“I’m babysitting the front door?” she said, angrily.
“No. I need you to watch it and cover us as we move out,” he explained.
Rebecca agreed, still peeved at the lesser job than the men. Maybe she needed to prove herself to Julio before he trusted her.
Two hours later, the SWAT team surrounded the luxury estate and waited for their leader’s cue before breaching. Julio and Jameson planned to sneak inside before the surprise ambush, warning them of how many people attended the gathering.
“Phoenix has entered,” Matthew said through the coms. “There’s a door on your right, leading downstairs. Two suspects coming from the rear,” he said calmly.
“Copy,” Julio whispered. “I have eleven males and two females in the formal dining room.”
“We have three more in bedroom one upstairs,” Jameson reported.
“I’m heading to the basement,” Julio informed them as they heard a door creak open. “They have an electronic lock on the handle. Ready to breach.”
Gunfire erupted, making Rebecca jump.
“I’m made,” Jameson yelled into the coms.
Rebecca rushed to where Jameson entered the house and climbed the stairs. She aimed her gun, preparing to shoot, as she hugged the wall. A guard came out from nowhere, attempting to knock the weapon from her hand. Her fist flew into his face and her knee went up, hitting the man in the balls. He tumbled down the stairs as she ran toward the gunshots.
“Hummingbird, you have two men on your left,” Matthew said. “I’m coming in behind you.”
“Jameson, do you copy?” Julio asked as he used the electronic scanner to unlock the door.
“I’m cornered in the south bedroom. We have two perps and three guards. We have multiple survivors on the floor. Call for an ambulance,” he requested.
Tat, Tat, Tat, Rebecca heard the familiar sounds of the rifles as all hell broke loose.
“SWAT has breached,” Matthew called. “They’ve split. We’ll have visitors. Hummingbird, any eyes on Jameson?”
Rebecca aimed her gun and fired, taking out two while Jameson wrestled the third. A woman crouched beside the bed, covering her head.
“Come on, sweetie. Let’s get you out of here,” she said as Jameson zip-tied his attacker and kicked away the weapon.
“Julio, do you copy?” Matthew said, covering Rebecca’s six while she guided the woman out of the house and to safety.
“Julio,” Matthew said again when he didn’t respond. Rebecca turned toward the home, now filled with smoke from the smoke bombs used by the SWAT team.
“I’m going in,” she said when Matthew grabbed her around the waist.
“Give him a minute. He’s in the deep part of the basement and may not hear us,” Matthew explained as Jameson emerged with another woman and a frail man.
Rebecca pulled them to the safety area and passed them a blanket as she anxiously waited to hear Julio’s voice. SWAT called the all clear and she moved closer to the house when she saw a large figure appearing from the smoke, resembling Julio. A woman walked beside him as he carried something she couldn’t make out as he made his way outside. A guard shot forward, aimed his weapon, and fired at the trio. Rebecca watched as Julio fell to the ground in slow motion, with his bundle and the woman beside him.
Pandemonium erupted, blocking her view of him as law enforcement scrambled to find the rogue guards. Her heart raced as she ran toward the last place she saw him, as Matthew yelled into his coms, getting no response. Jameson followed behind her, his weapon drawn.
“Please, please, please,” Rebecca begged as she drew closer. Her mouth dropped as she recognized Dr. Reese lying over the tiny bundle and the man she loved. She rushed to Julio’s side, seeing his forehead bleeding and a lump forming.
“Rebecca,” someone called her name, but she focused on turning Julio over as Jameson checked for injuries.
“Julio, answer me,” she pleaded, gently wiping the blood dripping from his forehead away from his eye. “Please don’t leave me.”
Julio blinked and winced as he attempted to rise. “I’ll walk through hell to stay with you,” he murmured.
“Stay down,” she insisted as he continued to struggle. Seeing it futile, she helped him to sit with Jameson’s help.
“Rebecca,” the feminine voice called, almost pleading.
