RISE Read online

  R.I.S.E.

  Book Three of the A.L.I.V.E. Series

  R.D. Brady

  Books by R.D. Brady

  Hominid

  The Belial Series (in order)

  The Belial Stone

  The Belial Library

  The Belial Ring

  Recruit: A Belial Series Novella

  The Belial Children

  The Belial Origins

  The Belial Search

  The Belial Guard

  The Belial Warrior

  The Belial Plan

  The Belial Witches

  The Belial War

  The Belial Fall

  The Belial Sacrifice

  The Steve Kane Books

  Runs Deep

  Runs Deeper

  The A.L.I.V.E. Series

  B.E.G.I.N.

  A.L.I.V.E.

  D.E.A.D.

  R.I.S.E.

  The Unwelcome Series

  Protect

  Seek

  Proxy

  Published as Riley D. Brady

  The Key of Apollo

  Be sure to sign up for R.D.'s mailing list to be the first to hear when she has a new release!

  Contents

  A Quick Look Back

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Chapter 63

  Chapter 64

  Chapter 65

  Chapter 66

  Chapter 67

  Chapter 68

  Chapter 69

  Chapter 70

  Chapter 71

  Chapter 72

  Chapter 73

  Chapter 74

  Chapter 75

  Chapter 76

  Chapter 77

  Chapter 78

  Chapter 79

  Chapter 80

  Chapter 81

  Chapter 82

  Chapter 83

  Chapter 84

  Chapter 85

  Chapter 86

  Chapter 87

  Chapter 88

  Chapter 89

  Chapter 90

  Chapter 91

  Chapter 92

  Chapter 93

  Chapter 94

  Chapter 95

  Chapter 96

  Chapter 97

  Chapter 98

  Chapter 99

  Chapter 100

  Chapter 101

  Chapter 102

  Chapter 103

  Chapter 104

  Chapter 105

  Chapter 106

  Chapter 107

  Chapter 108

  Chapter 109

  Chapter 110

  Chapter 111

  Chapter 112

  Chapter 113

  Chapter 114

  Chapter 115

  Author’s Note

  Fact or Fiction

  About the Author

  Books by R.D. Brady

  A Quick Look Back

  I realize it has taken quite a while to release the follow-up to D.E.A.D. In light of that, I have included the last two chapters of D.E.A.D. to remind you where we left off. If you’ve read D.E.A.D. recently, by all means skip ahead to the beginning of R.I.S.E.

  Happy reading!!

  They did not return to the safe house after leaving the underground facility. Tilda had arranged for each of them to take a different route back to a new location. Maeve’s group took two separate flights, lifting off and landing from grass fields, not airports. It had taken seven hours to complete the trip. By the time they arrived, it was pitch black and Maeve couldn’t see much of their surroundings. Alvie clung to Maeve’s hand as they stepped off the plane. He’d barely let go of her since he’d come around. She could feel his pain at what had transpired and didn’t know how she was going to help him through it.

  Now they were bundled in the back of an old army truck that bucked and shook as they drove along an uneven road. But soon the uneven road smoothed out. The ride became soothing and Maeve closed her eyes. They jolted open again as the truck came to a stop. Chris rubbed his eyes next to her, having also fallen asleep.

  Maeve gently rubbed Alvie’s back. “Alvie, honey, we’ve stopped.”

  He awoke slowly, his eyes blinking a few times. She put her hand on his cheek. “It’s okay.”

  He leaned into her for a moment before pulling back. Maeve led him to the end of the truck, where Chris helped them both off. There were two large buildings that reminded Maeve of military barracks. Maeve’s feet had just touched the ground when she felt a burst of joy through her mind. She smiled as the triplets bolted out from the closest building. They sprinted across the space and threw themselves at Alvie. Chris put a hand on Alvie’s back to keep him upright. Tears crested in Maeve’s eyes at the reunion. This was how it was supposed to be—all of them together.

  Chris put an arm around her. “We did it.”

  She looked up at him and smiled. “Yeah.”

  Greg jogged his way over to them in a mismatched pair of pajamas. He hugged Maeve and shook Chris’s hand.

  “How’s Iggy?” Maeve asked.

  “He’ll be okay. A couple of stitches and he’s been put on bed rest. But being that Norah has apparently decided to stay snuggled up with him while he rests, the little guy looks perfectly content.”

  “Good.”

  “You guys are all in the room next to me.” Greg paused. “You’re okay with all being in the same room, right?”

  “Oh, I am very okay with that,” Maeve said as the triplets ran for her and hugged her tight. She laughed, pulling them to her. Yes. Right now life was as it was supposed to be.

  She looked up as headlights shone from down the road. Another truck appeared. It pulled up a few feet away and Adam stepped out of the back along with Jasper and Agaren.

  As the Gray stepped down, he looked over at Alvie and the triplets. All four of them rushed over to him, hugging him. The Gray went still and then gently rubbed each of their heads.

  “What is that all about?” Chris asked.

  “I have no idea,” Maeve said quietly. “But I think everything we know has just changed.”

  EPILOGUE

  Seattle, Washington

  The Seattle skyline twinkled back at Martin from behind the picture window in his liv
ing room. He sipped his tea, trying to establish some calm. It had been a week since the incursion into the Dulce facility. He had managed to regain control of it, but those who’d infiltrated it had escaped and he had not seen any sign of them. And worse, they had gotten away with his two most prized subjects.

  His research was backed up, but it was going to take time to get back to where he was. He was most disappointed that his new security animals had been destroyed. They had shown a great deal of promise. Of course, they had ultimately failed.

  He shook his head. And all because of the stupid bond between Leander and Subject One. Years ago, he had mulled over the idea of killing Maeve Leander when she was a child. At the time, the concern had been that Maeve’s existence would pull her mother’s attention from the A.L.I.V.E. Project. But that fear had proven unfounded. Maeve’s bond with the creature had only deepened Alice Leander’s commitment to the project.

  And Martin had never worried about the bond between Maeve and Alvie, probably because he’d never had such a bond with anyone, not even his own daughter. It had never crossed his mind during those early years that it would one day be a problem.

  The doorbell rang and Martin narrowed his eyes. No one knew about this house. There were zero links between him and this place. He picked up his Sig and turned on the TV to the security camera footage. A tall blonde woman stood there with a muscular blond man, both in their thirties. The woman smiled and waved at the camera.

  A small tingle of fear slid over his skin as he moved to the door and opened it. “Tatiana, Dietrich. What a nice surprise.”

  Tatiana leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. “Martin, darling, we heard about your unfortunate loss and rushed right over to extend our sincerest condolences. And, of course, to offer whatever aid we can.” Tatiana brushed past him into the living room, not waiting for him to invite them in.

  Dietrich closed the door behind them and gestured for Martin to precede him into the living room.

  Martin smiled at him but tensed as he turned his back to the man. Tatiana stood in front of the picture window. “This is a beautiful view. I can see why you would want to keep this place secret.”

  “How did you find out about it?”

  Tatiana gave him a flirtatious pout. “A girl can’t reveal all her secrets, now can she?”

  She took a seat on the couch with a sigh.

  “Can I get either of you something to drink?”

  “No, no. We won’t be staying long, will we, Dietrich dear?”

  Dietrich dear said nothing.

  “Anyway, we wanted to make sure that all of your research remains intact after all this unpleasantness. It would be a shame if we had to report back that our investment has been squandered.”

  Martin refused to allow the fear that crawled through his stomach to show on his face. “Of course the research is secure. We did lose some subjects, but there is some intelligence that was gained that I feel could outweigh that loss.”

  The smile dropped from Tatiana’s face. “I can’t imagine that’s true. You know how we feel—”

  Martin cut her off. “An old friend has reappeared.”

  Tatiana glared at him, and he knew she was debating whether or not to reprimand him for cutting her off. Curiosity won out. “And who, pray tell, might that be?”

  “Matilda Watson.”

  Tatiana’s eyes flashed and Dietrich let out a small growl. Tatiana put up a hand to silence Dietrich. “You’re sure?”

  “Very. And she had her grandson with her.”

  Tatiana’s eyebrows rose at that announcement. “Did she really?” she asked quietly.

  Martin said nothing because he knew the question wasn’t aimed at him. Tatiana stared out the window and Martin could practically see the gears shifting in her mind. Finally, she stood.

  “Well, this is a most interesting turn of events. And you may be right. This information may just make up for the loss of the research subjects.” She walked up to Martin and patted him on the cheek. “Aren’t you a lucky boy? Of course, we’ll need to speak with you about this in detail when we substantiate it.”

  Martin gave her a brief nod. “Of course.”

  She waved at Dietrich. “We’re leaving.”

  Dietrich still said nothing, simply followed Tatiana out of the room. Martin heard the front door open and then close. He released a breath and a sweat broke out on his brow. He grabbed the remote with a shaky hand and watched as Tatiana and Dietrich got into a Mercedes and pulled away.

  Martin glanced up to where the cameras sat in the corners of his living room. Camera 3 had the best angle. He brought it up, rewinding the recording to when Tatiana and Dietrich had walked in. He paused it when Tatiana looked straight into the camera. Then he zoomed in. They did a good job of camouflaging who they were. It was almost impossible to differentiate them.

  He focused on Tatiana’s eyes. Always the eyes. They never were able to hide the eyes when on camera.

  On screen, Tatiana blinked, and for a split second, her irises changed shape, elongating and looking like a lizard’s.

  “There you are,” Martin whispered.

  Chapter One

  Huntsville, Alabama

  1961

  Janet Fairfax took the curlers out of her daughter’s hair, arranging the curls around her face. Face to face, they sat at the makeup table, an almost identical pair in profile. “Now, just don’t let them see how smart you are. And don’t tell them when they’re wrong.”

  Matilda Fairfax looked up from the book in her lap. It was Wernher von Braun’s Project MARS: A Technical Tale. “Mother, they want me to work for them. I’m pretty sure they want to know I have a brain in my head.”

  Janet’s lips tightened, a sight Matilda was all too used to. “Matilda, this may be your last chance to find a husband.”

  Matilda opened her mouth to respond, but her mother held up a hand, holding her off. “No, you listen to me. I know you’re a smart girl. But you are going to be a lonely girl. You need to find yourself a man. And no man is going to marry a woman who reads books on rocketry for fun.”

  Then he’s not the man for me, Matilda thought but wisely kept to herself. This was an old argument.

  Not that Janet didn’t love her daughter. Matilda knew her mother loved her. She just didn’t understand her. For Matilda, being married was not the ultimate goal in life, which set her apart from most of the girls her age, and all of their mothers. She wasn’t against marriage, necessarily. She just wanted to marry a man who viewed her intelligence as a benefit, not a character flaw.

  For Janet Fairfax, however, a high IQ was the equivalent of having a scarlet letter branded across her chest. Matilda was her only daughter. It had been bad enough when, as a toddler, she’d started correcting her father when he explained how things worked. But then Matilda had skipped grades and never seemed interested in playing with any of the girls. She tinkered away in the basement, building little contraptions. Janet knew how much those little contraptions meant to her daughter. But she also knew how difficult life could be for a woman on her own.

  Janet turned the chair around so that Matilda could see her reflection in the mirror. Soft curls framed her delicate face. Her blue eyes peeked out from underneath her fringe. A blue ribbon was tied up on the side of her head. The blue of her dress further accentuated the blue of her eyes.

  Janet smiled. “You look lovely. And I have no doubt that you will find a husband on that base.”

  Matilda rolled her eyes. A husband was not what she was looking for. But her mother looked happy. And Matilda had to admit that she did look pretty for a change. So she said nothing except, “Thank you, Mother.”

  There wasn’t much that happened in Huntsville, Alabama. It was a small town in rural America. It had its share of problems and had been a military manufacturing hub in 1940. In 1941, however, it became a central research area for the U.S. rocket program. In 1950, Huntsville led the field in rocketry, leading to the development of the Redstone, Jup
iter, and Pershing missiles.

  But the residents liked to think that Huntsville, Alabama, was the smartest town in all of America. Why? Because Huntsville, Alabama, had the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), the U.S. government’s civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center.

  Von Braun had actually come to Huntsville two years before the Marshall Space Center was created. He and his team of scientists had worked at the Redstone Arsenal, where they successfully developed a modified Redstone rocket called a Jupiter-C to launch Explorer I, America’s first orbiting satellite. It was at Marshall that the Saturn V launch vehicle, the super booster that would propel Americans to the Moon, was developed under the guidance of Wernher von Braun.