Page 138 of Fatal Intent

Donovan Vance dove to the floor, grabbed his Sig and aimed the muzzle toward Grant.

“Grant, look out,” Rayne yelled and yanked her hands free. She bent to slice through the tape at her ankles as the sniper pulled the trigger.

Grant felt the burn of a bullet slicing across his biceps as he threw himself to the floor. Unlike Rayne, he didn’t have a knife in his hand. In fact, he was defenseless.

A split second later, Rayne flung herself over Grant’s torso, protecting him from the bullets flying around the room while she used her knife to slice the tape holding him immobile.

Seth kicked in the back door, dove to the floor, and rolled, firing twice at Donovan, who went down and didn’t move again. He shot Gino twice as Teagan took out Chase with a bullet to the head.

Andre shot Barry, once in the chest and once in the head.

And then everything was silent.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

RAYNE SAT UP, scanning the occupants of the room. Five operatives alive and breathing. Five men from Gino’s unit dead. One sniper with fatal intent dead. Thank God. On a normal day, she wouldn’t rejoice in the deaths of people at Fortress’s hands. This day was anything but normal, and she was more interested in keeping Grant safe than in expressing remorse at the senseless loss of life.

So sue her. Some people were simply evil, and their deaths didn’t affect her as much as other deaths. A few of the six soldiers fit into that category.

She cut through the remaining tape on Grant’s wrists, then went to work on the tape securing his ankles to the chair legs.

Rayne scowled. What did they do? Use an entire roll of duct tape on Grant? The sticky tape was several layers thick and wrapped tightly around his calf just below the top of his tactical boots. Since the duct tape wasn’t touching Grant’s skin, she peeled the tape away from the boot and chair. She hoped the chair wasn’t an antique because she’d just removed the varnish along with the tape.

Grant’s wrists, however, were another matter. The duct tape was wrapped around his forearms and wrists. If she attempted to remove the tape, Grant would lose at least one layer of skin, possibly more. Also, the pain would be extreme. He was already hurting from the bullet wound. Rayne didn’t want to add more discomfort.

She sat back as she sheathed her knives. “That’s as much as I can do without hurting you.”

“Thanks for cutting me loose and for protecting me while I was out of commission.”

“You would do that and more for me, Grant. Plus, I love you. Your safety will always be my priority.”

He gave a slight smile. “Good to know.”

When he continued to lie on the floor near spreading pools of blood, alarms went off in her head. “Need a hand getting to your feet?”

“I’ll rest here for a while.” His face was pale and dotted with perspiration.

Something was definitely wrong with Grant. Rayne caught Seth’s attention and signaled that she needed him.

He said something to Teagan, who nodded, then came to crouch beside Grant. “Sit rep, soldier.”

Although he’d been drifting and unfocused when she asked him questions, Grant seemed to come to attention at Seth’s words despite continuing to lie on the ground.

“A bullet kissed my upper right arm.” He paused for a couple of beats, then added, “I need to return to the hospital. I think my stitches popped on the way here. My body is weak, dizzy, and sweaty. I might be running a fever, and I feel like crap, sir.” He lapsed into silence.

“We have to do something,” Rayne snapped.

“We will.” Seth rose and grabbed his phone. “Heads up, everybody. I’m calling the cops and an ambulance. Be prepared. We’ll be here for a good while.”

Andre groaned. “Great. I’d planned to have a facial and spa treatment at the hotel. You’re interfering with my beauty regimen, Dixon.”

He snorted as he made the call. Two minutes later, he slid the phone into his pocket. “Cops will be here in five minutes. The ambulance will arrive in two minutes.”

Good. Rayne breathed easier. The faster the ER doctor examined Grant, the better she’d feel about his situation. He’d lost more color from his face in the past few minutes. She didn’t like it. That fact alone caused her to fear for his life.

Rayne shifted so Grant could lay his head on her lap instead of on the floor. She smiled when he sighed and relaxed against her. “Hang in there, love. Help will be here soon.”

“I’ll be okay,” he murmured. “Don’t worry.”