Free The Tide (Tide Series Book 1) by Anthony J Melchiorri

rig’s helipad and signaled for his squad and Renee’s to join him. The ten Hunters stood before him, clad in their biosafety suits with their weapons clutched and ready. Each shared a similar pained expression behind their face shields. The twisted knot in his stomach was still there, but he couldn’t crumple in defeat now. They hadn’t even probed the depths of the oil platform, and if Brett had indeed made the ultimate sacrifice, Dom wouldn’t let it be in vain.
    “Alpha, Bravo, anyone see more contacts?” Dom asked.
    “Negative,” came the replies.
    He pointed at Hector Ko and Spencer Barrett. “You two head back down to the Zodiacs. If there’s a chance we can recover Brett, I want you to do whatever you can. We don’t leave a man, dead or alive, behind. Understood?”
    The former SEALs nodded. If anyone could deal with the crashing tides and the murky waves, it was those two.
    “Don’t do anything stupid, though. I don’t want you swimming around, but if you can take a Zodiac to recover Brett, do it.”
    Hector saluted. “You got it.” They scrambled to the edge of the rig and descended the ladder.
    “That goes for everyone,” Dom said. “I want to be in and out as fast as we can. Plan still remains. Alpha team, on me. Bravo, on Renee with the lower decks. We meet in the middle, come hell or high water.” And on this rig, Dom wasn’t sure which would come first as the Hunters nodded. “One last thing before we split up. These creatures might’ve been human once, they might not. Whatever’s going on, they don’t seem to have any regard for human life. If you run into hostiles, protect yourself first and ask questions later.”
    “Aye aye, Captain,” the Hunters responded.
    “When it comes to killing these things, aim for their goddamned faces. These pieces of shit—at least the one that nearly killed me—are covered in some kind of armor.” He hoisted his rifle in front of him to emphasize his point. “So go for headshots, and shoot to kill.” He made a cleaving motion with his arm, directing Renee’s squad toward the entrance to the rig. “Bravo team, go!”
    “Roger that, Captain,” Renee replied. She jogged to the entrance. Her squad followed and disappeared down the stairs beyond the door.
    Dom led Jenna, Scott, Glenn, and Miguel next. He hesitated at the stairs. His NVGs provided a glimpse at what the shadows held, but he wondered if they’d be enough. “ Huntress , this is Alpha One. Do you read?”
    “Copy,” Chao responded. “We’ve still got live feed from your cams, too.”
    “Great.” Dom started down the stairs into the first corridor with Alpha in tow. “Is there any way we can turn the lights back on in this hellhole?”
    “Let me see what I can find.”
    The comm link went silent as Dom started forward through the top deck corridor. He played his gun across the passage, and his Hunters probed each room as they went. Behind each door, they found cots, clothing, and toiletries. It appeared they were in the crew quarters.
    Miguel emerged from one of the rooms and held up a small notebook. “Looks like a damn diary or something.”
    “Take it with,” Dom said.
    Miguel stowed the notebook in the bag slung across his back. They continued searching the room, stowing away anything that might help Lauren or Chao. Halfway through, Dom’s earpiece flared to life.
    “Alpha, Bravo, this is Chao, do you read? Over.”
    “Copy, Alpha team here,” Dom said.
    “There should be two generators. Based on the facility’s specs, you’re looking for two 6.25 MVA gas turbine generators. Should be on the bottom deck where Bravo is.”
    “Bravo team, did you catch all that?” Dom asked.
    “Roger,” Renee replied.
    Dom treaded down the hallway and slowed to a halt. Something had caught his eye. He signaled for Miguel to watch his back as he approached what looked like a torn garbage bag. He stifled a gag when he realized what it was.
    In the middle of the floor, a body lay