Page 127 of The Boss
He goes on, repeating the instructions one more time, “We’ll bank left with L3 and the other three, Kilo team, will bank right and cross the street. We’ll use the overpass wall and hopefully surprise them from behind. Calvary mission objective is toprovide cover for the wounded and use all non-lethal means necessary to push the enemy to retreat.”
“Wait, what?” I ask, shaking.
“No killing,” Allie’s voice answers in my headset. “Just like you did at the spa. Defend yourself but shoot to injure.”
“You think the Russian mafia isn’t shooting to kill down there?” I yell back.
“We are not the mafia. We value human life and leave the damnation to God himself. Copy?” Allie says. “Twenty seconds, Luna. Copy to engage.”
“Copy!” I say, getting up out of my seat so I can hop through the doorway as soon as we land. “But for the record, I think your rules are really stu—” my words are cut off when I jump down and hit the pavement way harder than I thought.
Shit! Ow! Damn it!
My hip hurts, but I can tell whatever cocktail I was just injected with is working its magic. I can still run behind the men. We’ve landed above the action and about one block over. Half our team is sprinting to the exit ramp across the intersection, we’re going to walk along the exit ramp wall on this side. We can hear the shooting below. The whole area is deserted thanks to Allie and Robbie and whoever else changes the colors of the stoplights and scrambles the NYPD’s comms.
The gunfire rattles me. And I was rattled before we touched down. But Van is down there.I’m coming, baby. I’m coming and I’m sorry!
We reach the end of the wall providing cover and L2 looks back to me and L3 in front of me. He flashes some sign language I don’t understand and then throws—wait, did he just throw a grenade?
BOOM!
Another hand signal and another grenade.
BOOM! BOOM!
Grenades? So much for not killing people! Fine by me! I run behind the soldiers, guns up and eyes alert. We’re behind the two cleaning vans. A couple men are on the ground, starting to stir, a few further forward are on their feet. All in black bloc, all heavily armed. One, two…six men here but they all seem frozen. So we did surprise them!
Yes!But, shit, now they’ve turned, getting up or reaching around and aiming their fire on us instead of Quinn’s Hummer. I can’t see him. I think I saw two men still standing by the dark green vehicle though.
Please be alive, Van. I’m coming!
Two stay down, hit worst by the grenades. But four remain and bullets start to whiz past.
“Shit!” I scream. I take both guns and shoot. I try to slow my breathing, to aim, to think. But I can’t, I just shoot shoot shoot. Anything that moves. Somewhere in my mind I remember not to hit their heads. Chests are fine since everyone wears kevlar.
L2 and L3 are not moving. They’re just shielding me from the worst of it, which pisses me off. They should be advancing! Quinn’s still pinned down on the other side! Where are the three others from our Calvary team?
“L-Team move! Go! Go! Go!” I try. I have kevlar on too. I’m the only one who got an injection of what must be some kind of human rocket fuel. I feel fine! I’ll be fine! “Guys! Fuckingmove!”
Finally, they listen, and as we go, I hear him, a warrior’s cry that rings out through the deserted concrete alleyway, “LUNAAAA!”
Just hearing his voice changes everything. My trainer, my coach, my leader, my friend, my lover…he’s right there.I just need to get to him.Everything comes into focus. I use the back corner of a van for support on my injured side and choose a target, breathe, shoot.
Hit!
I got him in his right arm. He curses and switches arms to shoot lefty but L2 takes him out with a shot in the leg. L3 has one guy in a fist fight, I shift to shoot but he pulls a gun from his back and smashes it into the Russian’s head. He falls and L3 shoots each hand then moves on.
“Ah!” I yell as a bullet hits the van right next to me. I shoot back, unfocused cover fire until there’s a pause. I see L2 shooting the two men at the front of the second delivery van. One pops up and L3 shoots from his side and hits him in the shoulder. I can’t help but wish he’d gone for the head shot.God, look at us not killing, how about you help us out down here!I pray before cursing as a bullet grazes my good arm.
“Damn it!”
“Cover!” L2 yells. I shoot and shoot and shoot so he can advance closer to the end of the vehicle. Finally, the Russian pops up at the exact moment L2 can take a shot.
“Clear!” L3 calls out.
“Cover me!” I say before I launch up and scream, “QUINN!”
My legs are moving before I even register where he is. I hear the gunfire, left and right. I just don’t care. I have to get to him, somewhere ahead of me by that Hummer. I spot him, passenger side, standing and using the door as a shield. He takes a few shots at the bank truck. There’s blood in one ear, he’s sweaty and dirty. Big, dark and angry and so gorgeous it almost hurts to look at him.
