“Go! Go! Go!” James’s urgent command cut through the unmistakable sounds of magazines being emptied.

  On his cue, Sana bolted for the thick underbrush nearby. But just before diving into the shrubbery, she wavered, glancing back at James, who seemed to have anticipated her hesitation.

  “Don’t look back! I’m right b—”

  Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

  A volley of gunfire cut him off, the volatile atmosphere ignited with thunderous cracks. Bullets sliced through the air, striking their targets. James lurched forward as a bullet pierced his back, but his reflexes didn’t falter.

  “Go! Go! Go!” he shouted again.

  Sana’s pulse quickened, each beat echoing James’s powerful roar. A wave of relief surged through her as she heard his voice, urging her onward. She clenched her fists and pushed herself harder, her legs burning with the effort. Without another thought, she darted into the bushes to escape the unseen danger.

  In her frantic sprint, her handgun slipped from her grasp, but there was no time to retrieve it. Each step was a blur, her breath ragged, her heart thumping wildly in her chest. The adrenaline coursing through her veins masked the pain clawing at her body, fueling her desperate flight.

  Behind her, the searing pain that tore through James transported him back to a defining moment from his past, one etched in the annals of his Special Forces career. He remembered the pandemonium, the deafening gunfire, the fiery heat of battle. He’d been critically injured, fighting for every breath, until rescue finally came. In the hazy aftermath, he awoke to a vision of serenity. There, in the sterile confines of the ICU, was the most beautiful angel tending to him. Now, as he grappled with the hit, he couldn’t shake the memory of that ethereal figure. His jaw tightened, and he swallowed hard, the weight of his failure pressing down on his chest.

  Esme, I’m sorry… I’ve let you and the boys down. The silent apology reverberated in his mind.

  The numbness crept into his legs, snapping him back to the here and now. He ducked behind a bush, readying his Glock 19 with slightly shaky hands. To his credit, he took down two more attackers before darkness closed in.

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  ……

  The gunfire ceased, replaced by an eerie silence. Two snipers communicated over their comms as they approached the stricken SUV that James and Sana had abandoned. The sight of their fallen comrades scattered around the vehicle stopped them cold, disbelief stark on their faces.

  “Let’s track ‘em down,” one of them spat, his voice thick with anger. “They must pay with their lives.”

  His teammate nodded, and they trudged into the brushwood where James and Sana had disappeared.

  ……

  The thunderstorm had finally let up, the damp forest floor squelching under their boots. After trekking for some time, they found James, slumped face down in the mud.

  Thud!

  One of the men delivered a hard kick to his leg. His lack of response led the other to speculate, “He’s probably dead.”

  Then he said into his comms, “This is Charlie 1. The driver’s dead, and there’s no sign of the companion. Should we hunt her down? Over.”

  “Any casualties? Over,” Alpha 1 asked.

  “There’s only Charlie 2 and me, over,” Charlie 1 replied, his tone dispirited.

  The reality of losing eighteen men to what should have been an easy mission left the trio reeling.

  Finally, he ordered, “Return to the base now, over.”

  As the conversation ended, a heavy silence enveloped the sedan in which Alpha 1 was riding shotgun. In the back seat, Lara’s breath caught in her throat as the words crackled over the comms. Her hands clenched into fists, nails digging crescents into her palms. She stared blankly at the floor, the image of James’s steady gaze flashing in her mind. A single tear escaped, tracing a hot path down her cheek. She wiped it away with a sharp, furious motion.

  Director James… she swallowed hard, fighting back tears. I swear, I’ll avenge you.

  ......

  Meanwhile, amidst the gentle patter of raindrops, Sana could only hear her own labored breathing and the relentless pounding in her chest. The thick underbrush scratched at her limbs, each breath a struggle. Her body screamed for surrender; every step felt like it led nowhere, and delirious thoughts began to sprout.

  Director James, did you lose track of me? Please don’t be captured or—

  She couldn’t bring herself to speculate further.

  Her pace slowed to a crawl as her strength waned. After what felt like an eternity, she stumbled out of the dense foliage and onto a deserted road. Across the way, a quaint duplex came into view.

  At the same time, a pair of headlights appeared in her periphery, the vehicle pulling into the driveway of that modest duplex. She blinked against the blinding light, disoriented. Her vision swam, the world tilting as she muddled forward, the sudden glimpse of the driver rekindling her will.

  I have to get over there!

  Sana forced one unsteady step after another, staggering toward the driveway, the distance shrinking agonizingly slowly. Her body lagged behind her will, every movement delayed, as though she were fighting her way forward with lead chained to her legs.

  Just a little more.

  But her strength snapped before her resolve did. Her knees buckled, and she crumpled onto the unforgiving ground, the duplex just out of reach as everything went black.