Page 11

11

KYRA

K yra struggled to reconcile her warrior side, which was calculating their odds of success, with that of the worried sister who was desperate to rescue her family.

Finally, she nodded.

"You are right about making a plan instead of rushing in unprepared, but we need to secure Parisa. They might go after her next."

Yamanu looked conflicted. "I can ask Nadim to send more people to watch her house, but there isn't much they can do against enhanced soldiers."

His comm was closed, so he didn't need to talk in code, but it was better to keep doing that than let things slip within Nadim's hearing.

"I can call her and pretend to be a government official, telling her that Yasmin was taken and to go to Soraya's house. It might slow down the enemy. "

"Good thinking," Yamanu said. "But I'll get Nadim to do that. He knows all the official lingo."

When Kyra nodded, Yamanu activated the comm and gave Nadim the instructions.

"We should move out," Max said. "The authorities will be here any moment now."

"Right." Yamanu strode out of the house.

Kyra looked one last time at the brother-in-law she'd never gotten to know and prayed again for his soul to ascend to heaven.

He'd been a good, loving husband to her sister and a good, loving father to her nephews and nieces. He'd died protecting his family. He deserved the highest honor heaven could give a man.

Max took her hand. "The Kra-ell believe that warriors who fall in battle get to spend eternity in the Fields of the Brave, which is their concept of heaven. They are not afraid to die."

"I pray it is true, but since no one returns to tell us what's on the other side, this is just wishful thinking for people who are afraid of death."

As they got in the van and Nadim pulled out into the street, Kyra wondered why the police hadn't shown up yet. Had the Doomers arranged for that?

It was possible.

"Chief," Yamanu said, talking into his comm. "The enemy took Yasmin and her kids. Jade followed them and lost them, but Nadim thinks he knows where they are taking them, and we are going back to the safe house to regroup and rearm. It would be extremely helpful if you could get us satellite imaging of the facility and its area. I'll have Nadim send you the coordinates."

"I'll get on it right away," Onegus said. "Did they take her husband as well?"

Yamanu cast a sad look at Kyra. "The husband fought bravely to protect them and fell in battle."

"That's sad news," Onegus said. "Send me the coordinates as soon as you can."

"Will do, chief." Yamanu ended the call.

"Why kill him?" Kyra asked quietly so Nadim couldn't hear her. "Couldn't they have just thralled everyone to leave without a fight?"

They were sitting in the back of the van this time, and Nadim was busy navigating the busy city streets.

"There could be several possibilities," Max said just as quietly. "He might have seen them taking down the guards, opened fire, and they shot back. Thrall requires focus and direct eye contact, which is difficult to maintain in an active firefight, even for someone who is good at it. Another is that they were really bad at it. Some Doomers can't thrall at all."

She had a feeling that he wanted to say more but stopped himself, and she could guess what that was. The Doomers might have shot and killed Javad with the intention of inflicting more trauma on his family.

Max had forgotten that for the past two decades, she'd lived and fought in these parts of the world, where savagery and cruelty were celebrated and encouraged. She was no stranger to either.

That was what she'd been fighting, what the rebels were trying to end.

Their slogan was Woman, Life, Freedom, which was in direct opposition to everything the Iranian regime was about.

The drive back passed in tense silence, with Kyra staring out the window, her hand continually going to her pendant as she thought through tactical scenarios in her mind.

A fortified facility, an unknown number of hostiles, six hostages, five of them kids. It would be challenging under the best circumstances, but with the emotional component added in, it got exponentially more complex.

While they were heading back, Nadim mobilized his network, sending operatives to Parisa's home while others gathered whatever intelligence they could on the facility where they believed Yasmin and her children had been taken to.

When they arrived, Max and Yamanu headed straight for the weapons cabinet, and Kyra followed right behind them.

"I want you in battle-ready full tactical gear," Yamanu instructed, lifting out a case of explosives.

Jade and her team arrived minutes later, her frustration at losing the Doomers evident in her tight lips and rigid posture .

"They knew exactly what they were doing," Jade reported, going into the cabinet for weapons and a Kevlar vest. "The tunnel was a planned escape route. They must have had vehicles waiting on the other side. The question is how did they know we were coming?"

"They didn't," Yamanu said. "They prepared for being chased by police or the Iranian army. I assume they don't have friends in every department."

Once everyone was armed, Max turned to the Kra-ell warriors. "Remember that the safety of the hostages is our absolute priority." He fixed his gaze particularly on the Kra-ell females for some reason. "Don't take unnecessary risks, no heroics, and no wild charges into unknown situations."

Maybe they were more savage than the males?

They certainly looked ready to tear the Doomers limb from limb, and Kyra was glad that both their hosts were in another part of the apartment and couldn't see the red glowing eyes and elongated fangs.

"We get it," Jade said, her large dark eyes blazing red. "The children are a priority. We will get them out alive."

"My sister, too," Kyra said.

Jade nodded. "We will do our best."

Kyra hoped that they were disciplined enough not to succumb to their savage urges and to think rationally despite their blood lust. Rescuing hostages was not the same as storming an enemy post and inflicting maximum damage.

Then again, they had done remarkably well rescuing her, Fenella, and the girls from the facility in Tahav, so she had to trust that they knew what they were doing.

After removing the fat suit and getting dressed for battle, Kyra returned to the living room, but then it occurred to her that she might need the disguise, so she went back to retrieve the suit and the traditional clothing.

Max arched a brow when she tucked both into a shopping bag.

"It's just in case I need them. If I don't, I'll leave the bag in the van."

"How are you holding up?" he asked quietly, keeping his voice low enough that only she could hear.

"I'm fine."

"Kyra." It was just her name, but the sound was loaded with meaning.

She looked up, her eyes meeting his. "What do you want me to say, Max? That I'm terrified? That I'm imagining what those monsters might be doing to my sister and her children right now? That I'm furious with myself for not moving faster, for not getting to them in time?"

"You did everything you could, but if you need to vent, go ahead. It's better than to keep it bottled up inside. "

Kyra's fingers tightened around the bag handles. "I can't afford to feel anything much right now. I need to stay focused. I need to remember all the things I've learned over the years and utilize them to save my family. I need a cool head."

"I understand," Max said. "I understand compartmentalization. But ignoring those emotions doesn't make them go away. They'll still affect your judgment, your reactions."

"What's your point?" she asked, an edge creeping into her voice.

"My point is that you should acknowledge them first and then put them aside. Another point is that you don't have to carry this alone." He reached out, not quite touching her but close enough that she could feel his presence. "I'm here. The whole team is here. We're going to get your family back."

She nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat that had started in her sister's house and had kept growing as time went on.

"Thank you." She leaned over and kissed Max's cheek.

Something had shifted between them—a deepening of the already profound connection that had been developing since their first meeting.

"Five minutes," Yamanu called to the team, checking his watch. "Finish gearing up and move out."

Kyra checked her weapons one last time, ensuring each was loaded and secured properly. The weight of them was familiar, comforting in its way—tools of her trade, extensions of her will. But more comforting was the knowledge that she wouldn't be facing this battle alone. She had a team she trusted and Max at her side.