Genomorph

Chapter 51

CHAPTER 51

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2005
0600 EST

Brandi rose early Saturday morning and dressed quickly. She gave the still sleeping Melissa a gentle kiss and then slipped out of the bedroom, making sure to lock the door behind her. She doubted anyone would walk in unannounced, but it was best to be safe. The house was still and quiet, but as she made her way downstairs, she could hear activity in the kitchen and knew that Gretchen was already busily preparing breakfast for the household. Her stomach reminded her that the night’s activity had burned much of her energy reserves, but first she had to go speak to Matt and the SEALs. They had put together a plan to assault the lab, and she was supposed to review it and offer any suggestions.

The guest house on the Amanda’s estate was larger than Melissa’s house in Venice. Still it was crowded; it was not intended to house a SEAL platoon and their equipment. Despite that, the boys kept the house neat and orderly, though an unsuspecting visitor or intruder would wonder what they had stumbled into when they saw the racks of automatic weapons and stacks of crates with military labeling. As Brandi entered the guest house, she felt her senses assailed by input that threatened to overwhelm her. The whole house simply reeked of maleness. It was not anything anyone else would have noticed, but her hyper-attuned senses could not miss it, and she paused for a moment just inside the door to gather her wits.

~ Keep it together, girl. You can’t afford to go bimbo now. ~

Once she was certain she could control herself, she made her way through the living room and into the dining room, where the SEALs were waiting. They were gathered around a big maple dining table, studying the layout of the compound for probably the hundredth time, but as Brandi entered the room fell silent.

Fifteen pairs of very manly eyes immediately zeroed in on Brandi, and she was once more blasted with sensory input. There was of course curiosity, which was perfectly natural. She also sensed a good deal of uncertainty; she was no longer one of them, and she knew that she would have to prove herself in their eyes all over again. The reaction did not cause her any distress; she knew Brandon would have felt the same.

It was their other purely natural reactions that caused her the most difficulty, even though she had prepared herself for it. They saw before them a stunningly beautiful young woman, one none of them would have hesitated to make a play for had they seen her in a bar, except Chief Wright, who was very happily married and had a daughter who was actually older than Brandi. She gathered herself once more and forced down the feelings of arousal that were rising within.

“So, like, you think you have enough gear, Matt?” Brandi asked as she looked around at the stacks of equipment. It was meant as a joke, but Matt seemed to be a bit ill at ease and didn’t get it.

~ Can’t blame the poor guy. I’d be freaked if our roles were reversed. ~

“We’re set,” Matt replied. “We restocked from Little Creek after we got out here. We even managed to scrounge up some of those dinky little rounds for your MP-7s and some .357 Sig for your pistols.”

“Hey, my hands are smaller now, what can I say?” Brandi grinned. She was pleased that they’d been able to recover the MP-7 that had been torn away when she was thrown from the Hummer, and that it was still functional. She vowed that when this was all over, she would see that Gary got a new pair to replace them; they were both a bit scuffed up now.

Brandi took a deep breath and decided to attack the situation up front. There was no sense beating around the bush.

“I know this is hard for you guys,” she said. “It’s hard for me too; harder than you can possibly imagine. I will probably do and say things that make you uncomfortable, but please understand that I’m not trying to; it’s just part of who I am now. I’ll try not to flirt too outrageously, but I’m not making any promises.”

The SEALs laughed nervously, not sure if she was kidding or not. At least she had dressed conservatively; a long tiered denim peasant skirt, lavender sweater and leather calf boots with a modest two inch heel. Even with the added height, she was the shortest person in the room.

There was something else she sensed as well, something different that she could not quite identify. It was a very strong feeling, and she got it from every one of the SEALs. It was not directed at her; in fact, it was not as though it were a physical reaction from them, but more of a feeling about them, a familiar and comforting feeling. After a moment, she realized what it was; she sensed a kinship with these men. She sensed their warrior genes. She got the strongest sensation of all from Matt Branch, and she knew without a doubt that he not only had some of the warrior genes, he had the Mother gene, the one gene that had to be present in a Genomorph.

~ So, how do I tell him? ‘Oh hey, Matt, I just thought you should know you’ve got girl genes in you’? ~

Brandi could not help herself; she started giggling as she imagined how Matt would take that news – how Brandon would have taken it. The SEALs all looked at her, wondering what was so funny.

“Um, sorry guys…I do that sometimes,” she told them. “It’s a girl thing … you wouldn’t understand. So, show me what you have.”

“This place is a tough nut to crack,” Matt said as they turned their attention to the table.

Brandi nodded in agreement. The SEALs’ part of the plan was to launch an assault on the surface of the compound. The enemy would expect them to make some kind of move to get her back, and the attack would hopefully draw out some of the mercenaries within the lab, making Brandi’s job easier. It would not be simple though. The surface portion of the lab was about the size of a football field, with a scattering of buildings within a high fenced-in perimeter. To the north was a hangar for the helicopters that ferried people to and from Nellis Air Force base. In the center was the main building which housed the entrance to the underground lab. Brandi noted several structures that looked like prefabricated buildings and a number of fortified positions around the perimeter.

“That’s all new,” she said.

Matt nodded, “The buildings are being used as housing for their security force. Apparently, they don’t want the mercenary riff-raff in the big house. The internal security is being handled by their regular troops; they’re still basically mercenaries, but they are likely better disciplined. The trenches and emplacements are pretty obvious, of course. I’d say they’re expecting you.”

Brandi looked at Matt, and he saw something in her eyes, something disturbing. He got the distinct impression that she was thinking this mission would be far easier without the SEALs along. If stealth and subterfuge were not paramount, he knew she would be perfectly happy to batter her way into that lab on her own. It was something Brandon would have never even considered, and he knew then, without a doubt, that she was no longer one of them, but rather something far more dangerous.

As quickly as it came, the look passed, and the girl before him looked like the most harmless creature on earth.

~ Those idiots are lucky she needs us. ~

“There’s no doubt they will detect our approach,” he continued. “The terrain offers some opportunities for concealment, but not a lot, and there is a hundred meters of flat ground around the perimeter.”

Brandi nodded and looked back at the photo, taking note of numerous emplacements that likely housed machine guns and would provide overlapping fields of fire.

“The uplink is housed in a steel reinforced concrete bunker here,” Branch said, pointing to a structure between the main building and the hanger. “The ceiling has two large armored steel doors that can be opened to transmit. The only way to access the interior of the structure is from inside the lab. The plan is to hit them from two sides from the edge of the open area. Lewis and Darrow will kick things off by neutralizing the guard towers and disabling every exposed vehicle with their fifty calibers. The rest of the platoon will lay down fire, and that should be enough to prompt them to react. When they open the doors on top of the bunker to use the uplink, we’re going to hit it with a Javelin missile. That will be more than enough to destroy the dish and prevent them from sending their signal.”

“How are you inserting?”

“HAHO,” Branch said. “We have to jump from outside the airspace around the test range, or we’ll set off all manner of alerts. We’ll land about ten miles out and hoof it into position.”

“OK,” Brandi said. She studied the map for a few seconds and then looked up at the SEALs.

“Guys, I need to speak with the Lieutenant in private,” she told them, and then turned to Matt. “Is there someplace we can go to talk?”

Matt nodded and motioned her towards the living room. There was a small study just adjacent to it, and once they were inside, Brandi closed the door. The study was furnished as would be expected, and there was also a love seat, which Brandi had a seat on. She indicated that Matt should join her, but he hesitated.

“Oh, relax, Matt,” she said. “It’s not like I want to tear your clothes off and have sex with you right here.”

Matt laughed nervously and had a seat beside her.

“OK, that was actually a lie,” Brandi said. “I very much do want to tear your clothes off and have sex with you right here; the point is I’m not going to.”

“I’m not sure how to take that,” Matt said. Brandi laughed at his discomfort, knowing he would be even more uncomfortable if he knew she meant every word of it.

“I’m not a wild animal, Matt,” she said. “I know you’re uncomfortable with me, and I also know you’re attracted to me, which just makes it worse. If the two of us were just sitting here on a normal day, then we would already be doing it by now, because frankly I don’t think you could resist if I really poured it on.

“I won’t do that because I have a job to do; I have a mission. That supersedes everything.”

“All right,” Matt said. “Is that all you wanted to tell me?”

Brandi shook her head, “No, there’s more. You’re plan is good, but I’m afraid it won’t work, because it’s based on the overall plan I laid out last night. Now I need to tell you the real plan.”

While Brandi laid out her plan to a rather annoyed Matt Branch, the SEALs in the dining room were left to wonder what was going on behind closed doors.

“You don’t think they’re … you know …?” Vasquez wondered aloud. “I mean, I know she was the Commander, but man, there is no denying she is hot.”

“Vasquez, I suggest you keep your zipper locked,” Chief Wright said. “You even cast a come hither look her way, and I will cut something off you don’t want to lose.”

Vasquez gave Wright a stricken look. Wright was not really worried; he knew that none of them could really understand what Brandi had experienced, but they could all imagine themselves in her situation. They had too much respect for their former Commander and would gently rebuff her should she get too out of hand.

~ At least they’d try, ~ the Chief thought. If Brandi truly set her mind to seduce one of the SEALs, he seriously doubted any of them would be able to resist long, himself included.

A short time later, Brandi and Matt returned. She would leave it to him to explain the change in the plan to the team; after all, they were his men now.

“Well, I think you guys have a handle on everything,” Brandi said. She noticed her voice adopting a coy playfulness, but rather than fight it, she ran with it. It was better that they learn to deal with her here and now. “I’m gonna go wake Melissa up and grab some breakfast. Afterwards, I was thinkin’ about a dip in the pool.”

Brandi could feel their eyes on her as she headed towards the door. She paused as she stood in the doorway and turned back, flashing a mischievous grin at the SEALs.

“I’ve got a great new bikini I haven’t worn out in public yet. Maybe somebody would like to give me an objective opinion on how it looks. Oh, and Enrique, thanks for the compliment, sweetie. I think you’re a hottie yourself.”

Vasquez’s face darkened as he blushed, and the rest of the team laughed heartily. He had been so focused on Brandi’s physical changes, he had forgotten the less obvious ones, like her hyper-sensitive ears.

~I am so bad, ~ she thought as she walked back towards the main house, not feeling the least bit ashamed. There was a refreshing sense of freedom, knowing she could flirt to her heart’s content with these men, and none of them would even think of taking liberties because of it.

“Well, maybe they’ll think about it,” she giggled.

She was still giggling when she entered the house.