We all know no one’s leaving here without a fight.
The only question is, who’s coming out on top?
While I’m on my home turf, I’m outnumbered and outgunned.
Not great odds.
A muscle in Andrei’s jaw twitches. “You’re a formidable opponent, Brody. I admit that freely. So I’m not going to wasteyour time. If you give us the girl, I’ll kill you quickly. Resist, and this will be painful.”
“Tell me what you want with her first.”
Andrei tilts his head to one side, looking down on me from his perch. “I would have thought that was quite obvious.”
“Well, you thought wrong.” I whip my gun out of my holster and fire three bullets straight at Andrei’s chest.
The bulletproof vest he’s wearing won’t save him from blunt force trauma.
Andrei staggers back from the pain, gasping for breath. “Kill him!”
Soldiers flood in, but they’re still not firing.
Mind flying, I realize my proximity to Trinity is my one and only advantage.
Well, don’t mind if I just use that.
Three Russians charge me at once.
I shoot the first in the knee.
The wiry man releases a feral roar of pain, his stride faltering.
One down.
I aim a roundhouse kick at the second assailant’s helmet, sending him sprawling into the third.
In the brief scuffle that ensues, they headbutt each other.
Capitalizing on their distraction, I shoot the wounded one in the head, rip his gun free, and use it to fire on the other two. I follow that up by spraying bullets around the room.
Russian soldiers shout, dodge, and throw themselves behind furniture.
The adrenaline pumping through my blood keeps my mind clear as crystal.
I know what I need to do.
Keep Trinity safe. Get us both out of here. Find a new place to lie low before contacting Declan.
I yank Trinity to her feet, shove her behind me, and back both of us up toward the kitchen.
She needs to get as far from the fighting as possible, even if that means separating from me.
Though my gut tugs at the idea of letting her out of my sight, the thought of her dead body sprawled on the floor is worse.
My mind splits in two. Keep her close and risk messing up, or keep her safe and risk losing track of her?
The basement door is right beside the kitchen. Bulletproof. Soundproof. Fireproof.
The answer’s obvious.
