Chapter 44 Machine
FORTY-FOUR
MACHINE
I looked at my watch for the umpteenth time.
Where was she? I watched as Badger’s teammates worked like an oiled machine as they got ready for the mission.
Phantom typed away on her multi-screens as Chief gave soft instructions beside her.
Buddha tightened his belt while talking to their new recruit, Monte, who looked like the love child of a WWE wrestler and a Viking.
Kade walked into the room and gave me a nod toward the shelves of the arsenal. I grabbed what I needed with him. It was clear we were only here for extra muscle, as everyone else had their jobs. The only one missing was Badger.
I put on the safety gear Chief had provided and was impressed by the quality of the material. I knew that the team was part of the government, but I didn’t expect top-of-the-line optics and bulletproof gear that felt light as a feather.
“Where’s Badger?” Phantom asked, looking around the room.
“There’s no time to wait for her; we need to leave. Kade, have the Hive start locating her. I have a bad feeling we will have two recon missions tonight. She wouldn’t miss this, and she left alone earlier,” Chief stated, cursing to himself.
Alarm bells were ringing in my head, but I’d have to trust the Hive to handle it. As much as it pained me not to go after Badger, I knew she would want me to ensure Lily’s safety first.
“Let’s roll,” Buddha said, walking toward the door.
If anyone else was concerned about Badger’s whereabouts, they weren’t saying anything, staying on task and focused on the mission.
We all hopped into the inconspicuous van and rode in silence as Chief drove us to a dilapidated warehouse on the outskirts of the city.
Phantom remained in the van and gave Kade a long kiss before he exited.
I inserted my earpiece and heard Phantom giving us instructions.
“Take the first left when you enter the warehouse. There should be a large room.”
It smelled god-awful in the warehouse, reeking of body odor, human waste, and chemicals.
“Fuck, I’m going to throw up,” grumbled Buddha.
“You and me both, bro,” Monte agreed.
As we navigated through the dimly lit warehouse, I heard something— low voices, getting louder by the second.
Chief gave us the halt signal, and we stopped in our tracks. Chief silently looked in the doorway and signaled Kade to go to the furthest door. Kade and I moved in unison, having done our own missions countless times. We entered at the same time Chief did with Buddha and Bohdi, our weapons drawn.
“Well, that was quite an entrance,” a feminine voice said as the click of heels sounded against the concrete floor. “You are not who I wanted to see.”
The room was dark except for one light hanging from the ceiling, illuminating part of the decayed room. Sarah was flanked by two burly men, one of whom was holding a short girl in a white gown. They walked toward us, halting at Sarah’s signal.
“Where’s my sister? I knew it had to be her and her posse coming here,” Sarah snapped, her voice echoing off the walls of the warehouse.
Kade stepped forward, holstering his gun and putting out his hands. One of the guards pressed a gun to the girl’s head. That had to be Lily; she resembled Badger, but with darker hair and bright-green eyes.
“Sarah, we can get you your sister, just give us Lily,” Kade said in a calm tone.
“You must think I’m stupid if you think I’m going to hand over my money-maker. Give me my sister and I will think about giving you Lily. For a fair price, of course,” she sneered.
My stomach churned as I thought back to the target holding the bomb in front of my squad, using a toddler as a shield. Children had no business being part of adult crimes, but here we were.
“This place is set to blow in four minutes, so I would hurry up if I were you,” Sarah antagonized.
No way would she blow herself up. I wanted to call her bluff, but that would make the situation even worse.
Kade looked conflicted before nodding his head. Phantom must have said something into his earpiece.
Lily let out a whimper, making my blood boil as Sarah grabbed her by the hair and held her in place.
She looked terrified. Like any good soldier, I knew when I could move, and right now our target was too unpredictable.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Chief say something into his earpiece before he aimed his gun back at Sarah.
I watched as Kade stiffened when he heard the sounds of his other half walking into this pit of fire, immediately running to Phantom when she rounded the corner into the room.
My body tensed as Sarah shoved Lily back to one of the guards and pointed her gun at Kade.
I immediately aimed my gun at Sarah, who gave me a weary look.
“Best to stay on Machine’s good side, Sis,” Phantom said to her sister, cool and collected as she walked next to Kade.
Sarah pointed the gun at her sister.
“Shut up!” She looked at her watch. “Three minutes and seven seconds.”
“What do you want?” Phantom asked sharply.
“Tell your guard dogs to put their guns on the floor, and I will tell you,” Sarah bit back.
Phantom looked around the room, giving us all a nod. I hesitated, but I had been in hostage negotiations before and knew it was sometimes best to do what the captor wanted.
Sarah continued to point her gun at her sister. “Now, that’s better.”
“What do you want, Sarah?” Evelyn spat again.
Sarah growled. “You know why he chose me, right?”
“I have no idea what you are talking about, and I don’t care,” Evelyn baited.
“Daddy chose me because you were weak! You couldn’t handle the responsibility it takes to run his empire,” Sarah sneered.
“And why would you be proud of running his ‘empire’ when he is the one responsible for killing not only your real father but also hundreds of others?” Evelyn responded.
“You are missing the whole point. He was making the world a better place.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. She was talking as if Anthony Ricci was some sort of martyr, not an evil, sadistic, man who deserved worse than the hottest pits of Hell.
“We are running out of time, what do you want, Sarah?” Evelyn growled, venom lacing her voice.
“If you want this little brat, you are going to have to pay. She’s of no use to me now.” Sarah aimed her gun at Lily, who began to cry silently. “If you don’t, she’s dead.”
“All of this for money!” Evelyn yelled. “She’s an innocent child! Are you really this far gone?”
“Don’t talk about things you know nothing about,” Sarah said.
“Fine, we’ll give you your money. How much?” I spoke up.
Sarah looked at me. “And who the fuck are you to agree to that?”
“Someone who you don’t want to fuck with. Now, how much?” The time was ticking away, and I needed to make sure everyone got out of here before the explosion hit. I would not lose people I care about, including Badger’s sister.
“One million,” Sarah said, as if she thought we would disagree.
“Done,” I said with easy finality. “Give us the girl, and we will wire it to daddy dearest’s account.”
I knew the team would be pissed at me for taking over the mission, but I couldn’t just sit here waiting as they went back and forth. Time was of the essence.
“How do I know that you aren’t bluffing?” Sarah asked.
“Because you know of Ghost’s reputation. And I am his second. We don’t fuck around with business matters.” I knew I would get an earful from Kade, but in that moment, I didn’t care. I just wanted Lily and the team safe.
Sarah looked down at her watch and her eyes widened, realizing time was almost out, before looking back at me. “You have until midnight, or else I will make sure that the brat is dead.”
“You have my word,” I said with as much affirmation as I could muster.
Sarah looked at me pensively for a moment before turning to the guard holding Lily and nodding.
The guard pushed Lily so hard that she fell to the floor, but she quickly got up and ran to me.
I took it as a sign that she believed that I was here to save her.
We all were, but maybe because I had spoken up, she came to me for safety.
“Oh, and this is so you know I’m not fucking around,” Sarah said.
She shot Bohdi and then Chief in the shoulder, making them both cry out in pain, then casually glanced at her watch.
“One minute and ten seconds before the place blows. Ciao for now. I’ll be looking forward to that money.” Sarah waved before her and her guards turned and ran for the door.
Before they made it out the door, Phantom spoke up. “Sarah!”
Sarah halted and turned around. A shot rang through the air, and she dropped to the ground. In the dimly lit room, I could tell that Phantom had shot her in the stomach.
“Tell Daddy I say hello when you see him in Hell!” Phantom called.
Sarah clenched her stomach as her guards left her in the doorway, scrambling to get out before the explosion.
Monte and Chief stemmed their wounds with their free hands as we all ran to the entryway. Lily stumbled, unable to keep up with my strides. I picked her up, running at full speed with her small, delicate frame in my arms. She clung to me as tightly as she could.
We had just gotten out and were almost to the van when a loud boom shook the air and the building erupted in flames.
Kade wrapped his arms around Evelyn just as the explosion blasted us from behind, sending us falling to the ground.
I tucked Lily into me as I fell on my side and shielded her from the blast. A scream ripped from her chest and she began to cry.
When the explosions finally ceased, I sat up with Lily still clinging to me and looked around.
Everyone was accounted for and was moving, at least to some degree.
Relief flooded me as I realized I wouldn’t have to relive the pain of losing my team again.
I looked down at the young girl. Her bright-green eyes, circled by bruises, bore into mine as fright and a swarm of other emotions crossed her face.
“Who are you?” she asked in a small, frail voice.
“Someone who is making sure that you get to your sister,” I said. “You’re safe now.”
Lily looked at the devastation around us, then at the people who were with me.
“Where is my sister?” Concern spread on her face.
“That’s what I’m about to find out.”