Page 42 of A Ballad of Blackbirds and Betrayal

“One of Mitchell’s top guys,” Nate explained, nodding toward his captive.“Isn’t that right, Jacobs?Maybe he’s got some useful information.”

“Bring him aboard,” Atticus directed.“If the bioweapon’s there, we’ll need everything he knows.”

Sabrina ascended the boarding stairs beside Atticus, her head throbbing with each step, but the pain remained manageable—a distraction rather than a disability.

The interior of the Gulfstream reflected Mitchell’s wealth and taste—plush leather seating, polished wood accents, and state-of-the-art technology seamlessly integrated into the cabin design.Two more of Mitchell’s men lay unconscious, expertly restrained by Eden, who was examining a reinforced containment unit secured in the aft section of the cabin.

“It’s intact,” she reported as Atticus approached.“But that’s not the problem.”

She gestured to a digital display on the side of the unit.Red numbers counted down steadily:12:47…12:46…12:45…

“It’s on a timer,” Atticus said, his expression grim.“Set to release at the demonstration site.”

“Which is where?”Sabrina asked, moving to examine the containment unit despite the disapproving look Atticus shot her way.

“That’s what our friend here is going to tell us,” Nate said, shoving Mitchell’s security chief into one of the leather seats.“Aren’t you, Jacobs?”

The man—Jacobs—glared up at them with cold defiance.“I don’t know anything about any demonstration site.”

“I think you do,” Atticus said, his voice deceptively soft as he approached Jacobs.There was something in his expression that made Sabrina’s blood run cold—a controlled fury that promised calculated violence rather than emotional outburst.“And you’re going to tell me, or I’m going to leave you handcuffed to that containment unit when the timer reaches zero.”

Jacobs paled visibly, his gaze darting to the countdown display.“You’re bluffing.You’d be exposed too.”

“We have countermeasures,” Atticus replied, the lie falling smoothly from his lips.“Do you?”

Sabrina studied the containment unit with growing concern.The timer was a problem, but not their most immediate one.“This is just a standard laboratory container,” she said, running her fingers along the seams.“It’s designed for transport, not deployment.”

“Meaning?”Eden prompted.

“Meaning it can’t actually release the bioweapon on its own,” Sabrina explained.“It would need to be connected to some kind of dispersal device—an aerosol system, most likely.”

“So Mitchell is waiting for this delivery at the demonstration site,” Atticus concluded.“Where he has the dispersal system already set up.”

“But the timer doesn’t make sense then,” Nate pointed out.“Why put a countdown on the container if it can’t release without the dispersal system?”

“Unless the timer isn’t for release,” Sabrina said slowly, a horrifying possibility dawning on her.“It’s for detonation.This isn’t just a containment unit—it’s a bomb designed to breach the bioweapon and create a localized event.”

“A fail-safe,” Atticus realized, his expression hardening.“If the delivery is intercepted, the bioweapon is still deployed, just on a smaller scale.”

“We need to disable it,” Eden said, already examining the container for access points.“Cypher, are you getting this?”

“Every word,” Cal confirmed through their comms.“But I can’t help with disarming without eyes on the device.You need to send me visuals.”

Eden extracted a small camera from her tactical vest, positioning it to capture the containment unit from multiple angles as the countdown continued relentlessly:11:28…11:27…11:26…

“I need to get this open,” Sabrina said, retrieving specialized tools from her medical pack.“If I can isolate the bioweapon sample, we might be able to neutralize it before detonation.”

“And if you can’t?”Atticus asked, moving to stand beside her.

“Then we need to get this aircraft as far away from population centers as possible before the timer reaches zero,” she replied grimly.“Ideally over water, where the bioweapon would be diluted before it could spread.”

“That’s a last resort,” he said, his tone making it clear he had no intention of letting her anywhere near the container when it detonated.“Our priority is disarming the device and securing the bioweapon.”

“Agreed,” she said, though they both understood the unspoken contingency—that someone might need to fly this aircraft out to sea if disarming failed.“Now stop hovering and let me work.”

A ghost of a smile touched his lips, gone so quickly she might have imagined it.“Yes, ma’am.”

The medical evac team arrived as Sabrina carefully unsealed the outer container, their sirens cutting through the night before falling silent as they reached the airfield.Santiago would have Jenkins on his way to a proper medical facility within minutes, one worry off their collective shoulders.

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