Chapter 45
By the second morning Liz is positive she isn’t the only one unable to sleep.
The waiting and anticipation are slowly driving her insane.
When the first rays of light filtered in through the tiny windows, everyone was on their feet.
After a quick breakfast of rehydrated eggs, they got into their gear and spent the rest of the morning waiting for General Langford to reach back out.
The sharp static that comes from the small device forces everyone to a stop. Every set of eyes watches as Riley steadily walks over, waiting for General Langford to speak to him.
“Corson, you there?” his voice cuts through the thick crackles.
“Yes, sir.”
“My men are twelve miles out. Ground forces are in position around the perimeter. The airstrike will be carried out within the hour. My lead satellite controller will update you from here on out.”
“Thank you, sir,” Riley says.
“We have eyes on Murphy. He was last spotted fleeing in a black SUV, unarmored. Three vehicles with ten men are with him, give or take. Murphy is in the middle. Taking the main road to your location. Approximately thirty minutes until he reaches you,” the new voice calls.
Liz instantly feels nauseous. The rest of the team is on their feet, piling the last of their gear on. Mikey radios to Matt and Liam to get back to base.
“Thank you. I am putting one of mine on, relay any information you can to her, and she will get it to us,” Riley tells him. He locks eyes with Maya, signaling her to go to him.
“You’re sitting this one out. We need to know everything she says, the second he says it, understood?”
“Yes, sir,” Maya practically whispers.
Liz watches the poor girl. She looks terrified, and it brings her right back to that first real mission she demanded to go on.
The sound of a bullet tearing through flesh echoes through her ears.
Pushing the thought out of her head, Liz throws herself into the rest of her gear and piles her weapons onto her body.
When she is fully geared up, Liz takes over for Riley, teaching Maya how to relay messages so he can get ready.
Within minutes the team barrels out the door and drops into position.
So full of fear and adrenaline, Liz is sweating under her layers.
Slowly, she looks around, unable to spot any of the team in their positions, easing her anxiety slightly.
If she knows where they are and still can’t find them, chances are Dmitri’s men won’t find them either.
A soft, timid voice cuts through the silence. “Convoy is two miles from the explosives,” Maya says into their earpieces.
“I have eyes on it. Everyone stay in position and wait for detonation,” Mikey orders.
The world around them stills. The wind slows.
The birds stop chirping. It’s like the whole area is holding its breath, waiting to see what is going to happen.
The only indicator of what’s to come is the glint of sun reflecting off Alex’s scope.
While Mikey detonates his explosives, Alex will shoot through the window of the last car, stopping Scott’s vehicle from escaping.
From there, the remainder of the team goes in on foot, wiping out the rest of the men transporting him. Unable to close her eyes, Liz focuses on breathing through the anxiety, trying to ignore her brain screaming everything that could go wrong.
The blast shakes her to her core. The ground rumbles beneath her as Mikey detonates his explosives, sending the first vehicle rolling onto its side.
Pulling her mask down from her helmet, she climbs to her feet, gun aimed and ready.
By the time she makes it the short distance to the explosion, most of the team is there, trying to shield themselves from incoming fire.
Gunshots on both sides ring out around them.
Liz skirts around the building, finding Riley and Mikey ducking behind trees between shots.
She stays hidden, firing her own weapon at the men tucked behind the cars.
There is so much chaos hidden in the smoke, she has no way of knowing if their shots are landing.
The only indicator is the sound of less and less shots being fired until they stop altogether.
Riley signals to her, Mikey, and anyone else who may be concealed around them. They stop firing for only a moment.
“Push forward. The three of us will come in from this side. Matt, Neil, Lauren, go in from the back. John, Liam, Tyler, get to the other side. If they try to flee, stop them,” Riley orders.
“Already here, no one has made it out, but the smoke is too thick on this side. We can’t fire into it without risking one of ours,” Tyler responds.
With nothing more than a nod of his head, Riley leads the three of them out into the open.
With nowhere to hide, they keep their guns up, watching every direction as they march into the smoke.
Bodies litter the ground. The pristine white snow is stained with deep red blood and obsidian smoke sticking to it.
Stupidly, she checks each one, looking for both the masks on her team and faces of the men who once tortured her.
So engrossed in the twisted faces under her feet, Liz didn’t notice the man step from the smoke.
The sharp crack of the gun yanks her back, looking up to find Riley slamming the man onto the ground.
She aims her gun, ignoring the dull ache in her arm when she does.
Heart racing, she tries to aim at the man fighting with Riley.
Her eyes dart to Mikey, but he is nowhere to be found.
She can’t hold the gun steady, every time she has a clear shot of the man, one of them throws a punch, moving them enough to put Riley at risk.
Her breath quickens. All the training they have put her through, and this scenario has never come up.
Riley’s on top of the man, his fist slamming into the man’s face relentlessly.
When he finally stops fighting, Riley stands, firing a single shot into his chest.
His face is covered in blood as his head lolls to the side. Bile rises in her throat. There, on the side of his neck, is the strange devil tattoo, the one that seemed to mock her every time the man would beat her.
“Back is clear, last car is empty,” a voice calls in her ear.
“First car is also clear,” Mikey announces.
She stands straighter, lifting her aching arm again. The death and destruction can make her sick later. Now, she still has a mission.
Riley glances from her to her arm, then back to her.
She glances down, unable to see much past the thick coat.
From what she can see, there is nothing out of the ordinary.
She shakes her head at him and moves on.
They trudge through the snow and smoke together, carefully watching each other’s backs.
“Move up, everyone convene on the second vehicle. Stay focused, we don’t know how many are left in there,” Riley orders.
The words hit her like a truck. If she had stayed focused Riley would not have risked his life to keep her safe yet again. Boots crunch in the snow behind them. Liz would know those footsteps anywhere. Mikey pops up beside her, his eyes going wide behind his mask.
“Darlin, your arm—”
“Is fine. I’m a little sore. I think I was pressed against that rock a little too hard. Can we just get this over with?” she snaps, interrupting him. She lifts her weapon higher, hoping to push past the ache and make everyone stop looking at her like she can’t handle her gun.
The three of them march on, meeting up with the rest of the team in front of Scott’s car.
“I was right,” Mikey announces. “We look fucking awesome. The smoke really helps.”
Ignoring him, Riley carefully steps up to the car door.
The team has it surrounded, guns up and ready to fire should anyone try anything.
He tucks himself against the side, pulling a small handgun from his leg holster.
Mikey steps up to the other side, completely in sync with Riley.
He grips the handle. Riley gives him a small nod, and the door is ripped open.
Riley steps into the space, gun up, screaming at Scott to get on the floor.
He reaches in, ripping the man free of the vehicle and tosses him onto the blood-soaked snow.
Long gone is the man who would attempt to fight Reaper.
Now, he is just a man with fear in his eyes, cowering in the snow while the people he once controlled stand ready to take his life.
Riley grips his arm, pulling him to his feet where Mikey is waiting to zip tie his hands behind his back and lead him into their makeshift base.
The team surrounds him, walking him miles through the snow to where they can tie him up and figure out what to do now that they finally have him in their grasp.