Cloud Invasion: R-D 2 (R-D #2)(3)

"Then I guess we're moving. I already arranged to send all of her stuff ahead," James informed me. "It'll be set up and waiting when we get there."

"We need windows."

"I already looked into it, and the crew is ready to go if you say the word." James handed a sheaf of mechanical drawings to me.

"I want this, too," I said the minute the drawings soaked into my mind.

"I think they can arrange for all the offices to be modified."

"Then do it," I nodded. "We would be up the creek without Corinne, and if they're doing hers, it won't be such a big deal if they do the rest."

"I like the fact that they can be camouflaged," James agreed, taking the papers back. He'd had the information for two hours and already he had things ready to go. "I put Maye, Jeff and Nick on notice, so they're packing."

"What about Rafe?"

"He was ready to go in five minutes; he's just waiting for Dr. Farrell to give the okay to move Cori. You know he won't budge without her."

"I won't budge without her, either. The President doesn't want to go anywhere without Corinne's advice. We're all crippled after the Chief of Staff thing, and that's probably not the half of it."

"What about Laci?"

"She's seeing Dr. Shaw at least once a day."

"Not good," James shook his head.

"We're seeing him together once a week," I admitted. "She feels abandoned and left out, but there's not a lot I can do about it if she doesn't want to live within the confines of the Program. We're trying to compromise on a few things. At least she knows Corinne isn't a threat to us or to anybody on our side-she had a long talk with Rafe."

"She needs to get to know her. Cori wouldn't hurt anybody who didn't deserve it."

"I think she knows that, now. If that were the case, we might all be dead."

"Yeah. No wonder she wouldn't tell anybody." James shivered. "I think Becker was lucky he lived as long as he did."

"She let Nick take him down, like she knew that would help Nick get over things," I said.

"She probably did know that. This is a secret we have to keep, and I think we need to let Cori decide when and where somebody dies, if it's necessary. She's not an assassin-no way, no how," James said.

"You're right," I agreed. "The President knows to keep that information under wraps-I just worry about what the enemy may know through that f*cking device attached to Hal's clone. At least he knew to stay out of Cori's way, because she'd see it in him. The rest of us, though, we saw Hal regularly. That doesn't include the President's confidential statements to him, or the messages he had from her. The equipment he carried may have delivered all of that right into waiting hands."

"I need to see that thing," James said. "Is somebody examining it?"

"Farrell put a team together," I shrugged. "We should have a complete report in about a week."

"Will he send the information to us?"

"That's what I asked for."

"Good. Thank you, Colonel Hunter."

*

Corinne

I still wasn't up to packing the following morning; I didn't have much to pack, anyway. Several sets of pajamas, a hairbrush, lotion and toothbrush. Everything else was loaded on a cargo plane somewhere.

The Pacific Northwest hadn't been a blip on anybody's radar as a place to hide the Program, so I imagined Auggie and the President chose it because of that. It might be the last place the enemy expected us to go.

Rafe stuffed my meager belongings into a small bag and zipped it up while I swung my feet over the side of my bed and watched him work. Thankfully, Marcus had left us alone; he was probably in a dungeon somewhere, planning more torture for me.

"James is bringing something for you to wear-all you have is pajamas," Rafe pointed out the obvious.

"Good. I hope it's comfortable," I said. "Shoes, too?"

"Of course. I can't wait to dress you in blue to match your eyes," he walked toward me and took my face in his hands. "An evening dress, perhaps, or a nice blouse." He leaned in to kiss me.

"You taste good," I said.

"Thank you. Do you want something else to eat?"

"No, the pancakes filled me up," I said. I'd had those with a glass of milk, and only finished about a third of what was placed in front of me.

"Do you still love me?" he leaned back to ask, his dark eyes begging me to say it was so.

"Honey, that's the only thing that brought me back," I said.

"Just what I wanted to hear," he murmured before kissing me again.

*

Flying in a military cargo plane was now on the list of things I hated. We were buckled into four rows of seats and the rest of our belongings, which hadn't already been sent ahead, were packed in crates and boxes and tied down behind us.

Sitting up that long was extremely uncomfortable after a while, and there wasn't any place to lie down. If Rafe and James hadn't sat with me, I might not have made it. Eventually, we landed at a naval airbase on Whidbey Island north of Seattle.

Our transfer to the new facility was done by helicopter after that, under a cloudy and darkening sky.