Raging Fire (Guarded Secrets Book 4) (15 page)

Chapter 24

The goodbyes lasted a little longer than they should have, so I was forced to call an end to them. In the distance the blades of the chopper sounded, slowly approaching our location. Night Stripe and Renegade hugged once more before he tried to turn his back and block our view of him giving her a short kiss. She turned a soft shade of red, blushing from embarrassment, which made him laugh before they parted ways. They looked torn between leaving each other and completing this mission. The severity of what we were doing must have finally set in. I turned away to give them a private moment and found Camo hugging Siren with tears in her eyes. It’s as if everyone was saying a final good bye. What had we gotten ourselves into when no one in the group believed we would make it through?

“Okay guys, the helicopter is coming into view. That means it’s time to get into positions!” Rum called down from the trees, effectively breaking up the goodbyes and sending everyone scattering off to join their assigned teams.

Rum leapt down and joined Night Stripe where they shared a brief moment before Night Stripe nodded and took off toward the left side of the compound. Rum waved to Siren and Renegade before she nodded in my direction and followed after her protégé. My gaze shifted to Renegade and Siren, who were waiting patiently in the center, as the helicopter inched its way closer to us. They would run to the chopper once it landed, then start the slaughter. When they ran out of ammo on the guns attached the chopper, they’d meet Camo on the right hand side, and finally join Night Stripe and Rum when they met in the middle of the clearing. I knew they wouldn’t wait outside, especially since Night Stripe had already began planning her way inside, but I hoped they would approach Sandstorm with some caution. I couldn’t be sure how he’d react, and if I wasn’t there to stop him then I didn’t want them to meet. Hopefully he’d see Siren and Rum with them and would connect the dots, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.

“I’ll see you guys soon. Remember, don’t let any of them escape. I don’t want to have to do this again.”

Siren nodded before she stepped forward and pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. I embraced her for a short time, but pulled away as the beating of the helicopter blades sounded directly overhead. She held onto my arm for a moment, preventing me from heading to my position, and pulled me back. “Be safe, Spit Fire. Do whatever has to be done to end these guys for good, but please be safe. I don’t want to lose anymore friends.”

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me. Just keep thinking that if we eliminate the leaders and future leaders, then we eliminate the cartel as a whole and can finally move on with our lives. If we stick to the plan, this can all be over today.”

“Then let’s get started,” she said with a determined smile curving her lips. She slapped my shoulder lightly before pushing me away. “Get moving. You should be inside before that thing lands. Sandstorm said he’d be waiting for you, but even if he’s not you should find a way inside before the failsafe activates. I’m not looking forward to whatever it is, but it will surely be directed at us so you should get out of the line of fire as fast as you can.”

“I’m on it. If anything happens you have enough back up now to handle it. Talk to each other and make sure as many people as possible make it through this.”

“Did you forget who I am?” she asked with a cocky tone. “I’ll lead this team to victory and we’ll be inside that building before you and Sandstorm even start killing upper level leaders. Don’t worry about us, just worry about yourself.”

I nodded, stepping away from her slowly. Even as she waved me off, I could see the strong exterior she had put up slowly crumbling. She wanted to desperately believe what she said, but I could see in her eyes that even she knew it was unlikely. We needed an army, but we only had a team. A small glimmer of determination made it through the finality of her gaze, as if she was silently saying a final good bye. They’d get rid of the first wave easy, but then they’d be overrun. That’s the part I was worried about.

“Go!” she ordered, breaking me from my thoughts. “We don’t have all day. Stop worrying about us. It won’t do either of us any good.” She seemed to be fighting back tears. I wonder how much she actually believed what she said. If I had to guess it would be that she didn’t believe a single word of it.

I didn’t make her tell me again, honestly I don’t think she could have handled it. Renegade seemed to be struggling with separation from the team as well, but in his usual stoic manner since he wouldn’t question many orders. Though the fear in his eyes remained prevalent. I swallowed my own fear before taking off toward the back of the compound as Sandstorm had directed. My steps were heavy with dread, blood was rushing in my ears, but the only thoughts in my head now were about Harley. He’ll be surprised by the attack, and I’ll finally get the revenge I desperately wanted. 

From the trees I could watch the helicopter slowly lower toward the ground, but I couldn’t see any of the other agents. By now, Siren and Renegade would be moving toward wherever the helicopter would land and prepare to jump out once it settled. Renegade seemed to think the helicopter would come to a full stop before the cartel members boarded. I couldn’t understand why because it didn’t improve safety, but he’d know the best out of all of us. I’m sure he had coordinated a few of these, or at least watched them happen. Once he was sure, he’d order Siren forward and the first step of the plan would begin in a matter of seconds. Images of a possible battle raced through my head, and each ended with them injured or worse. I shook my head to get rid of those thoughts as I picked up the pace. I needed to get into position before the first shot went off.

The helicopter was hovering just above the ground as I vanished behind the compound. Creeping around the building, I could hear voices, but no commands had been given yet. There were conversations, which I slowly began to pick up as the beating of the blades slowly came to a stop, then there was silence on both sides. CIRA agents wouldn’t move until they had to, and Harley’s followers would wait for an order. There wouldn’t be an in-between, which turned this into a waiting game before the cat pounced.

I knew they were waiting because they still had a patrol out there. I’m sure Harley was waiting for them to report back before sending out the prospective leaders, but it wouldn’t do him any good. We weren’t about to be caught now. It would have been easier to take out the patrol, but if they didn’t report back Harley would know something was wrong. We couldn’t take that risk, so for now I could only assume the agents were waiting patiently for the patrol to pass before leaping into action, if they hadn’t already. Either way, soon the patrol would give the all clear, and pull the trigger to our firefight. 

“Sandstorm?” I whispered as I rounded the corner of our rendezvous. We were supposed to meet around here before the firefight started, but no answer came. I tried not to worry and jump to thoughts of him being captured or our plan somehow being exposed as I crept into the building to look for him. Waiting outside would have drawn attention if anyone walked by, and I didn’t want to risk screwing up when we were so close, but once inside I was greeted by darkness and a surprising lack of personnel. 

Harley must have them all set up somewhere else, no wonder Sandstorm chose to meet here, 
I thought as I made my way through the building. Sandstorm wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but I didn’t venture from our chosen building or into the other levels. For now, I could only assume he hadn’t slipped away yet. He would wait for the right moment and find me when he could. If I moved too far then we’d waste valuable time. So instead of wandering further, I peeked out one of the windows at the front of the compound just in time to see Renegade and Siren dash through the trees and dart toward the helicopter. They hadn’t made it far from the tree line when I heard an order given through the intercom.

“Head out.”

I recognized Harley’s voice, though it didn’t come from anywhere near me. I assumed he was safely tucked away in his office, hiding just in case anything happened and putting his men at risk rather than himself. 
He’s a coward. He uses people and hides behind them until they’re useless to him. 
I shook my head in disgust. Did I expect anything different from him? He wouldn’t change, and now he’d never get the chance. I was done giving second chances.

A crowd of men stepped out from the building beside mine and hurried through the compound’s clearing. They were accompanied by armed guards on all sides and a few seemed to have protective vests on. Even when they didn’t expect an attack they were ready for one. 
Too bad this is the side you guys picked. You could have lived a little longer, 
I thought as I caught sight of Siren’s blonde hair through the glass of the helicopter. They have no idea what’s about to hit them. At least I thought they didn’t, but as the thought crossed my mind, the crowd stopped. They were a few feet from the chopper when I heard the command to return to the building. Everyone turned around, sprinting toward the doorway, but Renegade and Siren wasted no time taking control of the guns and opening fire.

A few members tried to scatter and find cover, but most froze stiff when they saw Siren and Renegade. They must not have expected to run into CIRA agents so soon, or even at all. They were terrified, and soon they would all be dead. A few tried to fight back, but Renegade covered Siren as best as he could. I saw cartel members go down, but didn’t see Siren or Renegade react to an injury. I wanted to help, to give them a better chance, but I didn’t want to give away my position so I stayed hidden for now. I didn’t want to get in the line of fire by accident. 

I could hear orders being called left and right, but couldn’t make them out. Panic remained the overall tone, a few cries of pain and pleading, then a few seconds of silence. I didn’t have time to wonder what the orders had been because not a moment later I heard a loud explosion nearby. I glanced out the window again to see the building on the furthest side of the compound go up in smoke, followed by rubble and debris falling to the ground. I didn’t have time to process what it was before another explosion went off in the building next door.

Oh shit. The failsafe was being activated, and it was worse than I could’ve imagined. They were blowing up their own headquarters, and I was right in the middle of it
.

Chapter 25

The ground shook as another explosion rippled through the compound and destroyed the remains of the crumbling building. Smoke filled the sky as it billowed out around the debris and it only got worse when the next building went up in a burst of flames and concrete. Fires erupted from the explosions, causing the smoke to transition into an ominous black cloud, and were slowly spreading into the compound as cartel members rushed to fight the threat and to escape the burning buildings. Shots fired rapidly from the helicopter, but came to a sudden stop. I glanced over to see Siren away from the gun, and Renegade turning to the one in the back to eliminate a few more cartel members. Most were on the ground, dead or dying, but more were rushing out of the building every second. 

Another explosion went off, this time closer to the helicopter. The gun shots stopped momentarily, filling me with panic as chaos ensued. Cartel members fought back, taking aim on Siren and Renegade. More came out and flooded out of the compound, unknowing that there were agents in the shadows to separate their attention. I heard Siren cry out before the dust settled. I couldn’t see her, but she sounded like she needed help. I took a few steps outside, wanting to help her, before I was stopped.

“What are you doing, Spit Fire?” a voice asked, breaking me out of my thoughts. A hand roughly grabbed me and forcefully spun me around. Rum’s auburn eyes stared directly into mine, fear and anger had taken them over. Where was her usual confidence? “You are supposed to be in there. You can’t be here! Get inside and do your job!”

I nodded before shaking myself mentally to clear my head. “I don’t know what came over me.” 

“I get that you want to help, but we have this handled. Find Sandstorm, then find Harley and kill him. I’m not losing anyone because of this, and you’re going to be the one to get rid of him! We will handle this.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but was cut off by Renegade calling for us. I barely had time to register the order, “take cover”, his words meshed together in my mind. I couldn’t make them out clearly in time, even ‘grenade’ and ‘bomb’ didn’t get through to me until after the fact. Thankfully, Rum understood. She rammed into me, shoving me aside just before another explosion went off. The blast flung me backwards a couple of feet and onto my back, but the blast hadn’t been as powerful as the others. The damage to my body was minimal, though my head hit the ground hard and I was sure to have a raging headache later. I didn’t have any other injuries. I had gotten lucky. As I got up and looked for Rum, I saw she wasn’t as lucky. 

I could see blood seeping through her shirt. She wasn’t moving and her eyes were shut tight. She didn’t even look conscious.
Is she alive?
I wondered, my heart hammering in my chest. “Rum? Rum, are you okay?” She didn’t answer or react to my call. The cartel members were still busy dealing with Renegade and Siren, but once the ammo ran out their attention would turn elsewhere. 
What had I caused?

Another charge went off, this time a lot less powerful than the others. They were getting weaker, but more directed. I glanced around to see the inside of the building still intact, but the equipment destroyed. They didn’t want to destroy the place, only to make it so we wouldn’t find anything if they should escape. 
I wouldn’t let that happen though. 
I allowed myself one last look at Rum, trying to fight the emotions welling up inside of me at the sight of her motionless body. 

“Spit Fire, we have to go. They’re setting up to blow up the offices. We have to trap them before they all escape,” Sandstorm called as he rushed me from behind. His hand gripped my bicep and pulled me into the building, away from Rum and the growing firefight outside. 

“What about Rum and the others? If she’s alive she needs help! More agents came in to help us finish this mission and now I may have lost one of them!”

He grabbed my shoulders and forced me to look into his eyes. “You can’t think about that right now. They have a job to do, which they agreed to or they wouldn’t have come. If they are half as good as you claim them to be then they’ll be fine, but if they are out there risking their lives for our mission and we fail, then Rum just lost her life for nothing. So focus, and let’s get this done. Rum would want you to finish this! You can save more of them by moving and eliminating this cartel for good.”

I nodded and pulled my weapon from my side, forcing myself to focus on the task at hand. We had to eliminate the upper level members, prevent them from coming back, and end this cartel for good. I just had to focus.
Can I do that knowing I may have gotten a friend killed just so I could have my revenge?
I shook my head to get rid of that thought, I’d have plenty of time later to deal with the guilt. “Let’s finish this.”

He led the way to the compound and up to the top floor. Smoke began to fill the hallways, small fires cast a glow in the offices, and every once in a while a bomb exploded in the distance, inching it’s way closer and closer to us. It looked as if some of the offices had started to be destroyed, which meant some of the upper levels may have already began their escape routes, but I doubted they’d make it far with Sandstorm and I looking for them. He’s been here long enough to know the plan for an attack and where they would go in the event of one.

“Follow me,” he ordered, leading me down a few hallways and through the building. 

As we passed a window, I noticed planes, a lot of them, coming in and looking to land. Stopping in my tracks, I turned to take it all in. Planes, at least fifteen of them, close by and more in the distance. I noted two helicopters thrown into the mix as I looked through the planes. My gaze fell onto a familiar symbol, a red star on the right wing of one of the medium-sized planes. I’d recognize that logo anywhere after riding with Maverick for so long. 
He’s come with reinforcements. Maybe he’s not so bad after all.
 

The planes must have come from CIRA. Sharp Shooter did more than send in backup, it looked like he sent the entire agency. Everyone available must have been pulled to need this many planes. I silently thanked Sharp Shooter for sending them, all of them. While I may have wanted to do this alone, it had become clear that I had bit off way more than I could chew. I wouldn’t have even made it this far if Rum and Siren hadn’t shown up, and Sandstorm and I would have no one to keep the distraction going outside. With this many agents, we actually had a fighting chance. A chance to finish this for good. I stood watching as a few figures leapt from the planes, their parachutes releasing a few seconds later. It wasn’t long until a wave of agents followed, jumping from the planes and falling toward the ground, speckling the sky with parachutes. 

“What are you doing? We have a job to do. Where is your head today, Spit Fire?” Sandstorm reached to grab me again, but stopped as he caught sight of our back up. “Wow. I haven’t seen this many agents in my life. Glad to see someone on your team had the sense to call for backup. I wouldn’t have done it, but that’s because I’ve been alone for too long.” 

His tone was heartbreaking. He didn’t rely on other agents because he never had them before. Now he was trusting me, my friends, and whoever Sharp Shooter could send to this disaster area. 
We needed all the help we could get
, I thought as another bomb went off. This time it was too close for comfort. Our building shook as a fire burst came from the building beside us, shattering the glass in front of us and causing Sandstorm to cover me by crashing us both onto the floor. We waited a few moments while glass surrounded us and until the building stopped shaking. He got up and offered me a hand, which I took gratefully.

“No more playing around,” he said focusing on me. “According to you, we have a lot of good agents out there. So let’s work fast and end this sooner rather than later. I’d prefer to hear complaints about someone not getting to fight than us losing agents. Are you ready for this?”

“Let’s go,” I answered before racing down the hallway toward the main offices. 

Sandstorm was right on my heels as I turned the corner to where the upper level offices were. A few more fires had broken out, but it looked like most of the bombs hadn’t been set off in this area yet. We approached each door with weapons drawn. Sandstorm whispered to tell me there were fourteen upper level members. He had eliminated four on his way to get me when he ran into them serendipitously. That left ten for us to handle, but he assumed a few would be with Harley as extra guards. 

As we neared one office, two men came running out and straight at us. They stopped dead in their tracks, eyes wide with fear. One fumbled for his weapon for a moment before Sandstorm raised his gun and shot him expertly between the eyes. I killed the other without hesitation.
Eight more to go. 

The gun shots had drawn attention to us, sending more of the upper levels out of their offices. I couldn’t help but wonder what Harley’s orders were, because it seemed like they were supposed to burn down their offices, but why? Sandstorm fired his weapon three times in quick succession, interrupting my thoughts and forcing me to refocus. Now wasn’t the time to be lost in my thoughts. I leveled my weapon on one of the members, who was aiming to take out Sandstorm, and ended his life before turning to his friend.
Four more to go. 

“We knew you’d come eventually, but you’re shit out of luck. Harley is already gone. He’s in position before every trade just in case. We were one step ahead of you this time! He’ll bring it back and kill you all.” 

I blinked, unmoved by the cartel member’s speech. I lifted my gun and allowed a smile to take over my features. “He’ll have to get through his own stepdaughter first, and I plan on killing him today. The Cardoza Cartel is done, and I’ll make sure it’s dead and buried for good, along with its leaders.” I noticed the shock on the member’s feature’s at my words before I squeezed the trigger and shot him.
Only three left.
“What do we do now, Sandstorm? We need to find Harley before he escapes. Where would he go?

“I don’t know. You need to find out fast though because if he’s this prepared, he has an escape planned and it’s going to get him out of here. I’ll find the rest of the upper level members, if they’re even still in the building, and maybe take out a few of the lower level members while I’m at it. You find Harley and kill the bastard for us.” He leaned down and picked up a weapon from one of the dead cartel members. He looked it over quickly before handing it to me. “End this for all of us who have been affected by this cartel, and for yourself. I’ll see you once it’s done, and I don’t want to see you a moment before then. Actually, just don’t show your face if you don’t kill him.” A soft smile curved at the edges of his lips before he waved me off. “Now go. I’d start with his office at the end of the hall and figure out which way he went. There’s a lot of room to cover and we don’t have much time left if he has a head start on us.”

I nodded, taking the weapon from him, before running off without another word. I’d had a slow start, but now my mind was buzzing. I had a mission, and I was willing to bet on my life that I’d finish it and Harley
.