Page 68 of Echoes and Oaths
Jinx didn’t waste the bullet.
Instead, he ran toward the wall, veering off to the right where the wall was thicker.
“Ten seconds. East wall, charge two,” Z counted. “Nine … eight …”
Gunfire erupted behind him from four men in matching tactical gear. These were Esteban’s elite, and they advanced in formation.
Jinx dove through a blown-out doorway, rolled, and came up firing.
“Four … three … two …”
The east wall exploded in a shower of stone and fire. A twelve-foot gap tore open, framing the jungle like a blazing invitation to freedom. Smoke and dust billowed out like a living thing.
“Door’s open!” Z shouted. “But you’ve got company inbound from the garage.”
“Time to get dramatic,” Jinx growled as he turned and pulled a small kit of C4 from inside his belt. He slapped it onto the compound’s main fuel line, then primed it as gunfire raked the hallway behind him.
“Z, cover fire on the east breach.”
“You got it, my man. Show ’em what heartbreak looks like.”
Jinx bolted through the fire-lit corridor as Z opened up. The stutter of suppressed rifle fire cut down the guards near the breach. Bullets zinged past Jinx’s shoulders as he cleared the wall in a leap and hit the ground in a crouch.
Behind him, the compound roared as the fuel line detonated. The eruption flattened him to the earth.He scrambled away from the flames, keeping pinned to the ground. The sky turned orange.
Fire rolled across the roof. A tower cracked and toppled sideways in a cascade of sparks and steel. Jinx used the deafening noise to lurch to his feet and sprint away from the compound.
Z let out a low whistle as Jinx ran toward him through the smoke, wild-eyed and alive. “Damn,” Z said, slinging his rifle. “You always make an exit like that?”
Jinx didn’t stop moving. “Only when I’m feeling sentimental.”
He grabbed Z’s shirt, spinning him as he ran by. Z fell into step with him as they raced toward the vehicle. “No, this way!” Z shouted when Jinx veered the wrong way. They disappeared into the jungle. The inferno lit the sky behind them like a beacon formed in hell and sent straight from Satan himself.
Flames licked the sky as the compound collapsed. One explosion rolled into another like a storm gathering overhead. Trees shivered under the shockwaves, and the air was thick with smoke and the deafening sound of war.
Jinx sprinted through the undergrowth beside Z, his heart hammering and his lungs burning as they sprinted at full speed.
“We need distance!” Jinx barked as he ducked under a low branch while vines clawed at his shoulders.
“We’ll get it,” Z called, his grin audible even through his panting. “I gift-wrapped our exfil with surprises.”
Behind them, engine growls echoed through the jungle. It was the distinct, grinding roar of armored SUVs barreling down the dirt road that flanked the ridge.
“They’re moving fast,” Jinx muttered.
“Yeah,” Z said, swinging his rifle to cover their rear. “And in about ten seconds, they’ll learn not to be so fucking dedicated.”
They reached a jagged path cut through a thick brush. The trail was just wide enough to run through and just narrow enough to keep the enemy funneled in a straight line.
Jinx paused, eyes scanning the terrain. “How many charges?”
“Four. Pressure and remote triggers. Two buried, two in trees. That’s why we veered.” Z grinned and tapped a small control panel on his vest. “All timed to hit the sweet spot.”
The rumble behind them grew louder. Headlights slashed through the thick jungle.
“They’ll try to flank,” Jinx warned. “We need to funnel them tighter.”
“Already done,” Z said, voice smug. “I dropped a cedar across the west bend. They’ve only got one way through now.”
