CHAPTER NINE
Something felt off. I worked undercover for a long time, so my main task was to get in and get out without raising suspicion. The job was dangerous enough without my having to raise a gun at anyone. I was nothing short of a gazelle dressed as a wolf, trying to blend in with the pack. It wasn’t my best analogy, but it was true.
It’d been a while since I was part of an offensive assignment. I remembered the excitement right before engaging. How in tune I felt with everything surrounding me. The smell, the sound, my partners. Every single element told me what I needed to hear. It was like that during my Ranger days. It was like that when I joined the DEA.
But at that moment, when I was about to burst into one of the cartel’s compounds, all those elements were telling me there was something wrong.
We were supposed to catch them red-handed. The Alacráns knew nothing about our plans. So, they should be going on with their lives and errands until we’d barge in and get the party started.
It wasn’t supposed to be that silent. That organized. That ominous.
Pushing my wariness aside, I tried to convince myself I was just rusted and I’d find my groove soon enough.
What I found, though, was a trap.
Aaron and I were conducting two teams with our most trusted people. We went over the blueprint and every possible scenario that could come out of our operation. We just never counted on being handed to the cartel on a silver platter by one of our own.
“ Everyone in position ?” Aaron asked in my earpiece.
“Yes. I spotted the girls.” They were our priority and the main reason we were about to invade that place.
“ Their first group is on the move . ”
We watched from afar when the first truck left the premises, as Mia had predicted. We set our timers and waited. Our mission was precise, tightly timed, and didn’t allow mistakes. After the first time-mark—when the first group would be far enough away they wouldn’t have time to go back and attack us—the show would start.
Wait. Invade. Attack. Rescue. Leave.
It seemed simple enough.
“ T-minus. Five. ”
“Four.”
“ Three. ”
“Two.”
“ One .”
“Let’s go.”
From each of our posts, we descended into the Alacráns’ turf. We were in tactical gear, so we should be camouflaged for a while longer. Long enough to catch them by surprise.
That was, if they weren’t already expecting us.
As soon as we reached their warehouse, all hell broke loose.
Without so much as a warning, they opened fire against us. That was when I realized there was no getting out.
“ We’re under attack! Fuck! Ethan, situation? ”
My team and I faced them head-on. But we were no match.
“We’re also under fire! Fuck! We need to find a way around.” I quickly considered our options and ordered my men, “Team Alpha, retreat!”
We tried stepping back, but the first truck—that was supposed to be far away—came back and attacked as well from another front.
It was clear the cartel was waiting for us. They outnumbered us by more than we anticipated, their weaponry far surpassing what we could handle, and they seemed to have intimate knowledge of our operations, including when and how we were planning to act. From my peripheral vision, I saw some of my people get hit, and I felt useless.
“ There’s no way around. How did they know we were coming? ”
“We’re being overpowered. We need to join both teams, or they’ll keep decimating us.” My team and I tried our best to drag the fallen ones to a safer place—as if there were such a thing in the hell we just got ourselves into.
Our attackers were getting closer, so we needed to act fast.
“Aaron, what’s your twenty?”
“ I’m still—fuck, there’s no getting out. We were able to advance until the truck with the girls was visible. ”
I looked around as much as I could without getting shot in the head. “We still need to get them out.”
“ Our priorities kind of shifted, Ethan. We’re no good to them if we’re dead .”
More shooting back and forth. They seemed closer.
“We’ll have a better chance of staying alive if we’re together anyway.”
The group that came back was hot on us. If we were able to reach Aaron’s team, we could be somewhat safer—away from the first truck—and we could advance together on the other two groups.
It wasn’t ideal. But in that situation, staying alive was already good enough.
“Aaron, cover for us. We’re coming to you,” I turned to my team between shooting. “Get ready. In three.”
“ Team Beta, FIRE! ”
At Aaron’s order, his team advanced, creating an opening for us. Alpha and I crossed the warehouse where they’d ambushed us and sought safety again behind whatever we could find. Shelves, furniture, countertops, cars. The place was huge, and it was filled with scorpions . We ran to the wall at the back of the building, and as soon as we reached the Beta Team, they retreated, so we could have a few seconds to regroup before reengaging .
In the distance, I could see the truck with the girls. When one of them appeared through the window, my heart constricted. The scared look in her already beaten eyes renewed my rage and determination.
“This can’t be for nothing. We should advance one group at a time to open a clearing. The girls deserve a chance to get out.”
Aaron stared into my eyes and nodded with resolve. “So, let’s die trying.” He reloaded his rifle. “Tomorrow, we rest.”
I had no idea what that meant, but it felt empowering in a way.
Being somewhat hidden from the group that attacked us from behind, we concentrated our efforts on taking down the other two first, one at a time.
Aaron and I stood from our positions and advanced as precisely and safely as we could, with both our teams on our tow. We managed to get closer, close enough for me to recognize Tequila , the man who was replacing Matias for the time being.
We were close enough to believe we could pull it off.
But we should’ve known better than to believe we could match the power of one of the most dangerous cartels. We hadn’t seen it all yet.
It was only when Aaron was hit and fell by my side, and the Alacráns forced me to get down on my knees and drop my weapon that I understood we weren’t there to save the girls. We weren’t there fighting for the greater good.
We were there for the cartel’s sacrificial ritual. And Aaron and I were the lambs.