Page 3 of The Last Strike

Three minutes to seal King Khalil’s fate.

Reed swore as the ground in front of him chipped away.

“Go! Go!” James said. “Keep running!”

Asher held his breath as bullets hit the wall, somehow missing Reed. Then his heart skipped a beat as Reed ran straight into a stained-glass window. His shoulder hit the window first, shattering it, and the camera tumbled along with his body. Then he pounced back onto his feet, crouching like a cat.

“Clear,”said a voice Asher recognized as Samuel’s.“Take the first right and then down the stairs to the Marble Hall. Go!”

Reed darted to the door and peered out. Asher exhaled a shaky breath when he saw the hallway was clear.

Reed sprinted forward, taking the first right and scaling down the stairs like he was flying. Asher wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen someone move so fast.

He came to a sudden halt at the bottom and pressed his back against the wall.

Two Adani soldiers ran past, their weapons raised.

If they’d turned around, they would’ve looked straight at Reed, but they kept running toward the latest explosion.

“Activate the drones, Samuel,” James said. “Give Reed some breathing room.”

“Copy. Activated.”

It sounded like background noise, but the sound of the explosions was unmistakable. James hadn’t wanted to send a team to their deaths, but that didn’t mean Reed didn’t have any support. Right now, hovering above the palace grounds, was a team of drones, firing and bombing everything in sight.

Asher prayed that would be enough to keep the soldiers occupied for a few more minutes.

In a situation like this, a minute seemed nothing more than a breath, but it also seemed like an eternity.

“Moving into position three,”Reed said as he checked the hallway and surged forward.

The Marble Hall came into view. It was named the Marble Hall for obvious reasons: the entire hall—the floors, walls and ceiling were made of marble and the hall was lined with marble columns and arches. It was the most ridiculous, ostentatious display of wealth Asher had ever seen. King Khalil should’ve used that money to feed his poor.

Asher chewed on his cheek.

It is time for you to fall, Khalil.

Reed sprinted through the Marble Hall.

“Veer right; there should be a door on the left. That’s your entry point,”Samuel said.

Asher’s stomach churned.Shouldbe a door on the left.

They were confident it was there, but if any amendments had been made to the palace recently, there was a chance it was not. This entire plan hinged on this entry point.

Reed hurled around the corner and Asher’s eyes widened as he saw the wall. It was paneled. No door in sight.

“Look for the door, Reed,” James commanded. “It’s there.”

Asher didn’t know how he knew that, or if he actually did. But one thing was certain: there wasn’t a hint of doubt in his voice.

Reed ran his hands across the wall panels.

Asher’s eyes dropped to the clock. Thirty seconds remained. The drones could only hold the enemy’s attention for so long before the soldiers moved back in to secure the palace. Reed was running out of time.

“It’s flat. Nothing here,”Reed said.

James stared at the screen. “Keep looking. It’s there,” he said.

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