Page 69 of The Ghost of Rage's War

“Grenade launcher!” Ramirez yelled and dived to one side as it fired. A second and third blast quickly followed. “Open fire,” Ramirez bellowed as he shook debris off himself. The car in front was a twisted wreck, and flames leapt out at him. He scrambled back as his officers began shooting.

“Zone One engaged,” Ramirez reported to Horton as he ducked behind a wall.

“Ten-four,” Horton replied.

The Venomous Fangs rode up, tried to get around the blockade, and failed. At first, it started to resemble a massacre until several other grenades were launched.

Incoming reports stated he had men down, as much as Ramirez wanted to check, he couldn’t. He kept firing, with Ben alongside him, trying to hold the line. He didn’t want the Fangs breaking through.

“They’re using armour-piercing rounds,” an officer screamed over the radio.

“Keep your heads down and keep shooting,” Ramirez replied.

“Moving the injured to the pick-up point,” another cop called in.

Ramirez acknowledged the call and squinted through the smoke. His snipers on the building’s roofs were taking people out, but his men on the ground were pinned.

“Flashbang’s launched,” Bobby Lucas yelled.

Flashes appeared, and the RCPD rose and shot blindly. Screaming, some men fell; others didn’t. But the Fangs kept pushing.

Ramirez heard a noise and lifted his head. An eighteen-wheeler headed for their roadblock.

“Take the driver out!” Ramirez screamed down the radio. Seconds later, the window screen shattered, and the truck rolled towards them. It had failed to smash through their barricade, but it now providedcover for the Fangs. The tide began turning against the RCPD, and they struggled to hold their ground.

“Team leaders, call in,” Ramirez demanded as he inserted a new magazine into his assault rifle.

He listened as they called in. He had sixty-seven officers standing and fighting. The rest were dead or injured. Ramirez made the call.

“Fall back to the buildings. Snipers, lay down covering fire,” Ramirez ordered. He had to hold this line. There was no other option.

The Venomous Fangs roared as the RCPD took up the secondary line. They poured through the barricade, firing as they did. RCPD, now not as exposed, opened fire. The Fangs would have to take their city one bloody inch at a time. There were bodies littered everywhere.

Overhead, a helicopter flew, and a cameraman leaned out. Ramirez could only imagine the breaking news.

He ducked as brick chips flew, as a bullet just missed his head. The burning barricade was producing so much smoke, visibility was poor. He knew his men were behind him, so he shot anything that moved.

A scream nearby informed him another officer was down. Ramirez gritted his teeth. The air was filled with the noises of weapons being fired, screams and yells, and the roar of the fire. Accompanying all that was the sound of sirens wailing throughout the city, rushing wounded to the hospital. Distant battles being fought clogged the air, and Ramirez knew the entirecity was fighting.

A man appeared, and Ramirez shot him straight in the head.

No mercy. Not today. He glimpsed a bandolier filled with grenades and snatched it up. Yanking the pins, Ramirez stood and launched several grenades in the direction the Fangs were coming from.

The explosion made his ears ring, and he winced as body parts splattered around him. The Fangs were cursing as he ducked low and wiped some mangled flesh from his arm. He pulled the pins on a few more and threw them overhead. He hoped he had thrown them far enough not to get hurt himself and curled up.

More explosions happened, and then he heard the sound of a submachine gun open up.

“Come on, you fuckers!” Ben yelled, and Ramirez glanced across and shook his head. In front of him was a sight he’d never forget. Ben stood in slacks, a filthy white button-down, bullet-proof vest and dirty, streaked cheeks. In his hands was a machine gun, which he was firing at the Fangs. The first row approaching him died hard, and those behind ducked for cover.

“Get down, you asshole!” Ramirez yelled.

Ben grinned, launched the now empty machine gun, and pulled two grenades and threw them. He dived behind the wall where Ramirez was hiding and smirked.

“Fuck me,” Ramirez complained.

“Being badass can be fun,” Ben said before running in a crouch to a different spot. Ramirez kept shootingand covering him.

“Just lost my team!” Detective Wayne Bullock yelled.

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