Time of Fate (Wealth of Time Series #6) by Andre Gonzalez (e book reader online txt) 📗

protesters have remained mum on what they’re actually protesting. They have answered with questions or blanket statements that make no sense to anything happening in the world. The chants don’t make sense, the demographics aren’t telling of what is actually happening. The American media is having a tough time figuring this out. The governor of California has called in the National Guard to Los Angeles, where they estimate 15,000 people have converged onto Hollywood Boulevard.”

Martin chuckled. “The National Guard?”

“I guess they feel things are rowdy—there’s an energy from the crowd that feels rather hostile.”

“I can’t lie—I’m impressed. All these protests and no one has outed us, even by accident. We truly are dedicated to keeping our secret, even if we’re marching through the country causing a scene.”

“It’s more than the United States. Mexico City is reporting similar protests, along with Toronto, Panama City, and San José.”

Martin nodded. “We’re fine, right? What would actually happen if the secret slipped out?”

Alina shrugged. “We don’t know for sure. Tests were done in the 80s to see, but results were inconclusive. We approached random strangers and told them about time travel, just to see how they’d react. Some nodded and kept walking, some asked if we were on drugs. And others asked to join. I think if something this widespread were to leak today, most of society would call bullshit and form their own conspiracy theories regarding who the people protesting really are. Social media has actually made it quite easy for us to brush something like this under the rug. I’m sure we have teams right now already spinning the stories online to misdirect the general public. Hell, you can even claim it’s all fake, and half the world will believe you. Unless someone sees something with their own eyes, who are they to argue the facts?”

“I didn’t realize we even had a social media team.”

“It’s just the technology team. Obviously we don’t have a presence online as an organization, but many of our members enjoy fitting into the regular world, blending in, just the way we like it.”

“I see.” Martin looked out his window, the sun starting to set on this day that seemed like it would never end. They were already starting their descent into the small town of Three Creek, Idaho, nerves bubbling within his guts as the ultimate showdown loomed.

“Uh, Commander?” Alina said after having fallen silent while she returned her attention to her cell phone. “I just got word that Chris has fled the property.”

“What?!” Martin jumped out of his seat, as if he could do something about this recent development.

“We’ve had eyes on the house all day—all week, in fact—just to make sure nothing changed. Apparently Chris had left earlier in the day and returned by landing his jet near the house. He ran inside for a couple of minutes before getting back on and taking off—this time with no one else on board besides the pilot.”

“Do we know which way he went?”

“Kind of. Our team only had a single-engine plane so they couldn’t keep up with the jet too well. He was heading north, and we had another team with a jet ready in Twin Falls to tail him. We have eyes on him again and they believe he’s headed for Canada based on the trajectory of the flight so far.”

“Dammit,” Martin said through gritted teeth. “What can we do? I don’t want to lose ground.”

“Don’t worry about that. Our team will tail him all the way to the North Pole if that’s where he’s going. Once he lands, we’ll know exactly where and can make arrangements. We’re already descending, so we might as well have a look around his property and wait until we get word. No point in flying around in circles if we don’t know where we’re going.”

“How far behind is our team from Chris?”

“About ten minutes. Assuming they land at an actual airport and not the middle of nowhere, we should be landing right behind.”

Martin nodded. “Tell your team to shoot the pilot right when they land. That’s an order. Do not let that pilot get back in the air.”

“Yes, sir.”

Martin called for attention on the jet, every head turning to him as he spoke from the front of his seat, Alina still seated beside him as she sent a text message on her phone.

“Everyone get comfortable—we’re staying on the jet a little longer than originally planned. I’ll explain once we land, but for now we need all of you to make sure your guns are loaded and get into your protective gear.”

They all moved without question, returning to their seats. Martin saw Arielle shooting a glance over to Alina, trying to get a read on the situation, but failing. He fell back into his seat and leaned his head against the window, the day seeming to only get longer with each passing second.

Where are you hiding, Chris?

Chapter 16

Colin landed the jet in Angle Inlet, Minnesota, the northernmost point of the contiguous United States. Chris had a lifetime of scouting under his belt to find the perfect location for his ultimate hideout. Barrow, Alaska was remote, but it was still in the open, and once the Road Runners learned about the location, they had no issue building their own headquarters nearby.

Angle Inlet, however, was plenty different thanks to its official population of ninety residents. Chris owned a cabin in the thick of the woods, lacking any neighbors within a two-mile radius. The town sat in a unique geographic location, a peninsula in the Lake of the Woods, where the United States and Canadian borders were drawn in the water. Even though the town was part of Minnesota, one could only drive there needing to first pass through Canada, as the peninsula was attached to the mainland of the Great White North.

When Chris discovered this little secret on the map it immediately became his favorite location should he ever need to hide for his life. That time had come, and the