I joined the group huddled around the suddenly too-small monitor, stepping in front of Rav to see better. Emmett clicked to another image, a drone photo with higher resolution than the satellite images we’d been reviewing.
The amphitheater was an oval, with stadium seating around the edges. Much of the seating area was inaccessible, covered in grass, which meant the crowd would be on the arena floor. Unfortunately, the short wall encircling the floor was also where the drainage holes were, so that’s where the Greek Fire would be deployed—assuming Noah’s intel was accurate.
Rav used the mouse to return to the sewer map. He pointed to a spot that indicated an incomplete excavation. “Theblockages actually work in our favor—fewer access points means a more predictable pattern.”
“Greek Fire in liquid form is dense,” I said. “It doesn’t aerosolize easily without a catalyst or significant pressure. That means they’d need specialized pumping equipment, multiple canister locations, or both. Plus, it’s so caustic, nothing off-the-shelf would handle this compound without degrading.”
“Unless Noah was lying and they intend to deploy it from the top down?”
“That wouldn’t make sense.” I took the mouse from him and brought up the overhead image. “They could deploy it on the upper level and let it flow down, but the liquid moves so slowly, they’d need a significant amount for it to reach enough people to matter.”
“They could spray it from hoses, like firefighters combating a fire.”
“Also possible.”
“And they could ignite it.”
“No.” I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to imagine streams of burning water cascading over the crowd.Keep them open. Don’t hide from this.“The powder form is the incendiary. The liquid form wouldn’t burn like that.”
“So how did the Byzantines deploy it?”
“Their version combined the two forms. But Haddad never found a way to do that, nor did my lab.” I tilted my head to check the group, but everyone else had moved on to their own discussions. Rav and I were both leaning over the table, the same as we’d done six years ago, discussing which house to visit in a little village. “But Noah said they were going to deploy from below?—”
“Which means,” he said, taking over my thought, “they need significant pressure and equipment.”
I let my head drop, trying not to pull away when his shoulder met mine. Trying not to lean into him, either. “I need to see the space.”
“You want to find the optimal location to pump it into the arena? Find the lowest ground?”
“Yeah.”
“I have to leave.” Mario checked his watch while letting out a slow breath. He was nowhere near as cheery as he’d been when he initially joined us. “I have a meeting with the superintendent in an hour. But if you come by the park later, I can escort a few of you into the tunnels myself. It should give you a better understanding of what you’re dealing with.”
“That would be perfect,” I said.
As he headed for the door, he paused. “I don’t know who you people really are, but if this threat is real…” He shook his head. “I know you went to significant lengths to recover the park’s yellow flower fresco earlier this year, so I trust you’re on the side of good. And so, I’ll do what I can to help.”
Once he was gone, Rav straightened, breaking his contact with me. “How many surveillance cameras did we bring?”
Emmett hummed aloud. “Five, I think?”
“I want to set those up underground.” He folded his arms. “I’ll work with Mario to identify?—”
“I’ll take care of that.” I was best suited to identify the risk points, so it made the most sense, even though Rav clearly thought it should be his responsibility.
Rav didn’t look at me, just kept talking. “We’ll identify the most likely places for Fenix’s equipment and place the cameras to monitor those areas. That should let us track their activity.”
Scarlett said, “If they’re planning to use these drainage systems, they’d need to set up in advance.”
“Noah told you they were starting their setup, but they wouldn’t take everything in three days in advance.” I stared atthe drainage map. “Just like we can’t risk tipping off the police too far in advance, they can’t risk someone finding the Greek Fire and confiscating it.”
Rav grunted in agreement. “Losing whatever they’ve constructed before they can use it would be a bigger loss than rescheduling.”
My phone vibrated in my pocket, at the same time Rav’s did. I pulled mine out to read a notification that my rideshare—which Scarlett had conceded to after our chat last night—would arrive in five minutes. “I need to get the incursion suits to Dr. Norris at the university lab. Percival is meeting me, then we’ll meet Mario at the park afterward for the reconnaissance.”
Rav said, “One of my contacts secured us a meeting with the event planner. We need to be there in an hour.”
Scarlett smiled at him. “For Lucius and Eloise Stone?”
