Not a single soul roamed the dead-end street we were in, not a single house emanated a yellow light, and I cursed. The safety precautions we had agreed to with Conall included a condition that we would occupy an abandoned residential neighborhood at the fringes of their compound, as nobody would think to scour such areas.
Or so we had thought.
Now it meant either backup was too far to reach us in time, or that no support was coming at all.
Pausing at the corner of the veranda, I peeked through the gaps in the railing. Recently mowed lawn waved to me, the blades of grass swaying in the night breeze, not a soldier in sight.
The standard-issue rifles had a range of up to five-hundred yards?—
They were hiding in the forest bordering the backyard.
Slinking back to the main door and down the four stairs, I thanked the cities for developing weapons as loud as thunder. They were surprisingly effective in concealing my approach.
Dew slickened my bare feet as I sneaked through the yard, digging my toes into the earth to keep my balance and avoid sprawling out for all to see.
The forest welcomed me with twigs prodding my soles and spiderwebs sticking to my nose. The smell of rotting vegetation both soothed and tickled my stomach’s lining.
Following the dull booms of cylinders leaving the barrels, I weaved between pine trees and an occasional oak. The moonlight filtered through the sprouting leaves and flourishing needles, and a glint of a steel detail on a black, matte rifle poised against a soldier’s shoulder coaxed me to slow down.
A withered branch stabbed my foot, but I stifled a hiss—a curvy soldier was reloading. The weapon’s strap shifted on her shoulder, and the clings and clanks accompanied her steady motions as she fit the new cartridge in place.
The silver patch on her right shoulder revealed her origins to be the city of Coriattus, the embroidered triangle shape identifying her as the leader of a crew of soldiers.
I prayed like hell Zion kept Kali locked down on the floor until I could take care of the threat. This was not his first time dealing with the military, and although rationale sometimes abandoned him, it always returned to him in the end.
But Kali… Not having been in a battle before could cause her to make impulsive decisions, ones steering her toward her demise instead of victory.
The renewed thrum of bullets pierced the rush of my thoughts, and I pounced on the soldier.
She released the trigger, cutting off the rumble of death?—
Sparks exploded in my eyes as the shaft of her rifle collided with my lower ribs.
Stricken by my nudity, she paused. But the less-than-a-blink moment was enough to gain an advantage over her.
Because one of the things we drilled into everyone during training was that pain or someone’s looks were not a good enough reason to lose a fight. I had lost count of how many times we had arranged various unpleasant scenarios in group training to ensure nothing surprised our people.
I seized the barrel, turning it away from me, and utilized her shock to rip the gun free?—
The strap secured across her back snapped taut, forcing her to stumble into me?—
Raising her arms, she ducked, slipping free of what I intended to turn into a makeshift rope to strangle her.
Spinning around, she aimed a kick at my groin. “Fucking filth.”
Dropping the gun, I caught her ankle, tightened my grip on her calf and foot, andtwisted.And then repeated it again, breaking the joint and tendons. A snap rolled through the forest, instantly taken over by her howl as I released her ruined leg. It crashed onto the ground like deadweight.
The pulse in my left side intensified as blood rushed to the injured area, and I picked up the gun. “Be a good little soldier and wait for me here.” There was no chance she could go anywhere with a dislocated ankle and severed sinews.
Creeping back into the shadows cloaking the woods, I stalked to where the second soldier must have stood to be able to aim at the other kitchen window.
The forest was thick with disquiet, half a dozen pine trees marking the beginning of the backyard, the perfect location to set up?—
A hard edge collided with my lower back.
I stumbled forward, catching a trunk for support. Securing my hold on the rifle I’d commandeered, I whipped around only to come face-to-face with a gloved fist.
Pure reflexes guided me in deflecting the punch and ramming my elbow into the soldier’s solar plexus. He doubled over, his grunt serving as his last sound as I pulled the trigger.
