Page 38 of In The Trenches (Owens Protective Services)

“What would be the fun in that?” Slider asked.

“Lock’s holding them off, but we need to beat feet,” IRIS said quickly.

I nodded. “Slider, you’ve got Edu. IRIS, take the lead. I’ve got this prick,” I nodded to Grady.

Flipping the switch on comms, I spoke to the rest of the team. “Lock, Thumper, Rock…we’re making a break for it. We need cover fire to get out of this clusterfuck.”

“Gotcha covered, boss,” Rock answered.

I nodded to Slider, waiting for him to help Edu up. I grabbed Grady by the shirt, hauling him to his feet. He was awake, though he wanted to pretend he wasn’t.

“I know you’re awake, asshole. Pretending to be asleep will only get you killed. If you want to stay alive, I suggest you move with me.”

“You can’t stop it, you know,” he grumbled, struggling to his feet.

“I may not be able to stop this, but I can sure as fuck keep you from doing anything else you had planned. Trust me, you’re going to wish you were dead by the time I’m done with you.”

I jerked him forward by the arm, keeping my gun trained on my surroundings. We got to the end of the hangar where IRIS held up his fist to stop our movement.

“Rock, sending Edu and Slider to you,” he murmured.

“In position,” Rock answered.

He turned to Slider, giving him a slight nod, then turned back, taking a deep breath as he started firing at the men taking cover behind their vehicles blocking the gates. Slider took off with Edu, racing across the vast open space, returning fire to keep from getting their nuts shot off. Edu was struggling to stay upright.

“Any ideas how to get out of here, boss?” IRIS asked over his shoulder.

Looking into the fray of chaos, I couldn’t see any clear way out of this. The gate was blocked, and that was our only way out. “Anyone got a few grenades on them?” I asked.

“I didn’t exactly think this was a grenade situation, boss,” Rock responded. He shouted out, swearing under his breath. “Goddamn, son of a bitch!”

“Rock, check in!”

“Yeah,” he groaned. “I’m good. Nothing a little morphine won’t fix.”

I saw a dark figure move across the landing strip, but recognized his movements. “Lock, you got him?”

“He’s a fucking pussy. It’s just a leg wound. The bullet didn’t even strike his femoral artery.”

“Then tell him to get the fuck up and slap a bandaid on it,” I retorted.

“They don’t give out chest candy for leg wounds,” I heard him tell Rock.

“Hate to tell you, but they don’t hand those out after you leave the military.” Chuckling, I turned my attention back to the situation at hand. “Alright, let’s pull a Charlie Rogers and get the fuck out of here.”

“On it,” Lock grunted. “But I’m not being Charlie this time. I nearly got my ass shot off last time.”

“I’ve got this,” IRIS said, laughing at the situation.

He would laugh at a time like this, I thought. That’s how he got his nickname.

“Boss, I’m gonna need the keys to the SUV.”

I groaned, shaking my head. “No, we’re not doing that.”

“We’re totally doing it. Keys.”

Sighing, I handed them over, knowing I was never going to see that vehicle again. I shoved Grady up against the wall, and pointed at him. “Stay, or I’ll fucking shoot you.”

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