Page 87 of Guarded By the Phantom

I confirmed with one look that she was huddled safely behind the table before I threw my knife, barely missing one of the Russians, who pulled his head back at the last moment. The knife embedded in the doorframe. I tightened my armor, getting ready to fight.

Bullets flew into the room. I covered my eyes with my arm as they ricocheted off my armor. I shot a glance at Barbara. The table top was sturdy, and she was safe enough behind it. Still, shooting was a risk. I advanced. The room was red, my instincts activated.

I had one goal now: to kill.

Before I got to the door, one of the men came in, swinging his chain. I kept my distance, eyeing it. It was a sturdy, long chain, and if it wrapped around me, my mobility would be impaired.

“Abomination hunters, huh?” I asked while he watched me, working the chain to keep me at a distance. “Fuck, guys. Way to choose a career. How much do you make a year? Do you get health insurance? Dental? Maybe I can join?”

The man was silent, keeping his eyes on me. As fast as lighting, I threw another knife, aiming for his thigh. He swung with his chain, and the knife clattered to the floor behind him.

Fuck. Okay. They weren’t amateurs.

The two other men filed in, both wielding chains. I thought longingly about my bag that held everything I needed to blow each of them ten new holes. On me, I had only knives and also grenades, which I wouldn’t use for fear of hurting my doll.

“Bey!” The first guy, who had an ugly red scar running down his cheek, swung at me with the chain, as fast as a cobra. I stepped back to avoid it and he pushed closer, giving me an unhinged grin.

“You dance like bear in a circus, ah?” he said in a thick Russian accent.

“Yeah, and you are the clowns,” I said, returning his grin.

He swung at me again. I caught the chain and pulled hard, bringing him to his knees. I threw a kick at his face, breaking his nose in one go. He fell back into a small table with a fancy flower arrangement, which landed on top of his head.

While he was busy getting orchids out of his hair, his two friends swung at me in unison. I bent back to avoid the chains, my arm falling back to lean on the floor. I got a clear view of the crystal chandelier hanging right above me from the ceiling. Damn, this place was fancy.

The chains crossed above my stomach and pulled away. I straightened in a rush and sent another knife flying. It grazed one guy’s arm but didn’t do more damage.

“So, how about that dental? Casual Fridays?” I asked, bracing myself to attack.

The first guy got up, his face covered in blood. The other two swung at me again, perfectly in sync. I rolled on the floor, aiming to kick the middle guy in the nuts. He stepped back at the last moment, while the guy on the left leapt deeper into the room. I was surrounded, but that wasn’t the problem. The problem was, I wasn’t between them and my doll anymore.

“Oh, you did it now,” I said, crimson flooding my brain.

I jumped at the guy whose nose I broke. He tried to block me with his chain, but I flung it aside, getting his jaw with an uppercut. He punched me back, but I barely felt it. Not wasting a second, I jabbed his nose again. He stumbled back with a scream of pain.

While I dealt with him, his friend got a chain around my neck. I leaned forward and treated him to a high donkey kick.

“Oof!” He stumbled back but still held on tight.

I kicked him again until he let go, and I turned fast, murder on my mind. Grabbing my last knife from my belt, I dropped to one knee and sank it in his thigh.

Before he even made a sound, I pulled the knife out. He’d bleed faster this way. I turned, still low on my knees, and jabbed with the knife at the third guy. He got me with his chain, which briefly wrapped around my wrist. I pulled hard, using the hold he had on me to bring him closer, and kicked up, landing one between his legs.

He barely huffed. Fucker wore a groin guard. I dropped the knife to grip the chain, but he pulled it back, making me sprawl on the floor.

“Come on, let the old nuts breathe a little,” I grunted, rolling away to get back on my feet.

I didn’t make it. A boot landed on my nape, Broken Nose barking something in muffled Russian. I got my arms underneath me and did the hardest pushup in my life, grunting as I lifted not just my weight, but his, too. The guy stumbledaway, but before I could get up, a chain hit the side of my head, rattling my brain.

That was fine. My head liked a bit of a shakedown.

I jumped to my feet, pirouetting away until I was face to face with Broken Nose. Another chain hit my ass, and I laughed, wasting a second to wiggle my bum tauntingly. My little dance done, I grinned and hit Nose with my head. He fell to the ground, losing consciousness.

“One down,” I announced cheerfully, grabbing the chain that had just wrapped around my middle.

I pulled the guy holding it closer, but he fought, his teeth bared, veins jumping on his forehead. While I was busy with him, his friend swung his chain at my legs. It wrapped around my ankle, and before I could react, the guy tripped me. I fell back, managing to turn to my stomach at the last moment.

In the matter of a second, another chain wrapped around my neck.A gun swung into view as one of them straddled my back with a grunt. He grabbed my skull, his fingers finding purchase in my eye sockets.

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