“Hold on tight. We’re goin’ foraride.”
Annabelle launched them into the sky, the earth falling away from their feet. The feeling of weightlessness was strange as Annabelle flew them through the air. Her anti-gravity power made it easy for her to haul around her teammates as if they weighed nothing. In situations like this, Jamie was thankfulforthat.
The streets and buildings of Boston streaked past as Annabelle flew over the city, following the map on her HUD that would take them to Jamie’s family. The caravan with their police escort was traveling south on Tremont Street. Jamie caught sight of it momentslater.
“Apollo to base, give the senator’s security a heads-up we’re dropping in. Need them to slow down enough to take us on,”Jamiesaid.
“Copy that,” an agentreplied.
Boston was one of the oldest cities in America, beset early by climate change and an eroding shoreline. The seawall barriers helped regulate rising seawater around the Boston waterfront to stave off flooding while the underground streets and subway had been sealed off before the turn of the century. While it never had to worry about earthquakes like cities on the West Coast, most of the high-rises were restricted to the financial district. Tremont Street running south was bracketed by hundreds of low-level apartment buildings with red-bricked façades and bare trees lining thepavement.
Annabelle angled them down low at high speed, the convoy carrying his family slowing to a halt. Jamie got his feet on the ground right as a door on the middle SUV opened up. Annabelle didn’t immediately fly away after she let him go, hovering in the air above the height of the SUV to watchhissix.
The head of his father’s private security team, Keith Murray, got out, gun in hand. The ex-Army Ranger knew Jamie’s classified identity and had no problem ceding command to him. “Got a spot in here foryou,sir.”
Jamie never got the chance toreply.
The sound of Annabelle unexpectedly crashing to the ground behind him coincided with Jamie’s stomach lurching as his entire body becamelessto his senses—less strong, less quick, less durable. Jamie took a step back and brought up his weapon as Annabelle staggered back to her feet, shaking herheadhard.
“Apollo to all teams. Be advised, the enemy is fielding a metahuman with a nullification power,”Jamiesaid.
“Fuck,” Trevor swore heatedly overtheline.
A metahuman with a nullification power was a living Faraday cage, capable of canceling out other metahumans’ power within a certain range. The null power could be targeted, affecting only certain areas or people. The last time they’d dealt with that power was last year when Everly had infiltrated the MDF and nearly got the drop oneveryone.
“Apollo, we got eyes on the enemy coming from behind and ahead to cut you off,” Nazari said sharply over comms. “Getclear,now!”
The warning had come too late; Jamie’s instincts in the field were rarely wrong. If Stanislav had seen their future, then there was no escaping what was about to happen. At least, not in the way the director wanted. The predictable route would be to get in the SUV and drive, hoping to outrun the enemy, surrounded by their smallescort.
Instead, Jamie chose adifferentway.
“Everyone out!” Jamie yelled, motioning for Murray to exit the SUV. “Let’s go! Move,people!”
The two SUVs carrying his family and security threw open their doors and everyone inside got out. Some of the Secret Service protested the action, but his family’s private security literally removed them from the vehicles byforce.
“Apartment buildin’?” Annabelleasked.
“Read my mind. Apollo to base, I’m going to need an air evac. Tell whoever is flying the combat jet to hold position directly over our location and have shields up in case of any anti-aircraft missiles,” Jamie snapped as Richard finally clambered out oftheSUV.
Annabelle double-timed it around the other side, taking charge of Charlotte and Leah. “Think they actuallybroughtsome?”
“Wouldn’t put anything past them right now. Who knows what kind of weapons Declan skimmed off deliveryinvoices.”
“Aerial support is being rerouted,” Nazarireported.
The apartment building had a café in the retail space on the street. Jamie could see people hunkered down inside, recording what was happening outside. Jamie would have ordered someone to go in and tell everyone to find cover, but vehicles skidded into the intersections at either end of the block, none of themfriendly.
“Everyone, get inside!” Jamie yelled as he brought up hisweapon.
He aimed down the street and started to fire while Annabelle put her back to his and aimed in the other direction. Several security personnel stayed behind to join them. Their small group provided what cover fire they could as Jamie’s family was hustled into the apartment building by way of breaking and entering. With the entrance locked, Murray shot out the control panel before pushing open theslidingdoor.
It only took seconds for everyone to make it inside, but that was long enough for the enemy to make it to their position. With the null power still active, and theirs suppressed, Jamie and Annabelle would have to rely in their training over theirpowers.
Jamie unclipped a hand grenade from his belt, activating the small cylinder. He threw it at the nearest SUV before sprinting into the apartment building. The resulting explosion was enough of a threat to buy themprecioustime.
Murray had herded Jamie’s family into the stairwell while several of his people and most of the police escort remained scattered in the small lobby, seeking cover in out-of-the-way spots. Several of the police were talking into their work comms, calling for backup that Jamie knew wouldn’t get thereintime.
“They’ll hold the line,”Murraysaid.
