And you're not?
The landing area came into view, giving her an excuse to avoid answering the question.
As soon as she touched down, she noticed Bram and Kai off to the side, waiting for her. Quickly shifting back into her human form, Brenna rushed over to them.
Bram raised his brows. "What's going on?"
"I'm not sure, but this may tell us." She took out the thumb drive still encased in plastic bags and held it up.
Bram took it. "The human was carrying this?"
"Yes. Given her state, she went to great lengths to ensure it remained dry. I think it's important."
Kai jumped in. "Then let's take it to Nathan."
Nathan was in charge of the Protectors' technology-related matters.
All three of them jogged to the Protectors' central command, which was only about three minutes away from the landing area.
Kai wasted no time pushing his way inside. A foot past the door, Brenna plucked one of the spare robes they left there for those who had to shift quickly and tossed it on. She'd just tied the knot as they reached the main tech center.
Nathan sat at a series of computer screens. Kai spoke up. "I need to know what's on this."
Turning toward them, Nathan's brown eyes met Kai's before glancing at the thumb drive in Bram's fingers. "Where did that come from?"
Bram handed it over. "From a human that Brenna found in the outer perimeter."
Nathan turned back to his computer terminals. "Let me quickly check for viruses first."
Since Nathan had been in charge of the Protectors' technology for years, no one questioned his decision or barked for him to hurry up.
Brenna tapped her hand against her thigh as Nathan's long fingers danced across the keyboard. After what seemed like years, he murmured, "Bloody hell."
Bram leaned forward. "What is it?"
"I'll have to confirm some of the data with Dr. Sid, but I'm fairly certain this is a stolen cache of files from the Dragon Knights."
Brenna tried to make out what was on the screen, but the text moved too quickly. "Are you sure?"
Nathan stopped scrolling and motioned toward a blueprint. "This is one of their meeting houses." He exited the screen and brought up another. "And this is some sort of chemical formula."
"Maybe it's related to what was used on my sister," Kai said.
"Or even Killian," Brenna added.
Bram took out his mobile, pressed someone's number, and put it to his ear. "Sid? I need you at central command."
Since Brenna had supersensitive hearing, she heard Sid's reply, "What about Gregor? What happened?"
"Brenna's here and can pass on any of Gregor's messages. Come to central command and we'll fill you in on everything." Bram ended the call. "Nathan, make sure you copy all of this data somewhere safe. I want you to comb through it and create a summary of what you find. If anything important sticks out, then let me know."
Nathan bobbed his blond head. "I'm already backing it up, but it may take a while to sort through it all."
"Aye, I know. You can bring in Lucien to help you." Bram looked at Brenna. "Until we know more about this human and what she's doing here, I'm going to put your current project on hold."
"I suspected as much," Brenna replied. "I can fly back straight away and share what we know with the others. That way, once Ivy is awake, Zain knows what to ask her."
Kai jumped in. "I'm going to increase patrols as well. I'm not going to let down my guard until we know exactly what's going on."