Page 54 of Betrayed Auctioned Mate

Keira is a whirlwind of motion, taking advantage of the tactical benefit of her cover. She stays crouched between the fridge and the side of the couch, taking clean shots over the top of the makeshift barricade. She takes down another merc with a precise shot to the head, then spins her gun around to cover me as I engage two more.

We move like a well-oiled machine, covering each other’s blind spots and never exposing the other.

But it’s not enough. There are too many of them, and they keep coming. I spot dark vehicles lined up outside the property.

“We need to move!” I shout over the gunfire. “We can’t stay here!”

Keira nods, her eyes scanning the room for an escape route. “Back door,” she says, and I follow her lead as we fight our way toward it.

Just as we reach the door, another dark shape crashes through the window, tackling me to the ground.

The impact knocks the wind out of me. Time slows, and I’m disoriented. I see stars. But then I hear Keira’s desperate voice cutting through the haze.

“Ado!”

I force myself to focus, grappling with the merc as he tries to pin me down. His hands are around my throat, squeezing tight, but I manage to bring my knee up into his stomach, loosening his grip just enough to reach for my gun.

A single shot rings out, and the merc slumps over, crushing me. I shove him off, gasping for air as I scramble to my feet.

Keira is there, pulling me up, her grip strong and steady.

“Come on,” she urges, and we make a break for the back door, pushing through the chaos and into the night.

Out front, through a sheet of rain, the van sits parked in the driveway, untouched and not blocked in well enough to stop us. It’s the mercs’ one mistake, and it might be the only chance we have.

I see Keira’s eyes flash as she realizes the same thing.

“Go!” she yells, her voice barely audible over the storm.

We sprint and throw ourselves into the van, slamming the doors behind us as I scramble into the driver’s seat. My handsare slick with rain and sweat, but I jam the key into the ignition with trembling fingers.

The engine roars to life, and without a second thought, I slam my foot on the gas.

The tires skid in the mud before catching traction, I swing a tight U-turn around one of the dark cars, and then we’re off, gunning it for the main road as fast as the van can take us.

Beside me, Keira pulls her burner phone from her pocket, her hands shaking as she dials. I glance over for a second, seeing her eyes wide with fear and determination. The phone rings once, twice, and then—

“Olivia, it’s Keira,” she gasps into the phone, her voice urgent. “We were attacked. We’re on the move, heading toward the main road—”

She stops suddenly, her face going pale as she listens to whatever Olivia is saying on the other end of the line. Her eyes go wide with shock, her grip tightening on the phone.

“Shit,” she breathes. “Shit. Ado,drive.”

Chapter 27 - Keira

“Their comms have been cut,” Liv repeats in my ear, her tinny voice tight with panic. “Whoever got into our systems, I just can’t get them out—they’re everywhere—and the team can’t hear me. You need to get to them,now.”

I urge Ado with my hand: faster, faster. He steps hard on the gas, hands tight around the wheel, and the momentum flings me back against my chair.

“Liv,” I say, trying to keep my voice calm. “They’re going to be fine. And we’re fine and on our way to them now. But you need to get to someplace safe. You’re there alone. You need to find somewhere to hunker down.”

Olivia sniffs, then assents. “Okay. Linnea texted to say she’s going to pick me up. I’ll lay low until she gets here.”

“Good.” I take a deep breath. “You and the baby are the most important things. Olivia, I hope you know you’re one of the best friends I’ve had in a long time.”

Olivia laughs wetly. “Don’t you dare,” she warns. “Don’t you even dare.”

I can’t say anything else, my throat too tight to muster words. We end the call.

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