Books Glorious Books

Cash ignored me and continued. “Right now, he’s injured and needs rest and a doctor’s supervision. He’s still considered in critical condition. I need a team that can go to him since he can’t be moved.”

“I’m all over that, boss,” I said enthusiastically. “Who’s with me?”

No one responded and Cash looked pleadingly at all of them. “Really, anyone that’s willing will get overtime.”

“Boss, we all know what we signed up for when we took this job,” IRIS said, “but this is just insanity.”

“You blow shit up for a living,” Lock snorted.

“Yeah, but on my terms. This guy is an assassin. I don’t need to wake up with a knife in my back, or worse, have him bring heat down on us from past jobs.”

I stood this time, thinking someone would join me. “Again, I’m all over this.”

“He’s psychotic,” Cash sighed.

“I’m psychotic.”

“He doesn’t play well with others.”

I slapped my hands against my chest and grinned. “Neither do I!”

“It’s a long job. Keeping him alive is only phase one of the job.”

“Phase me in,” I smirked.

Cash looked around. “I really need a three man team on this. Three people that can work well together,” he emphasized.

“Boss,” I chuckled, glancing around the room at the others. “I’m sort of getting the feeling you don’t want me on this job.”

“What about you, Jack? This is the sort of job your team takes.”

I stood there a little pissed that he was talking around me as if I wasn’t here, like I wasn’t volunteering to take a job that everyone else clearly wasn’t on board with.

“Ya know, we do black ops,” Jack answered. “This is babysitting.”

I rushed around the table, getting right in Cash’s face. I’d make him send me if it was the last thing I did. “Boss, you know I’m the man for the job. I’m great under pressure and with annoying assholes.”

“Yes, but we’re trying to keep this one alive. If you kill him, that sort of defeats the purpose of the job.”

“Hey, I’m a very likable guy,” I said defensively.

“Yes,” he nodded slowly. “To people that know you.”

“So, send me with…” I glanced around the room, trying to figure out who would best work with me. “Rae and IRIS.”

“No,” Rae stood up. “I’m not going on a long mission with Fox. Not gonna happen.”

“IRIS, you can set explosives all around the house,” I said excitedly. “It’ll be just like old times.”

“Yeah, as fun as it sounds to blow someone up, I’d rather shoot myself than go on a long assignment with an assassin.”

“Seriously?” I asked the whole room incredulously. “Am I the only one that sees the benefit of this? To get inside the mind of a killer and pick his brain apart?”

“We sort of already have that with you,” Slider answered. “I think that’s enough to last a lifetime.”

“Thumper, down!” I shouted, just as I fired a round into his bionic foot, forcing him to his knees as he narrowly avoided a bullet to the head.

“What the fuck? Did you just shoot me, boss?”

“It was your foot or your head,” I retorted, returning my gaze to the tangos still in the building.

“You’re paying for my new foot,” he grumbled, hobbling over to join the rest of his team.

“Send me the bill,” I muttered, already focusing on the remaining tangos.

“Eli, how many more kids need evac?”

The Ditty Boppers had been tasked with slipping in through the basement window and freeing the kids inside. We didn’t have an exact number when we started this mission, so we couldn’t be certain we had all the manpower or transportation needed.

“Boss, we’ve got a problem,” his voice rang through comms. “We’ve got about twenty that require medevac ASAP.”

“Negative. There aren’t enough birds in the sky.” I switched targets, firing again as I laid out the next part of the plan. “Fox, you copy?”

“You got someone for me to kill, boss?” he said cheerily.

“Move to extraction point B. Kid gloves, Fox.”

“Boss,” he groaned.

“Dash, take control. Rae, make sure Fox doesn’t fuck this up.”

She sighed heavily as I heard her on the move. “When is that not my job?”

I grinned and moved to the next target. I couldn’t see Jack anymore, or the rest of his team. With any luck, they made it out of the building and were aiding in the rescue of the kids.

“Boss, we’ve got movement to the south headed your way.”

“How far out?”

“Two minutes. Coming in hot, boss.”

“Do you have the shot?”

“Negative. Too much tree cover.”

I shifted to my next target and took aim. “And you didn’t see them? Were you too busy vomiting?”

“I told you I don’t like flying,” he snapped. “I would move if I were you.”

“One more minute,” I said, scoping out my next target. 

“Boss, you really need to—”

But I tuned him out and returned my attention to the remaining tangos still threatening to destroy our operation. One by one, I picked them off, missing one by just an inch and alerting him to my location. He quickly ducked and ran for cover, hiding just a few feet from the entrance to the basement. If he made it down there, my men might be injured, along with those kids. Men did stupid shit when they were cornered.

“Boss!” Scottie was yelling in my ear, but I ignored him and kept my focus. 

“Come on, you fucker,” I whispered, eyeing the man in my scope. I needed him to move just a little to the right. 

“Thirty seconds!” Scottie warned.

The man moved and I took the shot, sending the bullet right through his skull. I watched as his head snapped back and he crumpled to the ground. Removing Sally 2 from my stand, I shoved my rifle in my bag and tossed it over my shoulder, abandoning the stand to whoever came through here. Taking off through the trees, I hauled ass toward the extraction point, but quickly realized I was already too late. 

The tangos on my ass were closing in quick, and heading to the extraction point would only put more lives in danger. I made a snap decision and bolted to the left, making sure to leave an obvious path in my wake. Making enough noise to raise the dead, I grinned when I heard them following.

“Lock, I’ve got tangos on my ass. I’m leading them away. It should buy you enough time to get out.”

“Negative, boss. We’ve got too many injured.”

“How much time do you need?”

“Boss, I don’t like where you’re going with this.”

As I ran through the trees, I knew it didn’t really matter if he liked it or not. I had boxed myself in, and there was no way I was getting out of this on my own. But I could lay down fire and draw their attention from what was going on at the warehouse.

“I’ll distract them. When you’re out, I’ll haul ass to the third extraction point.”

“You’ll never make it there,” he warned.

I grinned, even though he couldn’t see. “Watch me.”

“Thumper, down!” I shouted, just as I fired a round into his bionic foot, forcing him to his knees as he narrowly avoided a bullet to the head.

“What the fuck? Did you just shoot me, boss?”

“It was your foot or your head,” I retorted, returning my gaze to the tangos still in the building.

“You’re paying for my new foot,” he grumbled, hobbling over to join the rest of his team.

“Send me the bill,” I muttered, already focusing on the remaining tangos.

“Eli, how many more kids need evac?”

The Ditty Boppers had been tasked with slipping in through the basement window and freeing the kids inside. We didn’t have an exact number when we started this mission, so we couldn’t be certain we had all the manpower or transportation needed.

“Boss, we’ve got a problem,” his voice rang through comms. “We’ve got about twenty that require medevac ASAP.”

“Negative. There aren’t enough birds in the sky.” I switched targets, firing again as I laid out the next part of the plan. “Fox, you copy?”

“You got someone for me to kill, boss?” he said cheerily.

“Move to extraction point B. Kid gloves, Fox.”

“Boss,” he groaned.

“Dash, take control. Rae, make sure Fox doesn’t fuck this up.”

She sighed heavily as I heard her on the move. “When is that not my job?”

I grinned and moved to the next target. I couldn’t see Jack anymore, or the rest of his team. With any luck, they made it out of the building and were aiding in the rescue of the kids.

“Boss, we’ve got movement to the south headed your way.”

“How far out?”

“Two minutes. Coming in hot, boss.”

“Do you have the shot?”

“Negative. Too much tree cover.”

I shifted to my next target and took aim. “And you didn’t see them? Were you too busy vomiting?”

“I told you I don’t like flying,” he snapped. “I would move if I were you.”

“One more minute,” I said, scoping out my next target. 

“Boss, you really need to—”

But I tuned him out and returned my attention to the remaining tangos still threatening to destroy our operation. One by one, I picked them off, missing one by just an inch and alerting him to my location. He quickly ducked and ran for cover, hiding just a few feet from the entrance to the basement. If he made it down there, my men might be injured, along with those kids. Men did stupid shit when they were cornered.

“Boss!” Scottie was yelling in my ear, but I ignored him and kept my focus. 

“Come on, you fucker,” I whispered, eyeing the man in my scope. I needed him to move just a little to the right. 

“Thirty seconds!” Scottie warned.

The man moved and I took the shot, sending the bullet right through his skull. I watched as his head snapped back and he crumpled to the ground. Removing Sally 2 from my stand, I shoved my rifle in my bag and tossed it over my shoulder, abandoning the stand to whoever came through here. Taking off through the trees, I hauled ass toward the extraction point, but quickly realized I was already too late. 

The tangos on my ass were closing in quick, and heading to the extraction point would only put more lives in danger. I made a snap decision and bolted to the left, making sure to leave an obvious path in my wake. Making enough noise to raise the dead, I grinned when I heard them following.

“Lock, I’ve got tangos on my ass. I’m leading them away. It should buy you enough time to get out.”

“Negative, boss. We’ve got too many injured.”

“How much time do you need?”

“Boss, I don’t like where you’re going with this.”

As I ran through the trees, I knew it didn’t really matter if he liked it or not. I had boxed myself in, and there was no way I was getting out of this on my own. But I could lay down fire and draw their attention from what was going on at the warehouse.

“I’ll distract them. When you’re out, I’ll haul ass to the third extraction point.”

“You’ll never make it there,” he warned.

I grinned, even though he couldn’t see. “Watch me.”