She started to back out like Kip told her to.
* * *
Side by side,Kip and Mike made their way diagonally across the roof. “We get one try.” Kip pulled a small mirror from his pocket and bounced a reflection off a prechosen police vehicle to let Kyle and Josh know they were alive. The comm in each of the four’s ears would go live again as Josh made the shot and Kip swung into the window beside where the shooter/bomber sat.
Mike found an anchor spot for the rope that would support Kip. Kip prepared his harness and double-checked the assembly, then Mike rechecked him. “Martin has your letter. Anything more?” Mike asked.
Every operator in the company stored last letters to friends and family in case of death. Mike wasn’t asking to be maudlin. He was asking because it was necessary. “Yeah, make sure Harper and Chantal are taken care of. I don’t want the new owner to evict them. And put together a college fund for Chantal’s baby.”
Mike nodded. “We will wait for a flash from Kyle. He can see if Harper is having trouble.”
Josh’s shot was tough. He only had a partial view, and the tip of his rifle would become visible immediately before the trigger pull. Mike extended his hand to Kip and helped him ascend the ledge, descend onto the side of the building, and crouch with his feet flush on the wall.
He closed his eyes and controlled his heartbeat. “Now we wait.”
Sweat and rain soaked Kip as he hung there. He had no idea how Harper was.
“Flash,” Mike called.
Kip leaned in, hand over hand on the rope. His comm clicked on. “Sh…ot,” Kyle’s voice yelled in his ear, making the word two syllables.
Kip launched and swung through the window. He hit the release and thudded to the floor. Lifting his goggles, he looked to his right. Marcel Fontenot was lying on his belly on the floor with Kyle’s knee in between his shoulders. Fontenot’s left hand was mangled. And the building was still standing.
Josh leaned down, the rifle over his back and pulled his boss to his feet. “Acrobat?”
“Yeah, yeah. Harper?”
“Harper’s in the ER. Not hurt, waiting. We need to evacuate this place. He told her there were more bombs.” Kyle stood, and with Kip’s help, lifted Mr. Fontenot to his feet.
Mike was on his phone demanding a bomb search of their downtown building. He also ordered two Crescent Eagle’s Talon teams to search the hospital.
A horde of police met them and took the bomber away. The SWAT commander introduced himself. “Who ran that?”
Kip had no patience left and did not want to deal with any potential arrogance. “I’m Kip Brennan, Executive in Charge of Chase Security’s New Orleans branch and the hospital’s CEO.” He extended his gloved hand.
“I got a call from an old friend, Jonas Dupart. I’m his son Phil’s godfather. He said his son Julian works with you. Everything he said about you is true. Damn decent piece of work. Now, which one of you took that shot?”
Kip owed Julian a big thanks. It now explained why the police followed their plan. “We’ve got devices all over the place here and potentially our health center in the business district. And I’m worried those may be more sophisticated,” Kip advised the captain.
“We shut down all cell and internet service until we get the place empty, and the dogs get a run-through.”
“Good. This is my XO, Josh Stone. He took that shot,” Kip said as he began scanning the corridor. “Captain, can we get a couple of dogs up here? I’ve got a nervous…”
As the words fell from his lips, he saw sparks fly from the stairwell side of the landing exit. “BOMB, everybody down.”
Kip threw himself at Mike, Kyle, and Josh. His ears popped as he felt the shock wave hit him.
* * *
The smokeand dust began to settle around them. “Everybody okay?” Mike asked.
“Other than feeling like I was just tackled by the Saints defensive line, I'm good.” Kyle struggled to climb out from beneath his colleagues.
“Boss, we're good; you can move,” Josh said. “Boss, Boss, are you okay?”
“Acrobat, can you hear us?” Mike made it free of the pile.
“Medic, I need a medic,” Kyle yelled.
