Page 14 of Russian Rescue

She glanced over her shoulder, lifting an eyebrow with a shrug. “Then I handle it.”

Handle it.

Handle it meant we’d end up in a shootout in one of the busiest metro stations in the world. I tried not to panic thinking of getting caught and tossed in a Russian prison, but I had faith that Piper would know what to do.

We hit the bottom and sprinted along the blue path to the train stop. When we reached it, we pushed our way into a sea of bodies all smooshed together, waiting. They grumbled and spat their displeasure, but Piper didn’t apologize or slow down. By the time we reached the front, a train light shined through the tunnel.

We both glanced behind us to see the four darkly dressed men coming our way.

“They’re here,” I whispered, trying to look nonchalant and blend in.

“I know.” The train doors opened, and she yanked me on.

My heart pounded while I stood beside her waiting for the doors to close.

Any second. Hurry. Please don’t let them get on.

I almost exhaled a sigh of relief as the doors started closing, but my breath trapped in my lungs when I saw three of the men make it on before the doors slammed shut.

“Shit,” she whispered, pressing her body closer to me.

The three men glared across the wall of bodies separating us.

I leaned down and whispered in her ear. “Now what?”

“They aren’t stupid. They’re not going to start shooting on this train. But the second the doors open, we are going to have to make a run for it.”

I felt a hard object against my hand. I glanced down to see her handgun pressing against my fingers. I hadn’t even noticed her pull her bag off her shoulder and retrieve the weapons, but somehow, she had.

“Take this and be ready to use it. Safety is off. Point, shoot, don’t hit any innocent bystanders. Got it?”

I nodded and slid the gun into my too-tight waistband. It dug into my skin.

“Brooks,” she asked, looking at me like she was talking to me. “I need a good exit. We have company.”

After a few moments, she responded, “Roger that.”

“What’s happening?” I asked, hating that I was in the dark for this mission. What I wouldn’t give to have a comms piece or be the one watching the cameras.

“Next stop, we get off. Brooks says there’s a maintenance tunnel we can disappear into if we’re fast enough. He’ll guide us.”

Brooks. God was I happy to have him helping us. The one op we’d worked together, he’d proven to be a very formidable operative. He’d know what to do to keep us safe, and Piper had the skills to execute it.

The train stopped, and Piper shot me a look. I glanced over at the three sets of narrowing eyes as they locked onto me.

When the doors popped open, Piper grabbed my hand and yanked me after her. We pushed through the thick crowd, dropping low to use the wall of bodies as cover.

“This way,” she said, dragging me off to the left along the train platform. I followed blindly, seeing nothing but colorful shoes and pants as I stayed crouched and moved behind her. Finally, we broke through the bodies and hit a wall. Piper veered right, and we disappeared around a corner. A few yards later, we hit a yellow door.

With a quick shot of her silenced pistol, she blew off the lock keeping us out. Slipping it off and into her pocket, she opened the door and pulled me inside. With a gentle push, she quietly closed the door behind us.

Caged lights every twenty feet or so dimly lit the long, stone tunnel. We moved quickly for a minute before she slowed us to a stop in the shadows.

“Are we safe?”

She held up her finger, and I waited. After a moment, she pursed her lips and sighed.

I opened my mouth to ask a question, but she lifted her finger to her lips. Her eyes surveyed our surroundings, and she pulled me toward an open door. Once inside the small maintenance room, we pressed our backs against the wall.