Chapter 29 #2
“We can’t leave him alive. You and I know he is going to run straight to Scott. I won’t let either of us be taken again, so if I have to become a disgraced soldier to keep you safe, so fucking be it,” Riley says, his eyes finding Liz’s.
She checks the watch on her wrist. Less than five minutes to get out. Even if she is not completely against it, killing him will alert everyone in the vicinity, making an escape nearly impossible.
“And then what? You’re going to kill everyone else who comes after us? Because, if you kill him, that is exactly what will happen. We will never be safe. We will never have a shot at a real future,” she pleads, checking her watch once more. Panic grows in her chest as the seconds tick by.
“Lizard’s right, man. Half the base will hear the gun shot,” Mikey says.
“Lizard?” she questions. “I’ll deal with you later,” she says with a fire raging in her eyes, sending a chill down Mikey’s spine.
“They won’t hear it if I beat him to death,” Riley replies, smiling down at the fear swirling on Matt’s face.
“That will take time we don’t have. We need to go now if we want any chance of getting out of here, Ry.” Liz steps toward him, wanting to reach out and take the gun from his hand, but can’t risk setting him off. Who knows what demons he is fighting in his mind right now.
“Go. I will catch up. If I’m caught, at least you will be safe,” he says, face softening when he peers over to where she stands.
“No. I just got you back. I won’t leave you,” she says, taking that final step toward him. “I trust him. I don’t think he is lying about getting us out.”
Riley searches her face for any tell that she is lying to keep him from doing what every instinct is screaming at him to do.
He knows the longer he fights himself the more danger they are in, yet he can’t stop.
He watches her check the watch again. Her brows pinch, stress and fear etched into all her stunning features.
They are almost out of time. If anything happens to Liz or the rest of his team it will be his fault.
“Please.”
That one word hits him like a freight train.
Not the word so much as the scared voice saying it.
Realizing he was further gone than he thought, he drops the gun to his side, refusing to holster it.
His grip on Matt loosens. A soft hand slides into his the moment it is free.
The rest of the men let out a collective sigh, knowing that, like Liz, they would have stayed with their leader had things gone sideways.
Riley signals Matt to the back of the group.
To everyone’s surprise, he listens, falling back to be flanked by the other three more than willing to wipe him from existence if anything goes awry.
Riley is the first to make it to the door.
It groans too loud for his liking as it’s pushed open, just wide enough for him to peer out.
Less soldiers than he thought gather outside, none of which seem to be remotely interested in the building they are guarding, or the people sneaking out of it.
Sticking to the shadows, they move quickly, tightening into formation in the hopes that keeps the attention off of them.
The looming gate leading to the surrounding woods comes into view.
So close to freedom Liz can almost taste it.
There is a smaller gate, about thirty feet from the main entrance for small vehicles and personnel.
A handful of Paula’s top men are standing guard, waiting with a fresh bag of clothes for Tyler, Alex, and Mikey.
A wheezy voice crackles through the radio attached to Matt’s vest. The team slows. The voice forces Riley to a halt. He leans into Mikey, whispering something inaudible to the rest of the team. One deep, steadying breath later, and he storms to where Matt stands.
“Follow Mikey. He knows where to go,” Riley orders. His eyes scan over each member of his team before settling back on Matt, glaring right back at him. Mikey, Tyler, and Alex listen, running to their meeting spot. Matt’s hand flies up to his head, activating the earpiece he wears.
“Not yet, sir. I heard they turned east. I am taking my men that way now,” he says, letting his hand fall back to his side.
“I told you I would get you out. You don’t have to trust me, but you do need to let me leave.
I will keep my word and bring my men east. I assume you’re not headed that way.
I don’t know where you’re going, and I don’t want to know. ”
“Thank you,” Liz says, stepping over to him, unsure of what else to say, she simply gives him some advice. “Keep an eye on Scott, when you realize we’re right, go talk to Paula. I’m sure there is more to the divorce than she wants to let on.”
With nothing more than a nod, Matt turns and takes off running, shouting orders through his radio, telling soldiers to gather on the far side of the base, allowing them time to slip away.
By the time they make it to the gate, the rest of the men are changed into their usual black tactical gear.
Crouched in a circle around two deep green duffle bags, the men carefully stuff backpacks full of weapons and gear.
Liz and Riley break off, stripping out of their camouflage uniforms and back into their black clothing underneath.
Liz loads the borrowed clothes into one of the bags while Riley fills the last two backpacks with whatever weapons remain.
Slinging both bags over his shoulders, he stands, corralling everyone into the woods.
The sun is setting, so they need to get as far into the woods as they can before it goes dark.
No more than ten feet into the treeline, a sharp chirp comes from the watch on Liz’s wrist. They made it with seconds to spare.
Liz snatches one bag from Riley’s shoulder, digging out the earpiece before slinging it onto her back.
From the looks of it, Mikey, Tyler, and Alex already have theirs in while Riley fumbles to find his in the bag, stuffing it into his ear after pulling it from his pocket.
The team spreads out, falling right back into mission mode. Far enough to not be ambushed together, but close enough to see the rest of the team weaving through the trees. Mikey and Riley both instinctively sandwich Liz in the middle, staying closer than they should.
“We have a sprinter van waiting for us eight miles out. It’s going to be a rough hike with a lot of people looking for us. Keep your eyes up and your guns ready,” Riley’s strong voice says into her ear.
The confidence in the way he leads his team sends a wave of heat rushing through her body, settling between her legs. She curses at herself, now is not the time to be turned on.
“I have the map, but it’s too risky to stop and check it. If you know the direction, I snagged the compass,” Tyler tells him.
“Northwest. We’ll follow you until the sun is nearly gone. We go the rest of the way together,” Riley says.
They march on. Their escape is no different than any other mission.
Although Liz struggles to slip into the mission headspace, she keeps quiet, focusing on picking her path through the underbrush, trying not to trip over the thick roots hidden beneath.
That task becomes increasingly harder as the sun continues to set, taking away what little light she has.
Every so often, Riley signals for them to stop, listening to their surroundings to make sure it is just the sounds of the forest and not Scott’s men catching up to them.
“It’s getting dark, huddle up. We should be clear to check the map,” Riley orders, stopping to sit on a fallen tree. Liz is quick to join him. Her legs already ache from the miles they walked earlier in the day.
Tyler pulls the map from his bag, along with a flashlight in case it gets too dark before he is finished.
He carefully goes over every detail with the team, explaining the safest route for them to take along with the fastest, suggesting one in the middle that will take them a bit longer, but should hide their position better.
Alex pulls a handful of glow sticks from his bag, handing one to each member of the team.
“Crack it when it gets dark and keep it in your pocket. We don’t know who could be out here with us.” He looks right at Liz, and adds, “If it’s in your pocket, it will hide the glow from anyone not in our formation, but we can still see it and know where you are.”
She thanks him and slides it into her pocket, planning to wait until the rest of them activate theirs before she activates hers. After only a few short minutes, they get back to it. Eight miles will take them hours to walk on easy terrain, through the woods in the dark is only going to add time.
Sticking close, they follow Tyler as he leads them through the charted path.
The forest is chilling at night. The birds are quiet, animals asleep.
The only sounds are the twigs snapping and leaves crunching under their boots.
They walk for hours before any of them feel safe enough to lower their weapons, slinging them across their chests when the moment allows.
So focused on not falling flat on her face, she doesn’t notice Riley getting closer, jumping when his hand brushes hers.
“The van isn’t much further. Are you doing okay?” he asks, stroking his thumb idly across the back of her hand.
“Shouldn’t you be asking them how they are doing?” she asks, struggling to make out his features in the darkness.
“Yes, he should,” Mikey teases, taking a step closer as he pulls out his red glow stick, letting it illuminate his face.
“They are trained for this. I also don’t love them the way I love you,” he says, squeezing her hand despite the various boos now filling the silence.
“Van should be at the bottom of this hill. May have to walk around a bit to find where it’s parked, but if I mapped it right, we should pop out within thirty feet of it. Give or take,” Tyler announces, picking up his pace.
“I’m better after hearing that, but I don’t think I’ll be able to move my legs for days,” Liz says, practically jogging, a death grip on Riley’s hand to keep her from tumbling down the hill, taking everyone out with her.
If there is one thing Tyler excels at, it’s land navigation. Even after being ambushed, thrown in jail, and forced to navigate in the dark with nothing but the light of a glow stick, he still was able to get them where they needed to go.
The van was even closer than she thought it would be, a true testament to his skill.
Liz can’t help the tears that spring to her eyes as that beautiful van comes into view.
She blames it on the fact she is going on twenty-four hours with no food or sleep and hiked nearly twenty miles through dense forest that day.
Riley forces her into the middle bench seat with Mikey, claiming no one knows his face so he is the safest one to drive.
Alex and Tyler take the back seat, snuggling up like teenagers, happy to be reunited after being locked away.
Riley wastes no time pulling down the dirt road, heading right to their safehouse, leaving the evil overtaking the base behind.