The plan was to reach the building through the trees, infiltrate the structure, and find Emma. Taking out Sadiq and his men in the process was also on the agenda.
With sweat running down his back, Trace held his M4A1 assault rifle tightly in his grip. Fifteen more minutes, and they’d be there.
Almost there, baby. Just a little longer.
Trace was still repeating the silent mantra when a gunshot echoed through the trees. His stomach dropped as he thought about what that sound might possibly mean.
No. You did not just hear Emma die. Not when you’re this close.
Trevor put a fist up. Trace and the other men stopped walking. Pointing to Trace’s right, their leader wordlessly gave the order to head in that direction.
On full alert, Trace and the others kept their guns trained in front of them as they expertly made their way toward the gunfire’s origin.
With each cautious step, the pounding in Trace’s chest grew stronger. The fear he felt for the woman he loved threatening to take over.
But he pushed it all back and became the deadly operative Emma needed him to be.
Something up ahead caught the corner of his eye. Something that looked like a body.
At first, Trace nearly lost his shit thinking it was Emma. But when he set his emotions aside, he realized it was a man.
What the...
With his right hand, he kept his weapon steady while motioning to the others with his left. Making their way over, each man kept his head on a swivel as he moved in case the whole thing was some kind of trap.
But as he got closer to the man on the ground, he realized it wasn’t. The man lying on his back with a bullet hole in his chest was dead.
“That’s one of Sadiq’s men.” Trace whispered to the others. “It has to be.”
“What the hell?” Derek looked at the area around them and frowned. “We got competition in finding the bastard?”
Keeping their voices hushed, the men took a moment to figure out their next move.
“That or this guy screwed up somehow. Pissed off the wrong person and was brought out here to be executed.”
“Either way, the shooter can’t be too far away,” Trace pointed out the obvious. “We need to stay on our toes.”
Surprisingly, Coop was quick to agree. “He’s right. Whoever did this could still be out here. If they heard us, they may be circling back around.”
“And he may have friends,” Grant added as he kept his gaze focused on the trees around them.
“Looks like the shooter took off in that direction.” Trace motioned to the disturbed ground cover heading west, away from the body.
“Okay.” Trevor took charge. “We’ll head that way. Find the person who did this, so we don’t have an unknown behind us as we move, and then continue on as planned.”
“What about Emma?” Derek looked to their leader questioningly.
“She’s tough.” Trace answered for the other man. “If she’s still...” He cut that line of thinking off at the pass before continuing on. “Emma’s one of the strongest women I know.”
Coop shocked the hell out of him by agreeing. “I want to get to my sister more than anything, but Winters is right. She’s fucking fierce. If anyone can hold out—”
“It’s her,” Trace finished for him.
The two men shared a look that put all the other bullshit behind them. The only thing either of them cared about now was finding Emma and bringing her home.
“Let’s go.”
About five minutes in, a twig snapped from somewhere nearby. The group stopped, holding their position in order to listen for additional sounds.