Page 53 of Elliot

He leaped into the middle of the three and sent a crushing kick into the face of one of the men.Down but not out. Elliot twisted and grabbed the gun in another’s hand. He pulled the man into him, opposite the direction the man suspected, causing him to fall forward. He smashed his knee into the man’s face, and the body went limp.Out.

“Guardians outside the fence line,” Con said.

He turned, drawing his knife as he moved. The gun pointed at him fired. He arched backward and pitched the knife with his left hand. The sharp blade found purchase in the man’s chest. Elliot rolled and was up and running toward the building. He drew his weapon, and as the two men who’d left started running in his direction with their weapons drawn, he took aim and fired. He ran full tilt into the service elevator as the door was shutting. Slamming against the back wall, he grunted in pain. “Fuck.”

“You hit?”

“No,” Elliot panted. “I’m in the service elevator. Someone called it back up. Tell the responding personnel three are down, two injured, but unknown.”

There was silence for a moment. “Done. They probably called it up to keep you from coming up.”

“Yeah.” Elliot pulled his clip. Eight round cartridges with one in the chamber and two shots fired. Seven shots left. He slapped it back into the butt of his weapon. In the heat of battle, one didn’t trust one’s memory to tell them how many shots were fired. You verified when you had the time.

“How are you going to get out of a box with one way in and one way out?” Con asked him.

Elliot looked up. “I’m not.”

CHAPTER 19

Elliot pressed his arms and legs against the wall and inched his way up past the door opening. As the elevator came to a stop, he held himself aloft of the floor, straining to keep himself pinned.

“Hey, who called the elevator?” a voice asked from outside the open door. The man stepped in, and Elliot dropped on top of him. Elliot grabbed the man’s shirt and slammed a right hook into his face. He went lax immediately.Out.

Elliot slammed back against the wall, out of sight of the door. He peeked around the corner and spun out of the death box as soon as he saw the way was clear. On the way out, he pushed the down arrow. No one was getting off the floor that way. He drew his weapon and moved forward.

A bull rush from the side sent him and his gun sliding on the concrete. He spun to avoid a kick to the head and was on his feet, squared up against the guy. A knife swung at him, and he hopped back, just missing being sliced through the midsection. Elliot found his footing and watched as the man jabbed again. He avoided the slash and slapped the guy’s arm, pushing him away.

Fury laced the man’s face, and he whipped the knife backward. Elliot moved and slapped the man’s face as he spun. A rage-filled scream echoed down the hallway. The man came at him again, but Elliot countered, pushing the man past him, spinning, and drawing his gun. “Get on your knees.”

To his credit, the man contemplated his fate for about two seconds, then rushed toward Elliot. Elliot parried the thrust, spun, and used the butt of the gun to knock the man into next week. The oaf went down, and Elliot walked over him. “Two down, not out,” Elliot whispered.

“Got it,” Con answered. “I tapped into a weather camera from on top of the building next door. I can see Maya and the woman. Head east.”

“Which way’s fucking east?” Elliot was in the center of the building and couldn’t tell which way was up at the moment.

“Toward the building with the black reflective glass.”

Elliot did a three-sixty look for black glass. There was none in sight; hell, there was only cement. That was when he saw the man rounding the corner. Elliot lifted his weapon, and the man stopped, lifting his hands high into the air.

“I’m NYPD undercover, dude. I’m not getting killed for these pieces of shit.” Reaching up, he pulled out a handcuff attached to his hand, then walked two feet and turned to hug a cement beam. He snapped the other cuff tight. “The blonde has a piece of meat with her and the other woman, too. The meat is an oaf. He’ll rush you. He’s strong, and if he gets his hands on you, he’ll kill you.”

“Don’t count on it,” Elliot said as he walked up and checked the cuffs to make sure they were secure. “Con, you get that?”

“Yep. Advising Guardian. The elevator is down now, and they’ll be heading up.”

“Dude, you got some James Bond shit going on? Who are you talking to?”

Elliot looked at the cop and lifted an eyebrow. “Which way?”

“Straight back the way I came. Take a right at the end of the walkway.” Elliot jogged down the hall, his weapon at the ready. He turned right and saw the hired meat the cop was talking about. At least six-foot-ten inches tall and a good four hundred pounds of bulk. The guy smiled and headed in his direction. Elliot didn’t hesitate. He started running toward the lumbering mountain. He leaped into the air and hit the man dead center in his chest with both feet. Falling to the concrete, he quickly rolled to his feet. The mountain wasn’t as fast. As he rolled onto his knees, Elliot doubled up both fists with his automatic still in his hand and axed the man in the face.

Once he was down, Elliot bolted toward the black glass building he could now see. “Shit, hurry up, Elliot,” Con hissed. Elliot pounded down the hall and turned the corner, skittering to a stop.

“I didn’t think you’d make it this far.” Jessica held a knife to Maya’s throat.

Maya’s headfelt like someone was driving a spike through her brain. Her ears rang, and her vision was blurry. She wanted to throw up, which was compounded by the gag in her mouth pushing her tongue back, making her want to gag. She was slung over someone’s shoulder. The blood pounding through her veins was akin to sledgehammers driving wedges in her skull. Suddenly, she was dumped onto the floor. The jarring movement was the lightning rod that caused her to retch, but thankfully, nothing in her stomach wanted to come up. She swallowed as best as she could, and her stomach bile burned her throat on the way back down.

“Go back and make sure no one interrupts me.” Jessica’s voice was near her, and she could see the woman through her blurry vision. She gasped and cried out when Jessica pulled her hands up. Tied behind her like they were, the pressure on her shoulders was incredibly painful.

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