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Crack,crack!
She jumped at the distant sound of bullets firing. Terror flooded her body.
If Toth didn’t make it back, Rami might not find her alive.
CHAPTER 6
Toth advanced onthe thinning treeline. He was close to the crash site but hadn’t yet run into Red Eyez’ men. Maybe they’d given up.
Ha!He wasn’t that lucky. They were around here somewhere.
He didn’t break stride as he smacked away branches and ducked under larger ones. He’d run most of the way, slowing only moments ago. It couldn’t have taken more than ten minutes, fifteen tops. Now that Savannah was a safe distance away, he cared less about being spotted. Then again, he’d be outnumbered. Better not to get noticed until he took someone out.
He slowed his pace further and skirted around a bush. His eyes had long since adjusted to the darkness.
Ring,ring!
The shrill of a cell phone split the night air, sending birds scattering from the leaves. The sound of a squirrel’s claws scraping against bark reached his ears. Toth froze. He held his gun in front of him but kept it pointed at the ground.
Someone was close. They’d either answered their phone quickly or silenced the ringer. Toth pressed his back to a large tree and listened. A man’s voice carried on the breeze for a moment then stopped. Several beats passed. Toth waited, his breath stale in his lungs.
Snap!
Toth’s body tensed, but not with fear. The warm sweat of satisfaction coated his palms. He’d relish every second of taking the fucker’s life. His senses prickled and the hair on his arms bolted to attention as the energy in the forest shifted.
He’s behind me.
Keeping his finger on the trigger, Toth wheeled around the tree and came face-to-face with a man. Toth fired just as the guy ducked and tackled him. His attacker’s shoulders rammed into Toth’s midsection. Toth squeezed the trigger again, but it was a wasted shot.
The man twisted, attempting to throw Toth to the ground, but Toth raised his gun and brought the butt down on the back of his attacker’s head.
Wham,wham,wham!
The guy’s skin split open and his muscles went lax. He sunk to the ground at Toth’s feet.
“Over there!” Two forms stepped through the trees fifty feet away.
Shit.
The newcomers fired. Toth ducked behind another tree and crouched low. One down. He had at least two more to take out. When he was done with these guys, he’d find their vehicle and see if another vehicle had accompanied them.
Heavy footsteps pounded the earth. The soft swishing of pine branches told him they were moving in.
Peering around one side of the tree, he locked his gaze on one of the men. Black balaclava, black leather jacket and white shirt underneath. Staying down, Toth aimed and fired.
The first shot hit the man in the shoulder, second in the midsection. The man let out a guttural cry and dropped like a stone. Toth returned to cover. The scent of bark flooded him, lowering his pulse to a steady rhythm.
“Shane!” said the other guy. “Fuck.”
Like a predator stalking its prey, Toth waited. His breath was shallow, his form rigid as he stayed low to the ground behind the tree. He couldn’t see the second shooter, but the stench of fear was acrid in the cool breeze, pounding his brain with memories and dragging him back in time two years.
He’d been hiding behind a bleached stone wall in Iraq. The sun was so fucking hot his skin burned beneath his military gear. Instead of the sounds of animals in the woods, there’d been screams. So many fucking screams.
Men. Women. Children.
His own.
Snap