Page 109 of Not Mine to Keep

“This is Delta One, overwatch has eyes on the White Rabbit and his men. Engaging now.” Sebastian let us know he had Claudio Barone in his sights. “Still no sign of Alpha One. Delta Four and Six, move into positions.”

“This is Delta Two. Alpha Team, be advised, he ...”

I stopped listening to the chatter on comms the moment I rounded the corner and saw Rocco. And not just him. He was crouched alongside Constantine, a knife beneath my brother’s throat. Constantine was slumped against the wall, head hung forward and eyes shut.

“Move and he dies,” Rocco warned.

“He looks dead already.” I did my best not to lose it at my words and empty an entire magazine into the bastard.

“I drugged him. He’s out cold.Butalive,” Rocco sneered, not removing his eyes from me. “You know I like to play with my food first before I kill it.”

I lunged forward on impulse but stopped the second he nicked my brother’s neck with the blade. Standing six feet away from him, I kept my Sig trained on Rocco, unsure what the hell to do right now.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” Rocco said, his tone eerily calm.

“You weren’t ahead of us this time. Your inside source at AISE screwed up.” I tapped at my neck and shared over comms, “I have the Mad Hatter. Has the White Rabbit been neutralized?”

“Not the worst code name for me.” Rocco shrugged. The sick prick. “Better than Cinderella like those asshole AISE officers called me on their op five years ago before I flipped an agent.”

“The one you flipped is about to get strung up on charges and hung right along with you.”Not that I plan to let you make it out alive.

At the slight twitch of Constantine’s foot, I about choked out a breath of relief Rocco hadn’t been lying about him being alive.

“This is Delta One.” Sebastian finally came over the line. “The White Rabbit is down. Pulse is faint. Everyone needs to exfil now. We just got word there’s a drone locked in overhead and missile capable. It’s not one of ours or the Romanians’. Someone may be looking to destroy evidence.”

At the news, I hissed to Rocco, “Who hired you to start another conflict in Afghanistan? Get them on the phone and tell them to stand down. They’re about to kill you with a drone strike.”

“And kill you and your brother. I guess we all go down.” The look in his eyes betrayed his casual tone. He didn’t want to die.

“Russian oligarch,” he grunted out, his chest heaving from a deep sigh of all fucking things right now. “He’s not going to back down if I call.” He looked toward the hallway behind me, as if contemplating a way out that wouldn’t involve capture or death.

“Alpha One, Alpha Two: you’re the last ones in there. Evac immediately,” Sebastian rushed out that time. “We have incoming. Sixty seconds out. Do you copy?”

I could shoot Rocco and hope to kill him before he slit my brother’s throat, but I’d never be able to drag Constantine out in time with a missile already locked on to us.

“Such a fucking dilemma,” Rocco said, pushing the knife closer to Constantine’s jugular. “You either ask for my help to get you two out or leave your brother here to die so you can make a run for it.”

“Forty seconds,” Sebastian said into my ear, and I shook my head and lowered my Sig to my side. I’d never clear the compound with Constantine in time.

“Working on a way out,” I told Sebastian, not taking the time to announce myself first. “What’s your backup exit plan?” I asked Rocco, unsure if I could believe him, but at this point, I had no choice but to take my chances.

“Not sure if we’ll find our way out of the maze, but it’s better than getting blown to fucking pieces, right?”

“Tunnels,” I said under my breath. But if his old man hadn’t gone to them for an escape plan, that meant they weren’t exactly user friendly and hadn’t been operated by anyone on-site in recent years—something my wife had mentioned. “Help me with him.” It took every part of me to ask that. Even if Rocco removed the knife from beneath Constantine’s throat, I wouldn’t be able to shoot him until I knew where the alleged tunnel entrance was, and he’d anticipate that move.

“Weapons down. Same time. All of them,” he ordered. “You can fight me once we’re underground, don’t worry.”

I set aside the Sig and knife, then quickly went for the rifle sling and removed the Ruger. “We’re out of time. We need to go.”

A flash of hesitation crossed his face, but he tossed the knife.

I hurried to Constantine, kicked away his rifle resting near his limp body that Rocco had opted not to take for whatever reason, then tossed my brother’s sidearm, too.

“Let’s go,” I directed to Rocco now that we wereallweaponless, and we hoisted Constantine from under his armpits to drag him to safety with us.

Well, I sure as hell hoped to safety.

I met Rocco’s eyes, both of us sweating and breathing hard, and we began down the hall. I let the motherfucker who once torturedConstantine lead the way, uncertain if he was leading us all to our deaths.

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