You gonna talk to him?O’Neill asked, his gaze settling on the blank-faced former SEAL across from him.
He will not speak to me of this.Wolf gave a frustrated shake of his head.Perhaps you will have more luck.
If Wolf thought O’Neill had a better chance of figuring out what was going on with the squid, then things had gone to hell between the brothers.
Winchester suddenly looked up, his flat gaze locking on O’Neill’s face. “You two motherfuckers can stop talking about me any time now.”
Startled, O’Neill’s eyebrows flew up. “What the hell are you yapping about? We haven’t said a damn word.”
Winchester shrugged. “Not with your fucking mouths. But your eyes keep glazing over, a sure sign you’re gossiping like a bunch of old ladies on that mental highway of yours.”
O’Neill’s mouth fell open. He snapped it back up, his gaze shooting to Wolf. “Did you tell him about theNeealaho?”
“I did not.” Shock touched Wolf’s face.
O’Neill’s gaze shifted back to Winchester. The revelation couldn’t have come from his squid buddies. They didn’t know about the neural net. None of the Shadow Mountain warriors would have told him, and none of the peripheral base personnel knew about theNeealaho. The net was something sacred. Not shared unless a warrior was bound to it.
“How the hell did you find out about that?” O’Neill asked.
“None of your fucking business,” Winchester snapped. But an uneasy expression settled over his face.
O’Neill suspected Winchester’s comment had been a test. A test he’d hoped would fail. Did he actually known about the net? Or had he simply guessed?
With a frown, O’Neill examined the squid’s face. If he hadn’t known before, he knew now.
Surprise still rode the silent room as Capland strolled through the door, his laptop tucked under his arm. He ignored the coffee and skirted the edge of the table, halting next to O’Neill.
“Am I interrupting something?” Cap asked, his eyebrows partially lifted. “Feels tense in here.”
“Not at all,” Wolf said, his voice flat, as though Aiden hadn’t just surprised the fuck out of them both.
Cap took him at his word and slipped into the seat next to O’Neill. And willingly at that, another sign O’Neill was bunking with the big boys now. Up until recently, the warriors on base avoided him, refusing to sit or stand next to him.
“Any luck with finding the labs in the Nantz building?” O’Neill asked, twisting in his chair until he could watch Cap’s profile.
“Not completely. Although all signs point to them being in his flagship tower. Judging by the elevator, and the door at the back of the hallway, which are visible on the hallway cameras, I’m guessing we’re looking at a secret basement.” Cap pushed the laptop’s power button. “But we’ll have to do some physical sleuthing to find it.” Once the screen flashed on, he tapped in a command on the keyboard and the overhead screen lit with the image of a blueprint. “I’ve downloaded the building plans. Which do not list a subterranean level. Nor do the stairs or elevators go below the lobby.” He paused, his gaze skating between Wolf and Aiden. “Which makes sense if the labs are secret. He wouldn’t have wanted them on any schematics.”
“Agreed. The DC Nantz Building makes the most sense.” Wolf fell silent for a moment. Then sighed. “Embray believes this as well.”
O’Neill waited for Winchester to chip in with his opinion. The squid had never been shy about offering his opinion...even when it wasn’t welcome. But this time, Aiden didn’t respond. The dude’s silence was...unusual. Winchester had spent weeks driving for answers, driven by revenge. And now...when they could taste the answers, his interest had died? This was not like the dude at all.
O’Neill forced his mind back to the conversation. “We can’t be sure the labs are in the Nantz Building. We’re looking at a time suck, which we can’t afford if we’re wrong.”
Cap shrugged. “True. But my gut says the labs are there. Hidden away beneath the lobby. He’d want his labs and creations nearby. Until recently, ninety-five percent of his time was spent in DC, at the Nantz Building. He even had a penthouse apartment there, along with his offices. My gut says his labs are there too. And the elevator at the back of the hallway was his access point.”
“Agreed,” Wolf said as he looked down the table. “Aiden? What say you?”
Aiden just shrugged. “Might as well start there.”
Seriously? That was all the dude had to say?
If the mouthpiece is walking his dreams again, that would explain how he knows of the neural net,O’Neill said. It would also explain the vacancy sign hanging around his neck.
Perhaps.Wolf sounded thoughtful.
“We need to access that building,” Cap continued. “Particularly Nantz’s penthouse living and office spaces. If there’s an elevator that descends to the subterranean level, we’ll probably find it there. He’d have wanted a private, quiet area for access.”
Wolf and O’Neill nodded in agreement.
