Page 85 of Broken Princess

I nod at the driver of the van at the end of the alley. They floor it and head straight at the reinforced gates in front of us. We’re not lucky enough for them to buckle on the first try, and despite the damage to the front end, our driver gets enough momentum on the second attempt to bust them clear open.

As the van reverses, I hold up my arm and then flick my wrist for the team to follow me. “Team three in,” I confirm to Zo.

“Ten-four,” he quickly replies.

I see the stairs to the basement and we all move quickly, careful to look out for any stray guards. Gunfire rings out from above and to our left—four of us keep going as the other six in my team take defensive positions and start laying down cover fire. Our attackers are shooting from the second floor. They can’t get a good angle on us through the windows, so the rest of the team follows us to the basement door.

A swift kick from Luc and we’re in. We’re in a vulnerable position at the end of a long, narrow corridor with many doors on either side. Opening the door closest to us, I find a small empty storage room piled high with logs. I signal for two people to take up sentry here to cover the corridor and stairwell.

Leading the rest, we start a systematic sweep and clear the rooms on this level. It’s not until we get to the last room that we find anything.

“Oh shit,” I say, realising from the clothes that the slumped body on the far wall is Nico. “Etta, Luc, get your asses over here and help me move him.”

We roll him over and see that aside from a hole in his leg, he seems to be injury-free. He’s lost a lot of blood, though. I tighten the belt acting as a tourniquet, but it won’t hold. I’d bet that’s the reason for his current state of unconsciousness.

Looking around, I see nothing better I can replace the strap of leather with, so I lay down my weapon and pull out a knife from my utility vest, keeping it sheathed. Wrapping the ends of the belt around the knife, I then twist till it’s tight enough and tuck the handle under the taught leather to hold it. I let out a sigh of relief as it holds fast.

I tap on the in-ear receiver. “Enzo, we need cover across the rear of the property. We found Nico, but I need to get him out to Doc Em now. I have enough to carry him and cover our asses, but I’d like back-up.”

“Sending you a team now, get moving. Any sign of Aurora?”

“She’s not here, but we’ve cleared the basement.”

“Can you close it off, make sure no one else gets through down there?”

I pause as I have an idea… a terrible idea. “Maybe…”

“What do you mean, maybe?!”

“I could torch it. There’s a shit-ton of kindling and firewood down here, but until you find Aurora, that’s a fucking awful idea.”

Zo is quiet on the other end of the comms for longer than makes me comfortable, but eventually he’s back. “Get out of there. I sent you back up and I’m sending Benny’s team to your current location to wait for my signal before torching the place.”

That is a much better plan. Let the pyromaniac play with matches. We’re out of here.

With the size of him, it takes four men to carry Nico. This fucker is reducing his bench press from now on. With three in front, and me, Etta and Luc at the rear, we head up the stairs, into the open.

As soon as we reach the top of the stairs, all fucking hell breaks loose. We’re caught in a crossfire, and I can’t tell which side is friendly, so we have no other option than to run full-pelt across the courtyard to the van waiting in the alley for us.

Losing two of our team in the front within three strides, they drop like stones with headshots taking them out instantly.

“Fuck, Zo, we’re sitting ducks out here!” I scream into the receiver.

“I’m on it,” is the only response I get. I’m about to scream at him some more before I see him burst out of a window on the second floor and jump down on the first-floor roof. He slides straight down on his front for cover, before taking aim and shooting. He takes a breath and repeats. For every shot, there’s a sickening crunch and thud as each enemy shooter falls from the opposite rooftop.

Left only with friendlies in the courtyard, we pick up Nico and haul ass to the waiting van. Throwing open the doors, we find a sheepish-looking Doc Em in the back, and I shake my head while also laughing. “Thank fuck you’re here, but you’re on your own when Stefano finds out you went rogue.”

“Fucking coward,” she says and winks at me before banging on the side of the van. “Close it up and get moving. I need to get him out of here, now.”

I slam the doors shut and turn back to the compound. Any relief I feel at knowing Nico is safe is dwarfed by the gut-wrenching anguish I feel knowing Aurora is still in there. I have to get back in there.

“Eyes open, people, and follow me. Our secondary objective is to thin out their defences. If it shoots at us, we shoot back. Be accurate and don’t die.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

ENZO

Where the fuck is she?

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