Page 30 of The Pursuit
The rest of his men followed suit. I allowed myself to be dragged away, knowing that Ayaan was watching over me from the shadows. There were no windows, just a single weathered door to this building—the perfect secret hideout for Ron. I made a show of struggling, keeping up appearances for our audience even as my fingers deftly worked the object Ayaan had slipped into my hands.
A pocket knife. He’d given me a weapon. I nearly sobbed with gratitude. And I trusted Ayaan to have a backup plan. The man worked entirely on instinct. By now, he’d have contingencies mapped out, and exit strategies ready. All I had to do was take out the immediate threat while he covered our withdrawal. Ayaan might have also informed Krish and our team of our present location. In minutes, they would be here to tackle the men and take them down one by one. The mere thought of some action kicked my adrenaline.
The plan started coming together in my mind even as Max shoved me toward the entrance, sneering all the while. Let the bastards think they’d won—it would make their defeat all the more embarrassing.
Once I had my eyes on our target, Ron, the kingpin of this drug cartel we’d been chasing all long, I would cut myself free and spring into action. I had one objective: eliminate Max’s men and subdue Ron so Ayaan could back me up until our extraction team reached here and secured this area.
Max’s grip tightened around my arm as he hauled me intothe dimly lit main hall of the hideout. I stumbled along, playing the part of the captured prisoner even as my senses remained on high alert.
More of Ron’s henchmen lined the walls, their grips tightening on their weapons as we entered. I made a silent tally—just fourteen, no, fifteen armed muscle heads providing security for their elusive kingpin? If it came to a fight, Ayaan and I would have our hands full, but nothing we couldn’t handle.
Now if only the man himself would make an appearance...
As if on cue, a side door creaked open, and a hulk-like silhouette emerged from the shadows. Broad shoulders filled the frame; more solid muscle than I’d anticipated. It was Ron—the elusive target we had pursued through photos but had never met face-to-face.
He stepped fully into the main room, the overhead lights letting me see him clearly. An ugly scar cut across his cheek and jawline—a reminder of a life of violence, no doubt. He wore it like a badge of honour, his expression twisted into a sneer of disdain. This was a man who delighted in intimidating others through brute force.
My jaw clenched as Max released me, striding over to greet his brother with a jovial air.
“Brother!” The two men embraced with exaggerated back slaps.
Ron’s cold stare remained locked on me over Max’s shoulder, though.
“Look what I have for you,” Max beamed, finally breaking away to gesture grandly in my direction.
The drug lord’s face contorted with a mix of disgust andcontempt.
“How can you be such a fool, Max? How could you be fooled by this woman all this time? It’s written all over her face that she’s a spy. How could you not notice?”
My heart skipped a beat at the acknowledgement. He was definitely smarter than Max. I prepared for the punishment that was surely coming, shifting my weight into a defensive stance.
Max hung his head, clearly displeased by the rebuke in front of his men.
“It’s because of you we’ve lost Marco and a valuable insider like Daniel, who kept us informed on GLEN’s progress.”
Ron levelled an accusatory finger at me. Silence hung thick in the air as all eyes swivelled toward their boss as glared at me furiously. With two long strides, Ron closed the distance between us until I could smell the cheap whiskey souring his breath.
“I’ll enjoy cutting you into pieces myself,” Ron hissed through clenched teeth, “before packing them off to your headquarters as a lesson for the other agents to know what happens when someone messes with me.”
Revulsion churned in my gut at his words, but I refused to show fear. I couldn’t give him that satisfaction. Instead, I mustered my courage and met Ron’s hateful glare with a taunting grin.
The reaction clearly wasn’t what he’d expected. Surprise flashed across his features before the sneer resettled into place.
“I’m not joking, lady.” He grabbed my chin in a vice-likegrip, forcing my face even closer to his. “What the hell are you smiling for?”
“I’m smiling because I know what’s about to happen in the next few seconds,” I replied, unable to resist goading him further.
Ron blinked, momentarily thrown off balance. His confusion provided the critical opening I needed. With a swift motion, I planted my foot and wrenched out of his grasp, driving my knee up towards his gut.
He grunted in pain, instinctively hunching over to protect his midsection. I used the blade Ayaan had slipped me, slicing cleanly through the ropes around my wrists. Before Ron could recover, Max lunged at me. In one fluid motion, I whirled and slit his throat. Ron stared at me in horror as Max’s body fell on the ground next to me.
“Max…” Ron’s scream echoed in the room, a howl of anguish that drowned out the clatter of guns as his men scrambled to react.
I didn’t wait for Max’s crew to start firing at me. Dropping into a crouching position, I spun, kicked and sliced the throat of another one of Max’s men. And that’s when the sound of a gunshot firing from behind me echoed around. Ayaan was inside. He probably must have taken the guns and ammunition from the trunk of the same car we all came in from, the clinking sounds of those weapons I’d heard while driving to this place. Finding cover, I caught the flying gun which Ayaan threw in my direction to get into action.
Survival instincts honed through years of training took over, my body moving of its own accord. I ducked and weaved through the hail of gunfire, firing back. I fought back a grin as oneof Ron’s men crumpled, neutralised by Ayaan’s precise shot.
No time to celebrate, not with the rest of the security rapidly regaining their focus. I seized another discarded pistol from the floor and opened fire, eliminating another two hostiles.
