Page 80 of Wild Temple

They had us cornered.

JD and I took cover behind a flimsy crate and aimed our weapons at the door. My heartbeat elevated, and adrenaline surged.

The squad hovered outside the door.

A voice shouted, bouncing off the concrete and spilling into the storage room—a familiar Russian voice.

49

“So glad you could join us, Deputy Wild.”

It was a voice I didn’t expect to ever hear again. After our last encounter, he wasn’t too happy with me. Everything became clear to me. The disgraced Russian general was trying to save face and get back into the good graces of the regime.

“General Orlov,” I replied. “I’m surprised you still remember me.” I wasn’t.

“How could I forget?” he said in that thick Russian accent. “You’re responsible for a massive security breach at the Kremlin and the destruction of my otherwise unblemished reputation.”

Unblemishedwas a stretch. The guy was a creep.

“It seems the tables have turned,” Orlov continued. “If you want to see Isabella alive, you’ll put down your weapons and come out peacefully. If not, we can do this the hard way. You’ll die. She’ll die.”

“You’re going to kill us either way,” I shouted back.

“You underestimate my generosity. I intend to keep you both alive for a very long time.”

Yeah, in a Russian gulag.

“You both have immeasurable value.”

The Russian government would love to have us as political prisoners. It was Orlov’s ticket back into respectable society.

"Well, it's nice to see that someone recognizes that," I snarked.

Orlov wasn't amused. "I'm going to give you the count of three. Put your weapons down and come out with your hands up."

JD and I shared a look.

"Three…

“Two..

“One…”

I wanted to tell him to come and get us. I wanted to unleash every bullet I had. But he could easily have put a bullet into Isabella’s brain, if he hadn't already.

"Alright," I said, letting my weapon fall to the ground. "We’re coming out.”

JD and I slowly rose from behind the crates with our hands in the air as Orlov's goons flooded into the room, weapons shouldered.

The general strutted in after them, triumphant. "You made the right decision."

"I want to see Isabella.”

Orlov laughed. "You're in no position to demand anything.”

His men surrounded us with twitchy barrels. They frisked us, took my pistol, my backup, and my tactical knife.

When I’d been rendered safe, Orlov put a heavy fist into my belly.