Page 60 of Flint's Battle

“I don’t want excuses. I want to get to the damn boat before anyone knows we took her.”

“Then, you drive. Because cars go off this road every year. Ask McClane. Her friends died not far from here. She’s the only one who made it out alive.”

Morgan gave her a side eye. “Right. That plate in your shoulder that miraculously saved your life. Too bad it looks like your nine lives are up.”

“Maybe.” Emery shrugged her good shoulder. “Or maybe it doesn’t matter how fast or slow you drive because they’ve got a helicopter.”

Morgan scoffed. “Even if they had access to one, no one’s flying in this shit.”

“No civilian pilot, but an ex-Coast Guard officer?” She smiled. “That’s another story, because she’ll fly in anything. Unless you really believe that low echo outside is just thunder.”

Morgan froze. Not enough Emery could make her move, yet, but close. A glimpse of hope that if she timed everything perfectly, she might get an opening.

Bates slowed, looking out the windows at the fog. “I swear I hear something.”

Morgan sneered, shifting back. “She’s lying. Keep driving. And find the damn gas pedal.”

Bates kept scanning the skies, but he sped up, the truck shimmying a bit when it hit some standing water.

Morgan eyed her, brow furrowed. His lips curved into a hint of a frown. “You can shut up, now.”

“You’re the one who told me to talk.” Emery made a point of ducking her head enough to stare out Morgan’s window. “Not that it matters. It’s all gonna be over in about five seconds, so…”

Bates snapped his head to the right, swerving the SUV onto the shoulder. The sudden shift in direction tipped Morgan off to the left, then slammed him against the rear door when Bates overcorrected — had them crossing over into the left lane.

That was all Emery needed to make a move. A click of the seatbelt and she slid over to Morgan’s side — giving him a firm elbow to the head. Smashing his face into the window. A shift and a reach, and she had both hands over his on the grip of his gun — managed to aim it toward the front.

Morgan countered, hitting her in the shoulder. Nearly blacking her out. Until she head-butted the guy. Probably splither damn forehead open, but it knocked him back. Loosened his hold on the gun.

One last body slam and she’d redirected the muzzle as she helped him pull the trigger…

The report boomed through the cab, splattering blood across the interior as Bates jerked then bobbed forward, — collapsing over the steering wheel. Lights cut through the fog in front of them, an on-coming car barely veering out of the way as the vehicle cut hard to the left, heading for the barriers.

The shift jostled them left then right, Morgan’s gun clattering to the floor when the sheer momentum tore it from their grasp. Morgan shouted as he shoved her off, scrambling for his seatbelt. Emery managed to spin — wrap her left arm around the seatbelt before giving him one final boot to the head — as the SUV crashed through the metal fence lining the road. Glass splintered through the interior, one peg shooting through the windshield and embedding in the seat between them. Gravel crunched beneath the tires, the posts grinding across the hood of the car as it careened toward the edge.

The tires must have caught on the fencing wire because the front end dug in, jackknifing the vehicle up and over — vaulting it off the edge. Emery flew up, hitting the rear window as the SUV spun, tossing everything not tied down into the air. Glass and debris flew through the interior, that metal post working loose and shooting out the rear window — nearly clipping Emery in the process. A moment of free fall — of Morgan held in place by the belt — then there were turning. Racing down toward the rocks.

Emery hit the top of Bates’ seat then bounced back just as the SUV landed on the embankment, still sliding down the rocks and dirt before grinding to a halt. Tossing everything toward the front. She hit hard, getting wedged somewhere behind the driver’s seat as the sides caved in around her. She thoughtMorgan was shouting her name, but it faded into the hum of the engine. What sounded like the surf crashing into the rocks below them. There was a distant thudding noise — that chopper sound she’d lied about — then nothing.

CHAPTER 19

Twenty minutesand there still wasn’t anything around but rain and fog — hints of that lightning Blake had mentioned flashing in the clouds out over the ocean. The kind of storm that would ground Blake, insane skills or not.

Raider had radioed that Jack was in surgery. He’d lost a lot of blood, but the doctors had said it looked promising. No guarantees, but it beat already being dead. What Flint feared might be Emery’s fate.

He gave himself a mental slap. He’d find her. Alive. The only acceptable outcome because he wanted a future beyond the Teams. And that future started with her.

His headset crackled, followed by Blake’s voice. “I’ve got a vehicle up ahead on the left. I’ll gain a bit of altitude so we don’t panic anyone inside before we get a look at the roof. See if it’s got those thermal markings Jack mentioned. So, everyone stay frosty.”

Frosty? Flint was sub-zero. A hundred percent focused. Just like his team.

The machine tilted up, climbing through the fog, not that Flint could really tell. He felt it, but they’d been surrounded by gray for so long, he knew he couldn’t trust his senses. Atestament to how skilled Blake was. How much he’d owe her if they actually pulled this off.

The chopper leveled, dancing around in the up and down drafts, the gusty conditions thinning the fog a bit. Twin beams illuminated a patch of mist beneath them, the vehicle’s silhouette phasing in and out of sight. Flint squinted, aware he wouldn’t be able to see the thermal markings but needing to feel as if he was doing something. That he’d be able to sense if Emery was close.

Having Blake yell, “Hell yeah,” into the headset was all the confirmation he needed. Got his team on their feet and readying their equipment.

She clicked the mic, holding the chopper steady. “Mission’s a go, boys. Flint? How would you like to… holy shit!”

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