Chapter 2 - Blood in the Snow
The first man lunged forward, raising his weapon with professional efficiency. He didn't get a chance to aim.
Before his finger could even brush the trigger, Bear launched himself across the icy pavement like a furry missile, sinking his remaining teeth straight into the operative’s tactical boot. The man yelled in surprise, stumbling backward and losing his footing on a patch of black ice.
That split-second distraction was all the invitation I needed.
My hand cleared leather with blurring speed. The heavy 9mm cleared my holster, and the first suppressed shot cracked through the alley like a dry twig snapping. The bullet took the second operative squarely in the center of his body armor, dropping him instantly with the force of a sledgehammer.
“Light them up!” Marcus screamed, diving behind the open door of the lead Escalade as chaos erupted.
Bullets chewed into the brick walls behind us, sending a shower of red dust and jagged stone shards raining down into the snow. The sharp, deafening chatter of automatic gunfire echoed off the narrow alleyway, turning the quiet winter night into a war zone.
“Hold onto my belt!” I shouted back to the girl, dropping into a low tactical crouch.
She didn't scream. She didn't hesitate. Her small hands gripped my belt loops with the tenacity of someone who had already survived hell and refused to go back.
I fired twice more through the passenger window of the second Escalade, shattering the glass and catching the driver before he could throw the vehicle into reverse. The heavy SUV stalled, blocking the alley's exit completely.
Marcus was shouting orders over the din of gunfire, but his men were panicking. They were used to hunting terrified runaways in dark alleys, not walking into an ambush orchestrated by the most lethal tactician this city had ever produced.
I vaulted over a rusted dumpster, dragging the girl with me as a fresh volley of rifle fire peppered the metal container with deafening pings. Reaching down, I grabbed a discarded iron pipe from the slush, using it to shatter the padlock on a side utility door belonging to the abandoned restaurant.
“Inside. Now,” I commanded, shoving the girl through the gap before sliding in behind her and yanking Bear in by his collar just as a hail of bullets chewed up the doorframe.
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We slammed the heavy steel door shut, dropping the industrial deadbolt into place just as the first heavy blows hammered against the exterior.
We were inside the dark, echoing shell of an abandoned packing facility, but the battle had only just begun.
