Page 45 of Huntress

“That’s true,” Talbot agreed, reaching up to touch the roof of the tunnel with his fingertips. “These are no more than ten to fifteen feet underground. Our wells are twelve thousand feet deep.”

“That can’t be true,” the healer snorted in disbelief. “How did you guys dig that deep?”

“We didn’t,” Talbot admitted. “The holes were already there, all we had to do was clear the debris that filled the top twenty feet over the past couple of centuries.”

“Why the hell are you guys pulling oil out of the earth, anyway?” Elsie asked, doing her best to keep the disdain out of her voice.

“I’ve been wondering the same thing since we got here,” Trenton added. “What could you guys possibly need it for?”

“The answer to that question is so far above my clearance level it’ll take a release of information request to even speak to someone who might have answers,” Talbot sighed. “I’ve made my opinions against it clear, but I have my orders.”

“I know the feeling,” Marley muttered, casting a quick glance in Elsie’s direction before ducking her head.

Elsie and Trenton helped the geographers place and wire the explosives while Mutt kept out of the way, watching their progress. He kept peering into the depths of the tunnel, taking deep breaths of air as though sniffing for rats, then yawning as if he were bored out of his mind.

Marley shuttled supplies as they worked, fetching tools and moving lights as needed. Keeping busy kept the peace, for now.

When Grady and Talbot packed up and moved on to the next site, Elsie grabbed a shovel and shoved it into the demon’s hand before grabbing another for herself. “What makes you think I’ll help you?” he sneered, throwing the shovel to the ground.

“I’m not asking you to hunt, I’m asking you to dig,” Elsie replied, unimpressed by his show of defiance. “You claimed you’re stronger than the rest of us. I’m giving you the chance to prove it. Besides, aren’t you cheating on our bet? You can’t claim you’re more capable than us if you won’t match the level of exertion we’re putting in.”

“You can’t use psychology to push me into doing your dirty work,” he growled, surprised when she walked away without listening to the insults he’d intended to throw her way.

At the edge of the barrier, Elsie began digging, putting a healthy amount of muscle into the task. The demon found a rock to perch on and ignored the furtive glances thrown at him by Marley and Trenton as he watched them sweat.

When they finally managed to collapse several sections, Elsie straightened her back and stretched with a groan. Even if the rat demons showed up before they were ready, they’d be slowed down by their efforts.

“How do they make those tunnels, anyway?” Marley asked Trenton. He curled his hands up near his face, pulling his lips back to show his front teeth and scrunching up his nose.

“With their claws and teeth,” he said, making digging motions with his fingers.

Elsie glanced over at the demon. His face showed nothing, but the amusement coming from him was so obvious she wanted to slap him straight out of her head. He only bothered to keep it to himself when it was convenient for him.

They continued, moving further into the nest, manually collapsing as much of the tunnel as they could. Twenty minutes later, they finally got a call from Grady on the radio. It was time to move to the next site.

It was the routine for the next six hours. With all three teams working hard and the geographers coordinating everyone’s movements, the seven tunnel entrances inside the barrier and the twenty most active on the outside were all wired and ready to go. Tension built the longer they were at it. Elsie continually expected rat demons to storm toward them at any moment, but it never happened.

She glanced over at her demon and hid a private grin. He’d eventually joined them out of pure boredom. He was just as dirty as the rest of them. His participation hadn’t earned him any friendships within her squad, but she hoped he’d earn a touch of respect. The demon was strong. They’d been able to collapse large amounts of tunnel instead of little sections because of him.

Both squads gathered at their final meeting place, though they kept their distance from one another. Elsie’s squad was too pissed at all the work they’d had to do because of the home squad’s carelessness to make any false camaraderie attempts.

“Whenever you’re ready, Captain.” Grady held a device in his hands that looked a lot like the remote control for a drone.

For some reason, her eyes were drawn to her demon’s. Even in the dark, she caught the hints of gold in their depths. Shaking herself out of it, she nodded.

“Do it.”

Grady flipped a couple of switches, then pressed the red button in the center. Marley stood next to Trenton and covered her ears while the demon looked toward where they’d last worked expectantly.

Explosions ripped through the air in a massive circle around them, drowning out the undulating blue light of the barrier set against the black night sky. When the echoing noise and flashes of flame died down, they stood in the silence, waiting and listening for several minutes, but there was no immediate response from their enemies.

Elsie knew it was only the beginning. The rat demons would check their losses, then find a way to retaliate.

“It worked,” Jeshua said with a tired smile.

“I hope so, but we can’t make assumptions. Now we check to make sure each site collapsed as expected.” She checked the sky. It was four-thirty in the morning. This had taken longer than she’d expected, but the results were worth it. “We’ll meet again for breakfast at nine.”

Jeshua and his men looked taken aback, but her squad nodded their acknowledgment. They weren’t just field agents. They were squad one, and capable of greatness under far worse conditions.