Page 49 of Holding the Line

“We’re gonna need wheels,” Bateman snapped.“Now.”

They sprinted toward the nearest vehicles.

“Where the hell are they headed?”Ricky yelled.

Hogan’s phone pinged.He skidded to a stop, yanking it from his pocket.“Shit.It’s from Kai.A file.GPS location ...extraction site.Bastard had it planned.”

Marsh slammed into the driver’s seat.“Anything else?”

Hogan climbed in beside him, swiping through the message.“Yeah.One line.Says he’ll explain when he sees me.Might be a while.”

Engines roared to life.

They drove like hell, taking back roads, staying off the main perimeter to avoid tipping their hand.Glenn called in from overwatch, tracking the SUV’s path and the chopper inbound.

When they reached the extraction zone, they parked out of sight and moved on foot.Marsh led the charge, cutting through trees and scrub like a man possessed.

They found the clearing.

The helicopter was a speck in the distance, growing larger, louder.Below it, near the transport crates, the Colonel stood flanked by his driver and final guard.And in his arms—unmoving, bloody, beaten to unconsciousness—was Eli.

Marsh’s vision narrowed to red.

“He’s hurt bad,” Ricky whispered behind him.

Bateman touched Marsh’s shoulder.“Hold.Let Glenn set the shot.”

“Just get that bird out of the air,” Marsh growled.

“On it,” Glenn said.“Thirty seconds.Distract them.”

Marsh stepped out just enough for the Colonel to see him.“You have something that belongs to me.”

The Colonel sneered, tightening his grip on Eli.“This little rabbit?He was always mine.”

Marsh’s voice was cold steel.“He was never yours.He was waiting for me.He was always meant to be mine.”

The Colonel’s face twisted into fury, the tirade spilling from his mouth.“You think love can fix what he is?What I made him?You think your soft little touches and whispered promises can erase what I did to him?He was forged in fire, my fire—”

“God, does this guy ever shut up?”Glenn’s voice crackled over comms.“I’m in position.Got eyes on the chopper.Ready on your go.”

“Go,” Bateman ordered.

Boom!

The chopper exploded mid-air in a storm of flame and debris, diverted just enough to draw eyes and fire away from the SUV.

Marsh was already sprinting.Straight for Eli.Straight for the monster who dared to put hands on the man he loved.

The Colonel snarled, dragging Eli backward.

“Let.Him.Go!”Marsh roared, voice like rolling thunder.

Shots rang out behind him—Pathfinders handling the last of the resistance.

Marsh didn’t care.

He only had eyes for Eli.