"Where's the girl?" I ask quietly, my gun pressed against his temple.
"Basement, but you'll never get to her. Boss's got the place wired." His smile's ugly even with a blade at his jugular. "You're all dead men."
"We'll take our chances." Rook applies pressure until the guard passes out, and we secure him with zip ties before moving to the basement stairs.
The door's locked, heavy steel that suggests whatever's down there is valuable. I key my comm. "Falcon, we've got a secured basement door. Guard mentioned the place is wired."
"Copy that. Condor, can you access their security system?"
"Working on it. Give me two minutes."
We don't have two minutes. Sarah's been in Castellano's hands for hours, and every second increases the chance he'll hurt her or move her to another location. But rushing in blind could trigger explosives like the ones that killed that FBI agent.
"Fuck it," Rook says, pulling out a small device. "This'll override the electronic lock without triggering secondary systems. Probably."
"Probably?"
"Ninety percent sure." He grins. "Good enough odds."
He attaches the device to the lock, and circuits fry with a smell like burning plastic. The door clicks open, and we're moving down the stairs before anyone inside can react.
The basement's one large room, concrete floors and exposed pipes, and Sarah's in the center tied to a chair. She's got duct tape over her mouth and terror in her eyes, but she's alive and appears unharmed. A single guard stands near her, and he's reaching for his weapon when I put two rounds in his chest.
He goes down hard, and Sarah's screaming through the tape. I'm at her side in seconds, pulling the tape off as gently as I can.
"Are you hurt?" I ask, checking her for injuries while Rook clears the rest of the space.
"No. I’m scared but not hurt." Her words tumble out fast. "They grabbed me when I went outside. I just wanted fresh air for five minutes, and they were waiting. There was a van, they threw a bag over my head, and when I could see again I was here."
"How many people?"
"Three. The one you shot and two others who left an hour ago. Said they had to report to the boss."
"Did they say where Castellano is?"
"No, but I heard them talking about an airfield. They said the boss was leaving tonight, that this was the last job before they got paid and disappeared."
The Illinois airfield. We were right he's running, and he's tying up loose ends before he goes.
"Clear," Rook announces. "No other hostiles, no secondary explosives that I can see."
I cut Sarah's restraints and help her stand, catching her when her legs nearly give out. "Can you walk?"
"I think so." She's shaking, adrenaline and fear making her unsteady. "Is Ava okay? They didn't hurt her?"
"She's safe at the compound. Scared out of her mind for you, but safe." I key my comm. "Falcon, we've got Sarah. One hostile down, two others fled. We're exfiling now."
"Copy. Meet at the bikes. Sterling just got word from Agent Forrister. They've got eyes on the Illinois airfield. Private jet's being prepped for departure in two hours."
"Then we need to move. If Castellano gets on that plane, we lose him."
We get Sarah out of the warehouse and back to the bikes without incident. She's never been on a motorcycle before, and the terror on her face when I tell her she's riding with me would be funny under different circumstances.
"Just hold on tight and trust me," I tell her, helping her onto the bike behind me.
"That's what Ava said about you, that I should trust you." She wraps her arms around my waist with a death grip. "She really loves you, you know. I've never seen her like this about anyone."
"The feeling's mutual."
