Sami grabbed the woman’s hand. “Can we sew her up?” Gunfire echoed behind them, and she partially ducked over Barbara. God, they had to save her. They couldn’t lose Barb.
A slight smile curved Barbara’s mouth. Blood spurted from the neck wound. “Vanguard,” she whispered.
Tears filled Sami’s eyes, and pain clawed through her gut. It was too late. There was no way to save the young woman. “Vanguard.”
Barbara’s eyes closed, and her body relaxed into death.
Sami sobbed out a cough. “Barb?”
Tace slowly lowered her to the ground. “She’s gone, baby. The bullet went through her jugular and out her spine.”
“Barbara?” Sami asked, patting the woman’s chest. “It was so fast.”
Tace nodded and stood, helping Sami up before lifting Barbara into the back of the truck and covering her with a blanket. “She was a good soldier.”
“An even better friend,” Sami murmured, her heart physically hurting like she’d been stabbed.
“We need to get back there.” Tace moved away from the truck bed and then stopped short.
“What?” Sami swung around, gun out, looking for the threat.
Tace reached for the driver’s door and fell forward, face first. His forehead hit the door, and the metal crunched inward. He slid all the way down.
Oh God. Sami rushed to him and tried to lift him up. “Tace!”
He was out cold and limp as a rag. She dropped him and yanked open the door. “Tace, wake up.”
The man lay in a crumpled mass, his gun falling to the side.
She grabbed the gun and tossed it on the dash before reaching for his armpits. Man, he was heavy. She grunted and tried to pull him toward the truck, her arms protesting. Tace was solid muscle and as dead weight, she couldn’t get him into the seat.
Panic and frustration had her looking wildly around. Could she leave him in the trees? What if they had to drive a different way to get out?
“Tace, wake up.” She shook him.
Nothing. Man, he’d gone down fast this time. All right. Holding on to his shoulders, she scooted around and stepped into the truck, balancing on her knees on the seat. Using all her strength, she yanked him up and fell back while keeping a tight hold.
His big body banged against the passenger seat and doorframe, but his shoulders were above the seat.
Tears pricked her eyes, and sweat broke out on her chest. She banished the thought of Barbara’s body from her mind—she’d grieve later. She pulled harder, finally getting his torso on the seat. Good.
She turned and jumped out the passenger-side door, trying to shove his legs and feet in. He half fell onto the floor, his head still on the seat. Holding her breath, she leaned over and felt his wrist. Pulse weak but there. Thank God.
No way could she get him buckled in.
She shut the door and ignited the engine. Carefully backing out, she tried to calm her racing heart and concentrate. If she didn’t do this right, they’d both be dead.
So she drove along the dirt road and then punched the gas, speeding up and yanking left to head toward the storage shack Raze had mentioned. There were several dirt roads. God, she hoped she’d found the right one.
The sky blazed orange and black from a burning fire. Had they blown up the mansion? Was it Greyson’s men or had Vanguard soldiers done so?
She caught sight of a firefight up ahead and drove straight for it, swinging the ass end of the truck around at a storage unit.
Raze leaped from the unit and tossed boxes in the back of the truck. They were throwing explosives into the truck. What if one went off? Sami looked down at Tace, who hadn’t moved.
Shit. She jumped from the truck where Jax and several Vanguard soldiers protected the shack from Elite soldiers advancing from the south. Merc soldiers guarded and fired from behind trees to the north. The lake was to the east.
She ran to help Raze.
