Page 156 of Caught in the Crossfire

The auctioneer shouted something to his armed guards. Beside him, Ervin Vokshi was unlocking cages and yanking hisvictims free, then pushing them toward the guards. An open-top jeep idled on the other side of the room, its lights illuminating the space.

I looked to Cas. A muscle feathered in his jaw as he came to the same conclusion I did.

We were out-numbered by far.

But we couldn’t let them disappear.

What were we supposed to do?

“I’ll take the auctioneer,” I whispered. “You focus on the guards.”

Cas’s jaw clenched. “Princess…”

“We don’t have time to debate this,” I insisted. I raised my gun, aiming it at the auctioneer. If I timed the shot right, I could get him in the chest. I’d been practicing at the range with Ryuji, Ciel, and Wynn. I could do this.

Cas aimed at the two closest guards, ready to take them out before they could hurt the victims.

I exhaled and pulled the trigger. My bullet caught the auctioneer right below his neck. He fell back, reeling. Cas’s bullets followed right after. He hit his marks, and two of the men fell to the ground.

We charged in. A bullet whizzed past me, clipping my side. I blocked out the pain and kept shooting until they were all dead.

I inhaled, trying to calm my breathing. The victims stared back at me like we were ghosts, figments of their imagination, or demons come to kill them.

I raised my hands. “We’ve got you,” I said. “We came to h?—”

My world tilted to the side when a body crashed into me. A knife lunged for my stomach, but I used my forearm to hit his wrist and deflect the blade to the side. The blade clattered to the ground before hands circled my neck and squeezed.

Ervin Vokshi.

Ervin Vokshi choked me. The weight of his body pressed against mine, pinning my legs to the ground. I clawed at hishands on my neck, my nails digging into his skin. His furious face dripped spittle onto my cheeks.

Somehow I grabbed the knife I stuck in my boot and jammed it into his abdomen. He groaned when I wrenched it free and slammed it into his temple. Blood dripped from his face onto my forehead as he fell to the side. It happened so fast.

Cas’s face hovered above mine. “Leona!”

He reached for me, and I flinched away, hiding my face to the side. It was too much like Buzz Cut. It was too much like the ship. Coughs wracked my chest, and my throat burned while I tried to catch my breath.

With a blink, the memories were front and center. I’d tried to bury them, but the feeling rushed back, choking me even worse than Ervin Vokshi.

“Leona?” Cas said softly. He held his hands tentatively in front like I was a wounded animal.

I blinked, trying to get control of myself. My thumb dug into my engagement ring. I wasfine. We were saving the women. They needed help.

I reached for his hand, and he pulled me to my feet.

“I’m okay,” I rasped.

“You’re bleeding.” He frowned, then looked around for something he could use to staunch the wound on my side.

“Oh, just a scratch,” I said, inspecting the graze. The bullet just lightly tore my shirt and raised an angry red scratch through the skin. It was barely bleeding. There were more pressing things.

Dozens of faces watched us. Some were terrified, some relieved. Most were bruised. All were thin and malnourished.

I swallowed, trying to keep my voice level, but it came out more of a croak. “It’s okay now.” I coughed. “Can we help you?”

They stared at me, saying nothing.

“Does anyone speak English?”