Page 61 of Dark Rebel's Mystery

The question was whether to ambush the convoy on the way to the compound or on the way out, and Kyra preferred the second option. It might have been unfair, and the new prisoners might have been more important than the ones currently being held, but Kyra needed to save Twelve.

"Thank you." She got out of bed. "I'm betting they will have to empty the current holding cells to make room so that the same transport will be heading back with them, probably the following day. We will hit them on their way back. I am just hoping that Twelve will be among them."

It was a gamble, but it was also all she had.

"Wake up the others and tell them to come to my tent. We need to plan the ambush."

A mocking smile lifted Zara's lips. "Aren't you going to leave it up to Soran? I thought you wanted him to take the lead."

"I do, but this is still over his head." Kyra was already pulling on a pair of loose fatigues. "Tell the others to be here and then go to sleep."

"I want to be here." Zara crossed her arms over her chest.

Kyra arched a brow. "You can't keep going after a night mission. You'll have to sit this one out."

Zara shook her head. "I'm so pumped with adrenaline that there is no way I will be able to sleep. This is the biggest mission since we freed the other prisoners."

Kyra winced. "I'm surprised they didn't pursue us after that rescue and are still bringing people here. It almost feels like a trap."

Zara shrugged. "Those people weren't all that important, and we shipped them out the same day. Your decision to make our base here, right under their noses, was brilliant. All they can see are a bunch of refugees living in tents and half-ruined houses."

All their vehicles looked beaten up and old, with dents everywhere and missing glass in the windows. When used during the day, they rattled and groaned as if their engines were about to die. It was all for show, and once the noise makers were removed, they moved like the well-maintained machines they were.

"So, can I join?" Zara asked again.

"Fine." Kyra waved her off. "Go, now. I need to get ready. Oh, and tell Parisa to come here and get her things. I'm not going in her place today."

The woman was enjoying collecting pay for work she didn't do, so she wouldn't be too happy about returning to mopping floors.

A grin spread over Zara's face. "Hallelujah. Finally, this is over."

"Let's hope so." Kyra pushed her feet into her boots and collected her toiletries.

She hoped that this would be the end of her compound infiltration duties, and after this mission they would probably need to move their base somewhere else.

But it was worth it to free not just Twelve but also the other prisoners who'd suffered their share of incarceration in that vile interrogation center.

Regrettably, they couldn't save the incoming prisoners as well.

42

KYRA

The plan was straightforward. Hamid's group would block the narrow pass from above, forcing the convoy to slow or reroute, and then Kyra's team would strike from behind the ridge line. Ideally, they would isolate the prisoners' truck, free them, and vanish before the enemy knew what hit them.

Even if they called for reinforcements, none would arrive in time.

The rebels and the freed prisoners would be long gone.

Although communication with the scouts watching the compound was minimal and coded, the watchers still managed to relay pertinent information to the ambush team. The new prisoners had been unloaded from the van and brought into the compound, and those vacating the premises had been herded out. The watchers hadn't reported how many had been loaded into the vans, though, or whether any of them were females.

Kyra closed her hand over her pendant, which remained suspiciously cool against her skin. This was a good sign becauseheat often served as a warning, but it could also indicate a failed mission.

She was all too aware that the enhanced soldiers might be accompanying the convoy, but it didn't matter. She was going to face them, and she was going to achieve her objective despite them because she had no other choice.

Crouching behind a rocky outcrop, Kyra watched the pass below while dust clouds billowed from a winding road as the convoy approached. Beside her, Soran scanned the vehicles through a pair of binoculars.

She didn't need them to see the convoy clearly.

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