The plane was still high above the clouds by the time we made our jump. The man in the rear section with us was named Mister Wilkerson. He was a short, red-haired burly man who went to great lengths to tell us his experience in parachuting: ten years with the SAS, followed by four years as an instructor. He was even fully trained to fly military aircraft.
'You'll be landing in the ocean, so just remember to keep your legs braced,' he said. 'And hold your breath.'
I nodded. We wouldn't be landing in the ocean. My job was to scoop everyone together before we hit the water, but I couldn't tell him that.
We wore identical gear, a modified version of army fatigues with no insignia. I felt as anonymous now as I did when I woke up in that hotel room with the dying Doctor Richards.
We jumped out one at a time into the early morning sky. Nobody looked confident. Even Chad looked scared to death, but there was nothing any of us could do about it. As I jumped, the wind caught me, and I plummeted towards the earth. My chute opened with a jerk, and I quickly created a flying platform to collect everyone else.
Unfortunately, I missed Chad, who landed some distance from us. He was sputtering and choking as we pulled him out of the choppy waters.
'Very clever,' he snapped.
I shrugged. 'Sorry.'
Keeping low, we made our way to the island. The sun still hadn't risen, but the sky was growing light. I wanted us to reach shore before we were too visible. We eventually found an inlet at the end of the island most distant from the base. By then, Chad had dried off and his temper had improved.
Reaching the shore, we examined the map. I pointed out the best place for Chad and Dan to position themselves. Then we synchronized watches as we did the previous day. This time we were also carrying phones to stay in contact.
'Good luck,' I said to Chad and Dan.
'We won't need luck,' Chad said.
'Yeah,' Dan added. 'He's got me.'
They scooted off into the jungle as we headed on our way. I may have had superpowers, but I was still afraid. We had no real experience in doing anything like this. An attack of this kind would generally be carried out by an elite force of fully-trained armed SAS soldiers—not a bunch of teenagers. Still, The Agency's artificial intelligence program seemed to think that we were the right team for the job.
I just hope it's right.
The sun was rising as we worked our way around the island's edge. I felt terribly exposed on the shoreline, so after a few hundred feet, I suggested to the girls that we move up the cliff face.
'Don't you think that'll be more dangerous?' Brodie asked.
'I think it's more dangerous to be out here where everyone can see us.'
We climbed up the cliff and found a narrow path that ran parallel to the coastline. It reminded me of the trail where Chad had almost died. This could be a trap. I pointed this out to the girls.
'Maybe,' Brodie said. 'But even the Typhoid agents need to move around Cayo Placetas.'
'Still,' Ebony added. 'Let's keep a close eye out for tripwires.'
We moved slowly along the path. After a few miles, Ebony grabbed my arm and dragged us into the undergrowth. No sooner were we hidden than a group of four men marched past. Fully armed with rifles and handguns, they all wore a symbol on their jackets that resembled a spider web. The sound of their footsteps faded.
'That was close,' Brodie whispered.
'We'd better keep moving,' I said.
We followed the path around the island. It split into two at one point, but we keep to the coast trail. After another half an hour, the path started to climb, but then I grabbed the girls, and we took refuge in the bush.
'Look,' I whispered, pointing.
A guard tower sat at the top of the hill. It gave a commanding view over the path and coastline.
I wasn't sure what to do. Although we couldn't see the complex, we could hear movement and traffic coming from our right. Keeping close to the ground, we crept through the jungle until we arrived at a wide muddy road. It cut through the undergrowth towards the compound.
A high fence surrounded it. A truck roared past us to the gate where guards checked the back and allowed it inside.
I began to wonder if a more old-fashioned way of entry might be the best method. The guard tower was constructed to watch the coast: not the gate. No one was watching the tops of the vehicles. When the next truck headed past us toward the compound, I lifted us softly onto the roof. The truck paused for what seemed an eternity at the gate. The men talked about a new shipment of arms. Then it continued on into the facility.
It was heading to a warehouse, so we jumped free and rolled under the nearest building. There were guards everywhere. I wasn't too sure how successful we'd be at staying hidden. It was only a matter of time before we were discovered.
Pulling out the map, we worked out our current location. The computer room was still some distance away. At least a few hundred feet. It was a shame it was daylight. This would have been easier at night.
'Lift us onto the roof,' Ebony whispered. 'We can hop from building to building.'
That seemed like a good idea. I waited until some guards wandered past before flying us up and onto the roof. Flattening ourselves against the metal, we slid quietly along it to the end. From there, I flew us across to the next building and repeated the process two more times.
The building ahead of us was the computer complex. I began to feel hopeful. With a lot of luck, this could work. Glancing over the edge of the roof, I spied two men guarding the front door.
We're obviously not getting in there.
I looked at my watch. We still had a few minutes before Chad and Dan were due to create their diversion. Before that, we still had to check in to confirm that everything was still good to go. A truck weaved through the jungle and down the muddy road to the front gate. A guard jumped out and spoke to the gatekeeper. After peering in the back of the truck, it was waved on into the compound.
I didn't know why, but my heart had gone up a beat. The vehicle drew to a halt, and some guards opened the back. More men raced up to the vehicle and climbed inside.
They exited carrying two bodies.
It was Chad and Dan.