I believed he was telling the truth about that too. I paused and glanced at Wylder. “I think we should give him a chance. See what information he can give us and how we can use it.”
Wylder gave me an assessing look. “Are you sure?”
He might not trust the kid, but he trusted my judgment. I studied Beckett again, wanting to be sure I didn’t misuse that trust. But every instinct in my body told me I was looking at a kid who was terrified of the situation he’d been watching unfold and desperate to turn it around.
I nodded, my gaze darting to Mercy. “I can recognize what he’s going through to some extent. I gave up a lot to try to protect my family. If he’s willing to offer anything that’ll benefit all of us, we should let him. Lord knows we need it right now.”
Wylder appeared to contemplate my words for a few moments. Then he focused on Beckett with a lift of his chin. “Can you tell us anything about a facility belonging to your father that’s about an hour north of the city, several miles off any major road? Someplace Xavier might have had a reason to go.”
Beckett’s face twitched with surprise. “How did you—?” He shook his head as if he’d decided the question didn’t matter. “That could actually be a good place to start. My dad has a base out there that he’s been using to funnel resources and men into the Bend and other operations in this state. If you could destroy that, it’d strike a real blow against his efforts here and show he’s up against even more opposition than he was ready for. Maybe that’d be enough for him to rethink continuing his campaign.”
“If this place is that important, I assume it’ll be heavily guarded,” Mercy prompted. “How do you see us managing to take it down?”
Beckett gave her a small smile, and I caught the hint of ruthlessness in his eyes—no doubt cultivated by his father without the Storm ever realizing that one day his son might turn it against him.
“What if I told you there’s a way to destroy it without anyone ever knowing you were even there?” he said.
Wylder leaned toward him, his interest piqued. “Tell me more.”