“Then we pull him out.”
“Rebel.”
“I saidwe pull him out, Bishop. I’m not leaving him there.”
“Then we move quietly.” My chest aches. The same loyalty that makes her unstoppable is the thing that’ll get her killed one day, and I hate that I love her for it.
And I’ll have to live with the fact that I love her for it.
Divine’s voice cuts in again, sharp as a blade.“Abort. I repeat, abort. The Vultures just switched signals. You’re heading into a kill box. They’ve got eyes on the yard and the rooftops. You go in, you won’t make it out.”
“Bones won’t make it out either,” Rebel fires back.
“Then you’d better get creative,”Divine snaps.
We creep along the wall, guns drawn, the world shrinking to heartbeat and breath. The door gives way to an empty corridor, a long, echoing tunnel lined with flickering lights. The kind of place men come to disappear.
We find Bones near the center, slumped against a steel drum, blood slick down his arm. He’s barely breathing.
“Bones!” Rebel drops beside him, voice breaking.
He opens one eye and offers her a faint grin. “Told you… to stay gone.”
She presses a hand to his wound. “And miss your dramatic suicide attempt? Not a chance.”
I sweep the corners. “Warehouse is compromised. We’ve got three minutes, tops.”
Bones coughs, spits blood. “They knew… I rerouted the funds. Used my signature… to bait her. They’re coming… for all of you.”
“Who?” I demand.
“Calloway Holdings,” he chokes. “Not me… the real one. Banker’s front. That’s where it starts.”
Rebel shakes her head, tears streaking through the grime. “You said you were protecting me.”
He nods weakly. “Still am.”
Sirens wail in the distance. Lights flash through the broken windows. Together, we lift Bones, and he hisses in pain. But he grits his teeth and keeps moving forward. Once we clear the warehouse, Bones points to a dumpster against a concrete wall.
“Put me over there.”
Rebel and I half-drag, half-carry him to the dumpster. The light rain is making everything slick. Bones’ blood-soaked hands are shaking as he pulls his cellphone out of his pocket.
“I’m good.” Bones says, waving his phone. “Backup’s coming.” He leans his head against the concrete wall and closes his eyes.
Engines roar in the distance, heading right for us. Divine’s voice cut through the comms.“You two need to get out now!”
I grab Rebel’s arm. “We have to go.”
She resists. “He’ll bleed out.”
“He’s already made peace with it.”
Bones catches my wrist, grip like iron, even half-dead. “You keep her breathing, Bishop. That’s your only damn job.”
Then he lets go.
The gunfire starts as we clear the alley. We run through rain and echoes, bullets chewing through concrete. I return fire, three quick bursts that drop the first two men through a hidden door. Rebel shoulders another aside, fury burning through fear.
