24. Nikolai

Chapter 24

Nikolai

It was only her sudden movement as she spun to face me that saved Maddy's life. The bullet whizzed right past her head, missing her by what looked like inches at most, passing so close that her hair fluttered in its wake. It hit the concrete instead, burying itself there like a nail driven into wood.

My ears rang as time slowed to a halt. Instantly, it was like a switch flipped in my mind as decades of training went into effect.

This was now a battle.

High caliber.

The shot came from close. At a downward angle.

It had to be from the roof!

My eyes shot up, scanning the roof just in time to see the barrel of a bolt-action rifle slide away from the peak, disappearing behind it.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as my head turned to see Maddy, her eyes wide with shock, hands covering her head. The terror written on her face could have made any grown man weep.

For me — I saw rage.

Rage. Violence. Vengeance.

I reached out, rushing towards her and grabbing her by the arm, roughly pulling her back to me as hard as I could until she slammed into my chest with a thud that almost took my breath away.

"Niko!" she cried out, gripping onto my arms like a lifeline, her nails digging into my flesh as I ripped open the driver's door of my SUV and shoved her inside, heedless of anything but getting her behind the armored plating and bulletproof glass of the vehicle.

"STAY!" I screamed, slamming the door shut and praying to God that she would lock the doors behind her. I didn't have time to hear what she said next as another shot whizzed past me, whistling like a freight train and hitting the rear driver's side door that Maddy had just exited with a loud ding, denting the armored plating.

I ducked, running for cover around the front of my vehicle towards the house, calling out after Quinn, who I had completely forgotten about since the shots began firing.

"You good, Quinn? Do you have eyes on him?" I hollered out, pressing myself as close to the garage door as possible to avoid line of sight from the roof.

"Yeah, he's on the roof!" he called back, hunched down behind the trunk of his own car for cover.

Before I could utter another word, the sound of tires screeching pulled my focus to the end of the roughly five-hundred-yard driveway.

"Fuck," I groaned under my breath. These were definitely not guys here to help. Peering around my vehicle, watching my six as Quinn quickly moved around to the front of his car to shield himself between the now two dangerous threats, I watched as the passenger door of the black SUV opened. A bald, tattoo-headed man popped up and over the top edge of the open car door, an assault rifle perched on the top to steady it.

Tinny pops sounded from his direction, and bullets began whizzing around us.

Higher-pitched sound this time. Obviously semi-automatic, but not a pistol.

This motherfucker was firing on us with a goddamn AR-15 or something very much like it. Probably equipped with a scope as well, to achieve the accuracy he was displaying.

"Fucking hell," Quinn swore just loud enough for me to hear as I broke cover to make my way over to his car, years of training kicking in as I stayed low to make myself as small a target as possible. We had to formulate some kind of damn plan if we were going to have any hope of surviving the next five minutes.

"We're pinned down from both sides," I seethed back at him as I cleared the distance between our two vehicles, joining him. Both of us knew full well exactly how dangerous this situation had just become. "We have to eliminate the tango on the roof."

"Cover me," Quinn hollered back at me, popping up over the hood of his car and trying to find a vantage point with his pistol aimed at the roof. I fired a few ineffectual shots toward the SUV, barely making Tattoo-Head flinch as he returned fire. Quinn ducked back down behind the car as bullets smacked loudly against the trunk. "Fuck, I can't clock him."

"How do you wanna do this?" I asked quickly, scanning everywhere for signs of additional assailants. I wanted to take the lead. It was where I was best suited. Hell, it's what I was literally trained for. But this was Quinn's show.

"I'll go around back, see if I can't find a way onto the roof. Cover me if you can," Quinn hissed out. I nodded my head, and he took off like a flash, rounding the house in a few long strides while I turned towards the vehicle blocking the driveway once more. My pistol was no match for the semi-automatic rifle poised over the open passenger door of the SUV, but I did my best, firing shot after shot. I managed to hit the broad side of the black SUV, finally making the shooter stop firing for a moment to duck. Not fucking enough. Not by a long shot.

A very long shot, indeed.

A third shot flew down from the roof, the sniper having perched up higher on the slanted peak to take aim at me from above. Thankfully, he was unable to get a good angle, and the shot ricocheted off the hood of Quinn's car inches from my head.

I needed to get a better position myself if I had any hope of protecting Quinn. Thank fuck, Maddy was safe in my SUV.

Fuck. My SUV.

I rounded the front of Quinn's car as hellfire seemed to rain down once again from the assault rifle at the end of the drive. Dodging and weaving my way around, I made it to the front of my own vehicle.

It was armored, so that would provide more protection. Crouching down in front of the SUV's grill, I looked up, trying to find the right angle to get a good shot in at the sniper above.

" Ye bat' ," I swore, realizing that I would need a better vantage point to take a shot. And the only way to do that was to jump up onto my SUV, potentially putting me in the line of fire from both the assailants.

"Fuck it," I swore, jumping up onto the hood of my car, flipping over onto my back, and praying to God the bulletproof glass and armor would protect me as I lay my back down against the windshield.

Maddy screamed at me from below, her hands pounding on the windshield under my back so hard I could feel the thuds. Training my gun on the roof, I swore as the sniper slipped back behind the peaked slope and out of view.

As I held my aim, I ignored Maddy's pounding fists against the windshield. She had to be terrified. But we could deal with that later once she was home and safe once again.

My chest ached with the thought of it.

I should have never fucking done this.

I should have never agreed to this.

NO! I screamed at myself mentally. I could not continue thinking about her. Not now.

A shot rang out from above, my eyes scanning the roof line for signs of the fucker — or worse yet, a sign that Quinn had been hit. But as I processed what I'd heard, I realized it was definitely a pistol, which told me Quinn hadn't been taken out.

Not yet anyway.

As the sound of the shot faded, I saw my opportunity.

The fucker crested the peak of the roof and ran down the side closest to me, moving frantically to get away from the new threat.

Giving me the perfect motherfucking shot.

"Got you now, fucker," I whispered, taking aim. The man looked down at me right at the last moment, eyes widening with fear. I smiled grimly and squeezed the trigger.

Blood sprayed as the bullet hit him directly in the chest. He stumbled for a moment before his body toppled over and rag-dolled down the peaked roof, tumbling end over end until it landed with a sickening crunch directly on the hood of Quinn's now completely useless squad car. Unfortunately, the man had dropped his rifle when I hit him, and the gun slid only a few feet down the shingles before coming to a stop. So much for utilizing that weapon.

Maddy's scream from the other side of the windshield tore at my heart.

It called to me so badly that I almost couldn't see straight.

This was why you didn't mix business with pleasure. It made your judgment all fucked up when the rubber met the road.

Regardless of the choices I had made with Maddy, I wasn't about to let anything — or anyone — hurt her again.

"Not on my motherfucking watch," I hissed out, rolling over and peeking over the roof of my SUV.

The asshole with the goddamn AR-15 was still poised in the passenger doorway of the armored SUV. I could just barely make out the scope glinting in the sunlight. Just as I'd suspected.

This was not a scare tactic.

This was an execution. They meant to take us all out.

Well, they hadn't thought their plan through. They weren't prepared for us.

Scratch that.

They weren't prepared for me.

Digging deep into my past trauma and the rage that once held me like a prisoner, I unleashed the beast within.

With a roar, I slid off the hood of my vehicle, landing on the crumbled and broken concrete with a thud as I spun around, weapon up, reloaded, and aimed to take deadly fire.

The problem was the distance. Even if I could get anywhere close to the target, a pistol would do minimal damage at this range.

I needed to level the playing field.

Suddenly, I remembered that Quinn was driving an unmarked police cruiser. They were almost always equipped with a shotgun or rifle in the center console. Knowing Quinn, he would have opted for a rifle. He'd been an expert marksman in the service. If I could only get back over there without getting hit. I would have to take the chance.

"Mercado, you better not let me down now," I muttered to myself. I scanned the yard, waiting to see if there were other assailants lurking nearby, or if our last remaining threat lay solely with that fucking SUV blocking the driveway.

There was no sound of Quinn from above, but I didn't have time to worry about that right now. All my thoughts were focused on keeping that perfect, bratty little woman safe.

My woman.

I shook the thought from my head. I couldn't lose focus. She wouldn't survive if I did.

And I would go down in a blaze of glory defending her, if that's what it took.

If we wanted to make it out of here alive, I had to get my fucking head on straight.

The shots coming towards the house slowed for a moment, and I took my chance to race towards Quinn's car. If I could only get to that rifle, I might have a fighting chance of getting all three of us out of here alive.

I yanked on the passenger side door handle.

It didn't budge.

"Mother fucker ," I swore under my breath, ducking down as gunfire rained down over the vehicles with renewed vengeance, using Quinn's vehicle to shield me from the rapidly flying bullets.

Shots rang out above me.

"I got you!" Quinn yelled down to me. I didn't have time to think or respond. I needed to move . Skirting around the front side of his car, I pulled on the driver's door, praising any deity that existed that Quinn did not lock his car for once.

As soon as the door opened, the window exploded in a shower of glass shards.

I covered my head with an arm as sharp bits of glass hit me, cutting into my skin just enough to annoy the fuck out of me. I hit the deck, crawling under the bottom of the open door to access the interior of the vehicle without taking more fire.

Sure enough, the butt of an M-4 rifle jutted up between the driver and passenger seats like a beacon of salvation. "Thank you, Mercado, you predictable son of a bitch." I reached inside the car, pulling the firearm down to me as I shielded myself for a moment.

Just as I was preparing to stand up and take these motherfuckers out, the one thing in the world that could stop me rang out through the yard, piercing through me like a white-hot knife.

Maddy screamed.

A blood-curdling, heart-pounding, deathly scream.

I raised my head just enough to see the front door of my SUV fly open and watch Maddy rush towards my position like a bat out of hell, terror etched on her face.

The sight of her, of the woman who I had come to care so deeply about running straight towards me, not paying any fucking attention to the fact that bullets were literally flying all around her, made my heart all but stop in my chest.

Time slowed to a grinding, torturous crawl as I saw everything we had shared, every memory of every touch, every scene, flash before my eyes.. Or perhaps time was racing. I couldn't tell. Everything was jumbled.

All thoughts left my brain. All except one: save her. Save her, and do it now. Relying on my military training and pure adrenaline, I dropped Quinn's rifle without a thought and made a dash for her. She was in the direct line of fire. The direct line of fire of a fucking semi-automatic rifle that would eviscerate her in two seconds flat.

Blood rushed through my veins, sounding like a freight train that drowned out even the sound of bullets whizzing past me as I dove at her, tackling her to the ground and rolling until her body was beneath me, just beside my SUV.

"Go! Go! Go!" I screamed, pushing her with all my might under the vehicle. Anything to protect her. We wouldn't both fit easily, and I still had Quinn to worry about. Not that my pistol would do much from this distance. My aim would be shit, but I might get off a good shot or two if I focused.

Rolling onto my stomach, I pulled my pistol back out of its hip holster and lifted my upper body up off the ground just enough to brace my forearms on the concrete and take aim. I fired off shot after shot toward our assailant, emptying my clip and reloading before squeezing more shots off. None of them landed anywhere close.

Glancing quickly to the side, I checked to make sure Maddy was okay. What I saw stopped me in my tracks.

Bright red blood trickled down her face.

Fuck!

Was she hit?

Was she okay?

"Maddy!" I screamed at her, the sounds of gunfire and screaming overwhelming me — or perhaps it only felt that way, due to the sound of my heart pounding wildly in my chest and the blood roaring through my ears.

"I'm okay!" she screamed right back. Relief washed over me, and I focused back on the assailants, aiming my weapon once more. I took a deep breath, my eyes laser-focused on the asshole's head peering just above the armored vehicle's passenger door to allow me a shot.

But before I could pull the trigger, a shot rang out, whizzing overhead from behind me.

Fuck. Was there another fucking sniper?

Rolling over and skirting around to the front of my vehicle, I peered over to Quinn's mangled car.

No, it wasn't another sniper.

It was Quinn.

The fucker must have literally jumped off the damn roof. I saw him through the windows of his vehicle, crouching on the far side of his still-open driver's door with his rifle — the one I had idiotically dropped on the ground in my haste to get to Maddy — perched on the edge of the window between shards of broken glass.

The shooter in the SUV ducked out of sight for a moment, likely both to avoid fire and to reload his weapon. As I watched, he peeked carefully back out, preparing to take aim and resume the barrage of bullets he was sending our way. "No, you fucking don't," I heard Quinn growl from his crouched position as he once again took aim.

The sound of that single shot resounded through the air like thunder from a clear sky, like the vengeful fury of some long-forgotten god. This time, Quinn didn't miss. The shot landed right between the guy's eyes, dropping him like a dead weight. Part of me was immediately relieved, even while another part of me, a part that was deeper and more primal, seethed with unsatisfied rage that I had not been the one to personally eliminate the man who dared threaten my woman.

I kept firing, roaring defiance as I emptied my clip towards the SUV, knowing it likely wouldn't hit but not caring. Even if a stray bullet had somehow landed, it would just leave more dents in the obviously armored vehicle.

The driver must have reached across and pushed the dead man fully out of the SUV before pulling the door closed. Moments later, he pealed out of there with a squeal of tires and a cloud of dust and sped off down the road.

But not before Quinn got one last shot off. This round hit the back tire, and the SUV nearly spun out of control before the driver found balance and sped off down the road.

Seconds passed.

Maybe minutes?

I couldn't tell anymore. The only thing that marked the passage of time was the pounding of my racing heart thrumming in my ears so loudly I could scarcely hear anything else.

"Quinn? You good?" I called out, still crouching down behind the front of my vehicle. I thanked God, or rather Carrick, for convincing me to level up the SUV with armored plating and bullet-proof windows. That had just saved our damn asses.

"I'm good. I'm good. Let's get out of here," he called out from behind his now bullet-hole-peppered squad car.

Keeping my eyes trained on my surroundings, I rounded the side of the SUV to where Maddy was still hiding.

"Maddy, let's go." I tried to keep my voice calm, but it came out as a biting command. I couldn't take the time to worry about her feelings right now. Right now, all that mattered was getting her the fuck out of there and making sure she was safe.

She scooted her way out from under the SUV, blood trickling down her face.

I saw red. Anger swirled inside of me like a caged beast, forcing his release out into the world.

Pushing those feelings as far deep down inside of me as I could, I relied on my military training to get me through. I reached down, grabbed her by the arm, and helped her to her feet. I threw open the back door of the SUV, quickly helping her inside — more like shoving, if I was being honest. There was no time for patience or gentleness. I needed to get her safe, even if that meant literally pushing her into the backseat and slamming the door behind her.

I jumped into the driver's seat only a moment after Quinn shut the passenger door and turned the key, hearing the engine rumble to life. I threw it into reverse and backed down the driveway, looking over my shoulder through the now partially obstructed back window. The glass had done its job, stopping any bullets from getting through, but it had sustained quite a few shots and was now cracked and splintered in many places. It would definitely have to be replaced.

There was no way in hell I was going to let Quinn stay at the scene, not that he appeared to want to. His car was basically nothing more than Swiss cheese, and I wasn't about to leave a man behind on his own. Who knew if they would come back for round two or not? We weren't about to find out, though.

"Jesus fucking H. Christ, what the fuck was that?" Quinn panted out, his breath matching my own.

"You hurt?" I asked him, noticing the blood splatter on the front of his shirt.

"No, it's the sniper's blood. That was one hell of a shot. Thank you, brother."

I just nodded, unable to find the words to continue. My body hurt, my chest ached, and I could barely catch my breath. And through it all, I could not handle being apart from Maddy. Sure, she was safe in the back of the car. I knew that. But it wasn't enough. I needed to touch her, to feel her with my hands, to hear her breath with my own ears, to reassure myself she was alive and okay. The blood trickling down her face as I looked at her through the rear-view mirror made my own blood boil, my hands white-knuckling the steering wheel to the point that I was genuinely afraid I'd break the damn thing.

Quinn pulled his phone out, hitting a few buttons and holding it to his ear.

"Damn it, pick up!" he snarled, pulling the phone back down and redialing.

"What's going on?" I asked, though I wasn't sure if I even wanted the answer.

"It's Theresa. She was supposed to be the person protecting Maddy at the new safe house."

"She wasn't there."

"I fucking know that, Niko," he snapped. Taking a deep breath, he tried again. "Sorry. This just isn't adding up."

He held the phone to his ear, this time leaving a short, almost staccato voicemail for the woman before hanging up, instructing her to call him ASAP.

"She was supposed to meet me there at the safe house shortly after we arrived. I need to get through to her and tell her to steer clear." He tossed his phone up onto the dash, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose in agitated frustration. "If I had just…" he trailed off.

"If you had just what?" I asked, quick to grab hold of anything that would keep me from focusing on Maddy in the backseat, and my desire to abandon all plans and take her back home immediately like some fucking caveman.

"I was supposed to be at the safe house earlier than I was. I got there just a few minutes before you. Barely five minutes. Five fucking minutes. If I had gotten there earlier, I would have done another sweep. The place was perfect earlier today when I came by before heading to your place. I have no idea what the fuck even happened."

"You were late?" I asked, forcing myself not to look back in the mirror at Maddy again, instead staying focused on the conversation here in the front seat.

"Yeah." He chuckled, low and full of self-loathing. "I had to stop for fucking gas. Fucking. Gas."

"Yeah, but that could have meant the difference between life and death for you, Quinn. If I hadn't been quick behind you, who knows what would have happened? Hell, if you had taken—" My words cut off abruptly as realization dawned on me that if we had carried out the plan as originally agreed upon…

No. I couldn't think like that. Not now. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

"Niko, I need you to take Maddy back to your place. Keep her there and keep her safe. As of right now, they don't know you, and they don't know where you live. Keep her safe for me while I figure out what the fuck just happened." Quinn reached behind him, pulling up my backpack and giving me a questioning look before I nodded. The bag was mine. I carried it with me all the time, just in case.

"Not a problem, Quinn. I'll drop you by the station and then take Maddy back with me—"

"No! No, don't do that," Quinn bit out, his breathing still labored, just like my own. He took a deep breath, pulling a bandana from my bag and wiping his face off. We were both covered in dirt and grime and sweat, looking much worse for wear.

My eyes lifted to the rearview mirror, checking for anyone following us, but also checking on Maddy. She sat in the backseat, looking as small as a mouse. Her mouth was clenched tightly shut, her eyes fixated on some unknown thing in front of her, obviously lost in thought. All I wanted to do was pull the SUV over, yank her from the car, and wrap her in my arms. But that would have to wait.

"You don't want me to take you to the station?" I reiterated, refocusing on the issue at hand yet again. Right now was not the time to let my emotions fly. I needed to be disciplined. Fuck, I should have been disciplined this whole fucking time, and maybe none of this would have happened.

Pushing my guilt aside for the time being, I turned towards Quinn, who was on his phone texting furiously, his fingers flying over the keyboard.

"No. I can't have you or Maddy anywhere near the station. Drop me off at my apartment. I usually take the squad car home, and my own car is still parked at the house. I'll take it into the station after I get this blood off of me."

"You sure?" I asked, still checking my mirrors every five seconds, worried that we'd be attacked again. My entire body was tense, on high alert, and deeply aware of the precious cargo I was carrying. And as much as I loved Quinn, I wasn't talking about him.

"I don't even know… Fuck!" Quinn cursed loudly, his hand striking the dashboard. Maddy screamed in the backseat. My eyes flew to her, immediately pulling over onto the side of the road.

"Maddy?" I said quietly, trying to calm her.

"Fuck, I'm sorry, man," Quinn whispered so only I could hear him.

"I'm fine," she muttered.

"You're safe. It's okay—"

"It is NOT okay, Niko. Drive the damn car." Her tone was acerbic, filled with… with an emotion I could not name, but somehow knew by heart.

Releasing my grip on my door handle, I put the car back in drive. Checking my surroundings for the millionth time, I pulled back out onto the road, heading into the city towards Quinn's place.

She didn't want to be talked to. She didn't want to be comforted. And for now, I could allow her that. For now.

"Niko, this isn't safe. This whole… fucking hell. This whole operation, this whole damn case, is fucked. It has to go deeper than I originally thought. Though, based on what just happened back there, some of my earlier suspicions have now been confirmed."

"Suspicions?" I asked, the stillness of the country making way for the bright lights of the city as we drove through Independence and toward Kansas City, where Quinn lived.

"I've had a gut feeling for quite a while now — ever since I got assigned this case, truth be told. To have four safe houses compromised in the span of eight months is not normal. And now, this new safe house was compromised on its first day? That's not a coincidence."

"So, you're confident there's a mole in the department," I hissed through my teeth, keeping my tone quiet. Anything to keep Maddy out of this.

"Exactly. I suspected it before, and now I don't see how there's any way around it."

"What are you going to do?"

"Well, that's for me to figure out. I need to handle the crime scene and take some time to think. Fuck, why can't I get ahold of Theresa," he swore under his breath, more to himself than to me as he dialed her number yet again.

Winding my way through the outskirts of the city, I pulled up to Quinn's house, killing the lights but keeping the car running. I couldn't shake the need to be on high alert.

Quinn exited the car, the phone still held to his ear. He looked back at me before closing his door.

"I'll keep you updated. Keep your phone close."

With that, he bounded up the stairs to his home, my watchful eye covering him until I got the all-clear signal from him inside the house.

Finally relaxing my grip on my sidearm, I took a deep breath. I pulled out of the driveway and headed for home.

Thoughts of what had just gone down swirled in my mind like a fucking pinball machine. I focused on the only thing that mattered in that moment: keeping Maddy safe, and getting her back home. Where she belonged.