Page 65 of Caught in the Crossfire

The six of us ducked behind a row of pallets within eyesight of the ship. Two semi-trucks and a line of commuter vehicles waited in front of the vessel.

“Semis? Is that how they’re moving them?” I asked.

Leona caught my eye. “We need to search them before we leave. Just in case.”

We watched the men work, transferring more cargo off the boat, to the ground, before a forklift picked up the pallets and moved them onto the semis. We could see Orik directing them, pointing to determine which pallets went where. He shouted in Albanian, growing agitated. The light of his phone glowed eerily on his face as he checked it time and time again.

“He’s eager to get out of here,” I said. “They must be on a timetable.”

“Any sign of the girls yet, Ciel?”

“Coming now,” Ciel said tightly.

My head snapped up to see the Albanians leading a row of twelve young women down the gangplank. Their hands werebound, and they flinched when Orik shouted and pointed his gun.

“We have to—” Leona started.

“Hold.” Obi’s order was firm and clear. “Wait until it’s clear.”

My heart pounded in my chest. We had to get them free, but if we started attacking now, they might hurt the victims. I’d seen plenty of stray bullets do massive damage.

Orik waved his pistol around, directing the women to line up in front of the commuter cars. Behind them, both semis jolted to life, their engines roaring through the otherwise quiet night.

“He’s going to load them up,” I said, voice tight through the comms. “We must act.”

Obi didn’t respond, but I crept closer. A Vokshi man worked unwrapping a pallet only thirty feet in front of me. It might be dangerous to attack now, but Orik continued to shout orders, and the longer we waited, the easier it would be for them to move the women. If those women got on the semis, we’d lose them. We had to catch them off guardnow.

“I’m engaging,” I murmured. I didn’t wait for anyone to confirm or deny the action. I let my gun drop to my side while I slipped on my brass knuckles.

No one said a word as I silently stepped up behind the Vokshi man. One of my hands closed over his mouth, the other positioned around the back of his head. I yanked my hands in opposite directions. The snap of his neck felt electrifying under my fingertips, even as my torso jolted in pain.

The pain didn’t matter. I had to focus on the next man in front of me.

Ryu and Cas were immediately behind me, moving toward the next set of Clan members. They took out two more. Then Ciel got one with his garrote. I punched another in the throat, collapsing his windpipe so he couldn’t scream. My next punch dented his skull, and he fell.

One by one, like lions picking off their prey, we took themdown. Orik focused on organizing the women into groups of three to four, unaware that we were destroying his men right behind him.

Finally, confused and concerned shouts filled the dock. Orik and his men looked around, wondering where seven of their men had gone in less than five minutes.

If Ciel’s count was correct, there were still eight of them left.

“I’ll cover the women,” Leona said. “You guys take out the rest.”

“I’m with Leona,” Obi added. “Fan out and engage.”

We repositioned, taking out one more man, as Obi and Leona snuck around the other side of the cars.

“Ciel,” I murmured as I came up behind another.

“Got your back,” he answered.

I was just about to fire into the back of the man’s head when a gunshot rang out, and the man collapsed at my feet. I frowned, looking up in confusion.

“Who took my kill?”

My eyes went to Ciel, only two pallets away from me, and he shook his head.

“Fuck,” Ryuji said. “Someone else is here.”