Page 330 of Broken Oath

Panicking.

The difference mattered.

Panic spread faster than fire.

And once it started, it was almost impossible to contain.

Wade tightened his hands around the rifle he had taken from the first guard.

Five years ago, the weapon would have felt familiar.

Tonight, it felt like freedom.

Grant Barrett stood beside him, holding another captured rifle against his shoulder. Jackson Cole had stripped a sidearm and tactical vest from a fallen guard. Luke Dawson covered the rear while Eric Hale fought to stay upright on an injured leg.

They were thin.

Weak.

Scarred.

But they were armed.

And together.

For the first time in five years.

Another explosion thundered through the mountain.

Closer.

Much closer.

The floor jumped beneath their feet.

A radio on one of the unconscious guards erupted with static.

Then a panicked voice broke through.

“Breach!”

Gunfire crackled beneath the transmission.

“They’ve breached the lower level!”

Another voice shouted over him.

“Teams Three and Five aren’t responding!”

The radio went dead.

Wade looked at Jackson.

Jackson looked back at him.

Neither man spoke.

They didn’t need to.