I pulled the night-vision optics away from my eyes. My breath came out of my lips in pale white clouds against the air.
Down in the misty ravine below, three Silver Crest transport trucks were parked in the shallow waters of the lower fork. Soldiers in tactical gear were already hauling iron perimeter stakes onto the mud of the Bloodmoon riverbank.
"They brought thirty men," I whispered as Diego stepped up onto the ledge right beside me. "Light armor, high-frequency boundary disruptors."
"You think they're trying to build a permanent base?" His eyebrow arched.
"I doubt it." My lips pursed tightly as I shook my head. "More like they're trying to set up an acoustic fence so they can legally claim 'uncontested occupancy' under section four of the Border Act."
Diego's eyes gave a sudden p
