“But do you know who the ringleader is? I thought it was hidden. A matter of state secrecy.”

  Jonah steepled his fingers. “We think we do, and yes, Daniella has put in place certain need-to-know protocols. If this information gets out, and when you take into account the situation with Phenja, I dread to think what will happen next. We have to track down Lilly Montaine, but it’s like we’re stumbling around in the dark. Topping off all of this, we have the first colony ship ready, with a projected lift-off date very soon. Then we’ve got the creches where they are creating and growing these children.”

  He stopped and slumped, elbows on his desk.

  “We have so many competing priorities, and all the while, we’re sitting ducks here on the base.” Jonah grunted and shook his head. The pressure must have been building, as Jonah rubbed at the pounding between his eyes. “They’ve already breached our defenses more than once, Senna. We need to lock this down now, clear some of the issues so we can target our efforts.”

  Senna agreed with his assessment. It made no sense why they’d attacked Saint Jory’s. By taking out one of the last remaining hospitals in the city, the populace had nowhere to turn in times of need. There had to be some reason.

  “But why Saint Jory’s, Jonah?”

  He shook his head. “We haven’t worked that out yet. But while it’s an answer we really need, we don’t have the time or resources to—”

  “And that’s where I disagree, respectfully. I’m sure there’s something about it that will give us a hint. People don’t remove structures like that without a good and valid reason.”

  “I understand your reasoning but—” Jonah spread his hands.

  “No. My training as an arson investigator tells me there’s something hinky about this. Give me some time—a day or two to see what I can learn. If this doesn’t work…”

  “I can’t, Senna. I need you on tracking down Lilly Montaine.” Jonah sounded defeated.

  “Let one of the others—” she urged.

  “No. I’m over-ruling you. Once we have her brought to heel—”

  “The evidence will be gone. Come on, Jonah, twenty-four hours is all I’m asking for. Time to run the CCTV footage and on-site time. I can go alone. Twenty-four hours, and if I don’t find any useful info, I’ll drop it until after we find Montaine.” Senna leaned forward, urgency in every word she spoke.

  Jonah sighed and settled back into the squabs of the chair. “You drive a hard bargain. But not alone. Take Franklin with you for protection so you can concentrate fully on the task. But I can only spare one day.”

  “All right.” She nodded, then allowed her brain to switch to the next matter. “Now, tell me about Montaine.”

  CHAPTER 2

  Franklin couldn’t say what it was that rankled about his sideways shift to support and guard Senna on her way to the site that had been Saint Jory’s Hospital. For all that, he’d been instructed by Jonah to do so. Suck it up, Franklin.

  He’d been a guard before, so he knew the routine, though looking after Michael had been simple enough during the war. The task may have begun on the battlefield, but soon thereafter they’d transferred to one of the field hospitals. All the top-flight medicos had guards, and they’d doubled up as orderlies. Franklin had quickly grown accustomed to the duality of that role.

  This time was different, what with his target climbing over a bomb site, delving into nooks and crannies, more than aware that below both of them lay the remains of shattered bodies.

  “Hey, Mann!”

  His head jerked in Senna’s direction, and he noted with dismay she was tugging at piles of rubble, working steadily, wearing a pair of glasses that seemed to drag off her face. “What are you doing?” he asked as he clambered toward her, and she glanced toward him.

  She grunted, lifting what appeared to be a larger block of debris. “I’m checking for chemical residue that would give me a clue as to the makeup of the bomb. I can already see traces of something, but I need to get further down to access samples I can take away.”

  “Can’t you just scrape it off?”

  The look she shot at him was clear. If eyes could talk, hers would be calling him several kinds of fool right now. So, he waited; at some point Senna would explain what she needed.

  “No. That could contaminate the evidence with metal from the blade or other things. I need a larger sample, one I can carry, to take back and check through in a clean lab. If I can get a large enough sample, I won’t need the specialist equipment in the investigative lab at the firehouse.”

  “You won’t need any special equipment?”

  She kept rooting around. “No. I have a lot of my own equipment because it was a ‘boys club’.”

  Franklin was still caught on the access to the lab. “What do you—”

  “I was on restriction beforehand, and the labs are located in the middle of the city. Besides, even before that, I had to fight for lab time, and I doubt Jonah will let me go to the central fire office. I need to use what I have available, and that’s why I need your help to get this bloody sample. So, do you think you can stop asking questions?”

  He inched forward and watched as she carefully removed a block, then another until a gap appeared.

  When Franklin reached forward, Senna stopped him. “No. See that black and silver marking? That’s what I need.” She pointed to a smallish block that sat some distance from the opening.

  “And how do you—”

  Senna blinked then smiled. “I’m going to climb down, while you hold a line for me and retrieve it.”

  He backed up, shaking his head, his feet sliding and crunching on the shards of broken building. “No. You’re not going down into the hole. Jonah would have my head on a platter if anything happened to you.”

  “And it won’t, because you’ll be keeping me safe. The debris here is fairly solid, so dropping down is the only way I can get it. Franklin, I only have today to get this sample. After that, he’s going to pull me off investigating, and this is important. It could tell us something we don’t already know.”

  He sighed, aware that Jonah had only allowed her one day to visit the site and scan the footage of the explosion. What if it gave them some clue or link as to how to beat the warrior children? To track down Montaine and defeat those who showed total disregard for life.

  “Okay, but you’re on a rope,” he said firmly. “And if I say we have to get out of here, we do, without complaint. Yes?”

  She opened her mouth to remonstrate, it was there in her narrowed gaze, but after long, fraught seconds she gave a nod. “Okay.”

  Franklin dropped his satchel and hunted for the rope he’d stashed. Senna took it and draped it around her waist. With a couple of firm movements she had it knotted so it wouldn’t unravel easily and waited only for his “okay” before she climbed into the hole. She moved cautiously, slipped in feet first, then slid down over the edge she’d created.

  When only her hands and head remained out, she gazed at him. “Ready?”

  “Sure. Why not?” he muttered, and she smiled, then dropped out of view.

  The rope became taut, and he moved one step then another forward, until he was standing over the hole. Glancing down, he noted the play of light from her hand-held light.

  “Got it?” he asked.

  He heard the grunts of her efforts. “Not yet. Just a moment more.”

  The rope swayed and he frowned, watched her tug at the rubble firmly embedded in the debris with a couple of grunts. He groaned and realized the sample she’d indicated wasn’t releasing as easily as she’d hoped. Time was of the essence as the sun rose in the sky, and the jitters in his belly started. He trusted those jitters, aware they’d never before steered him wrong.

  “We need to hurry,” Jonah said.

  “Just a moment,” she called, and he ground out an oath.

  “We don’t have time, Senna.” The awareness that they were no longer alone was reinforced by the visage of a single child watching from the far end of the ruins. “They’re here.”

  “Damn!” she cursed. “Okay, I’ve got it. Get me out of here.”

  He tugged fast and hard, hand moving over hand while the rope seared the palms of his hands. Quickly, she pushed the rock free of the hole and hauled herself out.

  “We need to get out of here,” he murmured as she bent.

  Senna retrieved her treasure, and together, they moved in the direction of the vehicle, their feet picking the way through the rubble of the hospital’s remains.

  The faster they moved, the more urgent the jitters became. The vehicle waited just at the edge, and he wanted to know how close the children were, but he couldn’t risk losing time or his footing.

  In the distance came the echo of pounding feet. At the car, he reached for the doors, shoved inside as she did. “Hang on,” he yelled while he punched the ignition button. The engine fired and he floored the gas pedal.

  The vehicle shot forward, and his glance in the mirror told him they’d just got away in time as a band of children reached the location of the vehicle’s parking spot.

  “That was a bit too close for my liking,” whispered Senna, and he looked in her direction, where she slumped in the seat, the lump of masonry cradled in her hands and both eyes closed. It was the pallor of her skin that gave away her awareness of just how close they’d come.

  “You got what you needed though, right?”

  She cracked open one eyelid and watched him for a long, tense second. “Oh yes, Franklin. I did. The smell of it tells me lots already as do the striations of the break. If the chemical signature is what I think it is though, it will answer more than a few questions. Let’s get back to the base so I can get started.”

  He barked a laugh. “I was ready to come back before you found that bit of rock.”

  “Perhaps. But I’m pretty sure this lump will give us an upper hand. I’ll explain more later. Once I’ve had time to check the compounds used and know for sure.”

  With that, he accepted the dismissal from Senna. It rankled, but hell, he was just the glorified babysitter, so he shrugged and drove as quickly as he could back to the base.

  CHAPTER 3

  Senna slid open the satchel she’d stashed before leaving the arson squad headquarters and removed the psionic scalpel.

  The small earbuds that would protect her hearing were shoved into place. She’d already hung a sign on the door warning people not to enter. The last thing she needed was some stray portion getting into an eyeball of someone without the appropriate protection, or worse, a chemical reaction making someone sick.

  The light she’d appropriated from the bedside wasn’t quite what she was used to in a laboratory setting, but it would do well enough to illuminate her thrown together workspace. The small eye protectors she shoved against her face scratched at the sensitive skin, but she ignored that. Her whole focus now rested on the lump of smashed masonry. Last, she applied the mask.

  “I look like some science experiment,” she muttered then pushed the thought away.

  Setting the switch of her implement to on, she gripped the handle with a firm grasp and started the process of slicing off enough to access the chemical markers. Thin, she thought as the scalpel slid through the mass. A tiny piece fell away and dropped onto the padding she’d wadded below. Turning off the scalpel, she popped it down on the workbench and picked up the tweezers.

  Senna lifted the small piece she’d carved off, inspected it. “Hope it’s enough,” she murmured and slipped it into the tube which already held the chemical reagents. Breathing deeply, hoping to quell the sudden racing of her pulse, she watched and waited. A bubble started, then the chemicals turned from pink to blue, and she sighed. “Just as I thought.”

  She slid the test tube into the small, wooden holder, picked up her pen, and wrote down the findings, what chemicals she’d used, and the process. She had to be able to replicate it if required.

  Then she hefted her communications device, snapped a picture of the process, the color change, and the notes she’d made.

  “Triacetone triperoxide.” The chemical was one she knew she’d seen before, in fact, several times over the last six months in increasing and concerning repetition, even though it was considered an ancient form of explosive.

  Slumping in the seat, she simply stared at the lump and sighed. Time to contact Jonah. Pressing the screen of the communicator, she hailed him.

  “I have news, Jonah.”

  “Senna?”

  “Yeah. I’ve discovered what they’re using to effect these attacks. They’re using an ancient type of explosive called triacetone triperoxide. It relies on a weak oxygen-to-oxygen bond, and I’ve been seeing this over the last about six months… Slow initially but increasingly popular.”

  “And?”

  “The rest of the investigators I know couldn’t name a perpetrator. But then, neither could I, until now.” Senna inhaled deeply. “Prior to the last year, this explosive was one we learned about during arson training history, but it wasn’t more than a cursory glance. It makes sense now, because it’s easy to obtain the ingredients, can be made at home, and detonators are pretty easy to come by for this particular compound. Jonah, they used to call this stuff the ‘Mother of Satan’.”

  He blinked slowly on the screen then gave a slow nod. “Can we detect it before they ignite it?”

  She shrugged. “There used to be ways from what I remember, but I’d need to dig up more information before we can set anything in motion. In the training we were just introduced to these compounds as something of interest. Everyone thought them archaic, and I would guess no one actually expected to come across them now. As for detecting trace elements, they’re easier to detect after ignition. Beforehand is…well…” Senna spread her hands.

  Without some way to detect it prior to detonation, they were in a precarious position.

  “So, what does this mean? Senna, if this is an undetectable compound, we’re unable to prepare for this eventuality.”

  She grimaced. “I know. I’ll move as quickly as I can, but I can’t use my usual resources. I’ll need access to the ultranet to confirm and some time to research more.”

  “It can’t be via a connected system.” His face appeared tight, as if it were just one more dangerous situation to work through on little to no time or sleep.

  “No, I won’t use a connected system, Jonah. I’ll talk to Maylin tomorrow if you can send the requisition through expedited channels. See if she can scare something up for me to use. Maybe use one of the older systems, because they have differing layers of encryption and access, and I doubt they’ll be monitoring those systems. I know what I’m looking for, if it’s out there, but who knows?”

  He grunted. “Good work picking up on this.”

  “Thanks. I’m going to head over to the mess. Grab something to eat, then an early night. I don’t think there’s much more I can achieve tonight.” To be honest, exhaustion washed over her. Perhaps some fresh air and food would clear the sluggishness that wanted to settle into her system.

  “All right, I’ll flick that requisition through. Just remember to update me with whatever you find. More knowledge will help us reinforce our borders.”

  She disconnected and sat still for a moment. Aware that she’d helped them to make an important finding. The only thing was, could she find them a way to overcome the mess?

  On a sigh, she rose and began clearing away her impromptu laboratory. Old habits died hard, she thought as she shoved the masonry shaving and chunk of rock into the bottom of her lockbox and headed out.

  Franklin Mann looked at the pile of mush they’d served up in the mess. Glutinous and gray, it resembled something he’d rather not think about. It was food, and he’d been assured nutritious, but that didn’t improve how it looked.

  The fact was though, their food security was tenuous at best. The attacks on the convoys attempting to enter the base were becoming more vicious each time, and efforts being made at bringing in victuals through other avenues remained a band-aid solution.

  At his shoulder, a woman hovered, and he raised his head, the fork hovering between the plate and his mouth.

  “Mind if I join you?”

  Senna.

  The arson investigator had tweaked his interest, but he doubted a beef-cake kind of guy like him was of interest to her. He wasn’t one to waste his efforts, so with a cautious smile, he indicated the seat was free, then returned his gaze to the food. He stabbed at a chunk but didn’t raise it to his mouth.

  “I hear the engineers think there are only a couple more weeks until the first of the colony ships depart.”

  The huskiness in her voice floated around him. Then he startled, glanced up. “How did you find that out?”

  “I heard it from someone working with the grunts. Reckons they’re going to lock down the base tighter than before to make sure there’s no incursions by the kids.”

  His gaze narrowed on her spoon as it traveled between her luscious, pink lips. “And?”

  She waited a moment. A long, pregnant moment.

  He blinked. “And so…”

  “I’ve got a problem, Franklin Mann, and you’re the one I need assistance from.”

  Funny, he could swear the woman beside him was capable of just about anything without any assistance from him. “I’m not sure what I could possibly do that would be of assistance, Senna. You’ve got contacts and skills…”

  “I need someone on the ground. Someone who can keep their eyes open and let me know if they hear or see—”

  Tension seeped into every pore. Was she considering some kind of mutiny? “On who?” He couldn’t help the blunt words.

  “Not on Jonah or Daniella, if that’s what you’re thinking.” Her lips tightened. “But when you’re out, off base and on missions. I need intel on a finding I made today. Jonah knows, but I think it’s the tip and something big is heading this way. Something that could put us all in a great deal of danger, and the base. Like more than we’re currently in. With the colony ships so close… Look, I don’t want to discuss it here.” She slipped the spoon into the mush. “This is disgusting.”