Page 13 of In The Trenches (Owens Protective Services)

“I’ve got movement in the basement,” I whispered. Taking a rag out of my pocket, I wiped the glass, hoping it would clear it enough for me to see inside.

“Guys, we’ve got movement out here,” Kavanaugh said. “Five vehicles.”

Peeking up over the concrete around me, I scanned for anyone else walking around. When I saw it was clear, I turned back to the garage window and looked inside again.

“Fuck,” I muttered as I watched someone walk through a door with several other men. They were carrying shit from my nightmares, torture devices that would make any man talk. “I’ve got four men walking into a room down here. It’s not looking too fucking good. We need to get in there now.”

“We wait for Cash’s orders,” Eli commanded.

“Fuck, he doesn’t have that long,” I said urgently. “I’m on the southeast side of the building at the underground garage ramp. Get your asses here or I’m going in alone.”

“Moving to you now. Just give us a fucking minute,” Cash growled. “Reed, do you copy?”

“That’s a go.”

“You take the north side of the building. We’re going in on the south side.”

I glanced up through the window again just as I heard screams coming from inside. My heart beat a steady rhythm as I slipped into kill mode.

“Coming up on your six,” Eli said. “Don’t fucking shoot me.”

I spun and raised my gun, watching as Eli, Kavanaugh, and Cash all came running down the ramp, armed and ready to go. Checking our surroundings one last time, I turned back to the door as we all spread out along the length of it. I grabbed my utility knife out of my pocket and slid the flathead screwdriver into the t-handle keyhole, breaking the lock. Turning the handle, I nodded to the others. Eli and Cash were on my right side, guns ready to fire when I opened the door. Kavanaugh was on my left.

“Don’t let me get shot,” I said, right before I jerked the door up, flooding the basement with light. Gunshots fired around me as I pulled my weapon and prepared to fire. I moved to the left, taking up position behind Kavanaugh. We moved fast, firing off round after round at anyone that came in our path. Cash quickly ran to the door where the screams came from, standing next to it as he looked in through the window. He signaled that two men were in the room and one man was down.

Cash flung the door open just as a man stumbled over to Sinner, ready to shove the knife he carried into Sinner’s chest. Firing twice, the man dropped to the ground, his body lying in a bloody heap. Cash rushed over to Sinner, who lay naked on the floor, curled up in a ball.

I quickly pulled my emergency blanket out of my pocket, something we carried at all times, and tore it open, laying it over Sinner. Tucking it around him, I shook my head. The guy wasn’t even moving, and he stared up at Cash with the look of death in his eyes.

Cash tore his gaze from Sinner, the look on his face grave. “We need water and his clothes.”

“Got it, boss.”

Rushing past Kavanaugh and Eli, who stood sentry at the door, I searched two other rooms before finding them across the hall in an abandoned room. As I was heading back to Sinner, Scottie whistled to me from the bottom of the stairs, tossing a bottle of water at me.

“We don’t have long,” he warned. “Reed is holding them back, but we need to move.”

“On it,” I said, rushing back into the room.

“A few weeks on the job and you’re already trying to get out of work?” Cash shouted at Sinner.

The gunfire picked up outside. We didn’t have long to thwart another attack, not if we wanted to get Sinner out of here alive. He was already in bad shape. It was fucking freezing in the room and Sinner wasn’t even shaking, which said a lot about the condition he was in.

“We need to move,” I shouted at Cash. I fired at two men running in through the same door we came in. They must have had reinforcements show up. He tossed the clothes at Sinner after getting him to drink some water, but it was clear Sinner couldn’t put on his own clothes. I ran over to him and helped him yank up his pants, keeping my eyes averted.

Sinner had burn marks all over his body, but a particularly nasty burn on his dick. I was surprised the man was even still alive at this point. I yanked up the zipper on his jeans and slid his shoes on, then helped him to his feet.

“No time for the rest,” Cash shouted. “It’s now or never.” He shoved a gun at Sinner, but it fell right out of his grip, clattering to the ground. His hands were swollen and deep, red gashes circled his wrists. I picked up the gun and stuffed it in the back of my tactical pants.

“You good?” I asked him. He nodded, but I could see he was struggling to stay on his feet. But when the building rocked with an explosion, steely determination filled his eyes.

Cash gave me a grim look, his eyes flicking back to Sinner. “You got this.”

I nodded, understanding what he was saying. We moved to the door, Cash taking the lead with Kavanaugh and Eli covering him. Climbing up the stairs, we slowed down so Sinner could keep up. Once we reached the ground level, there was no telling what we’d be walking in on. Scottie Dog, Rock, and Edu were positioned around the warehouse, laying down cover fire to keep these assholes back. Lockhart was at the door, shouting at us to get moving.

I glanced back at Sinner, watching as he struggled to hold himself upright with the wall. Still, I could see the determination shining in his eyes.

“Almost there, man. We make it across the parking lot and we’re home free,” I shouted over my shoulder.

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