Page 8 of Storm Warning

When the boy nodded, Grant climbed over the seat and settled beside Christopher.

Riley handed Andre his Go bag, then grabbed her own and slid into the cargo area beside him. She unzipped her bag and picked up her rifle. After checking to make sure the weapon was ready, Riley grabbed a few magazines in case she and Andre ended up in a firefight.

Hopefully not. The last thing they needed was bullets flying into the SUV if the terrorists didn’t back off.

She glanced through the windshield and spotted her teammate Teagan sitting on the window frame, rifle in hand. Riley turned back to the vehicles bearing down on them from behind.

Andre motioned to the right. “You take the right. I’ll take the left. Let’s get these goons off our tail.”

“You got it.” Riley settled the barrel of her rifle on the window frame and lined up her shot. That’s when she realized how much of a problem the potholes were. “Is there a smooth stretch of road anywhere on this strip?”

Andre snorted. “Don’t hold your breath. Somebody spent the money for road maintenance, but I don’t think the road crews were the beneficiaries. We have plenty of ammunition. Don’t be afraid to use it. Grant.”

“I’ve got him. Chris, you need to lie on the floor, buddy. I know it’s not comfortable, but it’s the safest place for you.”

The boy slid to the floor without a word.

Grant lowered the window on the left side and prepared to engage the terrorists if they slipped past Andre and Riley.

The vehicles closed the gap, and from each vehicle, at least one passenger opened fire on the operatives’ SUV.

Noah growled. “Get them off our tail.”

“Aim for the driver.” Andre adjusted his aim. “If we take him out, the vehicle will crash.”

“Copy that.” Riley shifted her aim, sucked in a breath, let it out halfway, then pulled the trigger. The windshield spiderwebbed, but the SUV kept coming toward them.

Scowling, she adjusted her aim again and fired four shots in a row, shifting to the right after each shot. On the fourth one, the driver lost control of the SUV and ended up in a ditch with the front end crumpled and the vehicle on its side.

“Nice job.” Andre fired rapidly at the vehicle on the left. The driver jerked the wheel to the right, scraped the side of the middle vehicle, then overcorrected and slammed into an abandoned truck on the side of the road. “Two down. One to go. The last vehicle is moving up fast. Take him out, sweetheart. I’ll shoot out the windshield. You take the driver. If I have time to target a passenger, I’ll take the shot.”

“Copy that.” Man, Riley hoped she lived up to his faith in her. She could hold her own on a firing range. Out in the field, in a moving vehicle on a crap road, was something else.

Andre fired multiple bullets at the banged-up white SUV creeping up on them. Although the windshield blew out, the vehicle kept coming. With a growl, Andre dropped the empty magazine, slammed another into place, and fired at the two men hanging out the windows and firing on her and Andre.

Riley pulled the trigger in rapid succession, her target the driver. The fifth shot hit the driver in the chest. She followed up with two more shots to the chest.

The enemy’s SUV veered off the road, slammed into a rock wall, and burst into flame. No one fled the incapacitated vehicle and escaped the flames.

“Good job.” Noah looked in the rearview mirror. “Stay in position in case more company tries to cause trouble.”

“Yes, sir.” Andre glanced over the seat to the floor where Christopher huddled. “You doing okay, buddy?”

“Yeah,” came the response. “It was noisy in here.”

The operatives chuckled. “You’re right. My ears are ringing.” Andre grinned at Chris. “Do you mind staying on the floor for a while longer?”

“Nope. It’s not too bad.”

Riley’s eyebrows rose. No way that was true. This SUV had terrible shocks. The potholes were so jarring, Riley might have to schedule a visit with her dentist for him to check her fillings.

Ahead of their SUV, Teagan and Elias took out the three SUVs bearing down on them. Both operative drivers sailed past the wrecked vehicles and picked up speed when they were safely past them.

During the rest of the journey to the private airstrip, the operatives remained on alert but didn’t encounter resistance.

Riley frowned. She didn’t like that. Was something wrong with this picture? Or was it possible that Fortress had taken out all the terrorists? “There should be more resistance.”

“Yep.” Andre looked puzzled. “Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?”