Page 104 of Two Chambered Heart

“There we go,” Archie said. “I just sent the location to your phone. Suit up and get the comms in. We’ll connect once you get to the building. You’ll need as much ammo as you can carry, but you’ll need to be fast too. Bring the night vision goggles. I’ll formulate the plan while you travel and brief you for execution before you infiltrate.” Archie disconnected the call.

Before Kayden could take control, Corey was pulling him up off the floor.

“What does one wear on a mission like this?” she asked, forcing her voice to be steady and light. She was so damn strong, but her eyes betrayed how deep her worry was.

“Leggings and long sleeve is fine. I’ll get you a vest downstairs.”

“I was hoping you were going to say leathers.” She forced a smile.

“Nah, too restrictive and makes too much noise. It’s also hard to run in and it’s too hot. I’ll see you in the front hall. Move as fast as you can.”

Corey turned to sprint out of his room, but he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her in for a deep kiss before letting her go. “I love you.” It was hard to get the words out with the constriction in his throat.

He didn’t wait for a response. He ran to his closet, threw on his black cargos and wool socks, and a tight black base layer. Hurrying down the stairs two at a time, he finally reached the front hallway.

Kayden tied up his tactical boots, making sure they were double knotted so they wouldn’t come undone on the mission. Then he pulled out all their guns, holsters, grenades, knives, belts and two top-of-the-line Kevlar vests from the closet.

Corey joined him in the hall as he laid everything out on the floor.

“Get your boots on. Do them up well. A mistake like that could cost us our lives.”

He strapped the belt with the throwing knives around her and then strapped on another sling of grenades. Two gun holsters went under her arms.

“These are automatic rifles. They have a wide spray and low accuracy, but you’re not trained with guns. We’ll get the rest of the ammo in the car.” He handed her an earpiece. “This earpiece is your lifeline. Archie is connected.”

“Hi, Archie,” she said out loud.

“Hello, there. I’ve heard quite a bit about you.” The voice came through crystal clear in their ears.

“Only good things, I hope?”

“Oh, just the worst.” There was forced levity in Archie’s familiar voice, but Kayden appreciated the effort.

“Jason had these made for you.” Kayden passed Corey a stiff pair of fingerless leather gloves. “When you squeeze the palms, it activates a spring, and the blades retract from the knuckle holsters. It’s like the ones I wear on my forearms but Wolverine-style.”

She pulled the gloves on and squeezed her fists together.

Thin blades sprung out like claws over her fingers. She stared at them in awe, holding them up to her face and turning her hand around to take in her new weapon. She squeezed her hand again and the blades retracted. “These would have been helpful yesterday.”

“Well, hopefully they’ll be helpful now.” Jason’s life depended on it. Reckless fucking idiot.

The drive to the industrial park wasn’t long, but under the haze of the morning moon, it felt like an eternity. There was a thick, cotton layer of calm over the car, like maybe they were just driving to the airport for an early morning flight.

Kayden spent the drive tunnelling deep into the fractured parts of himself, the parts that had done this before. Visualizing the carnage that lay ahead of him helped fine-tune his focus. Every one of his senses heightened as he kept burrowing into instinct, releasing his hold on rational thought.

The GPS took them to an isolated industrial park. Archie had hacked the gates on the drive and exterior security feed, but still didn’t have eyes in the building.

Pulling into the drive, Kayden parked the Rover off to the side, nestled between two large Dumpster bins. Then he opened the back, using his thumbprint to unlock the big iron trunk there. He pulled out moresupplies—an additional vest with rounds and rounds of ammunition, and night vision goggles.

“I have canisters of noxious gas. Should we?” Kayden asked Archie.

“I thought about gassing the place, but gas masks will be too heavy to carry, and we don’t know where Jason is being kept inside. We can’t risk poisoning him. I’m in their system now. I’m going to cut the electricity. When you get close, I’m going to run interference on their securities communications.”

Kayden nodded his agreement. They were well and truly geared up, both of them looking like weapons of war. “Ready?” he asked Corey.

“No,” she admitted in a whisper.

He took her face in his hands, angling her eyes up to his. She was perfect. “You are made of more fire than blood, more river than water. You do not fear them. They fear you. Okay?”

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