Page 132 of Viking

“Anytime,” he replies, already turning to re-engage another target.

“One Sukhoi’s still active,” Wells calls out, his voice slicing through my thoughts. “I’m engaging.”

I glance at my radar. A Su-25 is closing in fast, taking advantage of my slowed movement. Wells swings into action, his jet banking hard to intercept. He fires, the missile streaking toward its target, but the enemy fighter breaks hard, dodging at the last second.

“Viking, watch out!” Wells yells suddenly.

The bandit isn’t running. He’s diving straight for me.

For a split second, time freezes. A lump rises in my throat. I promised Lila I’d come back to her. I hadn’t really considered the possibility of that not happening.

Then out of nowhere, Wells’s jet swoops in from above, another missile streaking toward the Su-25 in a perfectly timed attack. The enemy fighter tries to evade, but it’s too late. The explosion is deafening, the fireball lighting up the sky.

“Splash four,” Wells says, his voice even as though he didn’t just save my life.

I exhale shakily, the tension flooding out of me all at once. “Thanks, Saint.”

“Don’t mention it,” he replies.

“Raptor Flight, status check,” Townsend calls into comms.

“Ghost, green.”

“Saint, green.”

“Viking…green.”

“Good. Let’s finish this and get the hell out of here,” Townsend says.

And then my HUD notifies me of two more bandits.

Hampton, Virginia

November 21, 2024

11:12 a.m.

Lila

As the meeting stretches on, I find myself less and less able to shake the nagging feeling that something’s wrong. My chest tightens, that gnawing ache refusing to ease. I’ve been holding my breath without realizing it. I grip my pencil tighter, my knuckles white as I stare down at my blank notebook. The words blur, smudging together until they don’t make sense.

Across the table, Asher tilts his head and studies me with his dark brown eyes. His easygoing demeanor shifts, brow furrowing on his handsome face as he leans forward, resting his forearms on the table. “Hey, Lila,” he says gently, voice quieter than before. “Are you okay?”

Three words, so simple, but they crack something inside me. I swallow hard, trying to force down the lump in my throat. Every time I close my eyes for even a second, I see Logan’s face. I know what he’s doing right now. But it’s not like any other job. He’s thousands of feet in the air, in a machine built to conquer the sky and defend lives, and yet it feels so fragile. One wrong move, one second too slow…

One mistake could get someone killed.

“Yeah,” I say, tucking a curled strand of hair back into my loose side braid. “I’m fine. Just tired.”

Clark’s posture straightens and he swivels his chair in my direction. “You sure? You’ve been quiet. And no offense, but you look like you haven’t slept in a week.”

I let out a shaky laugh, the sound unraveling in my chest. “Thanks, Clark. Super flattering.”

Asher narrows his dark eyes at his friend.

Porter frowns, his playful expression fading. “Is it James?”

I try to answer, but words fail me. Instead, I nod, my fingers trembling where they clutch the pencil.