Page 36 of Bound in the Dark

Nadya snorted. "With those numbers, it seemed like distraction would be useful."

"You had no idea of the numbers when you grabbed the launcher from my trunk."

Her niece bit her lip and seemed to lose some of her light. "Did I screw things up?"

Diana let out a slow breath remembering that Nadya was young and still needed encouragement. “No. You did well." But was it luck or skill? "Where did you learn how to fire it?"

Launching a rocket from the shoulder mounted device wasn't hard, but accuracy with one wasn’t common, even in the military. Besides being illegal the rockets were expensive and hard to come by. Even though they were a significant distance away and tightly grouped, her niece had managed not to hit anyone on their side of the conflict.

"Mom likes exciting vacations."

Diana laughed, not doubting that for a moment. Nadya relaxed and practically vibrated with excitement as she started telling her about the last time she had gone on vacation with her mother. The unused adrenaline had the girl bouncing like a small child.

Movement in the trees to their right. Diana rolled to the left and palmed her Glock. It was probably Sharp, but it never hurt to be prepared.

A muffled voice was barely discernible over her niece's excited words but Diana thought she heard the man say, "Get your asses up here."

She called out loudly, "Be useful instead of creepy and help us carry this stuff back to my car."

Nadya stopped her bouncing and squinted into the darkness. Sharp stepped out of the woods and Diana holstered her gun. The man looked equal parts confused and amused to see the two of them.

Explaining how the two of them ended up acting as backup for the exchange was going to be complicated without sharing secrets. Diana didn't want to have to do it twice, so she bent to gather up her gear. Telling an edited version of that story could wait until whoever he had called joined them.

"Yes, ma'am." Sharp shook his head and chuckled.

Between the three of them they quickly transported the pile of weapons back down to her car. Most of the hardware hadn't been used but over-prepared was better than under. Tension roiled through Diana’s stomach. Even with all her weapons she almost hadn't been enough to save Highdive.

The headlights of the cars and motorcycles had spotlighted the combat like a badly directed movie. With planning the two to one odds wouldn't have been unmanageable, but Tony’s unexpected betrayal had given the enemy the element of surprise. It was a miracle things hadn’t gone a lot worse.

Thankfully, Tony was an awful tactician. Had she planned the ambush the Dark Sons wouldn't have had time to react. The attackers would have opened fire from cover. Hostages were a waste of time when it was obvious that survivors would be a liability.

Fortunately, Tony thrived on drama instead of practicality. Well, there was nothing more dramatic than a well-timed head shot. Diana smiled even as chills of fear raced across her skin.

If Tony had acted even a minute earlier, Highdive would have died. She'd barely gotten her rifle assembled when everything went pear shaped. If Tony hadn't been unreachable behind the cab of the truck she would have ignored her promise to Dominic Minetti.

Waiting for the pompous Italian to finish his speech and move from behind the cover had required every last ounce of her patience. During those long seconds so many possibilities had raced through her mind. Tomasso dead. Hawk dead. Highdive dead. The fact that her vengeance would have been bloody wouldn’t have made a bit of difference.

When the men came out from the trees with their guns pointed towards Highdive she'd almost thrown away all of her training and changed priorities.

The effective use of the RPG-7 had saved most of the Dark Sons. Diana wouldn't have even considered using it the way her niece had. But without the large explosive damage and distraction the night could have turned out very different.

Diana tried not to smile as she listened to Nadya brag to Sharp about her part in the battle. The girl sounded more like a kid describing a cool scene from a video game than a young woman who was responsible for at least five deaths that night.

Diana’s own kill count had increased by seven, not that she bothered to track the total any longer. The Dark Sons and maybe Tomasso’s men had been responsible for the other eleven. She guessed the men still alive would soon be regretting that fact when the Dark Sons got them somewhere alone. The prisoners would bepersuadedto spill all they knew about Petrov’s plans as well as anything else they were asked.

She placed her sniper rifle back carefully into its specialized compartment in her trunk. Packing things up neatly took extra time but reduced the danger of not having quick access to what she needed in the future. Preparation was one of many keys to success.

Nadya tossed the RPG-7 haphazardly into the trunk and walked away. Diana shook her head. How could the two of them even be related? It took a little rearranging to make up for the space that would have been taken up by the HE warheads her niece had used so the weapon wouldn't slide around. Finally she was able to slide the false bottom of the trunk back into place.

"What the ever loving fuck?" Hawk's growled words were followed by Nadya's squeal of excitement. Diana turned to watch her niece launch herself in a flying hug at her father's neck.

To give the man credit he didn't flinch at the surprise attack and caught his daughter before she could knock him over. Hawk's posture softened a bit as he squeezed her back. It was good to see them bonding even if it was over something so unconventional.

"I saved your ass, Daddio!" Nadya teased.

Two more men entered the small hidden parking area. Hannibal looked completely baffled by the nineteen-year-old's exuberance while Highdive's scowl was focused on her. It was as if he couldn’t believe she was there and had been the one sniping from the ridge.

The look might have been insulting, but she guessed she could forgive him for needing time to come to terms with who she was. It was only fair. Diana had known everything there was to know about Highdive before she had approached him at the club. He'd only known the truth about her for less than twelve hours.

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