Page 16 of Tides of Fire

Monk rushed across the long garage with Kat. Monk was in boxers and a T-shirt with a Georgia Bulldog growling on it, which matched his expression. Kat wore a belted robe, her auburn hair disheveled and loose. The girls, both dressed in bright pajamas, were not taking the chaos and uproar as quietly as Jack. Both sobbed and clung chokingly to their parents.

Rage fired Monk’s eyes. The furious flush to his face had risen over the top of his shaved scalp. The arm that carried Penny was bunched into a protective knot of muscles. Kat looked no less ferocious, only her expression was tempered by worry.

Before they had crossed half the distance, huge explosions blasted three of the garage doors off their tracks, sending panels flying inside. With reflexes born of his Green Beret training, Monk scooped Kat and Harriet under his free arm and ducked them all behind an Audi SUV. Debris crashed into windshields and across hoods and roofs. Smoke billowed heavily into the garage.

Zhuang dove next to them, cradling a SIG Sauer P226 in his hands. The other triad member was a step too slow and got struck by a twirling panel, nearly decapitating him in the process.

Gunfire strafed the garage. Outside, assailants blindly fired through the pall. Guan-yin’s men returned the volley with chattering rips from their assault rifles. Unfortunately, her men shot just as wildly, but for the moment, it was enough to deter the attackers from entering the garage.

Gray turned to pass Jack to Seichan, ready to go help Monk and Kat. But Seichan snatched a rifle from one of the gunmen’s grips and raced across the garage, firing one-handed. Gray had forgotten how lightning fast she could be, especially when fueled by adrenaline and fury. With no other choice, Gray retreated a few steps down the ramp to shelter Jack, but he kept the garage in view.

Seichan reached the others, gathered them up, and got them running low, sticking to the shelter of the row of vehicles.

They had nearly made it across when a figure came rushing into thegarage, low, an FN SCAR at his shoulder. The battle rifle was outfitted with an undermount grenade launcher. Guan-yin’s men fired at him, but the assailant ducked between an Aston Martin and the Bugatti, aiming his weapon straight at Seichan and the others.

Not even Seichan was quick enough to respond to the ambush.

Her mother was.

Guan-yin struck a fist against a large button on the wall next to her. The turntable under the Bugatti lurched as it was activated, throwing the gunman off balance. It was enough for Zhuang to bring his SIG around and fire three quick shots. Two to the chest and one to the head.

The man dropped, allowing Zhuang and the others to cross the last of the garage.

“Get below,” Guan-yin ordered.

They all fled down the concrete ramp. The secret door sealed behind them. Sconces in the shape of winged dragons lined the walls. The ramp ended in a low-roofed space a quarter the size of the garage above. Gray had expected the bunker to be a fortified safe room, but it was another garage.

Only here there were no expensive sports cars or luxury sedans. Three armored and rivetted vehicles were parked side by side. Matte-gray plating sealed the exterior of a trio of Alpha Titans—armored Mercedes G550 4×4s. They sat on tall tires. The windows were surely bulletproofed and ballistically rated.

“Split up and get inside,” she ordered them. “We’re heading off this mountain.”

“Can’t we stay here?” Kat asked, clutching hard to Harriet. The girl’s sobbing had quieted to shaking gasps. “The quake has ended, and you’ve got an army out there.”

Monk nodded, hiking Penny higher in his arms.

Amidst all the chaos, Gray hadn’t noted the ground had finally stopped rolling. He understood Monk and Kat’s concern for their frightened girls. By now, even Jack had woken with a pinched expression, heading toward a wail.

Still, Gray stared up at the cracks in the concrete roof overhead. Dust and sand trickled from them. “No, Guan-yin’s right,” he warned.“There could be aftershocks. We don’t want to be in here if there are any strong ones.”

Seichan hefted her rifle to her shoulder. “And we can’t count on the enemy not finding this place. They clearly knew the layout of my mother’s villa, well enough to purposefully herd us into the first-floor garage, to lead us into that ambush. They must have tortured staff to get such details.”

“Two maids never showed up to work this morning,” Guan-yin admitted. “I attributed it to too much celebrating on New Year’s Eve.”

Seichan turned to her mother. “Did either of them know about this bunker?”

“No, only Zhuang and a handful of my deputies know about it. But some of my staff may have heard rumors.”

Gray waved to the Titans. “Then we can’t stay here. The enemy likely only missed this bunker because they acted hastily, deciding to take advantage of the quake versus waiting for a fuller reconnaissance.”

“Then let’s not give them a second chance,” Monk said.

They all got moving. Even with GPS, the Peak’s roads formed a tangled labyrinth. Needing the expert guidance of locals, their group had to split up. Zhuang led Monk, Kat, and the girls off into one of the Titans. Gray got behind the wheel of another with Guan-yin riding shotgun. Seichan climbed into the back with Jack and another triad member. The third vehicle was loaded with moreDuàn zhigunmen.

Upon Guan-yin’s signal, the bunker doors rolled up. The way opened out into an overgrown niche off Mount Kellett Road. The tangled roots of a huge rubber tree masked the camouflaged exit. The Titan packed with gunmen took the lead. Gray followed, with Zhuang and the others trailing behind.

The road was pitch black. Streetlights had been extinguished by the blackout. Their group traveled dark, with headlights off. The only illumination came from the Titan’s brake lights. Still, it was hard to mask the throaty growl of their vehicles’ V8 engines.

They rolled as fast as they dared down the tortuous road, with a wall of rock rising on one side and a precipitous cliff dropping on the other.

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