Page 16 of Dalla's Royal Guards
Twin shafts from a bow protruded from their chests, still quivering as the men twisted and fell. The merc in front ofNasser jerked the barrel of his gun, following a threat that Nasser couldn’t see, and then the merc’s head snapped back as something slashed outward at a blinding speed, striking him across the chin and opening a long cut. The merc’s finger tightened on the trigger of his weapon, and a spray of bullets pitted the brick and plaster of the building behind them.
Nasser grabbed his M4 off the ground and shot the merc before he could recover. The man’s comrades across the street sprayed the ground in front of them. It was only a matter of time before a bullet hit the leaking Range Rover.
“Protect the woman and child.”
Nasser flinched at the sharp command of a woman’s voice above him. He glanced up, but all he could see from his position was someone standing boldly on the undercarriage of the Range Rover.
His eyes widened with disbelief when the figure fitted an arrow into the longbow she was holding. She pulled back the string and released it. His gaze instinctively followed the flight of the arrow. It struck a merc on the second-floor balcony across from them.
The man clutched his chest before he tumbled over the railing.
“Nasser!” Musad was crouched behind a delivery van fifteen feet away.
Nasser pushed off the ground and reached a hand behind him for Nanna. Musad motioned to him, but his brother’s eyes were fixed on the person standing on the overturned SUV.
Musad suddenly rose to his feet and released a burst of cover fire at a merc that appeared from behind a parked car. Nassertwisted and fired as well, shielding Nanna and Cianna between his body and the Range Rover.
“Now!” Musad said.
Nasser gripped Nanna’s elbow and helped her to her feet. It was awkward with Cianna in her arms, but the older woman didn’t murmur a word of complaint. Nasser jogged toward his brother while Musad, Donovan, and the other two men in their team covered them.
“Donovan, you and the others take Nanna and Cianna to the waiting cars and get them to the safe house,” Musad instructed.
Donovan and the two men flanked Nanna and Cianna, quickly guiding them down a back alley that was partially protected from view by the van. Nasser looked back at the Range Rover. The woman who had been standing on the vehicle was gone. A thick plume of smoke now rose from the engine compartment.
“Where’s Colin?”
Musad’s inquiry drew a curse from Nasser. He had forgotten about Colin. His gaze moved to the Range Rover.
“Shit!” The curse slipped from him.
He started forward only to be blown back into Musad when the gas leaking from the Range Rover ignited and the vehicle exploded in a fiery ball.
Nasser rolled onto his side. His ears were ringing from the explosion. He shook his head in disorientation. Reaching out, he swept his hand across the debris-littered sidewalk, blindly searching for his weapon. Waves of thick smoke rolled off the burning vehicle. The acidic cloud caused his eyes to burn. Beside him, Musad staggered to his feet.
“What…” Musad’s voice faded.
Nasser braced one hand against the van and pulled himself to his feet. Like a mirage emerging out of the desert, a woman appeared with one arm around Colin and the other gripping a longbow. Colin stumbled as they drew closer.
“Take him,” the woman ordered.
Nasser and Musad both reached for Colin at the same time. The older man sagged in pain. Before either of them could speak, the woman cut in again.
“Move.”
He and Musad were already ducking and moving to the side when the woman pulled a long shaft from the quiver on her back, fitted the arrow, and pulled the string back. When she released it, Nasser stiffened as the arrow whistled less than an inch from his ear and over his right shoulder.
A sickening thud confirmed her aim was true. The force of the impact lifted the merc coming up behind them into the air and threw him back. The man slammed into the windshield of a parked car.
“Let’s go,” Musad said.
Nasser nodded and tightened his grip around Colin’s waist. The older man grunted in pain but didn’t complain. Nasser kept glancing over his shoulder as they moved down the narrow alley. The woman followed them, also keeping a watchful eye for more enemies.
Tires screeched at the alley’s end—a sound Nasser welcomed. Henri jumped out of the driver’s seat of a sand-colored Land Cruiser and opened the back door. Nasser supported Colin andhelped him into the back seat while Musad slid into the driver’s seat.
“Enrique and I will take care of anyone trying to follow you. Do you need a doctor?” Henri asked, glancing curiously at the woman who had her back to the vehicle.
“No, we have one with us,” Nasser replied. He reached out and gripped the woman’s arm, motioning for her to get into the front passenger seat. She silently climbed into the vehicle, and he shut the door. “Thank you. Please give our thanks to your brother and the others for all their help.”
