“Go, baby. Nomar came for us. Hide somewhere until he finds you. Or I do. Please!”
He nods and backs slowly down the hall.
“You are both…dead,” Naveed wheezes.
I should be scared. My son was within reach, and I sent him away. But in my heart, I find only determination. Staring at the man who felt me up in the market, who probably stripped me down to my bra and panties, who locked me to that railing until I burned, I smile at him. “Then I am taking you with me.”
This close, I cannot miss. Two shots pierce his heart. His eyes widen. One hand presses to the wound, but it is no use. There is too much blood. He falls seconds before footsteps sound from behind me.
A rough hand grabs my hair. I am flying. My body hits the wall. Darkness curls around the edges of my vision. The gun. Where is the gun? My fingers won’t move. My arms. My legs. I cannot feel anything but pain.
Raziq’s face swims in and out of focus over me. “Mateen will watch you and your lover die. And then I will take him somewhere no one will ever be able to find him.”
He steps back, and one of his men flips me over. My arms are pinned behind my back. Something hard wraps around my wrists.
I only have one thought running through my head.
Did Mateen get away?
* * *
Nomar
The shot grazes my hip. It’s not serious, but pisses me off enough, I grab an expensive looking vase from a table and lob it at the two assholes shooting at us from behind twin pillars at the end of the hall.
It shatters into dust. Leo pops up from behind a heavy table, fires twice, and sinks back down onto his ass. “This is fucking ridiculous.”
Austin’s voice in my ear agrees. “We’re pinned down in the northeast corner. Haven’t made it more than thirty feet. There are too many goddamn blind spots in this place.”
Leo pulls a grenade from a pouch on his hip. “I can clear a couple of those right now.”
“No!” I glare at him. “We don’t know where Lisette and Mateen are. No explosives.”
With a muttered curse, he hefts his M4. But then he pushes to his knees and fires at the door behind us. A body hits the polished tile. “I thought Shapur was supposed to be watching our six.”
“We are trying to get into the garage,” Shapur says over comms. “Do you want him driving out of here? With your woman and the boy?”
“Need a little help out here,” Darius calls. “Another six men just arrived.”
Leo holds out his hand. “Give me the fucking grenade. I’ve been itching to blow something up all day. This is my chance.”
“Fine. I’m done with this shit. Take ‘em all down. I’m going to get Lisette back.”
“Not alone you’re not,” he mutters, but I’m already bobbing and weaving toward the pillars.
Another explosion rocks the ground. Behind me, a piece of the ceiling crashes to the floor. Just the distraction I need. With my M4 held like a club, I corner the pillar and slam the rifle into the nearest asshole’s face. His nose shatters, and blood spurts down his shirt.
Before the second man can raise his weapon, I pull my Beretta and fire two shots between his eyes. “I’m in. Proceeding to Target A.”
A high-pitched scream sends ice flooding my veins. Mateen.
“He got away!” someone shouts. “Find him!”
The kid was in some sort of large space on the first floor this morning. Zephyr thought it was a sitting room. But there are half a dozen other rooms between here and there, and I have to clear each one of them. Precious minutes tick by. Minutes Raziq could be using to kill Lisette. Or get away.
Darius meets me back in the hall with Griff on his heels. “Leo went to help Austin. They are clearing the east wing now. No sign of Lisette and Mateen?”
“No. The kid screamed, but that was at least two minutes ago. Shapur, tell me you got into that garage.”
