Page 57 of Victorious: Part 3

“Bullshit. You’re staying put while we finish this.”

That’s when I hear it, a low, mechanical whining that makes every instinct I have scream danger as drones begin flying overhead.

“All teams, be advised,” Ominous’ voice comes through the comm, tight with urgency. “They’ve got a self-destruct system. Multiple drones are set to detonate throughout the facility. If they trigger them…”

The implication hangs in the air, literally like a death sentence. This place is loaded with enough explosives to level this entire weapons cache, all the people in it, and possibly a few city blocks in East Tampa.

We have to get this shit out of here.

“How long do we have?” Nycto demands.

“Unknown. Could be minutes, could be seconds. Depends on when they decide to hit the damn button.”

I look around at the container currently holding Brass bleeding beside me, then at Toxin engaged with two more soldiers near the water’s edge. The smart play would be to take what evidence we can and get the fuck out.

But I’ve never been smart when it comes to protecting myfamily.

“Nycto, we need to split up,” I call down the radio. “Half the team secures evidence, half creates a diversion to buy us time.”

“Negative. We stick together,” he growls down the line.

“Pres, with respect, Brass needs medical attention, and Ominous needs time to identify the priority targets. If we all cluster up, we’re sitting ducks when they blow this place. And Pres, if this blows, so does East Tampa, and God knows how far the blast radius will go.”

Silence on the comm for three heartbeats. “Fuck… do it. Toxin, Dash, Nerve, you’re with me on evidence collection and extraction. Void, Atomic, get Brass to the boats and create noise to keep their attention.”

I want to argue.

Every fiber of my being rebels against splitting up from Toxin when bullets are flying and explosives are literally buzzing above our heads to turn this place into a crater.

But Nycto’s right.

It’s the only play that gets everyone out alive and keeps Tampa on the map.

“Copy that,” I respond, hauling Brass to his feet. “Come on, brother. Time to go.” As we move toward the water, I catch Toxin’s eye across the chaos. For just a moment, the violence fades, and it’s just us. Her gaze is fierce, determined, and completely unafraid.

She mouths something I can’t hear over the gunfire, but I read her lips clearly,Come back to me.Then she’s gone, disappearing into the warehouse like a shadow made of death and determination.

“Atomic, status report,” I bark into my comm as we reach the edge of the barge.

“Mobile, but hurting. Took shrapnel to the leg. Fuckers don’t know when to quit.”

Goddammit!Two brothers wounded, explosives ready to turn us all into marine debris, and the love of my life somewhere in that warehouse collecting evidence that could save thousands of lives. Or end them if we don’t get them in the boats before this place goes up in smoke.

Just another Wednesday night with Tampa Defiance.

“Boat Two, this is Void. Coming in hot with wounded. Need immediate extraction.”

“Copy that. Standing by,” Whiskey states, guarding the boats.

As Brass and I make it to the boat, Whiskey helps me get Brass onto the vessel while automatic fire erupts from inside the containers. My heart hammers against my ribs as I spin, listening for Toxin’s voice on the comm, for any sign that she’s okay.

“Evidence secured,” Nycto’s voice finally crackles through. “Multiple crates of experimental weapons, documentation of military corruption, shipping manifests showing distribution across six states. Heading down for extraction. We’re coming in hot!”

“Time to go, Pres,” I urge. “This place is gonna blow.”

“Thirty seconds. Ominous is downloading their computer files.”

Through the warehouse windows, more gunfire explodes as I anxiously wait to see my brothers and my Old Lady make their way back down to us. The woman fights like the devil herself trained her, but even she has limits.