Their goal was simple, get Celine and Caroline out unharmed from an unknown number of enemy combatants on a mission they'd only had hours to plan.
“The Russians made the party,” Jared said.
A few seconds later a line of white SUVs entered the valley from the north and parked about fifty meters from center. Aaron didn't need his binoculars this close to see loaded vehicles. “Crow one, you got a bead?”
“Roger.”
“South SUVs breaching. Ready. Four men in the first vehicle, two in the next. No sign of the targets,” Hunter said.
This could be a trap if Mr. J knew they were in the country. He knew full well that TF-S wouldn't let him harm Celine or Caroline. On the heels of that thought came another: just because they couldn't see the girls sitting up in the vehicles didn't mean they weren't there. If Mr. J had wanted easy transport, two unconscious bodies were a lot easier to handle. “Need to be ready for carry out.”
The second vehicle parked fifty meters from center, directly in front of Aaron. He searched the windows of the black SUVs for any sign of the girls.
“She's in there, my intel was right. Trust me,” Hunter said.
How the hell was he supposed to trust anyone with Celine's life?
Aaron forced himself to relax, got his heart rate under control and focused on the man getting out of the white SUV on the right. “We got a briefcase.”
The man was typical for security – big, broad shoulders, black suit and black sunglasses. Two pistols poking out of his open jacket in brown leather holsters.
The team had set up in a wide circle all the way around the meeting place, so no one was getting in or out without theirpermission. The man held up his briefcase and approached the black vehicles with his arms raised and stopped halfway between the SUVs. A few seconds later, the four men in the first vehicle from Mr. J’s caravan got out and approached. What followed next was standard operating procedure for black market deals. The suitcase guy showed the cash, the other man inspected it and gestured to his crew.
“On my signal,” Hunter said.
The front doors of the second black SUV opened, an armed guard on each side. The driver went to the back and opened the door.
“The girls must be in the last SUV.” Aaron's gaze locked on that open door, cursing that he was on the passenger side and couldn't see directly in the vehicle. “Ethan?”
“Got one female. She's gonna need a carry out.”
Fuck. Aaron's gut clenched down tight. Was it Celine? Was she okay?
The guard leaned down into the vehicle.
“Easy, man,” Hunter muttered. “Crow one and two, you ready?”
The thought of what she'd been through, what they could've done to her...Aaron rubbed his burning chest, feeling the hollow ache like someone had drilled out his heart.
“On my count,” Hoyt said. “One. Two. Three.”
Two bullets whizzed through the air, their loud boom muffled by silencers and the two men closest to the girl fell.
Aaron jumped to his feet and took off at a full out sprint for the men surrounding the SUVs, Hunter pounding it out behind him. The Russians’ vehicles roared to life and slammed into reverse. Two more shots pinged into their windshields and the vehicles rolled to a stop.
Aaron homed in on the back SUV. The passenger lifted his pistol and Aaron fired off three rounds, still running. The passenger slumped to his knees and hit the dirt.
“Get her, I'll hold them off,” Hunter shouted and made a right toward the front SUV.
The driver glanced behind him and saw Ethan, Ranger and Merc running in his direction. Aaron knew the minute the man realized his doom. The driver dove through the open back seat and came out on the other side, yanking the unconscious girl with him.
Rage erupted like a volcano at the sight of the other man touching her. Aaron exploded forward, reaching the vehicle in ten pounding footsteps. The man frantically tried to pull the girl out of the car and sling her over his shoulder.
Aaron transferred his pistol to his left hand, yanked his knife out with his right, running full force. The guard straightened and Aaron embedded his knife to the hilt in his throat.
The guard dropped, grabbing at his throat and gurgling. Aaron snatched the girl he hoped like hell was Celine from his shoulder before she hit the ground.
For that one heartbreaking second, he completely forgot about his surroundings as he peeled back the blue veil to reveal her face. His breath caught. She was alive. Celine was alive.
