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“Staircase?”
Saint pointed left and they jogged over, shoved through the door and into the stairwell. Moving fast, they pounded down, flight after endless flight.
“Goddammit. Could this building be any taller?”
Ryland heard Saint huffing beside him and smirked. “Out of breath from too many cigarettes, Saint?”
In answer, Saint increased his speed and flew forward, passing Ryland. It turned into a race down to the bottom level and, by the time they reached the garage, Ryland had surpassed him.
“C’mon, old man.” Ryland waited in front of the exit door for Saint to reach his side and received a glare.
“Let’s hope there’s not a whole army down here waiting for us,” Saint said, voice grim.
“No shit.” Because that would really, really suck ass. He touched his comms and tried to contact Tanner but received no answer. Assuming his friend’s comms didn’t work down on the subterranean level, Ryland slowly pushed the door open.
They moved out fast and low, scanning the area for threats. It was eerily quiet and, a moment later, they ran into Pharaoh and Bruja.
“Where’s Mayhem?” Pharaoh asked.
“Not sure,” Ryland responded. “He’s not responding.”
“Bruja, get the car,” Pharaoh ordered. “We’ll get Mayhem.”
While she jogged away, Ryland, Saint and Pharaoh moved forward in a single file, searching the strangely quiet underground garage. Without warning, three men stepped out from behind a large SUV and began firing. Ryland and his teammates dove behind the nearest car for cover and immediately returned fire.
Three shooters suddenly turned into five and that number doubled before Ryland could reload his pistol. “What the fuck?” he yelled. The moment he took one guard down, another one appeared. “They keep coming.”
“We need to get out of here!” Saint shouted. “They’re closing us in.”
“We have to find Mayhem!” Ryland yelled over the pop of gunfire.
“Pull back,” Pharaoh ordered.
Cursing under his breath, Ryland followed the order. He knew if he didn’t, he’d be surrounded in less than thirty seconds. They reversed and moved sideways, crouching down and using the cars for cover as they put distance between them and Bashar’s men. Turning his head to check the next row, Ryland spotted Tanner thirty feet away. He was down on the ground between two cars, blood pooling around his body.
Ryland froze, his blood turning to ice. He grabbed Pharaoh’s shoulder, squeezed and yelled, “Cover me!” Without waiting for an answer, Ryland took off, leaving the cover of the vehicles to sprint across the wide-open area, taking the most direct route to his friend and teammate.
Thanks to the cover provided by Pharaoh and Saint, he made it to the other side, dropping down to his knees. “Tanner!” He flipped his friend over and Tanner’s light blue eyes cracked open. A quick scan revealed Tanner had been shot too many times to count. Armor piercing rounds had shredded his vest.
No, no, no.Heart in his throat, Ryland pressed two fingers against Tanner’s throat, searching for a pulse. It was so damn weak, he could barely feel it.
The entire situation seemed unreal.This wasn’t what was supposed to happen. How the fuck did this op go so off the rails?
“Stay with me, bro,” Ryland pleaded. “We’re gonna get you out of here.”
But Tanner’s eyes slid shut again and Ryland couldn’t tell if his friend’s chest was still rising and falling or—
The sound of squealing tires filled the air and an SUV pulled up in front of him, the rear door flying open and Pharaoh jumping out before the vehicle even stopped. He ran over, helped Ryland pick Tanner up and they rushed him to the rear of the SUV where Saint helped pull him inside. Once they were all in, Bruja slammed on the gas and the car jumped forward.
“What in the fucking fuck of all clusterfucks just happened?” Bruja cried from the driver’s seat.
The moment Ryland undid Tanner’s tactical vest, more blood erupted from his various wounds. “Shit! Apply pressure. We need to stop the bleeding!”
The three men tried to staunch the wounds but, despite their best efforts, Ryland watched his best friend bleed out before his eyes.
“Fuck,” Ryland hissed. “Tanner, c’mon.”
Pharaoh checked the pulse at Tanner’s neck. “He’s gone.” A muscle jerked in his cheek and he turned his head, avoiding eye contact with Ryland.
