The next morning, after a tearful goodbye with her family, Cadence found herself in her usual chair in Aaron's office, sitting next to Jamie, who had no idea how much of a distraction it was to her that he was sitting in Elliott's chair-- in her mind, that's who should have been sitting there. At least it's not empty, she thought, as she waited for the rest of their team to take a seat so Aaron could get started.
Hannah, Christian, Shane, Meagan, and Aurora were also present. Cadence tried to focus on the tasks at hand, determining their next steps in tracking down the renegades, and Giovani, rather than the enormous hole in her heart that kept nagging at her every time the opportunity for a snide remark presented itself and went unsaid. It was obvious by the dispositions of everyone else present that she wasn't the only one missing the comic relief.
"All right," Aaron began once everyone was seated and the idle chatter began to die down. "We've got quite a few topics to discuss. First of all, we are hearing some rumors regarding the whereabouts of Finn, but nothing solid on Sam; is that correct?"
"That's right," Hannah spoke up. "While you were gone, we caught wind that Finn may well have made his way into Montana. Morgan and her team have had several reports that he may be hiding out in the mountains in her territory. She's putting together a group to do some probing and see if they can at least get some visual confirmation before she requests assistance."
"Good," Aaron confirmed. "I don't want her to move on him without at least part of this team up there because I don't want him tipped off. The last thing we need is for him to get away, but if she can confirm that it's him, that will be perfect."
"We have had some unconfirmed rumors regarding Sam," Christian mentioned. "But they are scattered so it doesn't sound solid."
"I want to make sure we've got some reliable contacts in Texas. The leader of the Dallas area is friends with Alex from San Antonio, and we all know that Sam and Alex have a tight relationship, so let's feel that out, Christian."
"I'm on it," he replied, nodding his head.
"What about the shipment of those titanium bullets?" Aaron asked, looking around as if he wasn't sure where the answer might come from.
"Oh," Aurora spoke up. "I've been working on that," she said with a small smile. "I've confirmed that they were intercepted by customs, and they are being held. So, if I can get a team together to go in there and seize them, that would be quite helpful as we go to battle with Sam and Finn."
"Perfect. What do you need from me?" Aaron asked.
Aurora had never been in charge of anything before, so she looked a little unsure of herself. Cadence spoke up. "Hannah's our best bet on running interference at this time. Why don't you take her and go to the port of entry--is it Miami?" Aurora nodded. "The two of you can probably manipulate their release, don't you think?" She was looking at Hannah now, who indicated that she agreed. "Work for you?" she asked, returning to Aaron.
"Absolutely," he replied. "And I'm sure Teresa would be happy to help you out. She's the lead in the Miami area. "
"Awesome--I'll get it done," Aurora smiled, obviously proud that she was being trusted with such a large task.
Aaron gave her a nod of confidence and then moved on to the next item on his list. "Giovani," he said. It was more of a question than a statement, and there was absolutely no indication from the rest of the team that anyone had any sort of a reply. "Well," he said after a long pause, "I guess that means he's probably still in the Amazon then. Elliott sent a party in looking for him months ago, but they’ve come up with nothing, which isn’t surprising considering it is the Amazon."
"If I were him," Cadence thought out loud, "I would wait until we are thoroughly distracted by Sam or Finn and then emerge."
The rest of the team agreed with her. "You're probably right," Aaron concurred. "What else have we got going on down there?" he asked, glancing around but settling his gaze on Hannah eventually.
"I moved Priscilla over there," she explained. "She was our lead contact when Giovani and Jack were doing all of that damage in the Caribbean, and even though she's very young, she knows what's she's looking for."
Aaron took in her words carefully. "Okay," he finally replied. "And what about our former Area Leader, Paulo?"
"Still there," Hannah confirmed. "I just thought Priscilla would be an additional asset. We still have several contacts at every single airport, the larger the more saturated, and they know to watch any and all possible means of transportation closely."
Again, Aaron listened cautiously before responding. Finally, he said, "Good. That should be enough for now. But Cadence is right. We can't allow ourselves to be so distracted by these Hunters that we forget that Giovani is also a primary objective." Once again, the rest of the team showed their understanding before he moved on. "Shane, how's Laney doing?"
"She's all right, I guess," the muscle-bound Guardian replied.
"What's going on with Laney?" Cadence questioned, quietly.
"We have had her under constant supervision since she returned from Europe a few days ago," Shane explained. "So far she seems to be siding with us regarding her sister's detention, but just in case Laura tries to talk her into helping her escape, I've been keeping a close eye on her."
Cadence nodded. "So, who's watching her now?"
"Paxton and Smith," Shane replied.
Cadence raised her eyebrows and scoffed, knowing those two had reputations as bumbling idiots. "Sorry," she said, looking away. "I just hope she's still there when you get back."
