Page 11 of Nuclear Option (Owens Protective Services)

“We’ll circle the hospital,” I ordered. “He’ll have to find a way out.”

“They locked down the hospital,” Rae said incredulously.

Jack put the SUV in drive and took off down the road circling the hospital.

“We don’t have a lot of time before the police arrive,” Johnny stated. “If we’re going to get him out, it’s now or never.”

“We can’t stick around,” Jack said, swerving to avoid a car that was driving too slowly. “You barely got out of there. We need—”

He didn’t get to finish that thought as a loud thump sounded on the top of the SUV, followed by a rolling noise. Jack hit the brakes and New Guy slid down the windshield and over the hood of the SUV. I flung my door open and ran up to the front, grabbing him by the arm.

“Are you okay?”

He grimaced as he stumbled off the hood and limped with me to the door. “Just a small swan dive out the window. It’ll be fine.”

I slammed the door behind us and held on as Jack peeled out. “You jumped out a window?”

“Well, yeah. How else was I going to get out of there? By the way, I found three of the guys after us and locked them in a closet.” He chuckled like a maniac. “God, I’d love to be the person that opened that door.”

“How many does that leave us?” I asked.

“We counted ten,” Jason answered.

Behind me, Rae and Johnny were in the back seat with Eva. We were cramped in the SUV like sardines in a can. “We need another vehicle.”

“We have an SUV and a car in the far parking lot. We’ll swing over and grab them,” Jack answered.

“We need to know more about these assholes after her. What the fuck have you gotten us into?” Johnny asked.

“How far is it to Rafe’s location?”

“No,” Jason shook his head. “We’re not bringing the girl to Rafe.”

“Trust me, when I tell you what’s going on, you’re not going to want to leave her unprotected.”

He squealed to a stop in the parking lot next to the car and SUV, turning around in his seat. “You’re with the girl. We’ll cause a distraction so you can get away.”

“Ooh! I got this,” New Guy said, flinging his door open. “Rae, you head out with Eva. I’ve got you covered.”

“Since when did you start giving orders?” I asked as he snatched the keys from Jason and ran for the car.

“Trust me! This is gonna be good. Just get out in the country, and I’ll take care of the rest.”

I helped Eva out of the SUV, rushing her to the other vehicle as Rae ran to the driver’s seat. I had to help her get buckled, and by the time I was done, New Guy was already pulling out, not waiting for any of us. He started doing donuts in the empty spots, drawing way too much fucking attention.

Rae followed Jason out of town as I searched the vehicle for weapons. There wasn’t much up front, but when I climbed over the seat and looked in the trunk, I hit the mother lode.

“Holy shit. Who the fuck are these guys?”

“What?” Rae asked excitedly. “What is it?”

“They’ve got a fucking arsenal back here.”

“We do too, boss.”

“Not like this,” I muttered under my breath.

I began pulling Glocks, Rugers, Uzis, and extra magazines, lining them up on the seat as I began loading them. I left all the heavy shit in the back for now.

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