Page 22 of Courting Danger

“Alex, get down!”

Thankfully, Alex listened without question and dropped to the floor just before the assassin pulled the trigger.

In the same breath, I fired my own gun, striking the assassin in the shoulder. The man fell, possibly dead, but I was too busy running to Alex’s side to care.

“Are you all right?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Alex pointed to the bullet lodged in the side of the tank. “They missed.” Such thick acrylic was stronger than it looked, even against a gunshot. The tank was in no danger of breaking but every shark in the vicinity had scattered to the farthest shadows.

Another gunshot had us both instinctually ducking. Someone cried out in pain. I pulled Alex down behind a bench and peered over the edge.

The blond man clutched his arm. He’d been grazed by a bullet. Without knowing where the shot came from, it was impossible to tell if he had been the original target or was just an unlucky casualty.

Several people swarmed the man, shielding him as they pulled him from the room.

I gripped Alex’s arm, intending to do the same. “Come on. We need to get you out of here.”

More bullets flew above our heads. We stayed behind the cover of the bench, inching our way toward the nearest door.

The sound of a gun firing from the opposite direction brought us to a halt.

Valente stood at the center of the room, shooting at several targets at once. “Go on.” He pulled the trigger again and someone shouted in pain just out of sight. “I’ll cover you.”

We sprinted for the door, with me shielding Alex as much as I could.

Various tanks and exhibits passed by in a blur as we ran from room to room. The aquarium, which had been so friendly before, was now a twisted labyrinth of shadows and strange geometry that hindered our escape at every turn.

In the middle of an underwater tunnel, our sprint came to a stop. Coral stood to either side, and a group of three armed individuals blocked the path in front. Turning around, we found another armed group waiting for us at the opposite end of the tunnel. We were trapped, pinned in by acrylic walls and deadly weapons.

No choice but to stand and fight.

Alex and I positioned ourselves back-to-back, each facing down one side of the tunnel.

I gripped my gun, finger poised on the trigger. If I was fast, I could probably take out two or three of them before they got too close. It might give Alex enough opportunity to escape, especially if I stayed behind to keep the remaining enemies busy.

Before I could voice this plan, however, Alex nudged me with an elbow. “Take care of your side. These ones are mine.”

He charged down the tunnel before I could stop him. Alex had no gun, only a thin silver knife clutched in one hand. It should have been easy for someone to shoot him, but the man was impossibly fast. I knew Alex was fit, I’d explored the other man’s body in close detail, but this exceeded my expectations.

In a blur of motion, Alex stabbed his knife through the wrist of the first enemy as they raised their gun. Blood sprayed from the wound, meaning he’d managed to hit an artery on the first stab. It was an incredible show of precision, executed in the blink of an eye.

I couldn’t watch any longer. I had my own threat to deal with.

The enemies at the other end of the tunnel were farther away. I fired in their general direction while dodging to the side. My shot didn’t hit anything, but it delayed them long enough for me to close the distance.

Forgoing weapons entirely, I slammed a fist into the face of the first person I reached. The man’s jaw snapped and he screamed. Blood dribbled down his chin, and several teeth landed on the floor.

I kicked the fucker out of the way and kept going.

Guns were mostly useless in close combat, so I pulled out a knife strapped to the inside of my wrist. It was a short blade but had a serrated edge for maximum damage.

The second enemy managed to block my strike when I swung at his face. Feigning a step left, I spun on the ball of my foot and lunged to the right instead. The trick caught my opponent off guard just long enough for me to slip my knife between the man’s ribs. The assailant didn’t make a sound as his lungs suddenly deflated, but his face twisted in silent pain. One last breath rattled in his chest as he collapsed to the floor.

Two down, one to go.

The third opponent took advantage of the distraction his fallen comrade had created to stab right for my heart. Blue aquarium light glinted off the edge of the blade, alerting me of the danger just in time. I jumped back, barely missing the fatal blow, but the knife still found my flesh just above the elbow.

Only years of combat experience kept me focused through the pain radiating up my arm. I grabbed the hand holding the knife before it could retreat and used it to drag my opponent closer. Hooking my other arm around the attacker, I threw the man over my shoulder and slammed him as hard as I could into the floor.

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