Free Lost Causes by Mia Marshall Page B

certain.
    “We have to,” I began. “It’s your home, but…”
    “No,” he repeated. “They’ve already seen where we are, so they’ll expect us to switch vehicles. We need to prove them wrong.”
    “We’ll do it.” Carmichael called over his shoulder to Vivian. “Give us ten minutes before you shut them down.”
    “We’re setting a false trail,” Mac explained, loud enough for all to hear. “Maybe they’ll buy it, maybe they won’t, but they’ll at least need to follow the Bronco to be sure we’re not in it.”
    “Good thinking, bear.” Miriam tossed the Bronco’s keys to Johnson. He caught them one-handed.
    I was less certain. “We split up, we’re less powerful,” I argued. “And these two will be sitting ducks. Sorry, guys.”
    Carmichael wasn’t offended. He’d seen what elementals could do. “And if they do catch us, we’re humans and FBI agents. Agents who check in regularly with our higher-ups. If we disappear, the Bureau will want to learn why. From what you’ve told us, elementals avoid anything that could draw the attention of human authorities.”
    “If the agents return to Tahoe, they would be in a better position to protect our friends,” Simon pointed out. “Even if those friends do not trust humans. Or the FBI. And they may remember that Carmichael almost killed Mac.”
    “No, they should go.” I wished that wasn’t true. “Give us a few minutes to grab some items.”
    Vivian’s face was strained. “I can’t hold the connection very long.”
    In the end, there were no long goodbyes. There were a few handshakes, an overly enthusiastic hug from Miriam for Johnson, and a complicated look between Carmichael and Sera. Carmichael drove the camper van, while Johnson took the Bronco and Airstream. The men adjusted their seats and mirrors, waved goodbye, and pulled out of the junkyard. We saw them turn north, and then they were gone.
    Vivian waited long enough for them to hit the highway, then sent the alert that would have our nation’s primary security agency scrambling to shut down the elementals’ connection. If we were really lucky, they’d also find themselves being interrogated for several days in a windowless room.
    Vivian stood, stretching her muscles for the first time since we arrived at the junkyard. “They may find another connection, but we’ll be far away by then.” Her satisfied smile lasted only so long as it took her computer to emit a single loud beep.
    “No no no,” she whispered, crouching by the machine. “No.”
    We’d thought she was panicked before. We were wrong.
    Her movements were both tiny and frantic. Eyes scanned the screen left to right while her fingers flew across the keys. Windows opened and closed as Vivian typed commands in a language none of us knew. It only took a few minutes, but Vivian grew more desperate with every passing second. When she finally sat back, she looked as exhausted as any marathon runner. Worse, she looked ashamed.
    “I’m sorry. I should have seen it.”
    We all worked very hard not to rush her in any way.
    Well, most of us did. “Vivian, you’re killing us,” I said.
    She forced herself to meet my gaze. “The picture, the satellite map, it was all a distraction. While I was working on shutting it down, they snuck in and burnt through my encryption in minutes. I don’t know how. They downloaded Josiah’s files.”
    I could practically feel the group fight against despair—and lose. Those files had been guiding most of our movements since we escaped my family’s island.
    “All of them?” Sera’s voice was quiet, but she practically vibrated with agitation.
    “I stopped the transfer before they got it all, but they grabbed a lot. I can’t even say what files they found. I haven’t read all of it yet, because I was focused on finding Luke.” She met his gaze. “If they didn’t know about another dual before, they do now.”
    At most, Luke appeared mildly chagrined, and even that passed.