Page 40 of A Ballad of Blackbirds and Betrayal

“This is going to hurt,” Sabrina warned Jenkins, administering a local anesthetic from her kit.“But I need you to stay as still as possible.”

“Not my first bullet hole, Doc,” Jenkins replied, his voice weaker than before.“Just make it quick.”

Sabrina worked with the focus that had made her one of the Navy’s top trauma surgeons, her hands steady despite the adrenaline coursing through her system.The wound was messy, the bullet having torn through muscle and nicked the brachial artery, but thankfully missing bone.She cleaned the area as best she could, then isolated the damaged artery, carefully placing a clamp to stop the hemorrhaging.

“How’s Reaper?”Jenkins asked through clenched teeth, clearly trying to distract himself from the procedure.

“Being Reaper,” Sabrina replied, her hands never pausing in their work.“Charging headfirst into danger while ordering everyone else to stay safe.”

A weak smile touched Jenkins’s lips.“That sounds about right.”

“Incoming movement, east approach,” Santiago warned, his body tensing as he scanned the darkness beyond their position.

Santiago raised his weapon slightly, speaking into his comm.“Control, we have movement from the east.Possible friendlies approaching our position.”

“That’s Warlock and Nightshade,” Cal’s voice confirmed through comms.“They’re heading to your location.”

“Echo Team, this is Santiago,” he reported.“Confirm your approach.”

“Confirmed, we’re coming to you.”Eden’s voice came through immediately.“Two friendlies moving to your position.”

Santiago lowered his weapon as Nate and Eden emerged from the shadows, moving with quick, purposeful strides toward their position.

“Jenkins?”Eden asked, concern evident in her voice as she crouched beside her wounded teammate.

“I’ll live,” he replied weakly.“Thanks to our new doctor.”

“He needs evacuation,” Sabrina said, packing her medical supplies with efficient movements.“The bleeding’s controlled for now, but he needs blood products and proper surgical facilities to repair that artery permanently.”

“Evac team is five minutes out,” Nate reported, scanning the area.“We passed them on the highway.”

The gunfire from the direction of the Gulfstream had ceased, replaced by an ominous silence that made Sabrina’s stomach clench with dread.The aircraft’s engines were still running, their low rumble carrying across the airfield.

“Go,” Santiago urged from his position beside Jenkins.“We’ve got this.”

Sabrina hesitated only a moment before making her decision.“I’m coming with you,” she told Nate and Eden.“If they’ve breached the bioweapon’s containment, you’ll need me.”

“Reaper won’t like it,” Eden warned, though there was a glimmer of respect in her eyes.

“Reaper rarely likes sensible decisions that contradict his own,” Sabrina replied, checking the Glock at her hip.“He’ll have to learn to live with disappointment.”

A faint smile touched Eden’s lips.“I think I’m starting to like you, Doc.”

The three of them moved across the airfield, using the scattered maintenance equipment and fuel trucks for cover as they approached the Gulfstream.Eden coordinated their movements through comms, ensuring each team member’s position was known to all others as they advanced.

The aircraft sat on the tarmac, its engines idling, the boarding stairs still extended.Two bodies lay sprawled on the concrete nearby—Mitchell’s security personnel, Sabrina assumed, taken down by Atticus before they could complete the loading process.

“Alpha One, this is Echo Team on approach,” Nate reported through his comm.“Visual on Gulfstream.No movement.Confirm status.”

When no response came, Eden signaled for them to hold position while she tried again.

“Alpha One, Echo Team on approach.Atticus, do you copy?”

The continued silence was concerning.Nate raised his tactical scope, scanning the area methodically.

“No visual on Alpha One,” he reported, his voice tight with professional concern.“No visible movement inside the aircraft either.”

“Cypher,” Eden spoke into her comm.“Any satellite imagery on the Gulfstream?”

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