Page 30 of Rough Choice

“Women,” Diego said in a joking manner, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t work.

“I respect your answer. If your guard can hand over his weapon, I will see it will be returned once we arrive.”

“No…” Grier began, but Kye held a hand up.

“Agreed, we need to have trust between us, right?” Kye asked, hoping to keep things from escalating. These men were nervous, and that made them dangerous.

“We must also still search your things,” Alberto said, taking the gun Grier handed him. Though he’d passed it over, Grier was sure to remove the clip and tuck it into his pocket. He wasn’t about to hand over a loaded weapon.

“What about trust, sir?” Kye asked, crossing his arms.

“Please, understand,” Alberto pleaded with a soft smile. Kye stared at him hard for a moment, but the longer they lingered the worse this would get.

“Alright,” he relented, and he felt Grier tense up next to him. Diego moved quickly to the trunk and removed the three bags that they’d brought. The first contained mostly Eliana’s things, the second was the bag with cash, and the third held their documents, Grier’s clothing, and a few stashed souvenirs.

“You see?” Kye asked, smiling. “We have nothing to hide.”

“You travel with a lot of money,” Diego said, shouldering their bags and closing the trunk.

“As we stated, I plan to buy some property. I find that having money makes that easier.” Alberto and Diego laughed, and it sounded oddly relieved. Perhaps the two men were nervous thinking they were being set up.

“I think we can trust you; you are good, honest men,” Alberto said, handing Grier the gun back. “I only ask you keep it unloaded while we’re in the air. Should it accidentally go off, we will lose cabin pressure.”

“Of course,” Grier said and was happy to have his sidearm back. The four men were collectively breathing a sigh of relief, and Kye had just opened the door to let Eliana out when the squeal of tires shattered their moment of relaxation.

“Run!” Diego yelled, and none of them were quite sure who it was to. A black Jeep tore out of the hangar, and sprays of gunfire lit up the imposing night.

“To the plane!” Alberto cried. Kye grabbed Eliana by the arm and half dragged her toward the aircraft. Grier was laying down cover fire, but the machine gun mounted on top of the roofless Jeep was firing much faster. The three of them were forced to duck behind the town car that was peppered with bullets.

“Who are they?” Eliana asked, fear seizing her. Alberto had managed to make it to the plane, but Diego was crouched with them speaking in such frenzied Spanish; even Grier couldn’t understand him.

“Right now, they’re the guys trying to kill us,” Grier said, standing for a brief moment to shoot off a few rounds at the Jeep that was nearing them. He ducked just in time as the window next to him shattered.

“Come here,” Kye said, grabbing at Eliana. She lifted the bottom of her dress, and Diego shouted, clearly unsure what they were doing. That was until he saw the four leg holsters she was wearing under her flowing dress. Two guns on either leg, one on each thigh and calf, she’d been hiding the weapons on her person just in case their bags were searched.

Kye tossed one of them to Grier who quickly reloaded, then took two for himself. “We’re going to lay down a shit ton of fire; you run like hell to the plane,” he instructed Eliana. She shook her head.

“You’re not sending me away,” she protested. He quickly kissed her forehead.

“I’m right behind you this time. Just keep Alberto from taking off until we’re there,” he said firmly. Eliana only nodded. “Three, two, one, go!” he shouted. She didn’t hesitate. As Grier and Kye stood, using the car to shield them, they fired almighty hell at the oncoming vehicle, and Eliana bolted.

She could feel Diego on her heels, but didn’t stop to look. Her eyes were fixed on the lowered staircase that led up to the plane. Her hand had just reached the railing when she heard the impact of a bullet on skin. She froze and looked down. Diego, who’d been just behind her, had taken a bullet to the back of the head. It had made a sickening cracking sound when it entered his skull, and he lay on the ground at her feet, very much dead.

“Go, Eli!” Kye shouted. Her mind was blank, but her instincts were on point. She grabbed the bags off Diego’s dead body and tossed them into the open door of the plane that was now roaring to life. She watched, terrified, as the Jeep with three surviving black-clad occupants reached the town car.

Kye was crouched reloading his gun when the Jeep reached them. The car was hissing and smoking as bullets had shattered the radiator and all the windows. Grier jumped out from behind the trunk and took down two of the gunmen. Kye had only just chambered his clip when a man wearing a black bandana over his mouth came around to his side of the car.

“Drop it!” he said in English, aiming a gun at Kye. Without any time to respond, the man cried out as a bullet hit him, and he fell to the ground. Kye stood in shock as he saw Eliana standing with her own smoking weapon drawn.

“You shot him…” Kye said, bewildered. She looked terrifying at that moment. Eyes wild and cheeks flushed. He only snapped to attention in time to tackle her as more shots rang out. A second and a third Jeep were racing toward them. “Go, go, go!” Kye shouted. He snatched up the fallen man’s automatic gun and fired it toward the Jeeps as Grier and Eliana sprinted up the steps to the plane.

They were barely on board when its wheels began to move. Eliana pushed past Grier to the open door as she watched Kye still firing from the ground.

“Kye!” she screamed in complete terror. He looked over his shoulder and saw the plane was moving. He cursed and ran after them. Grier pushed her aside and fired off cover fire for his friend, who was running full speed trying to get to them.

Eliana was screaming at Alberto to wait, but he either wasn’t listening or didn’t understand. She could still hear gunfire, but couldn’t see anything as Grier’s body took up the whole doorway.

“Please, please!” she cried, hot tears pouring out of her eyes. “Don’t leave him!” When the plane jerked upward, its wheels now off the ground, Eliana collapsed in a heap on the floor and screamed in rage and adrenaline.