about dry, Miss Barton,” he tells me.

I nod. He closes the door and I stare after him, a sick feeling pooling in the pit of my stomach. I know that I should be nothing but grateful to this man for keeping me alive… but I can’t shake the bad, premonitory cloud gathering in the back of my mind.

Something is wrong.

Very wrong.

Chapter Twelve

I finish buttoning my shirt, pull on my boots and reach for the handgun on the nightstand beside the cot. The weight of the weapon seems lighter than usual. I slide the magazine out. The chamber is empty. The bullets are gone. It is a useless piece of metal.

I grab the case for my knife and pull the Velcro back. The case is also empty; this makes me angry. Jeff Young gave it to me for Christmas, before he was killed in action during the Battle of the Grapevine.

I strap the empty case to my belt and slide the gun into the holster.

Apparently my rescuer doesn’t trust me enough to allow me to be armed on his ship. I can’t say that I blame him, but I’m going to need my knife back, at the very least. I check the inside of my right pant pocket. I have a small knife in here, and it looks like Jonas has missed it.

Good.

I keep it in the bottom of the pocket. It’s not much, but I may need it later.

I stand up. I feel fine aside from a dull headache. I walk to the cabin door, push it open, and tense as the cold ocean breeze hits my face. The deck is quiet and dark. A couple of lanterns dangle from the ropes above my head, illuminating the small fishing rig with a dim, orange glow.

“Jonas?” I say.

“Over here, missy.” The old man standing on a higher deck, behind the ship’s wheel. The space is not enclosed like it was on the Coast Guard cutter. “Feeling up to walking, are you?”

“I feel great, thanks,” I reply. “How far are we away from Monterey Bay?”

“No more than an hour. Don’t worry, I’ll get you back to the mainland safe and sound.” He pauses. “Although judging by the weapons on your person, you’re probably quite capable of taking care of yourself.”

I say nothing. I only watch him.

Jonas clears his throat and I walk to the railing. The fog is thick. I can’t see the shore from here. In fact, I have no idea which direction we’re headed, although I’m assuming it’s east. I shove my hands in my pockets and settle back on a wooden crate. Although I don’t see any fish on this ship, I can smell them. The stench is pretty rank, permeating the wood and the cloth in the sails. The slight putter of the motor propelling the little vessel through the water is the only sound aside from the waves lapping at the side of the boat.

I settle into my spot, silence hanging between Jonas and I.

I’m sure that Chris and the rest of the National Guard and militias have discovered the destruction of the Coast Guard cutter and the demise of Captain Adams and his crew. They won’t find my body among the dead in the water, so I wonder if they will assume that I am dead, as well. I wonder, briefly, if search aircraft was sent to look for the wreckage of the Golden Shark… and if there were, why didn’t they find me?

I curl my fingers into fists.

Chris is going to be angry when he finds out what happened.

The minutes pass. I find myself wandering back into the cabin to escape the cold temperatures. I sit in the chair in the corner, closing my eyes. I am still tired from the hypothermia, and I know that I am lucky to be alive.

“Miss Barton?” Jonas calls. “We’re coming into port in a few minutes.”

I stand up and leave the cabin once more. Jonas has cut the motor back a few notches and we are sidling up slowly to a long wooden pier. I see no lights or buildings onshore.

“Where are we?” I ask.

“Back,” Jonas replies.

“This isn’t the bay, and it’s not Cannery Row,” I tell him.

“It’s where I dock my boat. You’ll have to walk a ways to get where you want to go.” Jonas shrugs. “I’m doing my best, missy.”

Guilt tugs at my heartstrings. This man saved my life — he didn’t asked to be ordered around by a militia commander. So I shut my mouth as he brings the boat alongside the dock and ties the Mia Bella up.

“Home sweet home,” Jonas announces, grinning widely, showing off four or five missing teeth. “Thanks for riding along with me, missy. I hope you make it back okay.”

I nod.

“Thanks.” Then, “Can you tell me where I am so I can find my way back to city? It helps to have a starting point so I know which direction to head.”

Jonas’s smiles fades, turning to a small twitch.

“Well, you’re about… let’s see… maybe twenty miles north of the city.” He reaches for his pipe. “You’d probably better find a vehicle…”

“Or you could ride with us.”

That voice.

My blood runs cold — colder than the water in Monterey Bay. The fog is so thick, I can barely make out the figures standing along the dock. Four… five… ten… twenty. Raw fear shoots through me — this is a trap. What have I allowed Jonas to do to me?

Never trust people. Never, never, never…

“Cassidy, it’s been too long. Last time we crossed paths you were laying waste to my prison, and I was scrambling to clean up your mess.” A pause. “My, how the tables have turned.”

I take a step away from the railing as Harry Lydell steps out of the shadows of the fog, the lantern-light casting a glow on his fine English features. He’s wearing an Omega uniform, dark curly hair combed back.

“Harry,” I say, breathless.

“Yes,” he replies. “Charmed to see me?”

I frown.

He laughs, amusement in his face.

“You know, when we were informed that you survived the terrible tragedy that befell the Golden Shark and its crew,” he says, “we had to meet you here. It’s only polite, don’t you think? So glad to see that you made it.”

I look at Jonas. The old man’s expression is crestfallen — he is completely pale, almost sick. I glare at him.

“You radioed Omega?” I say. “You’re a spy.”

“I’m just a fisherman,” he mutters. “I’ve got to stay alive, just like the rest of you.”

“Well,” I say, lifting my chin. I ignore the terror in my heart, the feeling of helplessness. I know that Harry will kill me. I know what this means. “Shall we go, Harry?”

“That’s General Lydell, actually,” Harry corrects, lifting a finger. “And yes. Let’s go. There are some people who will be very interested to know where you’re staying the night.”

The smug smile on his face is like a bullet in the chest.

The Omega patrols near and around Harry have their weapons trained at my head. If I move, I’m dead. There’s nowhere I can go, anyway. The water? Nope. The dock? Occupied. I am trapped, this is it.

Three Omega soldiers, dressed in their dark uniforms — the signature white O stitched into the sleeve — jump onto the boat, still holding their guns to my head.

“Time to go,” Harry says.

Jonas starts to say something, but decides against it. He shrinks back onto his boat as I turn my back on him, kicking myself for failing to trust my initial instincts. I could have forced him to tell me where we were going — but instead I made the fatal mistake of trusting someone.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I blame the hypothermia and the shock of the attack on the Golden Shark for trusting Jonas.

Oh, God. Help me survive this.

Please.

It is early in the morning, and I am sitting in the corner of an old elementary school lab. My bare feet are covered with mud. I am filthy. My short hair is matted with dirt and leaves from fieldwork. Harry is sitting beside me, staring at the wall.

“You think we’re going to die here?” Harry whispers. His voice comes light and breathy, like something out of a British movie. “If we live long enough to get on Omega’s good side, we’ll be worked to death. What’s the point of living?”

“First,” I reply, “there’s no such thing as Omega’s ‘good side,’ and second, the point of living is exactly that: to live. We have to keep trying, Harry. No matter what it takes.”

Harry presses his lips together, pensive.

Most of the other laborers — the enslaved fieldworkers like myself — are asleep, exhausted after many hours of difficult work harvesting produce for the enemy.

“If we escape…” he trails off. “There is no way out of this.”

I put my hand on his forearm, offering a smile.

“We have hope,” I tell him. “What more do we need?”

Harry gazes at me, something deeper than admiration sparking in his clear blue eyes. He leans closer, his face mere inches from mine. I snap out of it and pull away, releasing a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.

“We’ll be okay,” I say automatically. “One way or another.”

Harry frowns, hurt written across his face.

“One way or another,” he replies quietly. “We’ll see.”

Harry and his armed guards march me to an Omega convoy, shove me into the backseat of a Humvee with Harry, and slam the doors. My heart is hammering against my ribcage, but I maintain a calm and cold expression. I don’t smile, I don’t frown. I only breathe in and out, blink, and stare at the ground.

“My, aren’t you talkative today,” Harry comments. “Where is the spunky, big-mouthed Cassidy Hart I know and adore?”

I flick my gaze up, giving him a sour look.

“Ah, I see a flash of her now,” Harry chuckles. He is so smooth, so elegant. It is not difficult to believe that this young man was once a burgeoning actor in Hollywood — he’s full of drama and overblown theatrics.

“Why are you dragging this out?” I demand.

“Because we have something the militias want,” Harry replies. “And the rest of California, I might add. We have the great Commander and Senator Cassidy Hart. Let’s also not underestimate the overprotective qualities of your dear Chris Young.”

Harry’s smile is now predatory, calculating.

“Neither Chris nor the militias or the State of California are willing to sacrifice the welfare or the survival of our cause because of me,” I tell Harry. “It’s not going to happen, and you know it.”

Harry doesn’t answer. He just continues flashing that dangerous smile.

The Humvee’s engine roars to life and the convoy begins moving. It is a familiar mode of transportation, only now I am a prisoner. Not an entirely alien situation to me, but still… it sucks.

I have no idea where we are. The fog covers everything like a thick blanket, masking the ghosts of buildings and street signs. According to Jonas, we were about twenty miles north of Monterey when the Mia Bella came into port. But he could have been lying.

I mean, he did radio Omega patrols to tell them he’d found Cassidy Hart.

“Where are we going?” I ask Harry.

The two armed guards on each side of me keep the cold, steely muzzles of their weapons digging into my side.

“That’s confidential information, Cassidy,” Harry replies.

“I think you could at least give me a hint.”

Harry leans back, crosses his legs. All bluff and confidence.

“Now that’s the girl I know,” he says. “Always willing to play a game.” He pauses and opens his jacket, pulling my knife out. He holds it flat in the palm of his hand. “A gift from Jeff Young, if I remember correctly.”

I flinch. It kills me that Harry has always known so much about me, but I hardly know anything about him — other than the fact that he was an actor, and now he’s an Omega crony.

“Jeff is dead now, if I’m not mistaken.” Harry shrugs. “What a pity. So many people dying on both sides of the war. It’s a waste, really.”

I grit my teeth, infuriated, fighting the urge to make a cutting retort. Harry is just trying to bait me — he knows what will make me angry.

Sometimes he’s too smart for his own good.

“Are you going to tell the military units in Monterey that you’re holding me hostage?” I ask. “Because they’re not going to negotiate with you. We don’t negotiate with Omega anymore.”

Harry raises an inquisitive eyebrow. He doesn’t believe me? Fine.

He will learn.

We drive for about twenty-five minutes before coming to a halt in the midst of a foggy grove of sand dunes. The Humvees’ engines cut out. The doors open. Harry mock gestures for me to exit first. I do, rolling my eyes. When I step outside, my defense instinct goes into overdrive. There are Omega troops everywhere. They cover the dunes like ants, filling in all the available free space.

The breath leaves my lungs, and I know that the color has drained from my face. My legs shake slightly. I am literally in the heart of enemy territory, surrounded by hundreds of soldiers who would gladly shoot me on sight if asked.

I am in trouble. Big trouble.

“Don’t look so surprised,” Harry purrs, placing his hand on my shoulder. “Omega isn’t the only one who can stage a surprise attack.”

I level my gaze.

“We will push you out,” I tell him.

“You’ll try.” Harry nods, and the guards take me by the arm, leading me through the encampment. I notice that everything and everyone here is totally silent. There is no conversation, no background noise. Omega is literally sitting here, twenty miles out of the city, hidden. Waiting to strike an unsuspecting Monterey.

But how could they have moved this many troops here without us knowing about it? Surely the air patrols saw them — people like Manny are always flying security. We have to know about this.

We have to.

But what if Omega was waiting to move their troops when the fog rolled in? I think. What if they’re hiding their numbers in the dunes? What if Monterey really has no idea what’s coming their way?

I shudder.

I have to warn them.

But I can’t. I am a prisoner, for now.

We move through the camp. The eyes of every Omega soldier are on me. There are lots of Chinese troops. I spot Russian and German mercenaries, and Iranian soldiers on the borders of the camp.

Omega. One army, one world.

There is a large tent erected on the edge of camp. Harry walks inside and I am pushed through the flap. It is spacious in here. There is a simple cot and a foldable table in the middle, covered with maps and radios.

The guards retreat to the edge of the tent, always watching.

“So what do you plan to do with me, then?” I demand. “You’ve already got enough troops to knock down the wall of Jericho out here. You don’t need me for leverage.”

“But I want you for leverage,” Harry replies. “Consider it a side-game. Nothing will drive Chris Young crazier than knowing that I’m going to kill you.”

“Chris is a big boy,” I say. “He stays focused on the objective of the mission, and he will kill you, Harry. You know that.”

I see a flicker of fear in Harry’s eyes. It lasts for only a second, then disappears. He clears his throat and taps the table. “When the sun rises, we’re going to attack Monterey. They won’t see it coming. Your forces are so blind in so many ways.” He opens his hands. “And Chris Young will get himself killed trying to save you. Once he’s dead, I’ll kill you, too. Two birds with one stone: Monterey and the both of you.”

I shake my head. Harry really is insane. Crazed with ideas of revenge. His hatred for Chris and me is the most puzzling thing in the world. Chris and I were nothing but forgiving and kind to Harry — even after I learned that Harry had turned me in to the commander of our labor camp, earning me an immediate death sentence.

I forgave him for that.

But Harry… he didn’t learn from his mistakes.

He took the easy route. He sold out, and now he’s the bad guy.

“You could have been a good guy,” I tell him. “You could have helped us.”

“There’s no fame or recognition in the militias,” Harry snorts. “With Omega, I’ve been given the world. The New Order will elevate me to an esteemed position while the stupid, idealistic militia drivel is crushed under our feet.” He sits on the edge of his cot. “You could still join us, you know. There’s always room for one more.”

I reply, “I think you know I’d rather die.”

Harry frowns. “Yes, I guessed that was what you’d say. Still…” He sighs. “It doesn’t hurt to ask, does it?”

He checks his watch.

“Ah,” he says. “It’s nearly time for the show.”

“You’ve been sending assassins into Monterey,” I say, maintaining a cool expression. “Monterey was relatively safe until Chris and I showed up. Why are you so obsessed with getting revenge? We never did anything to you, Harry. We helped you survive, and in return, you stabbed us in the back. We’re the ones that should hate you.”

“And you do hate me,” Harry hisses. “You know you do.”

“I don’t hate you. I hate what you’ve done.”

“You’re a terrible liar, Cassidy.”

“Unlike you. You seem to be the master of deception.” I fold my arms across my chest, unmoving. “How many more innocent people have to die before this ends?”

Harry’s lip twitches.

“Many more,” he says. “The war is far from over.”

I spend two hours in Harry’s tent, alone. I don’t know where he goes, but I’m sure that wherever he is, he’s causing more trouble. The shock and numbness of being captured by Omega troops has worn off, and I am thinking hard, trying to figure out a way to escape.

Unfortunately, I’m coming up dry.

There is no way out of this. I am surrounded on all sides by hundreds of Omega troops. I can’t simply slip out of camp, and even if I did manage to get through their lines, I have no idea where I am. Where would I run to? Certainly not the beach. I’d have to run inland. That would be the only way…

“Well, Commander,” Harry says, pushing the flap aside on the tent, “it’s time to start the show. Care to join me? I’ve got a matinee showing.”

“Enough theatrics, Harry,” I reply. “Seriously.”

He grins and offers his hand. I rise from my sitting position on the cot and follow him outside. It is early morning. The fog is still heavy. The sun is dimly glowing behind the clouds.

“This way,” Harry encourages.

He is flushed, strangely excited. I do not trust him for a second.

The door to the Humvee that we arrived in several hours ago is open.

“After you,” Harry says, mockingly offering me the door.

I lift my chin and get into the vehicle, knowing that I have no choice.

I keep my hands in my lap, my eyes staring out the window as Harry climbs in to sit behind me, three guards in the vehicle with us, including a driver. I feel claustrophobic, being trapped in a confined space with one of my most despised enemies. Harry, after all, is the same sadistic man who captured Chris and tortured him in an Omega prison in Los Angeles.

If I had any love for Harry, it vanished when he hurt Chris.

The Humvee moves in line with the small convoy. We head toward the coastline. I can barely make out the Pacific Ocean. It is a dull gray in the foggy morning light, an ode to things to come, I fear.

The Humvee is driving down a side road. I can’t see how close we are to the main highway. We stop at the crest of a small hill. The engines cut out, the doors open, and Harry laughs.

“It’s show time,” he says.

I get a sick feeling in my stomach.

I follow him outside, where he makes me stand at the front of the Humvee.

“Watch,” he tells me, buttoning the top button in his black overcoat. A red piece of cloth is tied around his forearm. It reminds me of the Nazi Gestapo uniform from the 1940s.

Is Omega any different?

No.

I follow Harry’s line of sight. The other Omega officers in this group are smiling and watching the horizon, gleeful. I squint, then recognize the slight crescent shape of the Monterey Peninsula in the distance.

And then, just off the coastline, I see ships. Four of them. Large warships, surrounding the little harbor like a wall. I suck in my breath, praying, No, no, no! This can’t be happening! Not after all the sacrifices we’ve made — all the battles we’ve already fought!

“Our warships are quite deadly,” Harry brags. “I’m sure this battle will be over very shortly, fortunately for your forces.”

As soon as the words leave his mouth, I hear the explosion. It is similar to the detonation in Sacramento at the Capitol Building. It is a massive strike. I see the rolls of smoke and the rumbling aftershock of the explosion reaches us even here, across the bay. There is a second strike, then a third one. All of them hit buildings and key installations along the coastline.

I raise my hands to my lips, horrified.

Monterey is under attack, and there is nothing I can do about it.

Chapter Thirteen

I grab Harry by the shoulders and slam him backward against the hood of the Humvee. “How could you do this?” I demand, tears burning in my eyes. “Innocent people are going to die. Good people, Harry!”

Two Omega guards grab my arms and pull me off Harry, forcing me to the ground. One of them slams the butt of his rifle into the back of my neck. I flinch from the pain and hang my head, heaving.

“Good people, bad people,” Harry replies, “what’s the difference, really? We’ve all got bad in us, so we’re all bad. It’s just a matter of who’s stronger.”

“It’s a matter of choosing the good over the bad,” I say defiantly. “That’s what makes us who we are — that’s what defines us.”

Harry shakes his head.

“Take her away,” he commands. “Keep her safe and sound until the moment arrives.” He mock bows. “Pardon me, Senator. I’ve got the rest of Monterey to destroy, and so little daylight to work with.”

The guards drag me away, stuffing me into a different vehicle — a white, retrofitted pickup truck. They surround me. My neck is throbbing from the blow of the guards’ rifle, and I am trembling.

Did they blow up the postgraduate school? Is Chris dead? Is everyone I know gone? They can’t be. They just can’t…

I stop my train of thought, forcing myself to focus. The truck veers back onto the little road, disappearing into the fog. It’s just us. Two guards and the driver. I am in the center seat, staring at the console up front. I keep my hands flat against my hips, slowly slipping the fingers of my right hand into my pocket.

The small pocketknife that Jonas didn’t take is still there. Harry didn’t think to search me again, assuming that Jonas had already taken care of everything. Stupid move. Harry is brilliant in many ways, but he tends to miss the obvious.

The rumble of the engine in the car is enough to drown out the sound of me painstakingly opening the knife with one hand. I swallow when the blade clicks into the upright position, eyes darting sideways. The guards are oblivious, staring straight ahead, guns in their laps.

I curl my right hand around the handle of the blade and casually remove my hand from my pocket, keeping the knife just under my thigh, the flat of the blade against my pants.

This will have to be quick, I think. Very quick, or I’m dead.

Despite the fact that Harry wants to keep me alive — for the sole purpose of hanging my kidnapping over Chris’s head — I know for a fact that these Omega guards won’t hesitate to kill me if I make a move.

So I’ll get one chance, and only once chance.

I realize that the drive to the crest of the hill was only about ten minutes, so I count to sixty over and over again until I reach five minutes. We are in the middle of fog, with no one around us or beside us.

I steel my nerves.

I take a deep breath and tighten my grip on the handle of the knife. I am still buzzing with adrenaline and anger from seeing the missile strikes on Monterey, so I take advantage of the fearlessness that comes from fury. I move quickly. I use my left hand to grasp the head of the guard on my left. I grip his hair, sliding my fingers under his helmet and slamming his head against the seat in front of him. I jam the blade into the base of his skull, where the brain stem connects to the spine. I feel the blade slice through flesh, crunch through bone.

I do it quickly, in a split second.

I pull the blade out as he slumps forward, paralyzed.

The guard on my left is a second too slow. He makes a move to grab the knife, but I turn my body and place my boot on the door of the pickup, using the flat of my back as a sort of shield. I use the leverage I have against the door to push back and turn, thrusting the knife in the back of his neck, as well. It is a painful, horrible injury and he is momentarily frozen with the shock. I jab again, compounding the lethal blow.

My hands are slicked with hot, sticky blood.

I wrench the rifle out of the guard’s hands — the one on my left — and shove the cold, steely muzzle of the weapon into the back of the driver’s skull.

“STOP THE TRUCK!” I command.

He veers off the road, diving into a chain link fence and a grove of weeds. I hit the center console as the truck runs its tires into the dirt and the driver throws the vehicle into park. Heart pounding, I say, “Get out of the truck and throw your weapon on the ground.”

The driver barely manages to stumble out the door, tossing his rifle onto the ground, along with his knife. He heaves and then pukes onto the grass, shaking. I crawl into the front seat and jump outside.

I sling the rifle over my shoulder and grab the driver’s weapon.

“Give me your ammunition,” I say.

He does. He is pale. Sick.

“See this fence?” I say, nodding to the chain link fence. “Put your hands flat against it and stare at the ocean. Count to five-hundred. You move and I’ll shoot you right between the eyes.”

He does as he’s told, wrapping his fingers around the chinks in the fencing, silent. I open the back door of the pickup and drag the dead guards on the ground.

I feel a twinge of guilt, of sadness.

And then it’s gone. I have no room for mercy in my heart today.

I take their guns and clips, too. I kick the side of the first guard’s boot.

“You’re wrong, by the way,” I say, turning to the guard grasping the fence. “The people with the stronger forces don’t win. The people with the stronger spirits do.”

I turn my back on the dead guards and the pitiful driver and slide behind the wheel of the pickup. I look at the fuel tank. Almost completely full. Finally, a stroke of good luck. I throw the truck into reverse and tear away from the fence, screeching onto the road, leaving hot, burnt rubber marks on the asphalt.

I see a sign that reads Cabrillo Highway, Highway 1.

I take the road, racing at breakneck speed through the fog.

My heart is still racing, my breath is short. I am covered in blood. It’s still warm, and it makes me sick. Sick that I have to kill people to save my own life. Sick that I have to kill people to save the lives of others.

I have so much blood on my hands.

The image of the Virgin Mary and the crucified Jesus flashes through mind.

“I’m not a murderer,” I whisper aloud. “I’m a soldier.”

I repeat those words until I believe them.

I hit the city limits of Seaside, just minutes away from downtown Monterey. I know that I am out of enemy territory when I see the United States Military vehicles driving down side roads. But the atmosphere is different, now. The calm structure of safety is gone. Black smoke is rising from the shorelines, smearing the sky with darkness. There are sirens. A pall has been cast over the city.

We are no longer safe. We are under attack.

We were never safe in the first place, I think.

I take the first exit, Del Monte, and floor it down the boulevard, around the corner. I reach a checkpoint and slam on my breaks. I’d forgotten about the checkpoints. Being blown up, kidnapped and barely surviving an escape rattled my brain a little more than I’d like to admit.

The checkpoint is made up of a barrier of sandbags and roadblocks. There is a guardhouse. Two National Guardsmen exit the building and walk to the window, weapons held tightly in their hands.

“Cassidy Hart,” I say. “Commander, Senator. I don’t have identification, I just—”

“Commander,” the first guy says. He’s fairly young with bright red hair. “We thought you were killed off the coast.”

“I should have been,” I reply.

“We’ll get you an escort into the city,” he replies. “This way, ma’am.”

I get out of the truck, toting the rifle and the ammo magazines with me. I leave the truck running and another National Guardsmen jumps behind the wheel, taking the truck away.

“You need a medic,” the redhead says. “Where are you wounded?”

“This isn’t my blood,” I answer.

He nods.

We walk into the guardhouse. It is a tiny building with a desk and a radio.

“I need you to get a message to Commander Young first,” I say.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Tell him that I’m alive, and that I’ll meet him wherever he wants.”

The guy picks up the receiver on the radio.

“Anything else?” he asks.

“That should do it.”

I look at the name tape on his uniform: O’Byrne.

“Thank you,” I say.

“They’re going to be happy that you’re alive,” he replies.

He squeezes the radio set.

“This is Eagle Eye to Home Run,” he says. “Come in, Home Run.”

A woman’s voice answers. It is Vera Wright.

“This is Home Run, Eagle Eye. What’s your situation?” she asks.

“Home Run, we’ve got good news,” O’Byrne says. “I’ve got Yankee One here in the guardhouse with me, alive and ready to get back in the game.”

A pause.

“Unbelievable,” Vera replies, matter-of-fact. “I’ll relay the news to the council and the officers.”

“Yankee One wants to know where she should meet Alpha One and the rest of his unit,” O’Byrne says, watching my face.

“The Wharf,” Vera answers. “Immediately.”

“Over and out, Home Run.”

“Over and out.”

I breathe a sigh of relief. Vera didn’t say that Chris was dead.

He’s alive, he’s alive. Good news.

“Is there anyone else I should radio before we take you to the wharf?” O’Byrne asks. “Maybe Costas? He’s been going crazy trying to track you down. He was convinced you weren’t dead — he was even down here earlier this morning, asking us if we’d seen you.”

“Costas?” I repeat, puzzled. “You mean Elle Costas? The bomb girl?”

“No. Manny Costas. You know.” O’Byrne musses up his hair. “Pilot? Crazy hair, long jacket?”

I nod.

“Yeah, I know him,” I reply, distant. “I’ve just… I didn’t know his last name until now.”

“I thought the two were related,” O’Byrne shrugs. “Whatever. I don’t put things together so well. This way, Commander. The city’s under attack, we don’t need to waste time with chit-chat.”

“Yeah,” I say. “I hate chit-chat.”

O’Byrne hops into an armored SUV. I get into the passenger seat.

“We’ll be there in just a few minutes,” he promises. I fasten my seatbelt. It is a habit I have forced myself to keep ever since I survived an IED bombing in a Humvee. Sometimes seatbelts save your life, in more ways than one.

“So how did you do it?” O’Byrne asks.

I watch the scenery flash by. The calm, collected military exterior of the city has vanished. It’s all gone, washed away. Our military forces are no longer in the center of the city — they’re on the coastline, combating Omega’s warships.

But do they know about the five-hundred troops hiding just twenty miles out of the city? Surely somebody must have spotted them!

“Do what?” I ask.

“Escape. I mean, I assume that’s what you did,” O’Byrne clarifies. “They found the remains of the Coast Guard cutter. Searched everywhere for your body. Couldn’t find you among the dead.” He shrugs. “They assumed you’d either sunk to the bottom or survived, somehow. Commander Young took a SEAL team into the bay and dived during a search.”

My chest tightens.

Oh, Chris. Doing everything he possibly could to bring me back.

This is why I love him. Well. One of many reasons, but still.

“I was rescued by a fisherman,” I say. “How random is that? His name was Jonas. He turned me into Omega for the reward, I guess. Who knows what Omega gave him in exchange for me.” I shake my head. “I got lucky, saw an opportunity to escape. I took it, and now I’m here. That’s really all there is to it.”

O’Byrne glances at the blood on my clothes.

I know what he is thinking: There is way more to the story than that.

He’s right, but I’m not in a storytelling mood.

We follow Del Monte Road and curve past the iron bars of the Naval Postgraduate School. We take it down to the harbor, but instead of going through the tunnel and onward toward Cannery Row or the Presidio, O’Byrne hangs a right into a parking lot. There are small fishing boats and yachts anchored in the bay here. Some of them have been pulled into the parking lot and ripped apart. Militia men and woman are busy, hard at work. No more than a mile away, a fire is blazing in Cannery Row.

“What are they doing to the boats?” I ask.

“The ballasts are made of lead,” O’Byrne says. “A couple of tons of lead, actually. It’s a great way to get bullets.”

“Are we that low on ammunition?” I ask, worried.

“We’re in a state of war,” O’Byrne replies. “And every little bit helps.”

What a great non-answer. He should be a politician.

O’Byrne halts the vehicle at the beginning of a walkway. The path leads to a pier, The Fisherman’s Wharf. It is a faded, rustic old tourist attraction. There are military vehicles gathered here, and lots of soldiers. Many of them are splattered with mud and blood, like myself. They look tired. Scared.

I can feel the tension in the air. It’s thick enough to cut with a knife.

I get out of the car.

“Cassidy!”

Chris is standing on the edge of the walkway, with Vera, Uriah, Andrew, Sophia, and Elle. I walk quickly, too tired to run, and throw my arms around his neck. He smells like seawater and gunpowder — an interesting combination, to say the least. He crushes me to his chest and pulls me into a long, lingering kiss. I am too relieved to be embarrassed or to care what anybody thinks.

“Chris,” I whisper. “We’re in trouble.”

“Thank God you’re alive,” he says. His eyes are red. It looks like he’s been… crying? No. Not Chris. Chris never cries. “You’ve been missing for two days, Cassidy. God, I can’t believe it.” He embraces me again, afraid to let me go. “Are you hurt? Is this your blood?”

“No,” I reply. “You have to listen to me, Chris.” I place my hand on the side of his cheek. “Harry Lydell is here. He’s planning a surprise attack from the north side of the city. The cruise missiles are a distraction. He wants to get inside Monterey.”

Chris’s face turns to stone.

“He’s here?” he asks.

“Yes. And he’s hell-bent on revenge and destruction.”

“Cassidy.” Uriah approaches from behind. I kiss Chris’s hand and embrace Uriah, happy to hug a familiar, friendly person. Uriah slightly shakes my shoulders. “We’re so glad you’re alive,” he says.

Judging by the flush in his cheeks, he’s almost as happy as Chris.

Andrew greets me. Vera does not smile. She doesn’t say a word. She merely squeezes my shoulder, and that is enough. Coming from her, that means something.

“Good to see you alive and well, Commander,” Elle grins, holding Bravo by the harness. “Thought you were a goner for sure.”

“Me too,” I smile.

I look at Sophia. Her expression is placid, cold. She nods, and I notice the tears in her eyes. “Sophia,” I begin, but she won’t look at me. I decide to drop it.

We are out of time.

There is a building near the wharf. It was previously a museum, used for housing relics of the past, like old lighthouse bulbs and sailcloth. The items are still inside the building, but they are covered in dust. It has been abandoned since the EMP, and we are meeting inside. We stand on the second floor. There are wide, open windows overlooking the bay. Omega’s warships are clearly visible on the horizon. Four tiny dots. Harbingers of destruction.

“We can’t stay on the shoreline,” I say. “They could send another cruise missile our way.”

“They could send a cruise missile anywhere,” Chris corrects. “And they’re close enough for guns, now.”

“So we have nowhere to escape to.”

“The Alliance has cruise missiles of its own.” Devin May climbs the stairs to the second story. I haven’t seen him since we met at the Aquarium. “We will retaliate if pushed too far.”

“It’s a distraction,” I say again. “Omega knows that most of our manpower and weaponry is hidden in the city, and they can’t get to that with a missile, because they don’t know where it is. The missiles are meant to draw us to the shoreline so that Harry can bring his troops in through the back door.”

Chris nods.

“Exactly,” he agrees. “I’ve notified every unit in the entire city, and they’re setting up a steel ring. The National Guard and the Army units here are rolling out every available man they have. Omega has ceased fire.”

“Why would they do that?” Vera demands.

“Because the Alliance is negotiating with Omega,” Devin responds. “They’re trying to avoid a slaughter.”

“I’m on the council,” I say. “I should be negotiating along with them.”

Besides. I thought we didn’t negotiate with Omega.

“You’re also a Commander,” Chris replies, “and you just survived a bombing and a hostage situation. You can’t be everywhere at once.”

I shake my head. This entire situation is beginning to get away from me.

I want my sniper team. I want my militia.

I want to get back in action right now.

“We can’t stand around and talk about this anymore,” I say. “I’m taking my team and going to the north side of the city. I’m going to help stop Harry’s forces from getting into the city. He’ll be bringing them in fast because by now, I can guarantee you he’s discovered that I’ve escaped, and he knows I’ll tell you everything I saw and heard.”

“My only question is,” Vera suddenly says, “how in hell did we miss five hundred troops hiding in the dunes twenty miles outside of the city limits? How is that even possible?”

My mind flashes to the heavy fog, and how our limited air support probably had trouble seeing through it. Even then, that’s no excuse.

“Who does the perimeter patrols?” I ask.

“Militias,” Devin replies.

“Which militias?”

Devin shrugs. “I don’t know,” he says. “The Coyotes, the Seahawks. This week the Freedom Fighters have actually been helping while they’re here.”

“Who’s been on those patrols?” I pursue. “It hasn’t been anyone on my team, has it?”

We brought about twenty of our own men and women from the Freedom Fighters into Monterey, but as far as I know, none of them have left the Naval Postgraduate School. Their purpose was to provide security for the Negotiations.

“Well, actually—” Devin begins, but he is cut off by Elle.

“Um, excuse me,” she says, pointing out the window. “But what’s that?”

I follow her line of sight. An Omega Humvee is pulling up in the parking lot. It is flanked by United States military vehicles and soldiers. I glance at Chris.

“Devin?” Chris asks.

“This leads me to my next bombshell,” Devin shrugs. “Omega sent a courier into the city. Apparently Harry’s got a message for us.”

My blood boils.

Screw Harry Lydell and his stupid games. I want to fight.

I turn away from the window and hurry down the stairs. Everyone is hot on my heels, Chris just behind my shoulder. We walk outside. O’Byrne, the guard from the checkpoint, is the first and only face I recognize among the group of soldiers.

“We’ve got an Omega scout,” he says. “He came here willingly, under a flag of truce. He says he’s got a message for all of us.”

“Let’s hear it,” I snap.

The soldiers open the door and an Omega trooper steps outside. He is tall and European, an aristocratic sneer on his lips. He reminds me of Harry, minus the devastating good looks and curly hair.

“Greetings, officers,” he says, his voice heavy with a German accent. “Commander Hart, Harry Lydell wanted to make sure that I congratulated you on your daring escape. He was most impressed.”

I’m sure he was. Impressed and enraged.

“Go on, soldier,” I say. “What’s your business here?”

“Harry Lydell, District Prefect and General, sent me here to give you a fair warning,” he continues. “Our forces surround your city. We have four warships in the bay, waiting to fire cruise missiles at a moment’s notice. You really have no chance of survival if you choose to engage in combat. A peaceful surrender will be met with gracious mercy. We will not kill… all of you.”

“Surrender is not an option,” Chris states. His voice is steely — his determination apparent for all to see. “Tell Harry Lydell that I when I see him on the battlefield, I’ll kill him myself.”

Vera, Devin, Uriah, Andrew, Sophia and Elle say nothing.

I fold my arms across my chest, glaring.

“You’re wrong,” I say. “We have a chance. If we didn’t, Harry wouldn’t have bothered to send you over here to negotiate. He’s scared, and you know it.”

The messenger blinks, taken aback for a moment.

“I’m just here to relay General Lydell’s message,” he says. “Do you accept his offer or not?”

“Let’s take not,” I answer.

“You’re digging your own graves.”

“We’ll be the judge of that, thanks.”

“Harry will stop negotiating with the Alliance. This will mean war on Monterey.”

“We’re already at war,” Chris says, stopping him. “There’s nothing you can do to stop that now.”

The messenger nods weakly, turning his back on us.

As he gets back into the car, I lock gazes with him. I can see the fear in his eyes, ill-concealed under a façade of bluster and dramatics. He knows that we mean business, and so does Harry.

As the escort leaves, I turn to Chris and Devin.

“Tell the Alliance we’ve engaged,” I say. “Omega’s already made the first move by bombing the coastline. We need to hit back, fast.”

“But we don’t have the numbers or the manpower to stand up to—” Sophia begins, but I cut her off.

“Fight or die,” I say, looking toward the horizon. “Choose your side.”

Chapter Fourteen

This is where I belong, I think.

I am dressed in black. The wind is whipping loose pieces of my red hair into circles as I stand on the crest of a hill just outside of the city. A rifle is slung across my back. Two handguns are strapped to my belt, one to my thigh. I’ve got a couple of knives, a few grenades, and an armor-plated vest.

I am back in my element.

I am in charge again.

We are waiting in a wooded area on the north side of Monterey. The terrain is strangely stepped, veering up and down at jagged angles. Roots of trees twist in different directions. The smell of saltwater and fog and coastal pines is heavy in the air. And all is silent.

We are waiting.

Watching.

I settle into a comfortable position behind a tree, checking my ammunition and weapons. My thin black gloves keep my hands warm but allow movement — potentially quick movement, when the situation calls for it.

Uriah, Andrew, Sophia and Vera are each Lieutenants, each in charge of an individual team of militiamen and women. They are spread out among the woods with their soldiers. I am in the center, the Commander that oversees each Lieutenant and their team. Chris is here with me. He is the top dog when it comes down to it, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

“Manny will be here soon,” Chris whispers.

“So will Omega,” I say.

He nods.

Our militias have spread out around Monterey, surrounding the city limits like a protective barrier, planning to stop the advance of Omega troops. The Alliance should take care of the warships, and this battle should be over quickly.

I hope.

I am comfortable being out in the woods again, back on the field. I’ve had so many worries and thoughts running through my head this past week, it’s been difficult to focus my efforts on one thing: winning.

“Your father would be proud of you, Cassidy,” Chris says, touching my shoulder.

“You say that like you think he’s dead,” I reply.

“I didn’t say that,” Chris answers. “I’m saying that if he knew what you’ve done with the Alliance, and surviving the Coast Guard cutter…” he breaks off. “He’d be proud. As proud as I am. You’re a strong woman, Cassidy. You’ve grown up. You don’t need anyone’s help anymore. You can stand on your own two feet.”

I look at him, smiling softly.

“Nobody can stand on their own two feet forever,” I say. “We all need friends.”

“True.” Chris kisses my forehead. “Like I said. You’ve grown up.”

I look at him. The eerie silence of the woods is unsettling.

And then I say,

“How come you’ve never told me you love me?”

There it is. The words that I have been too afraid to say for months are out in the open. I can see them sinking into his skin, registering in his brain. His expression becomes taut, his eyes troubled.

“What makes you think I don’t?” he asks, and his voice is low, defensive.

“Because you’ve never said you do,” I reply.

“I think my actions speak for themselves.”

“Sometimes words need to be said,” I say. “Sometimes people die and you never get the chance to tell them what you should have.” I frown. “Chris. Do you love me? I think you do. I mean, we’ve been through everything together. We’ve given each other everything. If you don’t love me by now, you’re never going to.”

Saying those words out loud is terrifying to me.

If Chris denies loving me, our relationship will be over. I have known that for months, but I have never dared myself to even let my mind wander in that direction. Yet it is true. If Chris doesn’t love me now, I can’t force him to later.

Love is not made. Love just happens.

But I will always love him, no matter what.

“When they told me that you were dead,” Chris says, choosing his words with care, “I didn’t know what I would do if they were right. The Golden Shark was completely capsized. Everyone was dead. Captain Adams, the entire crew. We recovered their bodies, but you weren’t there.” I see darkness in his face, and I realize how difficult that must have been for him. “I had to know. I took a diving team into the bay and we searched for your…” Here he stops to clear his throat. “We searched for your body. Didn’t find it. But I couldn’t believe you were dead. I didn’t let myself.” He presses the tip of his finger to my cheek. “I’m glad I didn’t.”

“You’re a good man, Chris,” I say. “But do you love me or not? I have to know. Do you understand? I have to. No more games. No more avoiding the question.”

Chris takes a deep breath, closing his eyes.

“Of course I do, Cassie,” he whispers. “I love you more than anything else in this world. You’re the light of my life. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

When he says this, my eyes fill with tears.

How long have I waited for him to say those words?

An eternity. I’m sure of it.

“Why didn’t you just tell me sooner?” I say, trembling.

“Because…” Chris sighs. “Because of Jane.”

I check my left and right, slide my hands down my rifle, swinging it into place in my arms. “Jane was your wife,” I say.

Chris nods.

“What happened to her?” I ask.

Chris runs a hand over his face, so handsome, so weary.

“I met her in San Diego,” he tells me. “I was in SEAL training on Coronado Island at the time. She worked as a concierge at the Del Coronado Hotel, right on the beach. Famous place, big draw for celebrities and rich people.” He laughs beside himself. “She was… a lot like you. Spunky, strong-willed. Nobody was going tell her how to live her life. I fell in love with her. We got married after a couple of years, and she moved around the country with me every time I was deployed.”

He pauses, gathers emotional energy, and continues.

“My missions overseas at the time were… high risk,” he says. “Higher than usual. I was on a hit lit. Terrorists put a price on my head. A lot of SEALs on my team did a pretty good job of keeping their identities and their home addresses a secret, but every once a while… information would leak.” He looks at the sky. “I was on an assignment in Baghdad, Iraq. Assassination mission. I got a call.” He stops. His voice quivers, and for the first time I see a flash of a heartbroken man, a scared man. “Jane had been killed. My parents found her dead in our living room. It looked like the house had been torn apart. She’d been shot four times.” He makes a fist and lays it against the trunk of the tree, above my head. “Terrorists. They killed my wife to get to me. But, being the spineless cowards that they are, did it while I was overseas. Killed an unarmed, innocent woman, because they knew I wasn’t home to protect her.”

“My God, Chris,” I breathe. “I’m so sorry.”

“I just couldn’t do it anymore,” he says. “The missions, the fighting. Why? My wife was dead, killed by the very people I’d dedicated my life to taking out. My job was to remove threats to the American people, and I couldn’t even keep my own wife alive.” He leans closer. “That’s when I left the military. I’d given about a decade of my life to my country. It was time to move on. I moved to Santee, California. My parents wanted me to come back home to the farm… but I wasn’t ready for that.” He swallows. “I was an idiot. I was destroyed, heartbroken. Broken by war. I’d see too much, way too much.” He looks into my eyes. “And then came the invasion, the EMP… and you.”

“I had no idea,” I tell him. “I just… I never knew.”

“How could you? I’m good at keeping secrets. I was trained to be a weapon.” He has a profound look of regret on his face. “When you came along, I fell in love all over again. But this time, we were both in a warzone. My chances of protecting you from Omega… from everything the world had become, were so much slimmer. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing you, Cassie. I was afraid that if I said I loved you, I’d jinx it all. Ruin everything. It had happened before… and because you’re a soldier, well… it could happen again. Chances are, it would happen. Soldiers die. Every day.”

I place my hands on his cheeks.

“But I’m not dead yet,” I say.

“No, you’re not.” A single tear sparkles in the corner of his eye, slipping down the side of his face. “I’m sorry, Cassie. I should have told you long ago. I’m an imperfect man with an imperfect past. But as long as you’re alive, I’ll do my best to keep you safe.”

I shake my head.

“No,” I say. “We’ll keep each other safe.”

I slowly kiss him. It is a short kiss, but a meaningful one. Full of promise and love and new hope. “We will survive this,” I say. “Together.”

He smiles his beautiful smile, and for a brief moment, all is right with the world.

“Commander?”

Chris and I both turn at the same time. Uriah is standing there. He is dressed in black. Like me, camouflage paint is smudged on his face.

“Yes?” I say.

Chris raises his eyebrows.

“Omega is here,” Uriah says. “Get ready.”

There is always a calm before the storm. I lie prone in the brush, my rifle in my shoulder, my cheek on the stock. I am comfortable, I am prepared. I am strangely at peace. Chris is beside me, his position the same.

We are a team again. A single unit.

We’ve got six teams here in the woods with us. All of them are members of the Freedom Fighters. I miss having Alexander Ramos and Derek in the fight with us, but we have to work with what we’ve got.

I see Omega approaching. They are coming up the steep incline, cautiously moving along. They are well armed. None of them are talking. They are expecting us to attack them at some point, but they cannot see us. This is their scouting unit, the prologue to the initial attack. We will wait until their first wave is in the midst of our ranks — until we have drawn them in — and then we will attack.

We are hidden, invisible. We are guerrilla warfighters and the element of surprise is our best weapon. I study the enemy. As always, Omega is a varietal mix of ethnicities. German, Russian, Middle Eastern and Chinese. Some of them I can’t put my finger on. It brings on the same old question: Where does Omega really come from?

Focus, steady, I tell myself. Get ready, girl.

They come closer. I can feel my blood rushing through every inch of my body. I swear that I can hear Chris’s heartbeat next to mine. I barely move my head, enough to see Uriah on the ground with his team about two hundred feet to my right. Vera has her team two hundred feet to my left. Sophia and Andrew’s teams are further ahead. We form a curved lineup, a crescent moon. We are pulling the enemy in, trapping them inside a corral made of soldiers and bullets.

Ten, twenty, fifty, eighty…

I count under my breath. There are at least two hundred Omega troops here. I wrinkle my brow, a twinge of worry in the back of my mind. Harry had at least five hundred troops in the dunes. Where are the other three hundred? Probably spread out around the city.

I shake myself.

Five hundred troops is not really enough to inflict damage when you’ve got militia warfighters and United States military forces guarding a heavily fortified city. The warships on the coastline… they’re not firing any more cruise missiles because they fear retaliation from the Alliance.

But Omega has always fought dirty. Why would they follow the rules?

A thought strikes me.

“Oh, my God…” I whisper. “Chris…”

He looks at me. He makes a sign to remain silent.

I have gone completely pale. Blanched like a sheet.

Where’s Manny? I think. If he’s been flying, he must know, too.

I am bursting, dying to tell Chris what is going on inside my head. This is important, this is life or death. If I’m right, this could be the difference between Monterey falling into enemy hands or us achieving a major victory against Omega.

The front line of the Omega troops are close enough to hear their breathing.

Chris gives the signal by firing the first shot, hitting a soldier in the head. He jerks backward. There is a momentary, split-second where the enemy is frozen. And then everything is chaos.

We are at war once more.

I bring my rifle back into my shoulder, taking a shot. My first bullet hits my target, but I am off by a couple of inches, nevertheless.

“Hang in there,” I tell myself aloud.

The smattering of gunfire in the quiet of the forest turns into a barrage of white noise, of shattering limbs and desperate, guttural pleas for mercy. Sprays of blood fill the air. I move in formation with the rest of my units. Dropping to one knee to shoot, fire and return fire. Then I sprint to the next area of cover, repeat the action, and do it all over again. There is no break in the fight. It is one massive blur of instinctive movement. Of action and reaction. I make sure that I am in the former category.

I want Omega to react to me.

Chris and I stay together. I am always right behind his shoulder as we move from position to position. Our lines move in a circle around the Omega forces. We surround them from all sides, boxing them into our circle of fire.

It is a technique that we once used when we were fighting Omega in the hills of Squaw Valley and the smaller Central Valley farm towns like Sanger and Dinuba. We are so well camouflaged that Omega can barely see us as we move from point to point. It must seem as if they’re being attacked by ghosts.

If they only knew how much they outnumber us.

An Omega soldier manages to worm his way to the front of the enemy line and charge forward, evading gunfire for a few moments. He is very young — almost childlike in his appearance. I am kneeling behind the trunk of a tree, reloading my weapon. I see him coming. He is holding his gun carelessly, a wild look in his eyes. I know that look. It is the expression of someone who knows they are about to lose a fight.

He sees me behind the tree. I am the first person to make eye contact with him. I snap my rifle into my shoulder but he is faster than me. He is crazed with terror and the knowledge that he is about to die.

That is the difference between us: he doesn’t care.

He squeezes the trigger on his automatic weapon. A sputtering of gunfire hits the tree right above my head, tearing pieces of bark off the trunk, tossing splinters into the air like confetti.

I duck down, flinching. I fire off a couple of shots, hitting him twice in the shoulder. He jerks backward and rolls into the brush. He crawls on his stomach. His weapon is out of reach, his teeth are gritted in pain. Blood seeps from the sides of his mouth. I drop to my hands and knees and grab the butt of his weapon, bringing it to my feet, away from his grip.

I will not shoot him again. He will die. My job is done.

“Cassidy!”

Uriah sprints to my area of cover from a few yards away. He stops on the other side of Chris, who is methodically and calmly finishing off the front lines of Omega’s defenses.

“Manny’s here!” Uriah yells.

“GOOD!”

I have been worried about Manny, and even more confused that he shares the last name as Elle, the girl with the bomb dog. It ran through my head that they could possibly be related… but on the other hand, lots of people have the last name of Costas. That doesn’t mean anything.

But what did Elle say to me on the train ride to Monterey?

I was at a ranch in the Tehachapi Mountains. My Uncle’s place, after the EMP. I went back afterwards… it was empty. He was gone. Everything I thought I knew was changed. That fast.

Was it possible…?

Bam!

I hit the tree chest first, the wind knocked out of my lungs. I collapse on the ground, ears ringing. I look down at my body, scanning for injuries. My armored vest has not been pierced. I don’t see anything. But I feel it.

My hip is screaming with pain. It feels like it’s on fire.

Chris is instantly by my side. He fires off his gun and I turn. The dying trooper on the ground is gripping a handgun. There is now a bullet hole in the center of his forehead.

“You’ve been shot,” Chris says.

I touch my hip. Hot blood seeps through the material of my pants. I probe the wound with my fingers, flinching.

“I don’t think it hit bone!” I yell over the noise. “It’s just a scratch!”

“Are you sure?” Chris asks.

“I’ll let you know when I need to get carried off on a stretcher!”

I kiss his cheek and force myself into a kneeling position. My hip is throbbing, but it’s not unbearable. The adrenaline of warfare will keep the pain at a minimum for now. I tear my medic bandage off my vest and slap it on my hip, sealing the wound up. It’s only skin deep. I should be fine.

We continue this pattern, pushing and shooting and moving until there are no survivors. Until there is nothing but the sound of weapons being checked and the heaving breaths of tired soldiers.

Sweat runs down the sides of my face, plastering my clothes and my hair to my skin. I lick my lips, dry and cracked. I taste blood in my mouth — I must have bitten my cheek during the fight, concentrating on hitting my marks.

I turn to Chris. The jarring thought that occurred to me before the beginning of this battle is back, demanding attention.

“Chris,” I say. “This doesn’t make sense.”

Chris takes a drink of water from his canteen. The Lieutenants are sweeping the area, checking for any survivors. Putting down anyone who is left alive.

“What?” he breathes.

“Two hundred here, three hundred there,” I say, shaking my head. “This isn’t enough to take over a city. This is a distraction.”

Chris looks at me. I can tell by the way he closes the lid on his canteen that this is a thought that he has had, too, but he said nothing. It does no good to upset the nerves of your troops right before a battle, after all.

And then I say,

“Manny!”

I turn on my heel, away from the forest. I run through the brush, the pain of my wounded hip on the backburner for the moment. I reach the clearing. There is a little highway here. It has been cleared of all vehicles, and Manny’s biplane is settled in the midst of it.

“Manny?” I call.

He is standing on the wing of his biplane, his leather duster caught in the wind, his flight cap stuck to his head, tangled with his wild gray hair.

“Cassidy,” he smiles. “What is it, my girl?”

“You’re not going to believe this,” I say. “But I think we found your niece.”

Manny’s hand drops to his side. I see something that I have never seen on his face before: shock.

“Elle?” he asks.

I nod.

He takes his flight cap off and hops off the wing of the plane.

“But where? How?” He walks closer. “How did you know I had a niece? I was under the impression that I’d kept that a secret.” He pauses. “Have I been talking in my sleep?”

I laugh — almost hysterically.

“No, Manny,” I promise. “I figured it out for myself.”

“Where is Elle?”

“She’s safe. She’s at the Naval Postgraduate School. She’s got a bomb dog.”

Manny makes a face.

“Makes sense,” he says, but I can see the excitement on his face — the total relief.

“Manny,” I tell him, snapping my fingers. “I need you to focus.”

“I’m focused. Bright eyed and bushy-tailed.” He grins. “What’s the situation, Commander?”

“You’ve been flying overwatch, right?” I ask.

“Just about three times a day,” he replies.

“What have you seen?”

“Well, I didn’t see Harry’s cronies hidden in the dunes,” he replies. “I’ve got a biplane, not a modern aircraft. I couldn’t see them through that thick fog.”

“Have you seen anything else?”

“I’ve been circling the city about twenty or thirty miles out every day. Haven’t seen a thing.” Manny shrugs. “Why?”

“Have you been flying today?”

“No. The threat of missiles put a cramp in my organized schedule.”

“What about last night?”

“No. Pulled aircraft in. I was searching the bay, looking for you.” He smiles softly. “I’m glad you’re alive, my girl.”

I blink, hard.

“Me too,” I say, clearing my throat. Then, “So all of our forces, all of our resources have been concentrated on the coastline, keeping those warships out of our hair.”

Manny nods. “Yes, that’s about the size of it.” He leans closer. “You’re brain’s working so fast, I can hear the cogs whirring.” He makes a motion with his finger. “Don’t give yourself a headache.”

“Too late.” My eyes widen. “Manny. Remember when we were fighting in the Grapevine? You told me that Roman soldiers used to send mercenary groups to the front of the line as a sacrifice. Right?”

“Yes, they knew that the first line of defense is always killed, so why waste the rest—”

“—Manny, I think we’re in trouble.”

“How do you figure, my girl?”

“Five hundred troops. Warships that are just sitting in the harbor, blowing up stupid buildings on the shore…” I look Manny in the eye. “My God, Manny. I think we just let Omega roll a Trojan horse through our front door.”

Manny doesn’t reply.

He just looks at me with an expression that says,

Here we go again.

We are back in the forest. Chris is on the radio, contacting the Naval Postgraduate School. Don’t pretend this isn’t happening, he keeps saying. Something bigger is coming. This is a distraction, smoke and mirrors. We’re in trouble. Call in the Alliance’s air support — everything.

I am breathing hard. Normally I can control my breathing, but right now I am on the verge of panic. I have lost quite a bit of blood, and I lean on Manny for support. He keeps his arm around me, gently squeezing my shoulders.

In the distance, the sound of gunfire and rockets echo across the sea.

“They’re not answering,” Chris says.

Manny cracks his knuckles.

“Try again,” he tells Chris.

Chris does try again. And again. We try contacting the guard posts, anyone.

“What the hell is going on?” Uriah mutters.

Nobody knows, so nobody answers.

“We should send scouts into the city to see what’s going on,” I suggest. “If something bad did go down, we won’t risk sending all of our militia forces into the heart of the city where we can’t make a quick exit.”

More gunshots. More rockets.

There is a distant scream, like someone is punching the air. I look up. Two fighter jets scream above our heads. “Enemy aircraft,” Chris says. “Damn.”

“What do we do?” I ask Chris.

Because I really don’t know what we should do.

The city isn’t responding. We’re stuck in a phantom gray area. Without communication with the rest of the Alliance, how can we know what’s going on?

“We send the scouts into the city,” Chris says, seconding my suggestion. “We find out what’s going on, and we keep the rest of our forces hidden in the woods. If Cassidy’s theory is right…” He shakes his head. “We’ll find out. Uriah, Vera. Take a team. Do a recon. See what you can see.”

“I’m going with them,” I say.

“You’re going nowhere,” Chris replies. “You’re wounded.”

“Give me some epinephrine and I’ll be fine.”

Chris gives me a look.

Geez. I was only joking.

Well… kind of.

I get a flashback of Desmond, the crazy field medic from the Mountain Rangers, his dreadlocks fluttering in the breeze as he went from wounded to wounded on the battlefield, saving every man he could.

He would have had me fixed up by now.

“Sophia,” Chris replies. “Help Cassidy with her wound, then hit the city. Fast.”

Sophia doesn’t meet Chris’s gaze, but she does as she’s told. She has often been our go-to medic when there is no one else available.

I walk over to her, sitting on the edge of a rotting stump. The sound of distant warfare is unsettling. Sophia kneels beside me, checking my hip. It is only a flesh wound, but it still smarts. The skin has been cut and burned. The bullet passed through the flesh, leaving me with nothing but pain — and what I’m sure will be a highly attractive scar later on.

“How are you doing?” I ask Sophia.

She glances at my face, shrugging. She cleans the wound with water and antiseptic wipes from her medial kit. “This needs some stitching,” she says. “Hang on.”

I sigh. She takes the needle and inserts it into my flesh. It pinches and burns, but I force myself to remain still. If I can endure a gunshot, I can endure the stitching up that comes afterward.

“Sophia,” I say.

She keeps stitching.

“Lieutenant,” I press. “Look at me, soldier.”

Sophia snaps her head up, locking gazes with me. Her eyes are red, teary. I touch her shoulder. She freezes, looking like a deer caught in the headlights of a moving vehicle.

“What is it, Sophia?” I ask. “Why all this bitterness?”

She finishes the stitches and ties it off, leaving me with a cleaned, bandaged hip. “What’s going on,” she whispers, “is that we’re at war.”

She stands up.

She swipes her black hair out of her eyes, now long enough to pull into a ponytail.

“You know,” I say, “you can only act like this for so long before you have to take responsibility for your attitude. And let me tell you, Sophia, I’m getting sick of this. We’ve all been through crap, and none of us do this to the team. It’s time for you to suck it up and get over it.”

Sophia’s expression is pure poison.

“You have no right to tell me how to feel or how to act,” she hisses. “I don’t care if you’re the chosen one or the freaking messiah of the entire revolutionary movement. You can’t help me. Ever.” She stands up. “You’ve made your choice. I’ve made mine.”

She shuts her medical kit and walks away. She converses briefly with Vera. They both look at me, then look away.

Sure. That’s right. Talk about me behind my back.

See how well that will turn out for you.

I stand and test my weight on my hip. Not bad. It’s sore, but it will heal — and hey. It could have been a fatal wound, but I got lucky. I’m still in the game. I approach Chris and place my hand on his.

“I want to take a team into the city,” I say. “Let me go instead of Sophia and Vera.”

Chris considers this. He knows that he cannot really stop me. I will go whether he wants me to or not… but I would prefer that he approve of my decision.

“You can go,” he says. “But with Sophia and Vera.” He looks at the woman who was once my best friend. “Both of you, same unit. Cassidy’s the Commander.”

Chris cocks a mischievous eyebrow, like he knows how much Sophia is going to hate this. I maintain a poker face and thank him, checking my rifle, loading up on ammunition.

“Be careful,” Chris whispers. “In and out. Don’t take any unnecessary risks. See what you see and report back as soon as you can.”

“I will,” I say. “See you soon.”

I kiss his cheek. He squeezes my hand.

“Cassidy,” he says, his voice low. So low that only I can hear it.

“Yeah?” I reply.

“I love you.”

A smile touches my lips.

“I love you too, Commander,” I say. “See you soon.”

And then I am off. Sophia and Vera are with me. There are about five militiamen with us. They are silent. I do not know them by name, but I have seen them in action often enough to trust them.

“This is insanity,” Vera mumbles. “We’re stuck on the outside of the safest city on the west coast.”

“Safe is a debatable term,” I say.

“You know what I mean, Hart.” Vera’s perfect blonde hair has fallen from its tight ponytail, hanging in limp strands around her sweaty face. “This was our last chance at rallying forces against Omega, and they’ve taken us by surprise.”

I don’t want to tell them my theory.

I don’t want to hurt them by making the situation worse.

So I keep it to myself. When we reach the city, they might see soon enough, anyway. There is nothing I can do to stop that.

We move through the woods, quiet and stealthy.

“So what’s your problem, Rodriguez?” Vera demands. “You’ve been a pain-in-the-butt since the Grapevine. Why are you even here?”

Normally, this would be the time where I jumped in to defend Sophia.

But Vera has a point.

“I’m fine,” Sophia snaps. “Shut up and leave me alone.”

“Don’t tell me to shut up, soldier,” Vera retorts.

Sophia swings around, stopping dead in her tracks. She takes Vera by the shoulders and shoves her backward, kicking her in the stomach. I am shocked. Not by the violence, but by Sophia. She has never been like this.

I am standing a little ahead of them on the trail.

“Stop it!” I command. “We’re on a mission. Both of you shut up and come on.”

Vera rises from the ground, clutching her stomach.

She shoots Sophia the most lethal glare I’ve ever seen.

The militiamen with me look to me for a signal. Should they interfere? I shake my head, no. Not yet. Not unless they pull out their knives and decide to duel. Until we reach that point… I can handle them.

We trudge to the top of the hill.

Vera is silent. Sophia walks on the other side of the unit, her face a mask of contained fury. At this point, I am so annoyed with her behavior that I’m about ready to kick her myself, but that’s not what she needs.

Sophia needs a new life. A life without bloodshed and warfare.

We all need that, I think. Until then, hang in there, kid.

We come to the crest of the hill, still hidden in the trees. Sophia stops and stares, and Vera takes a sharp breath. My hands falls limp to my sides.

“Oh, my God,” Vera breathes. “What have they done?”

The Monterey Peninsula is clearly visible from our vantage point on the side of the mountain. The warships have moved to the shoreline. They are anchored off the coast, and shiploads of troops are coming inland. They are moving like black ants, flooding the coastline. The beach is covered with them, an invasion force.

“Why aren’t we retaliating with cruise missiles?” Vera says. “The Alliance is supposed to protect us from this.”

I shake my head. “It’s too late,” I reply. “They’re already here.”

I watch the terrifying spectacle of the Omega troops crawling up the beaches and overrunning the roads. And in the midst of it all, downtown Monterey is ablaze with fire.

Chapter Fifteen

“Dad?” I ask. “Why is there war?”

I am ten years old. I’m kicking a soccer ball around the front yard. It is a bright autumn day. Even here, in Culver City, I can smell the quiet descent into winter. Fall is here, Christmas is coming.

“The current war?” Dad says. “Or just war in general?”

He’s ten years younger in this memory, hair shaved down, grizzled stubble on his cheeks. He is sitting on the front porch steps, reading the newspaper.

“Just war in general.” I shrug. “You know. Like… what’s the point?”

“Because we’re human,” Dad replies. “Humans fight. It’s what we do best.”

I kick the ball between two shrubs. Goal.

“But why do we fight, Dad?” I press. “Who was the first person who thought of killing somebody else to get what they wanted? It’s so weird. It’s so… wrong.”

Dad frowns. The headline of the paper is something dramatic.

Someone was killed on their way to work. Someone was kidnapped on their way home from school. A bomb was dropped somewhere overseas. A woman was assaulted. A man was robbed.

“It seems like only bad things happen,” I sigh.

I kick the ball toward the porch. Dad catches it under his boot.

“No, honey,” Dad replies. “There are bad people who do bad things, but there will always be good people to stop them. And that is why we have wars.”

I stare at him.

“That’s why?”

“Most of the time. Not always, but mostly.” Dad kicks the ball back to me. “Remember, Cassie. When you’re fighting, make sure you know which side you’re on. Know what you’re fighting for.”

“I will,” I promise, with all the enthusiasm of a newly minted soldier. “I’ll know.”

I kick one more goal.

Yes. I will know.

The city is in chaos. Vera, Sophia and the rest of my team lie prone in tall grass, looking across the city limits. Omega troops are crawling into the city, overtaking the barricades and checkpoints. What little United States military forces remain to combat their advance is razed to the ground. Omega is an unstoppable wall, a solid influx of destruction.

“What do we do?” Vera whispers.

My hands clutch the ground, fingernails gathering dirt.

What should we do? Monterey’s steel ring has been broken. A secure city has been completely compromised.

“We go back, and we report to Chris,” I say. “And then… hang on.”

I peer through my optics, catching a glimpse of random movement on the far side of a parking lot littered with burning cars. It’s a dog. A German Shepherd.

“Bravo,” I say. “Elle Costas. Hold your position.”

Vera and Sophia follow my line of sight, straining to catch a glimpse. Sure enough, Elle Costas emerges from the side of the parking lot. She doesn’t look hurt. She’s sprinting full speed across the lot, behind the cars, then dives into the tall grass.

“She’ll run right into us,” Vera states.

“We’ll wait, then head back to Chris.”

This is an unexpected stroke of luck, running into a familiar face down here. We wait until Elle gets closer, then Vera crouches down. Elle bursts through the grass, breathing hard. “WHOA!” I say. “Get down!”

Vera grabs Elle and pulls her to the ground.

Elle struggles at first, then recognizes us. Bravo growls but Elle silences him.

“Oh, my God!” she pants. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re scouting,” I reply. “Are you hurt?”

“No.”

“What happened down here?”

“What’s it look like?” Elle shakes her head. “They sent a couple of mortar rounds into the school, then their ships just started getting closer. Next thing you know, they’re dumping troops all over the shoreline.” She looks scared. “Nobody knew this would happen, did they?”

I say nothing.

Then, “They know we won’t use our cruise missiles against our own city.”

“Which is why they had to bring the fight into the city limits,” Vera agrees. “This is stone-age, man-to-man combat.”

I nod. “Let’s get back to the team.”

We stealthily slip back into the woods, moving back over the sandy terrain, keeping a low profile. My mind races with the grim realization that yes, we are the only viable combative forces left in Monterey.

As always, the militias are the only thing that stands between Omega and victory. Why does it always come down to us? Why does the safety and security of the National Guard and the United States Military always fail?

Buck up, soldier, a little voice whispers in my ear. The fight’s not over yet.

That’s right. It’s not.

We move quickly, reaching the rendezvous point with Chris and the rest of the militia. I notice new faces: Anita Vega, Commander of the Coyotes, and Speaker Jen Amal, Commander of the Seahawks. Marshal Sullivan, the Canadian Commander of the Strikers. I also recognize units from the now-deceased Nathanial Mero’s Red Fox and Ken Thrawn’s Titans.

I do a quick headcount estimation.

We have a little over one thousand militiamen and women between the six of our militias. It’s not much… but it’s better than nothing. One thousand highly skilled, dangerous guerilla warfighters against a high profile invasion force is capable of wreaking more damage than Omega might think.

I don’t stop to greet the other Commanders. I simply nod, paying my respects, and tell Chris what we’ve witnessed. Although we are hidden in the hilly terrain, the black smoke is clearly visible from here. Monterey is roasting, and Omega wants everyone to know it.

“Manny!” Elle cries.

“Elle?” Manny is standing on the edge of the group. He stuffs his flight cap in his pocket and runs forward. I have never seen him look so happy. “My girl! Elle!”

Elle sprints through the crowd of people and throws her arms around Manny’s neck. He kisses her forehead and brushes her hair away from her face. His eyes are watery, his hands are trembling.

“My girl,” he whispers. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

“Manny,” Elle says. “I love you. I’m sorry for leaving. I had to go back to Los Angeles. I had to know if they were still alive.”

“I know. It’s okay.” Manny hugs her again. “What matters it that we’re alive. Both of us.”

Elle’s face freezes.

“What about Aunt? Where is she?” she asks.

Manny lowers his voice.

“She’s alive,” he replies. He stands up. “Well, ladies and gentlemen. The Happy Reunion has come to a close. Please continue with your strategic planning.”

I smile at Manny. He smiles back.

There is a sparkle in his eye.

“What’s our next move, Commander?” I ask Chris.

Anita, Ken, Marshall, Jen, Chris and myself stand in a circle, fellow militia commanders; brothers and sisters in arms.

“We end this,” Chris says. “Today.”

I feel a thrill of excitement and fear.

I have no doubt that we will.

Chapter Sixteen

Something happened to me after the EMP. Before the end of the world — before the invasion — I was an average, naïve, unemployed high school graduate. I was a hard worker, but times were tough. Few available jobs and expensive college tuition seemed to set me up for a lifetime of failure.

I had no self-confidence, no self-esteem.

My friends were few and far between. People took advantage of my naivety and left me hurt and bitter. I was afraid to stand up for the things I believed in. I feared being criticized and talked out of what I thought was right. I was a pushover. I would defend everyone but myself. I was, at heart, a fighter — but I was too scared to make the initial, scary step of asserting myself.

I am a different person, now.

No man or woman tells me how to think, or what to do. I am a creature of independence, a child of liberty. I am a soldier, a lethal weapon used to extinguish injustice and defend the weak from those who would seek to destroy them. I am a leader. I am a warrior. I am unashamed and I am unafraid to make the ultimate sacrifice to keep the people I love out of harm’s way.

I have conviction. I have belief. I have a fire in my heart.

I am dangerous.

It is late afternoon. The militias are still hiding in the woods, away from Omega’s direct line of sight. We are gathered with the militia Commanders here, a map spread out on the ground at our feet. My heart is beating in my throat. Fury keeps my senses sharp. I am enraged at Omega, disgusted that they have taken Monterey. I am ready to bring them down.

Nothing will stop us.

“God willing,” Chris says, as if reading my thoughts, “we will win this thing. Let’s talk this through one more time to make sure everybody’s got the plan straight. Amal, you take the Seahawks to the south side of the city.” She nods, every bit as stately in combat fatigues and muddy boots as she was at the Negotiations table. “Marshal Sullivan,” Chris says, nodding to the Canadian Commander. “You’ll take the Strikers to the southwest side. Stay in contact with Amal via radio. Watch your steps, wait for the signal.” He turns to Anita Vega. She is beautiful, almost ghostly with her pale white skin and midnight hair. I have heard rumors that her skin is white because the Coyotes have only ever attacked Omega at night — that her militia is a nocturnal one, just like the preying animals they are named after. “Commander Vega,” Chris begins, “You’ll take the north side. You’ve got a force of about a hundred and fifty men. You can handle it.”

Anita nods, pursing her lips.

“Cassidy,” Chris says, looking at me. “You will take over command of Ken Thrawn’s Titans in addition to your own team. That will give you a force of about two-hundred. I’ll take the bigger chunk of the Freedom Fighters and Mero’s Red Fox.”

I nod. I am not apprehensive, being the commander of my very own militia. Ultimately, we will all answer to Chris because we respect him, and he is the brains of our operation, when it comes down to it.

“Cassidy, you’ll take your forces to the south east corner of the city,” Chris continues. “I’ll be on the north east side with my forces. We’ll form a militia-made ring around the city limits.”

“What about the sea?” Anita Vega asks. “We can’t cover that.”

“I’m counting on the United States Air Force to take care of it,” Chris replies. “Our job is to take back the city without destroying it. The National Guard and the Army have destroyed most of the Presidio and some of the Naval Postgraduate School to prevent our intelligence from falling into enemy hands. The rest of the city… well, let’s focus on preserving it, if we can.”

I notice his usage of if. To me, that signals that Chris is going to try, but in the end, this is going to be an old-fashioned shootout. Just the way Harry wanted it to be. He would enjoy the drama. It would suit him well.

“So we can’t drop a bomb on the city because we want to preserve it,” Vera says, “and because we’ve got POW National Guard and Army units inside Monterey. What happened to our Coast Guard boys and the Naval forces here?”

“Most of them got out,” Chris replies. “They’re regrouping.”

“We have to do this the hard way,” Sophia sighs.

“This is going to be brains versus brawn,” I correct. “Omega outguns us, but we’ll outsmart them. We’ll hit fast and quick, draw their attention to a couple of areas of the city, then slip our forces through the back door while we’re juggling the smoke and mirrors. It will work.”

No one looks convinced, but there is no argument.

We have to stay positive, after all.

“I’ve sent recon scouts into the city,” Chris goes on. “As far as we know, Harry Lydell and the rest of the important Omega officers — whoever they may be — are holed up in the Naval Postgraduate School.” He looks at me. “Marshal Sullivan and his militia will attack Monterey from the south, Anita Vega will attack from the north. While they’re busy defending both sides of the city…” Chris opens his hands, drawing a circle around the east edge of the city with his finger. “Cassidy and I will slip in with our forces through the back door.”

“Can it be done?” Marshal booms. He is stately in his militia uniform and snow white hair. “Will they really fall for a scheme like this? They know we’ve got our militias out here somewhere. They may be expecting it.”

“They’ll be expecting something,” Chris replies. “But they won’t know what.”

I stare at the map, aware of how much is at stake. We can’t allow Omega to gain any kind of foothold on the Pacific Coast.

“What about the Pacific Northwest Alliance?” Sophia asks. “California joined forces with you guys for a reason — so that we could have backup when this kind of thing happened. Can’t you send help?”

Anita Vega shares a glance with Marshal Sullivan.

“The purpose of the Alliance was not just to unite the states,” she says slowly, “but to unite the militias. Our militias are more powerful than the military right now — we are by far more driven and organized than what’s left of the United States’ forces. I hate to tell you this, Commander Hart, but the Alliance’s strength has never been in the states themselves. It’s been in the militias.”

The Battle of Tippecanoe was fought between the United States and Chief Tecumseh’s Confederacy. I get a flash of the words of a teacher I had in eleventh grade, during American history class. Tecumseh was a Shawnee Native American Indian, and he realized the benefit of having forces that were united. As tribes, they didn’t stand a chance against their enemies because they were separate units. The tribal mentality had to go. And so Tecumseh created the Confederacy, a united front of Indian tribes to combat their enemies. Their most crushing defeat was the Battle of Tippecanoe… but the fact remains: Tecumseh recognized that standing alone is never the way. There is strength in numbers.

“Just like Tecumseh,” I whisper.

Chris gives me a strange look. I shrug.

I can’t help my flashbacks. They just happen.

“So you and I take our teams here,” I point, “and then we go into the school and take it out?”

“That’s the general idea.”

“What do we do with the Omega officers?”

“We kill them.”

“All of them?”

“All of them. No more mercy.” Chris looks at the leaders gathered in the circle. “This is the way it has to be. These people are wicked, they stop at nothing. They murder children. We kill them before they kill us, period. Any questions?”

There are none.

But I can’t stop this thought from running through my head:

I have to be the one to kill Harry.

No one else but me.

In the blistering heat of the battle, there is but one thing I know to be true:

Survival is a combination of skill and luck. There are many times I should have died on the battlefield — should have had my throat slit while I was a prisoner of Omega. But somehow I made it through. I am still alive, and Harry will rue the day I escaped from his guards.

All of Omega will.

Tight muscles. Slick sweat. Short breaths.

Tick, tock. Time is passing. We’re right on schedule.

I blink, checking my optics. I can see the border of the Naval Postgraduate School, the wrought-iron fence with its dull dark blue paint. My stomach flips. Almost time. I look left, at Chris. He nods reassuringly. He knows me well — he can read the worry on my face.

I look right. Uriah is settled in the grass, lying prone, like me. We are all like this — all two hundred of us. Uriah gives me the ghost of a smile, his dark eyes sparkling in the dim moonlight. There is no fog tonight. It is clear and crisp. Manny is next to Uriah. He has a rifle, and although Manny is not a sniper, he is a good leader. I take comfort in the fact that he is at the front of the line with me.

Chris gives me one last look, then slips into the darkness of the surrounding marshy woodland. He has to get back to his men. I look down at my hands, shaking slightly. Being the Commander of a group this big is not terrifying, but it is intimidating. I must make wise decisions in the heat of battle, or many lives could be lost.

And there is nothing scarier than knowing someone’s life is in your hands.

In the distance, there is the rattle and boom of automatic gunfire, the occasional flare in the night sky when a mortar is launched. I watch one drop back down to earth. Anita Vega and Marshal Sullivan are doing their job well, attacking the north and south ends of the city. Watching through my scope, I can see Omega troops at the school scrambling to reach their vehicles, to reinforce the borders of the city.

Good. This is what we had hoped for.

I gesture to Uriah and get to my feet, ghosting through the darkness, a creature of shadow and silence. The militia moves with me, the order to go forward spreading through the ranks as the officers pass it down.

Vera, Sophia and Andrew are dispersed throughout the militia, each in command of their own unit within my force of two-hundred. I trust their judgment and capabilities enough that I am not worried about them anymore. I pray for their safety, but I focus on the task at hand.

We keep moving, brushing through shrubs and skirting around abandoned buildings until we reach the fence of the Naval Postgraduate School. I follow the length of the fence. We curve north, reaching a large pond that has almost completely dried up.

Here we are.

There is no barbed wire on the top of the fence, no electrically wired shock system. When the National Guard and Navy were keeping this school safe, there was no need for measures like that. The guards and the military force kept the school from being attacked.

And now this will be a weakness for Omega.

I sling my rifle over my back and jam my boot between two bars, pulling myself up and over the fence in one swift motion. I land on the other side, smiling. I remember when I could barely figure out how to climb over a chain link fence.

The world has changed. Cassidy Hart has changed.

I check my shoulder. My men are coming fast, pulling themselves over the fence in silence. We keep low, close to the ground, going from cover to cover, hiding in the trees and overgrown bushes along the side of the pond. The sedentary water in the bottom of the small basin smells putrid. Dead animals are rotting around the edges. Warning signs are posted on trees.

We move around the pond, stopping at the bend. We are right on the edge of the parking lot in front of Hermann Hall. The generators are running. The hotel and the parking lot are lit. Omega guards and patrols fill the empty space. They are everywhere, like insects. I nod to Uriah and we kneel down. I look back over my militia. Vera and Sophia have taken their units around the other side of the hotel. I have about a hundred men behind me, holding their breaths.

There is a distant boom. The battle on the north and south ends of the city rages on.

“Hear that?” An Omega guard says. “It’s really cooking over there.”

He sounds American, and that angers me.

Traitor. You’re one of them.

“Yes, the militias are attempting to break through our defenses and take back the city.” This is the voice of another guard. Chinese. But he speaks English well. “They will fail. We have far more firepower than they do. They will burn.”

Uriah tightens his grip on his rifle. I place my hand on his shoulder.

Steady, I think. You’ll get your chance. We all will.

I think of the Capitol Building, how the dome collapsed and buried so many people alive, sentencing them to tortuous deaths, pinned under concrete support beams, burning alive in the flames. I think of my father, missing in action. Probably dead. I find the anger and fight within myself to carry on, to finish this battle.

There is a gunshot. It cracks through the night air, sounding much closer than it really is. The guards in the parking lot are suddenly alert, searching the parking lot. There is no sign. There is a window on the fifth story of Herrmann Hall, facing the sea. Another gunshot, and the window shatters.

“It’s time,” I say.

And then it is all chaos and bloodshed and killing.

It is all war.

It begins with me. I shoot the Chinese guy that had been talking about the militias. It is a perfect shot — right in the side of his head. He jerks sideways, a spray of blood covering the asphalt. And then everyone attacks at once and it is a barrage of earsplitting gunfire. Glass shatters, alarms go off, Omega troops fall to the ground in twisted, bloody heaps. The parking lot is cleared in no time. I stand up and run, rifle in hand, breath coming fast and uneven.

I hit the parking lot and the militiamen rush in behind me. I am struck by the sheer mass and size of my group as they surge around me, hot, sweaty bodies yelling and moving forward, toward the main buildings.

Snipers are on the roof of Herrmann Hall. Uriah and I fall back, ducking behind a Jeep as some of our militiamen hit the pavement, dead. I look at Uriah. He looks at me. We read each other that fast.

I raise my head above the hood of the Jeep and take a quick shot, sighting the sniper on the far north side of the roof. My aim is not perfect, but I hit him. He is standing close to the edge and he tumbles off the roof, falling through the air like a lead weight. I watch him hit the concrete. I swear I can hear the impact of his body hitting the ground from where I’m kneeling.

That’s impossible, I tell myself.

Uriah takes out the sniper on the south side of the roof. We systematically bring down every shooter on the roof that we can find, bump fists, then roll out of the cover of the Jeep, following the flow of militiamen toward the main buildings.

Chris’s militia is coming around the back of Herrmann Hall. Our combined forces flood the area, pushing inside the doors of the buildings. I see militiamen drag Omega soldiers into the grass and line them up in a row, a makeshift and quick execution.

I want to cry for them. I want to pretend that I am not a part of all of this.

But I am. This is the reality of war, and I know where I stand.

“Cassidy, let’s go!” Chris is yelling from the steps of Herrmann Hall, searching the madness of the crowd for my face. I sprint across the parking lot, Uriah hot on my heels. And then I see Manny. I feel relief, seeing his face. He is smudged in dirt and grime, blood droplets staining his jacket. He is holding two handguns, eyes wild, hair crazy. He reminds me of an eccentric, steam punk cowboy.

“This hotel was never quite my style, anyway,” Manny comments, gesturing to Herrmann Hall. The back of the building is spewing flames. Black smoke is rising into the air. “Consider this my version of a bad online review.”

I want to laugh, but I can’t. Not right now.

“Come on, inside!” Chris urges, looking at me.

I follow him. Manny and Uriah follow me.

We push into the hall. An Omega trooper is standing behind the counter of the front desk. He fires off a round. I duck aside, hitting the ground. The bullet misses my head but shatters the glass mirror on the wall.

Chris fires his weapon into the center of the trooper’s chest. He slumps over the counter, dead. Vera bursts into the building from the side door, running full speed. She is flushed, radiating adrenaline. “About time you morons got here,” she mutters. “Where’s Sophia?”

I stare at her.

“She was with you,” I say.

“Not anymore. Andrew’s right behind me, though.”

As if to illustrate her point, Andrew slides through the side door. There is a massive gash on his forehead. Blood is pouring down the side of his face. The sight is horrible, momentarily shocking. But I remember that head wounds bleed excessively and often look much worse than they really are.

“Are you okay?” I ask Andrew.

“Fine. Bumped my head. It happens.”

“You bumped your head on someone’s fist,” Vera corrects.

Andrew flashes her a wry grin. Vera… grins back.

I don’t believe it, I think vaguely.

“So Sophia is outside?” I ask.

“Must be.”

“She’s supposed to be in here!” I fist my hands. Chris touches my shoulder. “We can’t wait for her. We have to move on.”

I swallow my argument. He’s right. We have no choice.

We leave the lobby, following the hallway until we come to the stairwell. Omega troops that cross our path wind up dead. To confront us is to invite an instant death sentence.

It is both scary and impressive how deadly we are.

“Harry should be here somewhere,” Chris says. “We’ll search every level, kill every officer we see. Spare no one.” He looks angry as he says the next few words: “We’re a kill team, now.”

We climb the stairs. The beautiful antiquity of the building is quickly becoming ravaged. The second floor is on fire. Hot, suffocating smoke fills the hallways. Omega soldiers stumble around in the dim lighting. Uriah pops a few rounds into the halls and brings them down. We search the rooms. There are two officers. Uriah and Chris put an end to them immediately.

I turn away, pausing at the door.

Harry will be up high, I think. He’d want a good view of the harbor and the fight in the parking lot. He’d enjoy the show.

“He’s on the top floor,” I say.

I look at Chris.

He doesn’t ask me to elaborate. He knows. He understands.

We both do.

We leave this level and clear every floor until we hit the top. I get a light, fluttering feeling in my stomach. Anxiety? Nervous energy? I don’t know. Maybe it’s a premonition. Maybe I understand, deep down, that what’s about to happen will change me dramatically.

I can’t put the feeling into words. It simply is.

As I step onto the top floor, time seems to slow down. There is a long hallway and rows of doors. I know, somehow, that Harry is in the room on the end. The one that overlooks the parking lot, the pond and the harbor in the distance. Harry Lydell, the man with the flair for the dramatic.

He would want a front row seat for the Battle of Monterey.

Uriah, Chris, Andrew and Vera go ahead of me and check the rooms. There are no more officers up here. The floor is empty. I walk forward, gripping my rifle. I stand in front of the last door on the row. At the end of the hall is the emergency exit and access point for the roof.

I kick in the last hotel door. My team is with me, moving into the room in formation. I’m first, Vera is second, Chris is third, Manny is fourth and Uriah and Andrew follow. We pour into the room, prepared for a fight. But there is nothing. Nothing but a wide open suite with a bed, a desk, and big windows overlooking the school property and the distant Pacific Ocean.

The corner window has been shattered with a gunshot.

We search the room. My heart sinks. I was so sure that Harry would be up here. I mean… he could be in another building… but most of them have already been searched. Did Harry leave Monterey? Did he know what was going to happen? Did he have a feeling that the militias would win this fight?

No. He was sure Omega was going to wrap this thing up.

I turn and run, hurrying into the hall, pushing open the door to the roof. I climb a few narrow stairs and emerge into the night. The air is cold. It feels good against my hot, sticky skin.

And there, on the edge of the roof, is Harry.

He is standing with his hands clasped behind his back, a serene expression on his face. He looks satisfied, expectant. He turns from the scene on the school property, away from the billowing smoke. Some of the trees around the pond have caught fire. From here, I can see the bursts of light from the south and north sides of the city, where Anita Vega and Marshal Sullivan are engaging Omega with their militias.

“Harry,” I say.

My voice is dry, raspy.

A cruel smile twists his lips.

“Cassidy,” he says. “You’ve killed my snipers.”

Dead Omega snipers lay strewn across the roof, weapons loaded in their hands.

“You lose,” I say. “It’s over.”

Harry doesn’t respond to that. He simply looks at Chris.

“Commander Young,” he continues. “How nice for you to grace us with your glorious presence. If I’d had my way, you’d have been executed long ago in Los Angeles.”

“Sorry I screwed up your plans,” I say.

But of course, I’m not sorry at all.

“Harry,” Manny states. “You’re every bit as scrawny as they said you’d be.”

I remember that Manny has never seen Harry in person — only heard about him. Harry ducks Manny’s insult and surveys the six of us.

“If I’m going to die,” Harry says, “you’re going to die with me. It’s only fitting that we all make the ultimate sacrifice for what we believe in.”

“You’re the only one who’s going to die today,” Chris says.

He raises his rifle, aims it at Harry’s skull.

I remember Chris’s promise, The next time you and I meet, I’m going to kill you.

Those were words uttered before a devastating battle not more than a month ago, before Chris was taken as a prisoner of war, tortured and interrogated by Harry for weeks.

I look over the edge of the rooftop.

The battle is winding down below us. Our forces have taken the school, and I know that the National Guard and Army troops that have been taken prisoner are being set free. They are adding to our numbers.

The United States Air Force should be here any moment, setting fire to the four empty Omega warships that are floating off the coast of the bay.

It hits me.

“Chris,” I say. “He’s got something planned.”

Harry looks at me, sly amusement dancing across his features.

“Do I?” he asks.

“Believe me,” I say.

You’re going to die with me, Harry said.

He was so calm when he said it.

“Kill him,” Uriah tells Chris. His voice is dark, his face tight with anger. Vera and Andrew are glaring at Harry. He is, after all, the epitome of what it means to be a traitor… the physical embodiment of Omega.

“You’ll kill me,” Harry says, leaning against the roof railing. “And then what? Omega will continue to grow. You think that by pushing us out of Monterey — temporarily, I might add — you’re going to stop the invasion? The Pacific Northwest Alliance will not save you. Nothing can save you. You are doomed to failure and destruction. We will lay waste to this country you so dearly love, and we will rebuild. The New Order will reign supreme, and parasitic rebellious scum such as yourselves will be extinguished.”

Chris’s eyes are glazed over with fury.

Here stands Harry Lydell, the man that has caused him more pain than Omega itself in many ways. I can tell that it’s taking everything in him to restrain himself from pulling the trigger.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Vera demands. “What’s the New Order?”

“It is Omega. Omega is the Order.” Harry smiles sickly. “We are one and the same, unstoppable. Destroying our armies and killing our leaders will do you no good. Omega is a seed, an infection. It affects every level of society on earth. There is nothing you can do to stop us.”

His words send an arrow of fear into my heart.

Is he telling the truth? Or is he just trying to intimidate us?

“You’re lying,” Andrew says. “That’s impossible.”

“Impossible?” Harry laughs. “Really? Do you really think that the EMP was a direct result of an attack from a nation like Iran or Syria? Omega is more deadly than any foreign enemy, because we attack from the inside. We are like a finely organized, brilliant and deadly parasite. We require a host, and as we poison their body, we rebuild on their remains.” He sees the fear in my eyes — the horror — and he flashes his teeth. “Yes. You should be afraid. You cannot run from us. We are inside you. All around you.”

I take a sudden breath.

The traitors in the ranks. The assassinations. The forces that betrayed us during the Battle of the Grapevine. The mysterious betrayal of my location on the Golden Shark. Jonas, a seemingly random fisherman, handing me over to my mortal enemy.

And in an instant, it all comes together like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Still slightly fragmented, but the picture is clearer than it has ever been before.

“So the EMP was an inside job,” I breathe. “We were attacked by our own people.”

“Very good, Cassidy,” Harry applauds. “Omega’s had its sticky little fingers in every level of society for centuries. Our time has finally come. We’ve rallied our forces. This is the end of the world for you — and the beginning of the world for us.”

I look at Chris. He has not moved, but I can tell by the look in his eyes that he is stricken. It makes sense to him, as well. And all this time we had hoped that Omega was purely a coalition of foreign enemies… we had lied to ourselves, told ourselves that Omega was not something that arose from among us.

We were wrong. We knew it.

And now Harry is confirming it.

There is a noise behind me. I whirl around, instincts still sharp even in the midst of shock. Sophia! I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Thank God,” I say. “What happened?”

Sophia looks horrified. She has no weapon in her hand. It’s gone. A bit of wiring is sticking out of her pocket. She looks at Harry. He looks at her. She skirts around the edge of our group.

“Sophia?” I whisper.

“Sometimes your greatest friend can be your greatest enemy,” Harry purrs, looking directly at me. I stare at him. And then what he’s saying hits home, and for the first time in hours… I lower my rifle.

“Sophia,” I say. This time it is not a question. It is a demand.

She takes a few steps backward, tears shining in her eyes. She is trembling, standing a few yards away from Harry.

“I’m sorry,” she says quietly. “Harry makes so much sense.”

“You… you sold out?”

She says nothing.

It all dawns on me. In an instant, everything makes sense.

“The laser designator in Sacramento,” I say. “That was you.”

She looks at me with baleful, hollow eyes.

“The assassinations,” I reply. “You helped coordinate those, too. The poison. And you gave my location to Omega when I was on the Golden Shark.”

She denies nothing.

A deep feeling of crushing hurt comes down on me. It is overwhelming. I kneel down, my head in my hands. Even Chris looks horrified. Vera is staring. Andrew is frozen.

“A lot of good people died because of what you did,” Manny says. His voice is not remotely playful or sarcastic. It is feral, angry. “You’re a traitorous dog. You’ll hang for this.”

“Hang is not the right word,” Andrew snaps. “I can think of a few other ways to get rid of spineless garbage like this.”

“Spare me the theatrics,” Harry drawls. “That’s my talent, not yours.”

And then Sophia pulls a handgun out of the inside pocket of her jacket and fires off a round. It hits Andrew. He stumbles backward, slamming into Vera. Vera screams and catches him as he falls. I instinctively fire, nailing Sophia in the shoulder. She stumbles. I tuck my head, ramming the entire blunt force of my body into Sophia.

I collide with her and we both tumble to the ground.

Pure, unbridled fury takes control of my mind. All of the frustration, the stress and the horror of the past weeks combine to create the perfect storm. I pin Sophia down with my legs, throwing my fist into her face. She blocks me, throws me off. Sophia is every bit of a fighter as I am.

I kick her ankles and she tumbles to the ground just as she makes a move to run. She claws at my eyes. I jam the heel of my boot into the side of her face with all the power I can muster. Her head smacks against the pavement. She screams with pain. Blood runs from the side of her mouth.

“How could you do this?” I demand. “What’s wrong with you?”

She blocks my fist, twists my arm around. I yell, pained, and shove my knee into her groin. I hear something crack and she lets go, grimacing and groaning. I grab her neck and slam her down on her back, my knee on her chest. I punch her again, holding back nothing. Her face is a bloody, misshapen mess. I am shaking, tears are running down my face.

Betrayed. Betrayed. Betrayed.

I have been betrayed by my best friend.

“How could you do this?” I yell again.

And then Chris is grabbing me, hauling me away from Sophia. I fight him, pushing away, screaming at him.

“CASSIDY, STOP!” Chris bellows. He takes me by the shoulders and shakes me. “You’ll never forgive yourself if you kill Sophia.”

That last sentence is quiet. Low.

I blink a few times, cold acceptance creeping into my chest. I nod weakly.

I look at Sophia. She’s lying on the ground, rivers of blood dripping down her neck, pooling on the ground. She’s staring at the sky, crying. Uriah has an arm around Harry’s waist and a knife at his throat. Vera is screaming Andrew’s name, kneeling at his unmoving form on the roof. Manny’s face is sorrowful.

“You can let go,” I whisper. “I’m okay now.”

Such a lie. But Chris understands what I mean.

He lets go. I turn and sink to my knees near Sophia’s head. She opens her mouth, coughing. She chokes for a moment, moving her eyes toward me. “You’ve…” she says, taking a deep, labored breath. “The roof is rigged… to blow. You’ve got to… leave.” Tears fall from her eyes, streaming down her cheeks, mingling with her blood. “I’m… sorry… Cassie.”

I start sobbing.

Nothing can fix this. Ever.

“We’ve got to go,” Chris says, touching my shoulder. “She’s right. This whole place is wired with explosives.”

I shake my head. So. Harry planned to lure us all here and kill us in a suicidal blaze of glory. How poetic. How… utterly Harry Lydell.

I touch Sophia’s shoulder.

My anger is gone. All that is left is empty, throbbing pain.

“I forgive you,” I say.

Sophia stares at me, but she is too beaten to speak. I stand up, looking at her still body. I remember a girl who took my hand in the back of a semi-truck stuffed with human cattle. I remember a girl who constantly reminded me that we were going to be okay, that we were going to survive, and that Omega would fall. Victory would be ours. We were friends forever, she said.

Now, when I see Sophia, I see the broken shell of that same girl.

“I loved you,” I whisper. “We were sisters.”

I turn away. I know that I cannot help her. I cannot rescue her.

This truth breaks my heart.

I turn to Chris. “Keep Harry alive,” I say. “Death is too good for him.”

I will not give him what he wants. Chris doesn’t argue. He takes Uriah’s place as Harry’s bodyguard. Uriah kneels next to Andrew. Vera is hysterical, crying great, heaving sobs.

“He’s still alive,” Uriah says. “But it’s going to be hard to move him.”

“I don’t care!” Vera cries. “Please! We have to try!”

“I’ll help,” I volunteer.

Vera doesn’t make a snide comment. She simply nods, grateful.

“Take care of Harry,” I tell Chris.

He does. He shoves the muzzle of his gun into Harry’s back. I notice how silent Harry is. How pale. How frustrated he seems. I don’t waste a second glance on him as Chris pushes Harry down the stairs, into the hallways of the building.

I help Manny, Vera and Uriah haul Andrew’s body up and off the roof. He is heavy, full of dead weight. Uriah slings Andrew’s gun across his back. Vera and Uriah are the first ones out the door.

I look back at the roof.

Sophia is still looking at the stars. She weakly raises her hand and crosses herself, turning her head every so slightly. Her gaze meets mine.

Goodbye, friend, she says with her eyes.

Goodbye, Sophia, I think. You were there for me, once. When I needed you.

We enter the hall.

We leave Sophia behind.

Hauling an unconscious, full-grown man is slow, hard work. Chris sticks with us. Harry follows morosely, sullen and silent. We reach the bottom floor and enter the parking lot. As we step foot on the asphalt, the roof of the building explodes. The shockwave nearly knocks me off my feet. Chris shoves me behind the cover of an Omega Humvee. The top half of the building shears off, hitting the grass in a cloud of plaster, nails and smoke.

Sophia.

The dust settles, but the flames begin to eat the magnificent structure that is Herrmann Hall. We slowly stand, the sound of gunfire and mortar explosions echoing over the Pacific Ocean. United States Air Force fighter jets scream across the night sky, headed toward the coastline.

“All is never as it seems,” Harry remarks grimly. “One victory leads to defeat, and one defeat leads to victory. This is a deadly game that you cannot win. None of you can. We are all helpless against Omega.”

He says this as if he, too, has lost against his own side.

“We’re not helpless,” I say. “We’re fighters. And we’ll keep fighting, because that’s what we do best.”

The Omega symbol — the white O with the gathered continents of the world in the center of the letter — glares menacingly at me from the Humvee door.

Chris slips his hand into mine.

“We’re going to be okay,” he says.

I look toward the horizon.

And for a moment, I believe him.

Epilogue

Betrayal. The word leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. I have seen more betrayal than most people. I have felt its sting. It has ravaged my heart at times, threatened to destroy me. But now it all makes sense. Omega. Hidden deep within society for years. But how? And who started it all? Whose idea was it to slowly infiltrate the countries of the globe? The patience it must have took to wait for centuries… unimaginable.

Chris and I, at the beginning of this collapse, would often toss theories back and forth regarding the origin of the EMP. How did Omega invade so quickly? We once thought that it was because they had been hiding their troops and their weapons inside our country for some time.

But what if they’d been here all along?

What if this was part of the plan from the very beginning?

I don’t know. I don’t think I want to know.

Sophia’s betrayal hurts. To trust someone completely, and then to be betrayed by them is one of the worst pains in the world. There is no medicine or therapy that can take that away. It is an ugly, horrific fact. A fact that I must one day learn to accept, or I worry that it will destroy me.

What is our next move? If Omega is everywhere… how can we stop them?

Familiarity. To defeat an enemy, you must be familiar with them.

I believe that we will be able to use Harry Lydell to help us on that point.

Until then, I will keep fighting. I will keep believing. I will keep hoping. I will love, live, learn, try, fail and try again. Not because I have to. Not because I’ve been told that this is what I need to do. I will do these things because I care about the people I love and the place where I grew up. I care about freedom, and I care about the lives of the innocent men, women and children whose lives have been taken by Omega.

The war is now.

Fight or die.

Choose your side.

To Be Continued in

Book Six of The Collapse Series

More Titles by Summer Lane

The Collapse Series

State of Emergency

State of Chaos

State of Rebellion

State of Pursuit

State of Alliance

Book 6 (Coming June 2015)

The Zero Trilogy:

Day Zero

Day One (Coming March 2015)

End of Day (Coming Fall 2015)

Connect with Summer:

Website: summerlaneauthor.com

Online Magazine: writingbelle.com

Email: summerlane101@gmail.com

Twitter: @SummerEllenLane

Acknowledgments

Nothing truly good comes easily. At least, that’s what my experience has been. Building and creating several different book series and running a publishing business is one of those things that takes time. Lots of time, lots of effort, and lots of work. I am unequivocally thankful for the helpful words, kind advice and professionalism of many people in my life who have been on this journey with me — the journey of Cassidy Hart and her small-town creator, a girl named Summer Lane. Few people realize or understand the enormity of the task of writing, editing and publishing a bestselling novel. It is a project of epic proportions, especially when you’ve got several series going at once. I would like to thank the following people for helping me maintain my sanity during the long weeks of writing and editing and otherwise being locked away in my office with stacks of notes: Ellen Mansoor Collier, James P. White, Kathy Lane (Mommy!), Rocklin (The Rock), Lauryn, Jessica, Grandma (so many hugs!) and of course, Scott, for being so understanding.

I would also like to thank the following two individuals for their professional help in molding the story structure of the book, aiding in the technical details and helping the editing process move considerably faster so I could reach my deadline:

Don Lane, always the editor-in-chief, as I like to call him. He’s the top authority on tactical and military operations in this book, and his advice has helped Cassidy Hart best Omega many times.

David Hudiburgh, a dear friend and so very knowledgeable. Always a huge help when Collapse books are in the editing stages, his keen eye and techie advice is supremely appreciated.

I would like to thank the mammoth community of bloggers and reviewers for their ongoing support of my work, especially fellow authors. In particular I wish to thank Ruth Silver, Juliana Haygert, G. Michael Hopf, Liz Long, John W. Vance and again, Ellen Mansoor Collier, my dear friend!

Lastly, to YOU. I share my work with thousands of new readers every month, and for that I am eternally grateful. You have made all of this a possibility, and Cassidy Hart is forever grateful.

Most importantly, I thank God for what He has given me. I love my work. It is the happiest reality of my life.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7

About the Author

Summer Lane is the author of the international bestselling YA/NA Romantic Adventure novels of The Collapse Series and The Zero Trilogy. She is an experienced publicist, creative writing teacher and lover of all things feline.

Summer owns WB Publishing, a digital publishing company devoted to releasing exciting survival and adventure stories. Summer is also the creator of the online magazine/blog, Writing Belle. She works as a journalist for Traffic Magazine, as well.

Summer lives in the Central Valley of California, where she spends her time writing, teaching, and writing some more. When she is not writing, she enjoys leisurely visits with friends at coffee shops, watching movies, reading, and visiting the beach or the mountains.

Summer loves to hear from readers! Email her here:

summerlane101@gmail.com

Copyright

Copyright 2015

All Rights Reserved

WB Publishing

1st Edition

Cover Art: Stephanie Shimerdla

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except to quote on blogs or reviews, without the express permission of the author. Any unauthorized distribution or reproduction of this work is punishable by law.

This is a work of fiction. Any parallel to persons alive or dead is purely coincidental and is not intended by the author.

Content

Summer Lane
STATE OF ALLIANCE

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Epilogue

More Titles by Summer Lane

Connect with Summer:

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Copyright