Nowhere Safe

CHAPTER 2





Screw this. Nothing to lose now. Josh lunged for the bodyguard with a stranglehold around Chelsea’s neck.

Mendelson’s other guard standing by swung the butt of his weapon and cracked the side of Josh’s head with the sharp metal stock.

Stars scattered through his vision. Stumbling sideways, Josh spun around and kicked the guard’s chin, crushing jawbone with a satisfying crunch, and knocking him out cold. He snatched the MP7 away before the bodyguard hit the floor, whipping the sling off of the man’s limp arm.

As Josh gained control of the weapon, Mendelson sighed loudly. “Put the weapon down, Mr. Taylor, or I’ll order her death.”

Chelsea shouted at Josh. “Kill them!”

The brute shoved the muzzle of his Ruger P90 semi-auto pistol against her throat. “Shut up.”

Chelsea’s gaze met Josh’s, holding long enough for him to see the doubt that they’d walk out of here alive. But she didn’t know he had a team coming. She only knew what he’d told her to make this exchange happen.

“Go ahead and shoot or put the weapon down,” Mendelson suggested. “Either way, we have a bit of a wait.”

Lunging against the guard’s tight hold, Chelsea shook her head at Josh to not give up the weapon, but he dropped it on the rug and turned to Mendelson. He warned in a cold voice, “You don’t want to double cross me.”

“Under different circumstances, I might agree, but I feel it necessary to inform you that a cellular jammer has now been activated for this area.”

The change in topic cut through the haze of fury threatening to steal the last of Josh’s control. “And why would that matter?”

“You will not be able to reach your team even if you could get your hands on a phone.”

Mendelson knew about Josh’s team?

Not possible. Only a select group of individuals were aware that Sabrina’s team even existed and those were the ones with whom she contracted missions. National security for the United States and similar departments in countries aligned with the US.

International alphabet spook groups.

Chelsea couldn’t have burned him and wouldn’t have, even if nothing personal existed between them. She had no motive, and knew Josh would use his resources to protect her grandmother. He had a team on site right now, moving the elderly woman out of Dublin, to a quiet country house with round-the-clock care. He just hadn’t had a chance to tell Chelsea.

Had Sabrina and the team been burned, too?

How much did Mendelson know?

None of those answers will get us out of here right now.

His number one priority? Warn Sabrina that the mission was an ambush.

“Might as well make yourself comfortable, Mr. Taylor,” Mendelson said in a congenial tone.

A new guard ducked his head and stepped inside the already-crowded space.

Huge didn’t begin to describe this behemoth.

Nothing about his dark eyes, black unkempt beard and oily brown hair appeared German. Maybe South African, and the MP7 he carried looked like a toy in his hands. Clearly, Mendelson supplied his expensive help with equally pricey weaponry.

Josh shoved everything aside while he focused on first sending a message to his team before they inserted and, next, getting himself and Chelsea out of here. But his mind seemed determined to plague him with more questions. Why hadn’t Mendelson killed both of them yet? Why hadn’t Mendelson waited on the weapons before showing his hand? Josh needed more information. “You trade humans for commodities. How can I be of more value than by making a trade for your captive?”

“Oh, but I did trade for Mr. Rikker.”

He knows Rikker’s real name. Not good. How could Josh use that to his advantage? He feigned surprise. “Rikker? That’s not the name I was given. I think we’ve both been played. If that’s the case, I’ll make a deal for the weapons between the two of us, but the transport won’t arrive until I call a second time.”

Mendelson’s eyes creased with humor. “Let’s end this charade, Joshua Carrington. There is no transport and no weapons. You and your Slye team are what I received in trade for Rikker. He is being delivered to the higher bidder as we speak.” Mendelson smiled with genuine pleasure.

The last trace of Josh’s hope sucked away faster than water down a bottomless hole when he heard Mendelson use Carrington, Josh’s legal name. How had Mendelson gotten that? Terror ripped through him at the level of betrayal it took for this to be happening. Something about Mendelson’s calm demeanor poked its way into his thoughts. “Why aren’t you upset about losing the weapons?”

“Because I don’t need them. I allowed my first shipment of weapons to be taken and they are being replaced. I made a more advantageous deal for the CIA agent.”

What the f*ck?

Mendelson continued, “As for a truly valuable trade, Sabrina Slye is wanted by many people.”

Who had screwed Sabrina? Josh forced himself to sound detached. “Well, hell, as long as I’m dead, at least tell me who sold me out.”

“You’re of no use to me dead. I will get much information from you and your team before I put each of you on the auction block. As to the person who set this up—I will only share that it was CIA.”

Mendelson was wrong on one point.

Josh would likely die and very soon, because he would not stand by and let this unfold without a fight. He chuckled with dark humor, as if he’d always expected to be betrayed at some point, and muttered, “Should have expected that out of those bastards.”

That drew a gloating smile from Mendelson so Josh asked, “Mind if I get comfortable while we wait?”

“By all means.”

Taking off his jacket, Josh kept an eye on Chelsea in his peripheral vision. She’d stopped struggling, her eyes tracking every move he made, listening intently to how they’d both been screwed by his people. Not my people anymore. He jerked his bowtie loose and unfastened the first two buttons of his shirt. When he removed the cufflinks that only his team knew about, he put both metal clips in one hand and rolled them around together as though he played with a pair of dice.

Doing that for longer than ten seconds caused the signal to screech in Dingo’s receiver, and deactivated the tracking unit embedded in the cufflinks.

Breaking the connection was code for FUBAR, or get the hell out of here now.

He walked over to the tall bookshelf and leaned against it, ticking off seconds in his mind, hoping ten minutes would pass with no sound.

But eight minutes later the first explosion rocked the house, not surprising him in the least. His team was here.

Josh, Sabrina and Dingo had never left each other as kids and wouldn’t now, but he’d tried his best to warn them off.

Mendelson shoved to his feet. Surprise burst across his face. Gunfire rattled outside the house. Windows shattered downstairs.

One of the guards snatched his radio and spoke in rapid German, but Josh easily translated the demand to know what was happening.

And the terse reply that they were under attack.

Mendelson roared, “How did four people get past twenty-seven armed guards?”

Josh knew the answer to that, but not how Sabrina and company was going to exit past the rest of them now that every remaining guard knew his target was inside the perimeter.

While Mendelson shouted orders at his people, Josh looked at Chelsea, whose gaze shifted into the quiet calm he’d seen whenever she was about to kick someone’s butt.

He gave her an imperceptible nod.

Her guard’s attention was locked on Mendelson.

Chelsea sagged as though she’d fainted, forcing the guard to move his weapon to hold onto her dead weight.

Josh lunged at Mendelson, shoving him into the behemoth guard holding the MP7.

Mendelson shouted. His guard stumbled back but recovered quickly, knocking Mendelson aside out of instinct to free his weapon hand. The giant shoved a little too hard. Mendelson’s head smacked the doorframe and he tumbled to the floor.

The guard got off a shot that ripped through Josh’s side right before Josh grabbed the submachine gun and shoved it to the left. He held onto the foregrip with one hand while he battered steel punches to the guard’s head, trying for a kill punch to the throat.

Not hurting the mountain of muscle one bit.

Behind the guard, Josh saw Chelsea head butt her captor, who lost his grip on her. She reached between his legs and twisted a fistful of his gonads. He screamed.

She grabbed for the Ruger, but missed it as the weapon fell from his hands and skidded behind him.

Josh fought the guard still gripping the MP7 with one hand. He battled to keep the weapon’s muzzle pointed toward the ceiling–away from him and Chelsea. A bear-sized fist slammed Josh hard in the ribs. At least one cracked, but he hoped the flood of adrenaline firing through him would mask the pain of the rib–and the bullet wound at least until he could get them out of here..

The guard used his extra four inches of reach to grab Josh by the throat. He squeezed, cutting off Josh’s air. Pinpricks of light shot through his gaze. He bashed the guard’s elbow joint with his free hand. Nothing gave in the hard-muscled arm.

Mendelson was sprawled on his side, still unconscious, with blood running down his face from his head wound. His body impeded any fancy maneuvering in the close quarters.

Josh finally got both hands on the tug-of-war gun. Before he gave it his all he had to break the giant’s hold. Lifting his boot, he slammed the guard’s kneecap.

Bone snapped. The guard screamed.

Finally, a vulnerable body part on the hulking bastard.

Josh yanked the gun free.

The guard’s grip on Josh loosened. Josh sucked air through his raw throat and swung the metal rail of the MP7’s fore-end into the guard’s head, busting open a bleeding geyser.

Out of his peripheral vision, he saw Chelsea break all the way free from her guard, the one she’d tried to neuter. She kicked him backward. He hit the floor hard.

She spun around and drove one of her spiked heels through his throat.

Just as effective as a double tap.

The guard Josh fought yelled and reached for him again in a haze of pain and rage. Fighting this bastard was like trying to take down a Mack truck using his fists.

Coughing from a bruised windpipe, Josh swung the MP7 around and released a fast burst into the guard’s chest. “Game over.” Or that’s what he would’ve said, if something more than a croak had come through his bruised throat. He drew a hard breath, ears ringing from the gunfire in the small space. Choking, unable to speak, he turned to wave Chelsea out of the room.

She took one look at Josh and started toward him.

A movement on the floor caught his eye.

Mendelson had been playing possum, lying on his side, his upper body out of Chelsea’s line of sight.

The world slowed to seconds that stretched from one loud heartbeat to the next.

Mendelson lifted the Ruger from beside him.

Josh swung up his own weapon, yelling at the same moment, but only a croaked sound came out.

Chelsea stared, confused for a split-second too long before she realized what was happening and tried to move.

Both shots exploded at the same moment.

Josh’s hit Mendelson in the head. A hair too late.

He caught Chelsea as she folded to her knees. Mendelson’s bullet had passed through her chest. Had it hit her heart? Not if she was still moving. Blood spilled out the gaping exit wound. She covered it with her hands, eyes glassy with shock.

He scooped her into his arms, ignoring the screaming pain in his ribs and side. “Hold on,” he ground out of his raw throat.

Frightened green eyes stared up at him. “Tried...to...warn you...not to come.”

“I know, baby,” he rasped. “Couldn’t leave you.”

He made it to the stairs and looked down to find two armed guards on the main floor with their weapons pointed out broken windows.

He started to lower Chelsea to the ground to free his hands to shoot.

The front window and door exploded into the house.

Both guards flew backwards, knocked off their feet. Josh’s back hit the wall, but he remained upright with Chelsea gripped tightly in his arms. The sharp smell of burned electronics, smoke and charred wood flooded the air from the plastique his team had used to blow the door.

Sabrina Slye burst through the smoke-filled opening like an avenging angel, and took out both of the inside guards with quick double taps from her weapon. Black hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail. Her dark molle vest was covered in pouches holding enough ammo to take down a small city.

Spiked blonde hair totally out-of-context with his olive skin color, Dingo rushed in right behind her and looked up to where Josh stood. “We got burned, eh, mate?”

Josh had never been so happy to hear that Aussie accent in his life. He raced down the stairs to the main floor, gritting against the pain cutting through his adrenaline rush. “Yeah,” he croaked. Trying to yell was painful as hell. “The package is gone. Tell you everything later. Where’s Singleton? Chelsea needs a medic.”

From the way his side burned and the lightheaded feeling threatening to knock his feet out from under him, he did, too.

Dingo produced a second monocular from the vest he wore and slipped the headband over Josh’s head. As soon as he pulled the single night vision lens down into place, Sabrina shot out the lamp on the front table, veiling the interior with darkness. Dingo slipped a compact headset with a boom mic over Josh’s ears and clipped the small radio to the waistband of the tuxedo pants. No time to deal with the high-tech commo gear the rest of the team wore.

As Dingo did all of that, he explained, his words coming through Josh’s headset now. “Changed the plan when we lost contact with your tracker. Singleton’s waiting to cover our exit through the woods.”

Josh snarled a curse. The team had walked into an ambush and now medical care was out of reach, but he wouldn’t put his teammates at more risk. He told Sabrina, “You four stick with the plan.”

Sabrina took one look at Chelsea’s wound and realized what he was saying, that he wasn’t going with them. “She won’t make it to a doctor.”

Chelsea coughed and blood trickled from her lips. Her voice was reed thin. “She’s right.”

“No, she’s not.” He gripped Chelsea closer as if he could force her to live by sheer will alone, and growled at Sabrina. “Get the team out of here and I’ll meet you later.”

“How in the hell do you plan to do that dragging her around?” Sabrina said in a low voice tight with anger.

“I’ll take the Hummer.”

Sabrina clenched her weapon with white knuckles and snapped out, “I told you never to do this.”

Josh had no comeback. She was right and he’d sworn he wouldn’t get involved, but he couldn’t change what was and he wouldn’t abandon Chelsea to make a run through the woods. “Just go and let me handle this.”

Another explosion somewhere nearby shook the building.

Had to be Tanner Bodine’s handiwork, the only team member Josh couldn’t account for at the moment.

Fury rolled off Sabrina’s bunched shoulders. She started issuing orders, no different than back when she’d run their half-pint gang in Queens. Glaring at Josh, she snapped, “Are you hurt or can you run?”

With so much of Chelsea’s blood covering his shirt, Sabrina’s question was routine and not because she had any idea he’d taken a bullet.

“I can run.” If he didn’t pass out from blood loss. Any mention of being wounded would start a new wave of conflict.

She turned to Dingo. “We need a path out the front gate. I’ll call the other two with the change of plans.”

Josh shook his head. “No, Sabrina.”

“Shut up and get ready to make a dash to the Hummer or I’ll shoot you myself. Stop at the limo then wait for my cover fire.”

Dingo had already vanished into the night like the shadow he could be when he wanted.

Josh knew better than to waste breath he didn’t have arguing with Sabrina when she had her mind made up. “Thanks.”

She ground out a derogatory sound in her throat that he translated as why did men have to get stupid over women. Casting another look at Chelsea, Sabrina muttered, “Save your thanks. You’re not out of here alive and she’s bleeding like a stuck pig.”

Blood poured through the fingers Chelsea had clamped over the wound. Her breath came in gasps. “Don’t be stupid...leave me...” Her eyelashes fluttered closed.

Josh shook her gently. “Come on, baby. Stay with me.”

When her eyes blinked again, he stepped over to the side of the door opening that had been widened with that blast. Gunfire chattered back and forth outside. Bullets pinged everywhere.

Sabrina moved to the opposite side of the opening and took up the position she needed to lay down cover fire to the vehicles. Raising her HK 416 to her shoulder, she said, “Move!” and raked the area outside with rapid bursts of fire.

Josh said, “Moving,” and raced out into the pitch black where every light had been shot out. Now the world came to him in shades of grayish-green through the night vision monocular. He hoped he was moving fast. His legs felt like lead. Zigzagging the best he could, he reached the limo and ducked behind it, catching his breath.

His vision swirled. He shook off the dizziness.

A spray of bullets peppered the car and Josh ducked lower, clutching Chelsea to his chest as he waited for Sabrina to reload.

He twisted, watching the doorway for her muzzle flash. The minute she released another burst, he took off for the Hummer. He passed the Mercedes that had been turned into Swiss cheese.

Stars sparked through his vision. Sound withdrew and a black fog rushed at him. He thrashed at it mentally and pushed harder to reach the Hummer. He couldn’t lose consciousness now.

Sabrina rushed up beside him, still laying cover fire as she moved. She yelled, “Get in the damned Hummer.”

The shout boomed through his headset, rattling his brain. He growled and drove his legs harder.

She opened the rear door just as he reached the truck. Josh hit the seat with Chelsea still draped over his arms. The door slammed shut.

Sabrina jumped in the driver’s seat, all the time talking to her team through her commo. “We’re in the Hummer. Load up!”

Starting the engine, she threw the truck into gear and made a rock-slinging sweep around the yard. Shots battered the windows and exterior of the truck, not getting through.

Bulletproof truck. Thanks, Mendelson, you rat bastard.

Josh pressed his hand over Chelsea’s, putting more pressure on her wound. She moved a finger to touch his hand, and wheezed “My grandmother...please...”

“She’s safe. I swear it. You’ll see her again.”

Her pale lips curved and she drew a breath that gurgled. “Thank you...for...us.”

He kissed her forehead. “Shh. Save your energy.”

Tanner Bodine yanked the front passenger door open, running with the truck then throwing his super-sized cowboy body inside.

Sabrina wheeled around hard, heading out of the property. She took one look at Tanner. “How bad?”

“Bullshit bullet in the thigh. You?”

“I’ll live.”

Josh heard them as if they were far away. He lifted his head. Everything spun again. Had Sabrina been hurt? “Where’re you hit, Sabrina?”

“Not hit. Knife wound. Arm. I’m good.”

Where was Singleton?

Sabrina slowed the truck just long enough for the rear passenger door across from Josh to open and Singleton to dive in. He scrambled to right himself and tug the door shut at the same time. Right before bullets splattered his side of the Hummer.

Josh said, “Need an IV. Gotta stop the bleeding in this one.”

Singleton shrugged out of his Medic’s pack and lowered his monocular to look at Chelsea in the dark then raised his gaze to Josh. If not for Josh’s night vision monocular, he wouldn’t have been able to see the grim concern on Singleton’s coffee-brown face. The soft-spoken doctor wielded a knife with unmatched skill whether he wanted to save a life or take one. “I can’t, Josh.”

“Why not?”

Tanner asked, “Where’s Dingo?”

Explosions erupted on each side of the road ahead. Sabrina shouted, “Clearing the way.”

A loud thump landed on top of the Hummer then a fist pounded twice.

Sabrina floored the SUV. “Dingo’s onboard.” She punched the button to open the sunroof, and Dingo’s arm appeared, snaking inside for a handhold.

Josh swallowed, so damned glad that the whole team had made it so far, but especially the two people he considered a sister and brother. Now if he could just patch up Chelsea. He ordered Singleton, “Do something, now!”

The Hummer slid right and left as Sabrina muscled the truck out onto the road. She yelled at Singleton, “Get an IV into her and Tanner. We’ll be at the helo in nine minutes.”

That got through Josh’s muddled brain. “No. Helo’s not safe. CIA burned us.”

Stunned silence blanketed the truck. Sabrina found her voice first. “You’re sure?”

“Mendelson said CIA traded us...for Len Rikker. He knew your name. Knew it was your team. Knew my name. We were the currency.”

Curses blistered the air.

Pain stabbed Josh’s side and he shouted, unsure if it was the wound or the broken rib. He swung around to find Singleton poking at him. “Leave it, dammit.”

A figure appeared in the headlights, standing in front of the truck. He fired straight at the windshield.

Sabrina plowed into the idiot. He hit with a hard thump. His body flew up in the air and out of the way. The man obviously hadn’t realized the windshield was bulletproof.

Sabrina demanded, “What’s wrong, Josh?”

“Nothing.”

Singleton answered, “Two things. Josh took a bullet in his abdomen and we don’t have IVs.”

“Why not?”

“My pack took a hit. Pack saved my ass, but IV kits were shredded.”

“Do what you can for Josh,” Sabrina ordered. Her fierce gaze lit up the rearview mirror, accusing Josh of lying to her by omission. “You’ll need more than an IV soon. Just hold on for me.”

That last part came out weary.

Josh looked over at their medic and saw multiple faces.

Singleton pulled a wad of gauze out of his pack and shoved it up against Josh who gritted his teeth and ground out, “Told you I’m fine. Chelsea needs help.”

“You’re not fine,” Sabrina said quietly. “I won’t lose you.”

Josh had never pleaded for anything, but he was the only one who believed Chelsea could survive. “Shingleton.” His chin drooped. He shook his head and worked his lips, trying to stop the slurring. “You got some...give her...jush buy time?”

No one spoke for a moment then Sabrina said, “Tanner.”

Tanner shifted around in his seat and looked back at Chelsea. “Ah, hell.”

“Tell him, Singleton,” Sabrina ordered.

Josh struggled to pull his thoughts together and fight off the fog sucking him into a dark vortex. “Tell me what?”

Singleton had latched his fingers around Josh’s wrist at some point, checking his pulse. He should be checking Chelsea’s. “Dammit...do somesing.”

Singleton spoke in his calm doctor voice, the one he used to talk patients through a disaster. He pulled off Josh’s monocular and tossed it away then lifted a small LED light and shined it down on Chelsea’s abdomen. “Josh, she...uh.”

Josh’s chin hit his chest. His eyes followed the light that moved from his blood-covered hand on Chelsea’s chest to her pretty neck, then up to her face, and …

Two beautiful green eyes locked open. No, no, no …

Pain reached into his chest and clutched his heart with steel fingers, squeezing and twisting.

Voices ran together in a blur.

Josh lost the battle to keep his eyes open. He still saw Chelsea’s dead gaze staring at him. She’d never laugh again or spend another night with him, saving him from a lonely existence. His mind wandered. Sounds dulled and faded away.

Someone had betrayed them. Had killed Chelsea. Josh would find the bastard who had done this and ... he’d ...

Singleton shouted, “We’re losing Josh!”

An explosion blasted against the truck, throwing it up onto two wheels.

Josh hugged Chelsea. He was flung against the truck door and the world crashed in on him.