“I’ve got this,” Nolan says with a smile, then pulls his mask down. He and Holden make their way toward the gate.
“We’ve got their back,” Ghost assures us, and Sean agrees. Several minutes go by without a word, and Axel starts getting twitchy.
“I’ve got visual, Holden,” Les says after a good ten minutes. “Can you loop it so he doesn’t see real-time, but I still can?”
“Nolan’s almost got it. Hold on.” I’m instantly filled with pride at how far he’s come. When he first started with the Saviors, he still needed Holden’s help. Now, he can do whatever you ask with a click of a fucking button. “He’s in.”
“Feed is coming in clear,” Les relays. “Good job, Nolan.”
“That’s my Naughty boy. Sharpshooters in place.”
Zane, Hart, and Banger go to their posts and give us the word when they're ready. All of the Saviors, besides Nolan, decided not to wear masks because wewantCharlie to know that it’s us. Axel walks to the back of the SUV and lifts the hatch. He pulls out two long cases and hands one to Cole. “I was so hoping you would bring these,” Cole says, hugging it to his chest.
“Ready to make a statement?” Axel asks.
Cole pulls Axel’s forehead to his. “It’s been a long time coming. Let’s wipe this motherfucker off the map, get our woman, and go somewhere that we aren’t getting shot at all the time. I love you.”
Axel closes his eyes for a second, and when he opens them, he’s more than ready. “I love you too. Let’s move.”
“On my count,” Zane whispers. “Axel and Cole, get into place.” We quietly creep up to the gate, and we watch over them as they get into position. Anticipation, worry, and fear are whirling around us. If we don’t get Charlie now, he’ll go so far underground that we’ll never find him. “Shooters in position. I see six guards.”
“Four,” Banger relays. “Wait. Make that seven.”
“Nine on my side by the right side of the gate,” Hart says. “When you guys blow the fucking doors off, it will take care of the ones I can’t.”
“As soon as the first body drops, it won’t take long for Charlie to be alerted. Go!” Axel and Cole ready themselves. We listen to the shots being fired through comms, and when I hear the reloads, I let myself sink into that place in my mind where I can forget what we’re doing.
“Move! Move! Move!” Hart yells.
Axel and Cole let the grenades fly. The doors explode open, and we’re moving. As soon as we’re through the gate, the guards are scrambling, still not catching up to the fact that this is where they die.
“It’s Axel!” I hear one of them yell, trying to run.
Axel pulls the trigger, dropping him before he gets three steps away. “You’re right, motherfucker. It is.”
Bullets are whizzing past us, bodies are dropping, turning it into complete chaos. A guy comes rushing up beside me, and he drops before I ever get my gun up. “Thanks,” I say.
“Don’t mention it,” Banger replies.
“You have more guards rushing out,” Les says. “Split into your groups.” We already had everything planned out, so we move like a well-oiled machine. “You’re going to hear different voices. I had to split the cameras. There’s too many for me to watch at one time.”
“Fucking hell,” Micah groans. “Right in the fucking kidney.”
“What happened?” Axel demands.
Three shots are fired through the comms. “This jackass just kicked me in the kidney. Well, dead jackass.”
“If you die, Evie is going to bring you back to life just to kill you again,” Les laughs. “Saviors, three to your right.”
Axel, me, and to my surprise, Nolan pull our automatics up, pulling the triggers. “Nice fucking shot, Holden 2.0!” Gage explodes. “Holy shit. He’s a little mini badass.”
“He’s a Savior. What did you expect?” Ghost laughs.
“You have more company coming your way, and it’s a lot,” Leo says. “Like, at least twenty.”
We dive to the side when the doors to the compound burst open. They don’t stop to get ready; they just start shooting. One slices right over my arm, and I hiss from the pain.
“Axel, there’s something I need to tell you before we die,” Ari says. “I had a wet dream about Chelsea the other night. Like full-on fucking the shit out of her.”