Page 23 of Dark Rebel's Fortune

Now you are warning me? When the danger is obvious?

You're useless.

"We'll get to them." Max took her hand, reading the fear and fury in her expression. "We're not too late."

Kyra wished she could believe him. Questions assaulted her thoughts in rapid fire. Had they taken Yasmin's husband alive or gunned him down for interference? They weren't human, so they could've just snapped his neck and done that right in front of his children. She could practically hear the terrified cries that must be echoing in that house right now.

As the vans pulled away from the safe house and accelerated through the streets, her mind raced with horrific scenarios. What if they arrived only to find the entire family already gone? What if the Doomers had killed the parents and taken the kids?

Hang on,she directed the sentiment toward asister she couldn't remember and children she'd never met.I'm coming for you.

The van swerved around a corner, horn blaring to clear pedestrians from its path. Through the windshield, Kyra could see the traffic parting before them, startled faces turning to watch them speeding away. She felt the adrenaline spike flowing through her veins, every sense sharpened as her body prepared for the imminent fight.

Drawing on years of combat experience, she steeled herself for what they might find and pushed down the personal terror threatening to overwhelm her focus. One way or another, the Doomers would learn they had made a grave mistake—and Kyra vowed she would not let them slip away unscathed.

10

MAX

As the van careened around a corner, tires screeching in protest, Max braced himself against the door. Through the windshield, Tehran's afternoon traffic parted like the Red Sea before Moses—drivers swerving frantically to avoid the three-vehicle convoy barreling through the streets with total disregard for traffic laws.

This would draw a lot of attention, but Yamanu couldn't shroud them when they needed people to get out of their way.

Centuries of combat experience had taught Max to use the moments before engagement to center himself and find that cold, clear focus that had kept him alive through countless battles, but this time it was personal, and getting into the zone was impossible.

Kyra was radiating barely contained waves of fury and fear that were impossible to block. They wereaffecting him as if he were connected to her with wires.

"Two minutes to target," Nadim said with a calmness that would have been enviable if it weren't fake.

Even without smelling the human's fear, Max could see the guy's white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel.

Yamanu activated his earpieces, linking with the teams in the other vans. "Listen up. We're approaching Yasmin's house. At least two hostiles were seen entering the house, but there could be more, and they are likely enhanced soldiers."

Nadim had no idea that the people he was dealing with were not human, so enhanced was the code word for Doomers. Still, he might notice things he shouldn't know about, so after the mission they would in any case need to scrub some of his memories.

"Remember, our priority is the safety of Yasmin and her children," Yamanu said. "Jade, you go in from the back with Dima and Anton. Rishba and Asuka, you protect our flank. Max, Kyra, you are with me through the front door. Nadim, you stay with the vans."

A chorus of acknowledgments came through the earpieces.

"I see smoke," Kyra said suddenly, leaning forward between the front seats and pointing toward a dark column rising in the distance.

Max's jaw tightened. Smoke could mean manythings, none of them good. "Faster," he instructed Nadim, who nodded and floored the accelerator.

As they turned onto the street where Yasmin's house stood, Max caught movement at the far end of the road—two black SUVs speeding away.

"They are moving north," he called. "At least two vehicles, high speed."

Jade's voice crackled back immediately. "We see them. Permission to pursue?"

Yamanu's reply was immediate. "Affirmative. Jade, you follow these vehicles but do not engage unless absolutely necessary. Track and report position."

"Understood," came the terse reply, followed by the sound of an engine revving as the second van broke formation to chase the fleeing SUVs.

Nadim pulled their van to an abrupt stop half a block away from Yasmin's house—close enough for a rapid response but far enough to avoid a potential ambush. The second van, carrying Dima and Anton, stopped behind them.

"Dima, secure the vans," Yamanu said. "Anton, go around the back. Max and Kyra, let's go!" he said, weapon already in hand.

Regrettably, Yamanu's shrouding was useless against Doomers, and it didn't make sense for him to waste his energy on the humans.

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