Page 38 of Satan's Naughty List
Pointing to the side, we band together and wait for the signal. All other units need to be at any point of exit available.
“Move,” Crusher commands. One of the prospects was tasked with the battery ram, so rearing back, he slams it into the metal door. The hinges fly off with the force, and even I’m a little surprised with how easily it gave way. That, or this prospect could probably kick my ass.
Glass shatters as the barrier breaks, smoke pouring out of the doorway and through the broken windows. Grabbing the gas masks, we pray that they will work until we can find her. It doesn’t take long for us to make our way through the club house as we pretty much memorized the floor plan. If anything, the smoke has helped keep our cover.
Sort of.
Faint coughing brings me out of my thoughts. We can’t leave without her. Won’t.
“Fuck, turn,” a guy calls, running right into us. Without hesitation, Razor grabs the guy and pins him to the ground. Another guy follows behind the first, effectively being grabbed and slammed by another prospect I can’t see.
“Subdued,” they call, dragging them back outside. According to the infrared, there were three guys. Two just walked right into their own deaths, fucking idiots. The third however…
“Don’t move!” We immediately halt, squinting in an attempt to see through the smoke. It’s pointless as there’s only a silhouette visible. “You move, she dies!” Without being able to see, we can’t tell if he’s bluffing or not.
“What do you want?” I shout, holding an arm out to stop them from attacking. “You have something of ours. We want her back.”
“I had a buyer lined up. You’re ruining my chances of profit!” I can’t help the rolling in my stomach from his words.
A buyer…
“You were going to sell her?” I retort, doing my best to keep the growl out of my tone. If we set him off, who knows what he’ll do.
“She was mine first!” He snaps, the distinctive click of a gun chamber latching into place ricochets around us. “I bought her outright!” The fact that he talks about her like she’s an object makes my stomach twist. The burning rage I feel at this man talking about her like this…I want nothing more than to take my fucking side piece and blast his brains through the wall. It doesn’t help that it smells like something’s starting to burn.
“Look man,” I start, choosing my words very carefully. “You won’t make that profit if she’s dead. I bet she’s passed out from the smoke in here. You can’t make that money if you don’t get her out.”
“We’re not going anywhere until you’re long gone.” Movement is seen, but it’s hard to figure out what he’s doing. It looks as if he’s squatting to see if I’m right.
Fuck, she’s got smoke lung.
My heart races in my chest at the thought of anything happening to her. If we weren’t quick enough…
“We’ll go,” I digress, hearing a few outraged growls. Using my arm, I start shoving us backwards, praying they’ll follow suit.
And they do. No questions asked, they all start to back up. If that’s what it takes for her to be alive, that’s what we’ll do. We can intercept them when he tries to run. If he’s also inhaled some heavy smoke, I doubt he’s going to be able to run for long with her unconscious weight. When we step out of the house, I immediately start barking orders.
“Eye on exits, they’re moving!” We all spread out around the exits and in the tree-line, out of eyesight. A glimpse of red flickers from one of the windows.
“Fire,” Razor grunts, getting ready to race inside. Grasping his shoulder tightly, he doesn’t move.
“Bird up,” I command. With an immediate affirmation, it doesn’t take long before another drone is whirling around in the sky above the building.
“Active heat registers in several areas. Zero body registers located. Give me a minute,” Techy growls, circling the building a few times. “Negative.”
It’s like something feral inside of me snaps. This overwhelming protective part of my being that I haven’t seen in years.
“If I’m not out in ten, get rescue.” Before anyone can respond, I take off into the house once more. I’m able to slip around quieter than before. This time, though, there’s embers burning away at the wooden structure. In my head, I use the map to coordinate where I’m going. In an effort to keep from inhaling too much smoke, I crumble my hulking body to the ground in a squat walk. It’s painful as all hell, yet it’s better than running through clouds.
A voice starts talking over the coms. I can tell it’s Techy trying to talk, but the static is making whatever he is saying crackle. My eyes start burning harshly, tears springing and falling down my cheeks.
“If you can hear me, I can’t hear you. I’m good for now,” I call back, alarm bells ringing in my head as I take another corner. There’s something on the floor in front of me, unmoving. Unable to make out what it is, I crouch to a crawl. Thank goodness for gloves. The concrete floor is uneven with lots of shit littering it.
More heaviness weighs down on the smoke above, seeping closer to the ground as it starts puffing faster into the building. Fires broke out before I entered, so the faster we get out, the better.
Finally, like a damn gust of air moving everything around, the thick fog clears for a brief moment. There’s a dainty foot lying face up, dried blood cracked on the bottom.
“Found her!” I call into the com, my chest struggling to fully breath. A mix of relief and overwhelming irritation swirl inside me. She’s here, but I can’t tell if she’s alive.
