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A sharp intake of breath is all I hear to let me know that Scarlett has spotted them too. I glance at her, waiting for a moment of hesitation, a sign of fear.
Nothing.
Good girl.
She nods when I gesture ahead with a finger, then indicate the direction I plan to move in. She shows that she’ll circle around from the opposite direction, and then she disappears like a shadow into the darkness.
They don’t see us coming.
They certainly don’t expect the razor-sharp blade that severs windpipes and arteries as I step in swiftly from behind and do what I do best. In seconds, we’re standing over a pair of twitching corpses, and I sense Scarlett staring up at me in the moonlight.
“Jesus, Anton,” her whisper is hoarse.
I shrug back at her. I’m not seeing recrimination in her eyes, just quiet understanding. She knows I’m no angel. She said she understands what I am. Now she’s seen it for herself.
I jerk my head toward a dark alleyway to the right of us and our silent advance begins again.
The silence doesn’t last long.
“Privet!” is all the warning we get from the next team of Volkov’s men. This time there are four of them, but one drops even as I’m watching, a victim to the silenced handgun Luka likes to work with. The bullet punches through the air with a muffled snap before meeting its target.
Without warming, Scarlet darts sideways, and then I’m hearing a startled choking sound as she takes the legs out from one who has just made a charge at us.
“Now!” I bark, and she cracks an elbow down on the back of his neck. He hits the ground just in time for my knife to plunge into the fucker’s chest.
I rise, pulling the blade from his no-longer beating heart. The sucking sound is overshadowed by a sharp exchange of words from the remaining pair of men. Rapid-fire Russian between them tells me they’re trying to call in for help – and can’t reach anyone on their radios.
Excellent.
The Cody kid has done his job; their comms are down. So far, things are going as planned.
A slight sound beside me makes me aware that Scarlett is back at my shoulder.
“You good?” I ask under my breath.
She nods in response, eyes moving around us. She’s showing the sort of bravery I’d expect from a seasoned soldier. Without speaking, we work together, side by side. As we take down another one of Volkov’s thugs, I can’t help but feel a connection grow between us, forged in the heat of the effort of rescuing my son.
I don’t allow myself to become complacent though. The further into the site we move, the more aware I am that we’re drawing closer to the main enemy. And he’s not one to take security lightly. The groups of mercenaries we’re encountering are growing more frequent.
“Anton!” Scarlett calls her warning just in time for me to dodge a descending blade, almost stabbing me in the gut. Frequent scuffles around us alert me to the fact that the others aren’t getting bored either.
“Gavno!” I hear Luka curse.
There’s another pocket of guards who’ve probably heard the sound of the fight. We’ve kept our efforts silent, avoiding gunfire in order to keep our progress as silent as possible, but I know it’s an advantage that’s not going to last forever. Right now, our best cover is coming from the fact that Volkov’s men are operating almost in isolation. There’s no way for them to get word of our attack to him. But it’s only a matter of time before the motherfucker realizes what’s going down.
And he’ll be ready for us.
Even now, we are met with more intense opposition.
“Shit!” I hear, then realize that Scarlett is ducking a swinging fist. I step in, grab the bastard’s wrist and spin him around, hooking my arm around his throat. Surprised, he struggles, fighting for breath as he claws at my wrist. I don’t release my grip, even when his free arm flails back at me, trying to stab me under the ribs.
“I don’t die so easy,pizdet,” I snarl into his ear a moment before I crush his windpipe. The knife in his hand clatters to the floor as he sags against me. He’s clutching at his ruined throat when I drop him to the ground and step over his thrashing body.
The others are fighting in the space around us now. Grunts mingle with the rake of steel, until the first gunfire tears through the air, shattering the silence around us.
Blyad!
The element of surprise is off the table. Even if Volkov is a mile away, I’m sure he’d heart that. All I can hope for is that he won’t figure out where we’re coming from until it’s too late.
