Invasion (The Alien Wars #1) by Paul Moxham

goggles that Xavier sported, so when he came to a corner, he had to guess which way to go. He headed right, but no sooner than he did, two sets of headlights lit up the area.
    Kenneth and Logan raised their weapons to fire, but dropped them and put their hands up as ten men appeared from within the darkness. As the men walked closer, Logan saw that even though the men were carrying military-grade weapons, they were not dressed in army uniforms.
    “Let me do the talking,” Logan whispered to Kenneth. A tall guy broke off from the group and approached them. By the way he strutted over and the way two men followed his every move, he guessed that he had some authority over the group.
    The man had short-cropped hair, tattoos on his arms, and a scar across his left cheek. He stared at Kenneth and then at Logan . “Are you the men that took out my searchlight?”
    “It wasn’t me,” Logan said.
    “It wasn’t, huh? But it was one of your buddies?”
    Logan didn’t answer.
    “ Betcha I can make him talk.” one of the lackeys snickered.
    The boss grinned. “No, not yet. Take them to see Captain Burke. He’ll know what to do with ’ em .”
    As the brothers were led away, the man glanced around the darkened airport. “And put some patrols out. I want their friends caught pronto.”

     
Chapter 5
     

     
     
    Derek wasn’t one to give up easily, but after searching the runway for ten minutes, he had to admit that Molly wasn’t there.
    Xavier anxiously studied his watch. “Come on, it’s time to go.”
    Dejected, Derek followed Xavier back the way they had come. “What do you think happened to the others?”
    “No idea, but I hope they made it back to the vehicle,” Xavier said.
    Derek frowned. By the tone of Xavier’s voice, it was clear that he wasn’t very hopeful. He clutched his hand cannon tighter and followed the man past various hangars.
    A Humvee roared past several times, and they had to stop and hide. Other times a sentry strolled past, but they were easy to avoid since Xavier still had the night-vision goggles on.
    They had to take a detour to avoid the hangar that the men were guarding, so they were behind schedule when they arrived back at the vehicle. Fortunately, it was still there, but there was no sign of Logan or Kenneth.
    Xavier peered around the area with his goggles. “There’s no one in sight.”
    “Maybe they’re delayed,” Derek said.
    “We’re behind schedule as it is. If they’re not here by now, it’s because they can’t be here.” Xavier paused and thought. “I don’t want to take any risks, but I think I’ll take one last look around.”
    “Isn’t that taking a risk?” Derek asked.
    “Well, yes, but not so much if I go alone,” Xavier said.
    “Alone?”
    “Yes. Don’t you know how to drive the Land Rover?”
    Derek nodded absently.
    “Okay. Give me twenty minutes. If I’m not back by then, take the vehicle and get out of here.”
    “But what if—”
    “No buts.” Xavier went to the trunk, took two grenades, and pocketed them. He then took the sniper rifle and hung it over his shoulder. “I’ll whistle when I come back. If I don’t, it means it isn’t me.”
    Xavier hadn’t wanted to tell Derek anything, but he had a feeling that he would find Logan and Kenneth at the lit up hangar.
    That was the place they’d be taken to if they’d been captured, and if they hadn’t been captured, that was the only place at the airport that’d have intrigued them enough for them to miss the deadline. With a heavy heart, he hurried toward the hangar.
    Derek watched him go. He sat and waited. Maybe it was because it was nighttime and it was time to sleep, but as he lay there, his eyelids got heavy and he leaned against the car door.
    Before long, he had slumped to the ground and closed his eyes. He had no idea how long it had been, but awakened by a noise, he stood up, only to stare into the barrel of a rifle.
    ~*~*~
    Xavier had been right to assume that Logan and