AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Adrenaline floods my body. The scene slows down, giving me time to absorb every detail. The girl’s wide and frantic eyes. The man reaching for her, so close to grabbing her.
I can’t just sit here—ass-on-haunches—and do nothing, as ineffective as government raids that take months to organize and end with not one conviction of a principle. Not one.
This is what The Guild does. It doesn’t stand back. It stops the shit that other people let happen. It’s what I should do. It’s what Hopedidfor me.
Every nerve in my body begs me to act. But I keep absolutely still. Movement attracts attention. Stillness goes unnoticed.
The man grabs the teen by the hair and yanks her back.
Tony says, “It sucks. I know. Think larger mission here.”
I should. I know I should, even as I stand and raise my weapon. Because I’m a good shot—the best—I also know I won’t miss.
There’s a sharp snap, like a broken twig, as the bullet fires from the suppressed Sig. The man’s head flings back. He surrenders his ass to the gravel.
The girl skitters away like a gangly crab. Her eyes swing left and right before she darts for cover behind the propane tank.
Tony exhales, hot and frustrated. “Not for nothin’, J, you don’t listen to shit.”
Yeah, I know that, too. I’m filled with knowledge.
I flip up my NVGs, strip off my face mask, and charge across the backyard. I want to get the kid, want to tell her it’s okay, but, first. I check inside the doorway for movement.
All quiet.
Time’s not on my side, so I make my way over to her. She’s crouched between the propane tank and the house. She’s all deep-set eyes and jutting bones. Like a terrified skeleton.
“Glock. Figures,” Tony says from behind me, and I realize he’s already checked Dead Guy for weapons.
I glance over and see him slip the weapon into the back of his belt. I turn to the teen and maintain eye contact as I reach forward. “It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m on your side.”
Her copper-brown eyes track my gloved hand like it comes equipped with teeth and venom. For a moment, I’m sure she won’t take it, but she does.
Brave kid. I pull her out. I’ve shouldered heavier backpacks. Shrugging off my jacket, I help put it on her. Gesturing at the dead man, then at the building, I mouth,How many more men inside?
The teen holds up an arm. Two fingers, rabbit ears, poke up from the long sleeve.
I nod. Two more men inside.
Trying for nonchalance, I shrug at Tony. “No choice.”
His dark eyebrows join tightly together under his black knit hat. A muscle in his jaw ticks. He shakes his head and starts for the open back door. As he passes me, he bumps my shoulder and hisses, “Call it in.”
Yeah, he has a right to be angry, but I elbow him in the ribs just the same.
Heoomphs, but keeps walking.
When I’m sure he’s far enough away, I put my hand on the teen’s shoulder. Even through my jacket and gloves, I’m reminded of the delicate span of a bird’s wing.
Feelings can be deceptive. No delicate bird broke out from her cage tonight, and I’ll be damned if I leave her out here unarmed.
Shielding her from Tony’s view, I hold out the G19. Tony’s going to rip me a new one later. But this decision and the fact that I so expertly pickpocketed him are the least of our issues. I’ve jeopardized the mission. “Can you use this?”
The girl hesitates. Then, with a face as starved and empty as a runway model’s, she takes the gun, caps her fingers across the top, and racks the slide.
Guess so. I point toward the woods. With a nod, she dashes in that direction. Grinding my teeth, almost like I’m biting the bullet, I press the button on my earpiece.
Gracie answers on the first ring. “You’re kidding me, right, Justice?”
