“I know, but I saw a helicopter out back as we were being brought in.”
Maybe I was too tired and didn’t hear that properly. I for sure hadn’t seen one.
“Did you just sayhelicopter?”
He wasn’t thinking what I thought he was.
No way.
Damien nodded. “I know how to fly one. Sort of. Basically. We get the chopper, pick up Jeremy and the team, and you open a hole into the Dream War while I fly us right in. We find Skyhome and sleep for three days.”
I was at that stage of sleep loss when you burst into random fits of laughter. What the hell did he just say? I cracked up, holding my stomach from laughing so hard.
Concern crossed his face. “You’re tired. We gotta do this now. Focus.”
I shook myself, trying not to think of what could go wrong. Instead I just thought of the part where he saidsleep for three days. That sounded nice.
“Fine. Let’s go.” It’s not like I could open a portal in here. The congressmen would kill us right away.
I allowed him to grip my bicep. With his head down and gun drawn and pointed at me, we left the room.
I braced myself for a guard positioned at the door but there wasn’t one. Two of them were chatting in the hallway as we passed, but they gave us a quick glance and didn’t bother.
Holy shit! This really does work.
We stepped out of the hallway and back onto the main milk loading dock, where our van had pulled up on the left. Instead of going left, we went right where—I’ll be damned—there was a chopper sitting out on a green lawn.
“Hey, who the hell are you?” one of the guards asked as we walked by the loading dock.
“McNealy!” Damien shouted behind him and kept walking with me at a brisk pace.
Maybe this wasn’t going to work.
“Stop right there!” the guard yelled, and Damien shoved me behind him, before spinning, gun drawn on the guy.
What the hell? I was the one hired to protect him, not the other way around.
Bullets snipped through the air and I crouched to grab a shovel that was propped against the wall. I hated being weaponless.
Pivoting, I chucked the shovel like a spear, aiming for the guy shooting at us. Seeing it spin through the air, he flinched, taking cover.
It was just the distraction we needed.
Damien lowered his weapon and we both took off running outside like our asses were on fire. When we were about halfway to the copter, I noticed there was a pilot sitting inside of it.
“Fire it up!” Damien yelled, holding his gun out and aiming it right at the guy.
Okay, I guess we were taking a hostage now.
This plan was shit.
The blond-haired man paled and started flicking switches as we jumped into the open ‘copter door.
“You military?” Damien barked, gun to the guy’s head.
My gaze flicked to the lawn, where a handful of soldiers were running at us but not shooting. Probably didn’t want to blow up the very expensive helicopter.
The blades began to whirl as the engine kicked on.
