“We could jump at them and take them down when they come in with Russ.”
She blinked at him, wondering if he could see the incredulous look on her face. Her vision was screwed up, but his could be okay. Still, his plan didn’t make sense. Was Holt stupid? No weapons and lots of injuries. They had a better chance ofpassing out than jumping into action. It would be more like a trip and fall than a leap into taking down the terrorists.
The door opened, and one of their captors dragged Russ in, his body limp as a noodle. Ansley flinched when they dropped him on the ground, and his head thumped like a watermelon against the hard floor. There was no way Russ would help them anytime soon.
She didn’t like the blood seeping from his ears or the lump on his forehead. Her stomach clenched as she stared at her friend, hoping he wouldn’t die right there in front of her.
Holt, who had more muscles than smarts, jumped up and tried to rush the men, but the butt of a gun against his face made him drop to the ground on top of Russ. Great, now two guys were out of commission. Just what they needed, more injured people.
Ansley pulled her legs closer, ignoring the pain shooting through her body. If she could disappear, maybe they wouldn’t take her to the other room.
Russ looked like he’d gone through hell. She had no desire to end up finding out what happened out there.
She glanced up, noticing her captors were looking at her. Great. They had other people to choose from, but it looked like they were zeroed in on her.
Seconds after the charges blew,Link rushed inside, clearing the first room while Chase and Bean moved deeper into the compound. Stanley and Keel came in, leaving Mick and Scott outside to keep watch.
After Stanley and Keel cleared the next room, Link moved forward, snaking his way through the halls, searching for the Marines they’d come to rescue.
He heard someone scream, heightening his awareness. Bean indicated that he’d heard the noise and picked up his pace.
The scream was high-pitched, leaving no doubt that it was one of the women from the group of Marines who'd been captured. Link knew what happened to prisoners, and he hoped they could get to her before the assholes killed her.
They were moving fast, Stanley, Keel, and Chase clearing rooms, while he and Bean searched for the screaming woman. The noise grew louder as they turned the corner and headed down a longer hall.
Link turned another corner and saw two guys. One of them had a woman over his shoulder, her arms hanging limp as if she wasn’t conscious. They didn’t turn and see him, so he was still undetected.
Link was amazed at their ineptitude. His team had blown charges, destroying the lock on the door to the compound, and no one had come to investigate.
Link moved closer, hoping to overtake the two bastards before they could enter another closed room. The woman jerked like she’d just come to then moved her arms, reaching up, trying to grab hold of the guy’s waist or something, but she was failing at gaining purchase.
The guy grunted and said something Link didn’t catch. Though the guy adjusted his hold on the woman, that didn’t stop her from trying to gain control again.
Link liked that she was fighting back. She had one arm around the man’s waist, and the other reached for his arm. That woman might just wiggle her way out of his hold. Link smiled, proud of her even as he questioned her plan. As far as he could tell, she had no weapons. Maybe she thought she could grab one of the guy’s rifles or knives. Whatever her logic, it was flawed.
Link motioned for Bean to move up and take out the guy not holding the woman as he moved into position to take out the other guy.
As he moved closer, the man holding the woman grabbed her arm, and she screamed. What had he done?
Bean moved forward, overtaking the other guy. The shock on his face almost made Link laugh, but he didn't have time to enjoy the man's pain. He moved fast, grabbing the woman and lowering her to the ground before Bean dropped both men to the floor. She looked like she’d been through it, and now her arm was bleeding badly.
Link heard a noise above them. The other guys on his team must have run into opposition. It was getting hot up there, but he had to get this Marine to safety.
Link knelt next to the woman. “Get up, Marine. Time to go.”
Her body swayed as she blinked up at him. He could easily see the lump on the side of her head, and her eyes didn’t focus. He didn’t have time for her to recover. He was about to scoop her up when the floor shook as an explosion ripped through the building. A chunk of the ceiling came down next to him, and he reached for the woman, pulling her close. Part of the ceiling crashed down onto her and her injured arm.
“Fuck. We need to move!” Link shouted as he examined her arm. She wasn’t pinned down, which was good for her.
Another explosion sounded above, shaking the area. He had a harsh realization that they might not make it out of this building alive.
Chapter 2
The second explosionblew more chunks of wall and ceiling into the hall. They didn’t have much time to get out. Link held the woman close and rose, throwing her arm over his shoulder. He hoped whoever else was down here with her got out.
More explosions hit, and he went down on one knee, then rolled hard on his side. Air exploded from his lungs like a balloon popping.
“Fuck,” he gasped as he fought for control.
