Chapter 29
twenty-nine
It is quiet at first as we make our approach.
A few of my men, along with the twins and Liam, cover me from the ground.
We inch along the outer perimeter like shadows skulking in the night.
One by one, each guard on the outer stretch falls to our blades without a sound.
No one will know they are missing until it is too late, and then all hellfire will rain down from above.
Through the unsupported section of fence, we make our way into a garden that spans the back of the mansion. It is covered in large bushy hedges that provide the perfect cover. Not that we need much with our snipers having set up in the forest surrounding us, their rifles ready.
The layout of the mansion suggests there is a basement beneath the main floor. No doubt that is where Ava is being held. The tracker hasn’t lit back up again. That is all the confirmation we need. The plan is meticulously drawn to prevent unnecessary casualties on our end.
I could give two fucks about anyone else, but there are a few people I am looking at keeping alive.
Whoever holds Seamus McDonough’s face and whoever the woman is who took my wife.
I will add more as necessary.
“You’ve got four bogies just inside the back door,” Mark informs us over the comm line. “Two inside the front. Huh…” He pauses dramatically.
“What is wrong?” I ask. “Why the pause?”
“There should be more people,” he says. “The heat signatures inside the house are all roaming. They’re obviously guards, but no one is just sitting still or doing normal activities. No staff. Nothing.”
“Are you saying Ava might not be here?” I snarl.
“No,” Bridget speaks up, her husky voice calm and weirdly soothing. “It just means that whoever took Ava might not be there. But she still could be.”
“Do you think they were expecting us?” Seamus whispers next to me. I shake my head.
“I doubt it,” I assure him. “Otherwise, this place would be abandoned, or we’d be looking at an ambush.”
“Still could be,” Liam admits. “If the basement blocks RFID and GPS, it might block infrared.”
I shrug. “I’ll risk it.”
And that is when hellfire rains down.
Maksim and Leon have planted C4 along the outer banks of the house. Nothing structural. It is just enough to shake the mansion and maybe knock a few bricks loose. The walls shake, glass shattering, and shouts from inside the house grow louder.
I surge forward, taking out the first guard who comes toward the shattered sliding glass door with ease.
Then another explosion. This one is closer to the front of the house.
We don’t slow our pace as we clear a path through the back of the house toward the basement door that is just off the servants’ quarters.
We don’t have a lot of time before the enemy’s reinforcements arrive or the building collapses beneath the strain of the explosions.
I take out my Beretta. Subtlety isn’t necessary any longer. They know we are here to take back what is ours. A bullet whizzes past my head, missing me by mere centimeters, burying itself in the pillar behind me. A flash of ginger hair catches my eye.
He has come out of the basement.
“What a way to meet,” the man yells. His Irish accent is rough, more pronounced than any of the Kavanaughs. He grew up on the island. “I’m a huge fan of your wife, Mr. Dashkov.”
I growl, my chest rumbling with the depth of the vibration. “You’re about to be a dead fan, stranger.”
The man has the gall to laugh.
“That isn’t how my story ends, I’m afraid.” Another bullet leaves his chamber. I don’t bother to fire back. He is too well hidden, and it is a waste of ammo. “But I was so glad to get a taste of that sweet Irish homeland while I was here. I can see why you married her.”
“Come out here and face us, you sap,” Liam roars from my side. “I’ll give you a taste of the homeland myself.”
“Is that the famous Liam Kavanaugh?” the man crows. “Oh, wait until I tell the boys back home all about this. They’ll be singing my name down at the pub.”
“Can’t sing if you’re dead, mate,” he hollers.
The man laughs again. “One day, Kavanaugh,” he hollers back. “Until then, though, I’ll tell you this: Noah Kelly sends his regards.”
Liam tenses next to me. Whoever this Kelly man is, he isn’t a friend of his. Another explosion rocks the mansion. This one isn’t ours.
I can hear the man’s retreating footsteps on the wooden floor.
He is gone.
But that doesn’t matter.
The only thing that matters is getting to my wife.
“Let’s go.” I incline my head at the open door the man entered from.
Slowly, we descend the steps into the basement and into the dimly lit corridor.
We follow the dark hallway deeper into the house, our eyes alert.
Most of the doors are open. Some hang off their hinges.
Damage that hasn’t been caused by the explosions.
The air is damp and smells of mildew. The rough, concrete walls close in the space surrounding us, swallowing the dim lights that swing from above.
The sound of shuffling feet stops me cold.
I hold up my fist to stop the others. Pointing at my ear to convey I’ve heard a sound, I peek around the corner where the hallway diverges into a sharp turn that leads into a larger room. Another sound. This time, it is the sound of a rifle bolt.
More shuffling of feet, but it is just one pair.
Turning back to the others, I signal my findings.
One man.
Large room.
On my mark.
Bang.
I fire a shot from my gun, a feminine scream sounding from behind the large wooden door that stands to one side as the guard drops to the floor.
Ava.
I found her.