Page 132 of Deadfall

“All of us?” I asked skeptically.

“Yes. Now, we have to get going,” Angel said impatiently.

“Who do you work for?” I demanded.

Angel shook his head. “Questions later. You’re just going to have to trust me that I have all of your best interests in mind.”

Emersyn had quickly changed into an oversized sweatshirt and sweatpants that were a little too big for her even with the string tied as tight as it could go. Angel pulled a pair of combat boots from the duffle that looked like they fit her. It all screamed premeditated. I had more questions, but Emersyn spoke first.

“I don’t really care about the details—” She pulled a holster out of the bag and buckled it around her waist. “I mean, I do, but now that we’re committed to getting off the island, we need to move. Angel said he’d answer all our questions later, and trust me—I have more than enough for all of you combined.”

I had to admit, she had a point.

61

EMERSYN

I had enough to think about without the added mystery of Angel. But, what was one more random man who said I needed to trust him in order to get off this godforsaken island? Besides, he’d just dropped ammo and firepower at my feet, so I was inclined to go along with things until my instincts said otherwise. Angel dropped another duffle bag in the middle of the room and unzipped it.

“Last thing.” He pulled a gas mask from the bag and tossed it to me, before he pulled one out for each of us. “Put these on. The forest is unpredictable and contains gas pockets we don’t want to get caught in.”

Once everyone’s masks were secure, Angel did a quick comms check and we were out the door. The estate was quiet, but I felt the underlying tension in the air. Mahoney cut the tablet, which meant he had regained control of his security and locked everything down even tighter.

Angel acted as team leader, with Griffin at his shoulder and me on his left. Seven brought up the rear. I settled into the familiar cadence of a team. I’d missed this. I caught Griffin compensating for me for the first few minutes as we made our way through the corridors, but as we neared the final stretch, he backed off when he realized it was a redundancy we couldn’t afford. I smirked behind my mask—at least he was a quick learner.

Somehow, we made it all the way out outside without encountering a single person—guest or guard. Seven let the door shut with a near silent click. We spread out along the wall and studied the grounds.

For once the island was silent. The waves crashed in the distance, but the island felt like it was holding its breath. Even the wind had fallen dead. The forest loomed in all its sinister glory across a large expanse of flat lawn that sloped and dipped between manicured shrubs and curated garden beds. There was very little cover.

“Clear.”

“Let’s move.”

Angel broke out into a controlled jog across open grass. We avoided the pools of light cast by the aesthetic iron lanterns spaced along the path. I settled into the comfortable cadence of the job, my senses heightened as I took in every ounce of information available. The weight of the rifle felt familiar and comforting in my hands. This was what I missed—the freedom of the hunt. We were halfway across the lawn when the first alarm sounded. It was a sharp, electronic chirp that cut through the silence.

Angel held up his hand, and we all froze.

“Motion sensor,” Griffin muttered.

The entire estate exploded with light. Floodlights ignited along the sides of the house and cast the entire garden into blinding stark relief. Doors slammed. Shouts went up from either side of us.

“Move!” Angel barked.

Gunfire erupted and rounds tore through the darkness. Dirt exploded beside my boots, but I was already up and moving as we took off across the property. More guards poured onto the lawn, and bullets ripped through the grass and whistled overhead. We dove behind a decorative stone planter.

“Contact left!”

I spotted movement near the front of the house and took out two guards in rapid succession. I saw a sniper get into position on the roof, and locked onto him. Breathe. In. Out. Take the shot.

He went down. It was like muscle memory. I blazed through a full mag and when I ducked down to reload, I caught Griffin staring at me. At least, I thought he was, I couldn’t be sure with the mask, but his head was turned toward me.

“What?” My voice was muffled.

He shook his head and resumed firing. I loaded and popped back up, but there were too many of them. I dropped a few more.

“We need to move!” I shouted.

“Let’s go!” Angel yelled.