Buck placed his hand on the small of her back. “Let’s just keep moving. We’ll deal with them if they find another route.”
She lingered for a moment as she leaned into his touch, then turned, staying close to the rock wall as she continued along the trail. They reached the next submerged section, waited, but only half of the surge retreated, leaving the path a foot beneath the surface.
The lights behind them returned, the beams barely reaching them. Just enough that the men popped off a few rounds, crushed any thoughts of doubling back.
Tierney looked over at him, counted it down, then took off, half-jogging in an effort to beat the next breaker. Buck kept pace, slipping and tripping, slicing lines along his palms as he fought to keep from falling into the surf.
The ocean roared, the wave closing in on them, all that white water frothing and spitting as it tumbled across the rocks and sand, crushing everything in its path. Tierney broke into a sprint, covering the last ten feet at some insane speed, looking as if she was dancing over the water as it splashed up her legs, sending out concentric ripples, the utter blackness of it more than unnerving.
Buck raced after her, that wave already engulfing the cliff several feet behind him, the outer edge bearing down on him. He gave one last push, the breaker sweeping out his legs a foot before he cleared the edge. He gasped, the water lifting him off his feet, slamming him into the basalt wall hard enough to knock the air from his lungs, spinning white dots across his vision.
He clawed at the stone, scrambling for any kind of a handhold, only to be sucked down, the current dragging him out toward the reef. He made one last reach, hoping to snag a root, when Tierney’s hand cinched around his wrist, holding him still as the water churned around him. He gulped down a few mouthfuls, nothing but white froth circling him before the wave retreated, left him gasping and coughing on the side of the cliff, legs dangling over the side.
His lungs burned, his muscles barely functioning, when a series of bullets whizzed past, a couple men on the far shelf trying to pick him off the ledge.
Return fire boomed above him, a handful of spent casings hissing next to him when they landed in the pooling water. His head swam, his breath still burning through his lungs, as he pulled himself onto the slightly larger path, another wave already inbound.
Tierney yanked him to his feet, bracing his weight as she laid down more cover fire. “We need to move. Now, Buck.”
He willed his legs forward, got one boot pounding the stone as he inched ahead, the cold air finally starting to clear his head. Tierney maintained her grip, half-leading, half-dragging his ass along the path, stopping occasionally to check their six, fire off a round. The noise rattled his skull, the hit from the wave still messing with his head, as they rounded a bend, finally lost sight of the cave.
Tierney paused, patted him down before holding three fingers up in front of his face. “How many?”
“I’m fine.”
She hitched out a hip, still holding up her hand.
He coughed on more water, grabbing her hand and pressing it against his chest. “Three, not that it matters. I’m not tapping out until we’re clear.”
She huffed. “It was two, and I only wanted to know what I was dealing with. Just do us both a favor and aim at the middle object.”
“Roger, that.”
He scanned the area. Their pathway ended another hundred meters up, quickly dissolving into a rocky shoreline, then onto another dense forest. Above, the cliff slowly sloped toward them, narrowing into a fully exposed ledge before disappearing into the same thicket of pines and spruce, just higher up the hillside.
Tierney swept her gaze over him one more time, then started along the path, still avoiding the cresting waves as they pooled water behind them, the shoreline quickly vanishing amidst the rising tide. She’d covered half the distance when she stopped, grabbed him and plastered him against the cliff.
Lights cut through the night above them, bits of gravel and dirt avalanching down the face. A blast of static rose above the crashing breakers, a couple choppy words rasping free before shutting off.
Buck looked up, following the men as they paralleled the cliff, twin beams tracking the surging water below. He pointed at the exposed ledge before removing his rifle. Tierney arched a brow, then held out her hand, waving her fingers at him. He cocked his head, silently asking if she really wanted to be the one to eliminate the current threat, only to sigh when she motioned for the weapon a second time.
Her hands looked incredibly small compared to his as he slipped the Havak into her grip, positioning himself so he could help spot without falling into the ocean. She readied the scope, making a few adjustments when the men appeared at the edge of the opening, scanning the beach before moving across the ledge.
No hesitation.
Just the rifle notched in her shoulder, the scope pressed to her left eye. She exhaled, finger slipping inside the guard, slowly compressing the trigger.
The rifle barked out a round, hitting the first guy square in the thigh. The force knocked out his leg, and he pitched forward, tumbling over the cliff to the rocks below.
Tierney fired again, hit the second asshole dead center of his chest, reeling him backwards, his damn armor taking the brunt of the attack. His light tipped upward, painting the fog, shining most of the lumens back at him before he scrambled away.
She swung the weapon over her shoulder, switched to her Beretta, then swept forward, still maneuvering across the jagged line as she closed in on the guy crumpled across the shore. Blood covered the rocks, the man’s eyes wide, unseeing.
Buck checked for a pulse, shook his head, then flipped the guy over, stripping off his tactical rig before grabbing a spare magazine, handheld radio, body cam and sheath. He pocketed the tech, strapped the knife around his thigh, then checked the mag on the semi-automatic. About half full, but it beat the four bullets he had left for his Sig, the nearly empty mag of the Havak. He held out the ballistic vest, but she shook her head.
“It’s way too big.”
He shrugged. “Beats getting shot.”