Page 75 of Covert Vengeance

At least Megan was safe on the other side of the hatch with Ty. And now Amber was about to deliver this evil motherfucker responsible for so much carnage, destruction and death his come-to-Jesus moment.

She was sick of waiting. This was ending here and now.

The hair on the back of her neck stood up as she drew breath to shout. “Yury! I’m right here, asshole, come and get me.”

The light that had been moving away from her suddenly swung around in a tight arc. Amber raised her weapon, heart thudding in her ears as she waited. Splashing footsteps approached.

Ducking around the corner, she dropped to one knee and fired twice at the target. The man carrying the flashlight grunted and fell, dropping the flashlight into the water.

Amber darted out from behind cover and hurried toward him. Light streamed up the tunnel wall, giving her a view of the man’s face.

His eyes and mouth were open, the water around him turning red as blood flowed out of the bullet wounds in his chest. He was dying, and since his hands were empty, his weapon somewhere in the water, he was no longer a threat to her.

She jumped over him and continued on to the next turn in the tunnel. There was no one there so she continued to the next, following the map in her mind. Two more threats stood between her and the end of this mission. She was going after them both.

At the fourth turn in the tunnel, another light source glowed faintly up ahead around the corner. She paused there, hugging the wall, and waited.

The light stopped moving. Seconds later the splash of water reached her.

She pushed out a breath and forced her muscles to relax, getting ready to go on the offensive. This time she waited until the attacker had almost reached the corner.

Ducking out from behind cover, she fired two more rounds.

Three more shots rang out just as she pulled the trigger the second time. Pain drove through her chest as a bullet slammed home below her right shoulder. The impact drove the breath from her lungs.

Amber dropped to her knees in the water, her right hand strangely numb. She’d dropped her weapon.

She dove for it, reached out with her left hand. Her fingers brushed the grip—

A blinding beam of light hit her in the eyes. She flinched and wrenched her head to the side, momentarily blinded.

The grip of the pistol was hard against her searching fingers. She curled them around it, yanked the pistol out of the water and fired at the light source.

The light fell away instantly, then a low, agonized groan filled the tunnel.

Amber doubled over to catch her breath, her heart careening in her chest when someone grabbed her from behind.

“It’s me,” Jesse whispered, hauling her to her feet and dragging her back around the corner. She sagged in his grip and allowed him to get her behind cover. “You all right?” he demanded when they were around the turn.

She made a sound in the affirmative, struggling to get her lungs to open. Her fingers shook a little as she reached up to feel where the bullet had struck her high up on her vest. There was no hole in her shirt where her chest and shoulder met. No blood.

Her lungs began to open up, her heart rate dropping a notch. “I’m okay,” she gasped out. “You?”

“I’m good.” He set a hand on her shoulder. “My rifle jammed and my backup’s empty.”

“Here.” She handed him her extra mag. She was running low on ammo too, with only seven or eight bullets remaining.

“How many tangos left?”

“Just Stanislav, I think. Megan and Ty are through the hatch.”

“You wanna draw him out and above ground?”

“No. I’m finishing this here. Stay behind me.” She started forward, heading for the bend in the tunnel. The dropped flashlight had been turned by the flow of rising water, now pointing directly toward Megan and Ty’s position.

She stopped at the corner and waited, listening. A moment later she thought she heard a quiet splash. Her skin prickled.

Stanislav.

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