On my way to check them out. Keep everyone out of sight. I’ll handle this personally.
Eager for a fight, are you?Humor filled Bram’s voice. He understood how the predator in Marcus needed to be released once in a while.
I’ll be there soon.Marcus didn’t answer such an obvious question.Cut the exterior lights, Bram. They’ll be comfortable with the darkness when I arrive.
By the time Marcus’s connection with Bram ceased, he had slipped his arm from under his precious mate’s head and had settled her on the fluffy pillows. He pressed a kiss on her forehead and mentally reinforced her need for sleep. That would keep her in restorative rest until he returned.
Quickly, he dressed and let himself out of her apartment in seconds. Marcus took the stairs to the top of the building and raced over the rooftops, evading detection. He clung to the darkness as he checked out the humans shifting in the shadows below. Two groups of five men approached Nightfall from the alleyways on the back two sides of the building.
He focused on the first group of men who lurked inside the mouth of the alley on the west side of Nightfall. The huddled group seemed to be waiting. The hushed whispers reached his enhanced hearing easily. Marcus memorized the names they shared. All men wore balaclavas. The knitted hoods revealed only their eyes and mouth. They ranged in size from slender to heavily muscled. He would need to handle these guys quietly.
“This place is like Fort Knox, Arnaldo.”
“Shut up. Even Fort Knox has emergency exits. Don’t use my name, idiot.”
The leader pointed to the small, concealed doorway farther down the alley. “Everyone but Gio. We’ll stack up on the door. We go when the boss tells us to.”
Marcus noted Arnaldo didn’t seem to mind exposing Gio’s name.A great leader.
Arnaldo turned to the man he’d singled out. “Gio, you’re on watch here. You’ve got our backs. The rest of you follow me. Move out!”
Marcus reached out to his team inside.
They’ve come up with a plan. One group is trying for the door to the west. Bram, what’s the second group doing? I don’t want to take my eyes off this crew.
Bram answered,The others are heading to the loading dock in the rear.
Marcus urged,Keep your eyes on them, Bram. Everyone stand by. I want the leader alive.He felt their acknowledging response as a warm pulse in his mind.
Bram, I assume you’re monitoring their communications too. What can you tell me?
Bram’s voice once again echoed in his mind.These boys have sophisticated radios, but nothing I can’t handle. I’ve accessed each of their cells and am running their data now. Beyond that, I’ve jammed their phones. The group has almost reached the loading dock. Good hunting!
Time to play.
Standing at the mouth of the west alley, Gio created a barrier with his six-foot, muscled frame alone. Gio’s massive size clued Marcus in that Gio was a gym rat, more focused on achieving greater lifting reps than using his bulk in hand-to hand combat.
Marcus gave him credit for his attentiveness to his duty at the rearguard position. That might have been enough to save him if Gio had been on the lookout for the average person. Marcus was so much more than he expected. Leaving his weapon of choice sheathed, Marcus gambled he wouldn’t need his sword to deal with these guys.
One second Gio was scanning the street, and the next Marcus had wrapped an arm around his neck, twisting with an overpowering jerk. Timed to coordinate with a passing car, thesickening snap didn’t warn the others. Marcus propped the body in a seated position next to some trash cans. He glided forward to catch up with the next man in the line as the invaders crept steadily down the alleyway.
Marcus agreed with Bram’s assessment that their tactics showed the team had covert training. Holes that would contribute to their downfall were easy to spot to someone so versed in combat like Marcus. Their lack of code names and situational awareness revealed Nightfall’s foes lacked discipline and had become sloppy.
Still, the attackers moved quietly, crouching low, and with economy of motion. Armed with handguns, they held the weapons at the low-ready position, scanning their section of the area in textbook fashion. No one glanced behind them. Why should they with Gio there? To reinforce their confidence, Marcus sent waves of security into the invaders’ minds.
One by one, Marcus snatched the next man in line, snapping necks as he went and dropping each one silently off to the side. He almost missed catching the gun of the third one before it clattered to the ground but snatched it out of the air a split second ahead of the weapon’s impact. By the time only Arnaldo remained, the lead invader had reached the door. Arnaldo triggered the small microphone attached to his collar.
“Boss, we are in position.”
The team leader responded with two clicks to the report. To prevent any further communication, Marcus crushed the microphone into pieces with his left hand while grabbing Arnaldo by the throat with his right. Marcus heaved him effortlessly off his feet to dangle him in the air before him.
“Good evening.” Marcus greeted him in a low voice that was almost a growl as he stripped the gun from Arnaldo’s hand.
As Arnaldo thrashed desperately against the viselike grip that held him suspended above the ground, Marcus slowlyturned him to look down the alley. When the sole survivor froze with shock at the proof of his team’s defeat, Marcus flicked his wrist, breaking Arnaldo’s neck. He dropped him, savoring the quiet thump.
The west door is clear. There are five ready for cleanup. Heading to the dock.
Once again, Bram’s voice broadcast in his head.They have a hacker for the dock door. How do you want to play it?
