Page 20 of Echo: Burn
"That's suicide," Mercer states flatly. "We'd be walking into whatever trap the Committee's preparing."
"We're already in their trap." Stryker gestures around the bunker. "They know we're here somewhere. It's only a matter of time."
"So we hit them first." Rourke's tone makes it sound simple. "Fast, hard, before they're ready."
I listen to them plan, these men who speak in tactical acronyms like it's their native language. But there's something missing.
"You're thinking about this wrong," I hear myself say.
Five pairs of eyes turn to me.
"Explain," Kane says.
"You're approaching this like a military operation. But that's not what the Committee expects." I move to the map table. "Yes, they know I fought back earlier. But I'm still a civilian veterinarian who saved a dog. They'll assume I had help—which I did. As far as they know, I'm terrified and desperate, holed up somewhere waiting for them to find me."
Understanding dawns in Kane's eyes. "You want to be bait."
"I want to be the thing they're not prepared for." I trace a route on the map. "If I return to my clinic—publicly, obviously—with the dog, what do they do?"
"They kill you," Stryker says bluntly.
"Maybe. Or maybe they need to know what I found, what I told others, how much I understand." I look at Kane. "I'm a veterinarian with connections. They can't just make me vanish without questions."
"Actually, they can." Rourke's voice is cold. "That's literally what Protocol Seven is designed to do."
"Then we make it too public to ignore." The idea crystallizes. "I go back to Whitefish. I file a report about Odin's injuries with animal control. I mention the chemical compounds. I make noise, create a paper trail. The Committee can't kill me quietly if half the veterinary community knows I have evidence."
The silence that follows is deafening.
Kane stares at me. "Absolutely not."
"Why not?"
"Because Cray will kill you the second you surface."
"Not if I have protection." I cross my arms. "Not if Echo Ridge is watching. Not if you're ready to move the second the Committee shows their hand."
"You're asking us to use you as bait," Mercer says slowly. "To dangle you in front of a professional killer and hope we can react fast enough."
"I'm asking you to let me fight." The words come out harder than intended. "I'm asking you to treat me like an asset instead of a liability."
Kane's expression darkens. "This isn't about trust...”
"Yes, it is." I step closer to him. "You don't trust that I can handle myself. You see a civilian who needs protecting, not a partner who can contribute."
"You're not a partner. You're...”
"What?" I cut him off. "A victim? A distraction? Someone who needs to be locked in the bunker while the men do the real work?"
Stryker's grinning openly. Rourke looks impressed. Even Mercer's skepticism has morphed into something that might be respect.
Kane's jaw clenches. "You're someone I'm trying to keep alive."
"Then let me help you do that." I soften my tone. "I'm not asking to go in blind. I'm asking to use the skills I have—medical knowledge, public credibility—to create an opening you can exploit."
"It's too dangerous."
"Everything's dangerous." I gesture around us. "Sitting here waiting for Cray is dangerous. Hiding while the Committee manufactures chemical weapons is dangerous. Running for the rest of my life is dangerous. At least this way, I'm choosing how I face the danger."
