Page 26 of Bound By Valor

Too soon, the necessity of the moment forced us to part.

I kissed her once more, gently this time, a stark contrast to the fierce urgency of our first. Reluctantly turning away, I rejoined my squad by the door. Logan smirked and tossed the car keys to me, his wink at Leora both teasing and knowing.

I shot him a glare. Opening the door, I stepped out, haunted by the thought that this fervent, stolen kiss might be the first and last with Leora for many reasons.

???

“No one’s here.” Logan’s voice came through the earpiece.

Amelia and I were stationed in a three-bedroom detached house, strategically positioned half a block from Crazon’s drop-off location. Meanwhile, Kabir, Dylan, and Logan were on point for the interception,with us ready as backup.

“I have eyes on an armored truck at the south entrance of the target house.” Amelia reported, her eyes glued to the drone feed on her laptop.

“They’re here. I repeat, shoot to maim, gather the goods, and get the hell out. The goods are what we’re here for,” I directed my next statement to the one person I thought could be reckless, “Titan, you hear me? We don’t need hostages to question.”

There was silence for a good five seconds before Dylan’s rough voice came through, “Copy.”

“I see two heat signatures, Gunner. One on the porch, one inside, six meters from the door,” she relayed.

“Copy,” Logan uttered.

I saw a scuffle happen between two dots in her laptop.

“Front porch clear. Cipher and Gunner are a go,”Logan.

“Titan providing cover,”Dylan.

A few minutes passed by, and after a few gunshots, I heard a long silence.

“Gunner, clear, unhit, on extraction.”Logan.

“Cipher, clear, unhit, on extraction.”Kabir.

The silence that followed was thicker, tenser. Then it was shattered by a strained report, “Titan, unclear, incapacitated, near north entrance.”

As soon as Dylan’s pained voice cut through the earpiece, a curse slipped from my lips. Amelia’s face drained of color, her eyes widened in shock, and her lips trembled.

I let out a heavy, erratic sigh and took command, “Ghost, engaging, rescuing Titan.”

“Got your six, Ghost,” Logan said.

“Falcon, get on extraction and support Cipher,” I said.

When she didn’t move, I grabbed her by her shoulders and gave her an affirming nod, “Your brother’s fine, Amelia. He’s alive. I’ll bring him back.”

She nodded, her eyes quickly blinking away the fear as she unholstered her gun and rushed out through the back exit.

Giving myself a moment to collect my thoughts, I sprinted towards the target house, an old, mansion-sized Victorian. An unconscious guard lay on the porch as I entered.

Inside, I searched for Dylan. A man lay sprawled near the entryway, clearly injured but still a threat as his eyes met mine and he fired. I dodged, taking cover behind a couch, then moved quietly towards him.

Shots whizzed by. Another shot. And another.

I rose and returned fire.

Logan burst in from the back, diving and sliding towards the assailant. He grabbed the man by the neck, cutting off his blood supply with a precise chokehold.

“Thanks, Gunner,” I acknowledged with a nod as Logan smiled back.

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