Page 5 of Maddog

Without prompting from me Razor hit the accelerator hard, and we charged through the forest until we burst onto the road. Razor managed to maneuver the vehicle to a skidding halt between the small group of people and gunmen. We were practically on top of them, and even though we weren’t expecting to take fire and hadn’t put the roof on the Light Utility Vehicle, I was glad for the bulletproof glass on the door of the Badger.

I stood and fired over the window, taking down two hostiles. Razor got another one and the rest fled.

“We may have to ditch some ordinance.” I spoke through my throat mike to Mechanic, back at the Osprey. “Got at least ten civilians still alive.”

“Copy that. Dump it, then destroy it on your way out. It’ll have the added effect of takin’ out their road.”

“If you do that, you’ll cut off the village from supply trucks.” That was one of the women in the group. “We should leave.”

“I can’t fit all of you in this vehicle unless I drop equipment in the back. If I do that, I can’t let the locals take that equipment. My only option is to destroy it where I drop it.” I tried to be patient, but I needed to get Holly and get the fuck outta here.

“Can’t you drop it somewhere else?”

“Look, lady,” I snapped. “Either I dump the shit and destroy it, or I leave you here. Don’t care which. But if you stay, they will come back and theywillkill you. Eventually.” I dismissed the woman as I scanned the group until I found Holly.

The lady protested or something. I dismissed her, but her voice was like a buzzing gnat in my subconscious. The only thing that mattered right now was Holly.

She sat huddled with her friend against the side of a large rock. Both women looked terrified. Blood streaked down Holly’s temple and she looked a little dazed. Her gaze locked on mine, and she let go of her friend and shoved herself to her feet, half running, half stumbling toward me. When she threw herself at me, I caught her with one arm, my pistol in the other as I tracked the area for threats.

“Jax! Oh, God! Jax!”

“I’ve got you, baby. Gonna keep you safe. But you’re gonna have to let me go so I can dump some stuff to make room for everyone. OK?”

She stiffened, then shoved herself away from me. “I’ll h-help.” She clasped her hands behind her back and took a couple steps backward, a not-so-subtle retreat. “What has to go?”

“Everything, honey. Anything in the back of this vehicle needs to be offloaded.” I hated not being able to comfort her like I knew she needed, but we didn’t have a lot of time. And if worse came to worst, I’d grab Holly and take off. I would not hesitate to leave every single person in the fucking group behind if it put Holly in unreasonable danger. If that happened, she’d never forgive me. Or herself.

“Got it.” And she went to work. Honestly, the work would help her focus on something other than what had just happened or what would happen next.

It didn’t take me, Razor, and Holly long to completely empty out the bed. While we did that, the group gathered their dead to take with us. Only one or two of them didn’t help. Both were in obvious shock.

The second the last of our weapons and ordinance was unloaded, the group started loading into the truck. They managed to get all but one of their dead in the back before we left. They’d argued for a few seconds before Razor put the vehicle in gear and sped off. Most of the group yelled and screamed at us to stop and go back, to get the last of the bodies, but Razor and I were in silent agreement that we needed to get back to our transport. Pronto.

Holly was between me and Razor. I had my left arm around her waist, my gun still firmly in my right hand as Razor pushed the vehicle as fast as he could. She trembled but said nothing. Holly gripped my thigh with one hand and the hand around her waist with the other. Seconds later there was a deafening BOOM! as the ordinance detonated behind us. Hopefully, even if those guys came back with reinforcements, the destroyed road would at least slow them down.

“We can’t leave the village like this!” A young man a few years older than Holly leaned forward from where he’d piled in the back with the others. “We have a responsibility to fix what we broke!”

“Report it after we’ve gone,” I snapped. “Or I can toss you out here and you can fix it yourself.”

“I’m not tucking my tail between my legs and running home! If you’re military, you should know I’m Christopher Alistair the third, United States Senator Alistair’s son. My Secret Service detail was killed, so you have to act as my detail. That means I’m in charge.”

“Ain’t military, kid. We’re in the private sector, and we’re here for her.” I indicated Holly. “Only reason you’re with us in the first place is because it wasn’t in her best interest to leave you behind. If that status changes, you’ll find yourself on your ass on the side of the road, no matter who your daddy is.”

Up ahead, the Osprey was powering up. Razor approached it and skidded the vehicle to a stop several feet away.

“Everyone out!” I yelled, tugging Holly out my side of the vehicle. Never letting go of her hand, I trotted with her to the transport while Razor drove ahead to pull the vehicle into the Osprey. I urged her to the front of the plane and the troop seating. When I would have helped her fasten her seatbelt, she brushed my hands away and did it herself. I knew then she’d be all right. For the first time since Wrath had told me what was going on, I felt the band around my chest ease up a little. It wouldn’t be completely gone until we landed safely in the Black Reign compound with Holly safe and sound.

ExFil had arranged for a midair refuel for us to head home. Once the refueling was complete, all there was left to do was wait. Mechanic and Razor had the bird well in hand. They’d let me know if they needed me. In fact, I expected Razor would be back with us soon. Once they got everything settled from the refueling and all the other pilot shit they did, Mechanic wouldn’t need Razor until we got closer to our destination.

I turned slightly to look at Holly. She still gripped my hand, but didn’t meet my gaze.

“Hey, baby. Look at me.” She sucked in a breath and blinked several times, like she’d been startled awake. She obeyed, looking up at me with wide, vulnerable eyes. “That’s my girl. Are you hurt? Did you get hit?”

She looked slightly confused, then stiffened. “I-I hit my head.” Her voice was high-pitched and slightly husky. “When the bus wrecked.”

“Do you know what happened?”

“Not really.” She frowned, rubbing her temple as though she had a headache. If she’d hit her head, she likely did. “The bus swerved, and we hit something. I’m not sure when those men got on the bus. But I don’t think it was too long after we wrecked.”

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