Page 152 of Storm Warning

Brent picked up another stack of folders and dropped them into his pack. “The FBI wants a crack at Garcia. I promised to bring him to the US if possible.”

The operatives scattered around the lab and picked up all the flash drives they could find and stuffed them in their pockets. When they finished that, they grabbed every folder they could find and shoved them in their packs.

At the five-minute mark, Seth whistled. “Wrap it up. We need to go. And someone needs to haul Garcia to the SUVs.” He grinned and folded his arms across his chest. “It won’t be me.”

Noah scowled. “Why not?”

“Leader’s privilege.”

That brought jeers and heckling from Echo unit.

When the levity died down, Levi Montgomery and his brother, Elliot, glanced at each other, then Elliot turned to Seth. “We’ve got him.” They hauled Garcia to his feet and cut through the zip ties holding his ankles together.

One minute later, Riley stood. “Finished.”

Seth looked at Grant. “Well?”

He rose. “Finished. I’ll set the charges off when we’re clear of the building.”

“All right. That’s it, folks. Pack the files you have in the next thirty seconds, then we’re out of here.”

The operatives pushed the remaining files into their bags and slipped them over their shoulders.

Iona glanced around. “Stay alert. We still don’t know who’s friend or foe. Until you know otherwise, assume they’re the enemy.”

Nico Rivera, leader of the Shadow unit, motioned to Andre and Riley. “We should put Marsh and Sloan in the middle of our group. They’re still prize targets for the soldiers who remain alive.”

Seth motioned for the other members of Echo and Artemis to surround the two operatives. “Levi and Elliot, you’re in the circle of protection, too. Time to go, boys and girls.”

The Fortress group walked away from the ruined lab and climbed the stairs to the ground floor. Seth glanced at Nico, and Shadow unit led the way from the stairwell. Around the ground floor were signs of the fierce battle M team and Shadow unit fought against the Storm soldiers.

The operatives returned to the dark hallway where they’d entered the building. After checking that the coast was clear, Nico and the rest of his team led the operatives from the building. All of them remained alert for trouble.

At the corner of the next building, a group of soldiers came into view. They skidded to a stop and grabbed their weapons. Before they could get off a shot, Nico’s team and M team fired their weapons. None of the soldiers remained standing.

Twice more, they repeated the process until the operatives appeared to be the only ones left standing. They left thecompound through the front gate instead of scrambling over the concrete wall with Garcia.

Seth tapped his comm device. “We’re clear of the compound, Z. Returning to the vehicles now.”

“Copy that. Garcia?”

“In custody.”

“Mendoza?”

“No longer a problem.”

“Copy.”

“If we have a satellite handy, I’d appreciate any signs of activity nearby. We didn’t take time for a headcount of those remaining alive.”

“You’ve got it.”

Elliot and Levi ended up draping Garcia’s arms across their shoulders and practically carrying him. Some of his helplessness was an act to slow them down. Unfortunately for him, it didn’t work.

Soon, they shoved Garcia into the back of an SUV and held him down while Violet gave him a shot to knock him out.

Brent glanced at the restrained leader. “I’ll contact the FBI when we’re wheels up. They’ll have someone waiting to take him off of our hands when we land at the airport.”