“Thermal incursion suits?” I asked.
“Custom gear we developed,” Will said, sliding his tablet across the table for me, with a protective suit schematic showing. “Lightweight, fitted suits with integrated tech for environmental protection and biometric monitoring. They’re not designed specifically for chemical weapons, but they could serve as an excellent base layer for your protective treatments.”
“These are more advanced than standard hazmat gear.” I skimmed the design specs. They appeared easier to move in. Lower profile, for sure. “Send me the details, and I’ll review. I have some associates at a lab in Naples who might be able to treat them.”
“I can prep them tonight,” Will said. “We have extras in various sizes.”
“We should establish deeper intelligence sharing,” Rav suggested. “Regular secure communications between teams, approaching the problem from different angles. Percival?”
“Agreed,” Percival said. “Between your knowledge of Fenix and ours with the Greek Fire, we’ll work better together. And if they do have the complete formula, we’ll all need to get up to speed as fast as possible.”
“How are you getting to Naples?” Evelyn asked Percival.
Except for Will, everyone was talking to my partner. My trustworthiness had apparently plummeted after Rav called me out.
“We’re scheduled to fly back to DC in the morning and deploy with our team,” he replied.
Scarlett shook her head. “That wastes valuable time. Come with us on our jet. We’ll leave in the morning, and it gives us the chance to establish the communication links.”
Perfect. Not just close proximity, but hours confined in a private jet with Rav. This mission wasnotstarting on the right foot.
“I’ll touch base with some contacts in Naples about accommodations,” Evelyn said. “If Noah’s trying to pull you into a trap, Fenix will be watching the hotels.”
“And airports,” said Rav. “We’ll need a private landing strip.”
“It’s settled,” Evelyn concluded. “You’ll leave at 0800 tomorrow. Tonight, prepare equipment and gather intelligence. Will, get those suits ready. Brie, continue analyzing the data we have on Fenix’s Naples operation.”
The meeting broke up quickly, and everyone dispersed to their assigned tasks. Percival and I stayed with Will and Brie to discuss the protective treatments, trying not to obsess over the way Rav hovered in the doorway. I refused to look up long enough to find out whether he was waiting for more details about the suits or for me.
“The coating needs to be completely uniform,” I explained. “Any compromised areas would be vulnerable. No open seams, tears, or anything.”
“I’ll make sure they’re flawless,” Will assured me. “I’ll modify one of Scarlett’s suits for you. You’re about her height, though she’s a bit more…” he gestured vaguely, “in certain areas.”
More?
Brie smacked his shoulder. “Let’s go. I want to update the suits’ firmware while you’re doing the physical updates.”
I nodded as Will and Brie left, followed by Percival and Rav. This was happening. In less than twenty-four hours, I’d be on a private jet to Naples with the Reynolds team—with Rav—instead of with the team I’d spent every day with for the past three years.
I exhaled slowly. When we arrived, we’d go our separate ways. We’d be in communication, but nothing more.
Besides, this was about the mission—about stopping Fenix before they could weaponize Greek Fire and hurt innocent people. My feelings, my history with Rav, none of that mattered.
You’ve faced worse than an ex who could barely look you in the eye.
That’s all he was.
Just an ex.
Chapter 7
Rav
The Old TriangleIrish Alehouse sat at a busy corner downtown, a few blocks up from the waterfront. I’d chosen it for my meetup with Percival specifically because it wasn’t one of my usual haunts—no chance of running into Scarlett or any other Reynolds team members who might want to join us.
The place was packed with locals and tourists rubbing shoulders at the bar, couples and families enjoying meals at the wooden tables, and university students gathered around the longer communal tables near the back. The noise level hovered just below shouting, a blend of conversations, laughter, and the trio of musicians warming up on the small stage in the corner.
Percival had already claimed a table as far from the musicians as possible. Four small glasses of beer sat in each of two wooden flight holders.
