Page 54 of Mine to Keep
“Get down!” I shout a second too late as a bullet passes through her chest. She gasps as she flies back against the bed.
I drop to the floor as another bullet enters the room, hitting the girl in her body again.
What the fuck? Is there another team from another organization after her? Is it The Void? Did they have someone in town and decide to send them as well?
Too many questions with no answers while I’m stuck on the floor with a fucking sniper popping off rounds in the room.
Staying low to the floor, I crawl towards the other side of the room, staying out of sight of the window.
I notice two things when I pull the door open. The first is the lights are on in the living room, and the second is a pair of women’s combat boots, about five feet from the bedroom.
Without thinking, I roll out of the doorway. And none too soon. The whistle of the wind above my head makes my nerves dance. A glint of silver catches my eye before she pulls her arm back. I quickly get to my feet, holding my hands up in a fighting position.
The woman roars in frustration and she makes her way over to me again. I kick the end table I tripped over earlier into her path and she loses her balance. It gives me enough time to reach for my gun, but she’s fast, kicking me in the chest before I can get my hand under my jacket. I noticed belatedly it’s the red-haired woman I saw in the pub.
Who the fuck is she? Why is she after me? Did I take her kill or was it me she came here for? If that’s the case, that means The Void is?—
Another swift kick to my chest has me tumbling back, my feet coming out from under me. I fall onto the couch and roll away when she throws one of the knives in her hand at me. I try again to reach for my gun but a bullet flies through the window, only missing me because I dodge a punch from the woman.
So it’s two of them. A sniper and fucking Freddy Kruger.
One thing I’ve always prided myself on is being a good fighter, no matter who I’m up against. I won’t make this easy for her.
I push her off me, making her fall backward over the coffee table. Grabbing the knife from the couch, I toss it back at her, making her duck. Then I rush her, kneeing her in the face before she can stand. She shakes it off like it was nothing, roaring as she slices at me, getting in a shallow cut on my right arm. I hiss, but shake it off as well.
I take hold of her wrist and twist it sharply, making her cry out and drop her blade. Using her momentum, I flip her onto her back, dropping my knee to her chest.
“Who the fuck are you?” I roar.
Before she can answer, a bullet grazes my ear, the flash of pain making me shout and tumble off the woman.
She scrambles over to me before I can recover and straddles me. Three punches are aimed at my face in rapid succession, but I ignore them as I buck her off.
When we both get to our feet, the woman squares up with me, smiling through bloodied teeth. “Come here, Sky. We can take him down.” I give her a confused look before she rushes at me, a flying punch aimed at my head. I duck and move away from her.
With a few feet between us, I shake out my limbs and square up with her again.
“Viper,” she says breathily. “Your reputation precedes you. Imagine how mine will grow when I’m the one that kills you.”
I smirk at her while keeping my eyes peeled for whoever she was talking to earlier, probably through an ear piece. “Come try it. You’ll end up in a body bag before me.”
Her calling me Viper makes my heart race, but I don’t react. Only The Void knows that code name. Anyone else only knows me by one of my many aliases.
The fucking Void is really trying to retire me.
She snarls and runs at me. I block her punches and give her a few quick body shots, doubling her over to catch her breath. But before I can throw another punch, the door opens and a man rushes at me. I have just enough time to turn around before he tackles me to the floor.
His momentum carries us into the opposite wall, knocking the wind out of me. But I don’t pause. I give him two heavy shots to the ribs, making him roll off me, holding his torso.
The woman is back on her feet and she runs at me, aiming her booted foot at my face. I roll out of the way, and kick her leg from under her, making her fall onto her back. Her head hits the floor with a thud, and she looks dazed for a moment.
I get to my feet and kick her in the face once, trying to keep her down so I can take care of her man.
He gets to his feet and charges at me before I can get another shot in. He’s fast, ducking my jab and throwing out a few of his own. A hard right hook hits me in the mouth and it fills with blood, threatening to choke me.
I eat those blows, trying not to let them affect me, though he’s close to ringing my fucking bell. For a shorter guy, his punches are fucking powerful.
From the corner of my eye, I see the woman stagger to her feet, wiping the blood from her face and gingerly touching her nose. I fucked her up good.
