Chapter 47
“We are down to six missing men and nine women,” Peach announced, coming into the command center. The Mother had a satisfied look on her face, as if that were good news. Mother White did not think so. Neither did President Violet.
Violet hadn’t moved from the command center since her arrival, days ago. White was fairly certain the woman hadn’t even closed her eyes for more than a few seconds, though it’s possible she could’ve slept when White was catching a quick nap here and there. She studied her old friend as she took in the news, watched one dark eyebrow twitch for a moment before she asked, “Does that include the three women and four men we believe made it south of our border?”
Peach’s resilience was shaken as she realized her news was not as pleasant as she’d hoped. “N-no, President Violet. I meant completely unaccounted for.”
Violet’s face didn’t change a bit, save a small flare of her nostrils. “Then amend your count, Mother Peach. Just because they’ve gone over the border, that does not mean our pursuit stops.”
“Yes, President Violet.” Peach turned and hurried back out the door. Exactly why she needed to leave to make the requested changes, White wasn’t sure. Knowing Peach, she was off to go shed a few tears for being chastised.
Violet pressed a hand to her forehead and let out a long sigh, picking up her energy beverage and taking a long draw before she stood and walked over to where White was standing, staring at a map. After the debacle with the tiger, White had pressed Jaguar to move faster. She’d also called in assistance from other towns in monitoring the footage brought in by the drones. That was exactly how they’d caught up to another group, headed toward the western border. The military had moved in and mowed them down, two women and a man. So far, the rebellion wasn’t working out quite as Lightning and her friends had planned.
But then… they did have a party that had made it across the southern border, into another nation’s territories. So far, the strained situation with the male dominated government of Spanish-America had not come to blows, but that could change at any moment, particularly if the escapees had information about Michaelanburg that President Violet and the other leaders had worked hard to hide from nations who would be quick to attack if those secrets were leaked. As it was, the foreign government was already amassing troops and weapons far too close to their shared border for White’s comfort. Violet had moved most of her troops there, thus creating a situation where Gretchintown was not as well monitored as it should’ve been when the rebellion took place.
“What of the girl?” Violet asked, watching red blips symbolizing Jaguar’s forces move steadily north on the map. “Surely, she can’t have reached Dafo yet.”
“A drone exploded in their force field a few hours ago,” White reminded her. She was sure Violet had received the news, though White had been elsewhere when she’d been notified. “While it’s not unusual for them to shoot down any of our tech, we do believe it’s possible the drone was tracking the rebels.” Accessing her info tab from under her arm, she pulled up the footage she’d spent an hour or so examining earlier and narrowed in on the still photograph she wanted Violet to see.
The president took the tablet and held it closer to her face, narrowing her eyes as she peered at it. She nodded. “Whose territory is that?”
“Dal,” White said quickly. She was well apprised of the dozens of different territories Dafo was divided into.
“Will he give them refuge?”
“It is hard to say,” White admitted. “We have done much damage to his tribe over the years, particularly when they continued to scavenge further north than we were comfortable with, crossing into no-man’s land as much as five miles from the border of Dafo. He may see them as a part of us and mow them down before they even have a chance to speak.”
“He will see the men and question them,” Violet said, tipping her head up as she handed the tablet back and folded her hands in front of her confidently.
White nodded. She thought so, too. Shifting her weight on her boots, she waited for Violet to finish thinking and give her an order. The president was the only one she would take orders from at this point in her career.
Violet wasn’t ready to take action yet. “How far is Jaguar from Dafo?”
“Fifteen miles. She can be there by morning, but she and her forces are not equipped to attack Dal and his snipers.”
“How long will it take to get them ready?”
White swallowed hard. “If we utilize the heliobirds, they can have the equipment Jaguar needs there in a few hours, but if Dal sees our birds, he will shoot them down.”
“What about the transporters?”
“I’ve had four of them brought up from Judithtown. That’s half of what we have available. There is no clear overland route. It will take longer, but it would be safer. They can stay back from the border and meet Jaguar and her women here.” She pointed at a road on the map, one of the few that was still maintained.
Violet was quiet for several minutes before she said, “If a helio goes down over Dafo….”
White nodded. She already knew the threats involved if the rest of the world knew how the helios were powered. They’d had a close call once before.
“Dal will not hesitate. We have surprised him many times before, and he has been close to shooting us down. This time, he will be expecting it. He will be on full alert.”
“Yes, President Violet,” White agreed.
With her chin still tipped toward the ceiling and her left eye narrowed, Violet said, “Send in the transporters. Tell Jaguar she must protect the tech at all costs.”
“I will make sure she understands,” White assured her.
Violet nodded, and White stepped away to make the call to Jaguar. She trusted Jaguar immensely, but with this sort of responsibility, she truly wished she’d opted to go out into the field herself. She glanced over at Violet, thinking perhaps she should ask for permission to report to the front line now. However, Violet was speaking to Mother Mare about the situation in the south. The conversation would have to wait; the more White considered the battle that was about to begin and the pursuit that would follow, the more eager she became to do more than orchestrate flashing dots on a tablet. She wanted to be there when the Mothers caught up to Rain and her companions. She wanted to bring her in herself.
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