Chapter Six
Zane
It was all my fault. I’d let my feelings for Aden compromise me, and that had ultimately compromised the mission. I didn’t have time to think about it, though. I had to get Aden to safety. Javier would escape justice, and there was nothing I could do about it. But I didn’t have to lose my men. The mission was my second job; bringing Delta Squad back alive was my first.
We needed to get to the fallback safe house, and the fastest route was through town. I didn’t want to put the locals in danger, but it would be easier for us to disappear if we blended into the population. People out shopping and dining would not only provide us with visual distraction, they would give us noise cover as well. I wished we had something other than our uniforms to wear.
“Strip off your jacket and throw it down. Untuck your undershirt. We need to blend in.” I barked the orders at Aden as we ran down a semi-crowded street.
He did as I said, but it took longer than I would have liked. Aden was too concerned with holding on to his gear bag. He struggled with removing his jacket, but I had to let it go as I was removing and dropping some of my gear. The rush of air hitting my sweat-soaked undershirt was a relief. I hadn’t realized how hot I was until I got a brief taste of the breeze.
We entered a narrow alleyway and stopped. I took out my sidearm and Aden followed suit. I looked around and it was quiet. After I signaled to Aden to be quiet, we slowly made our way down the alley. Each step felt like an eternity. I was convinced that someone was going to pop out from behind a dumpster or lean out a window and shoot us both in the head before I could even aim my weapon at them.
I tried to slow my breathing. My chest contracted, and cold sweat ran down my spine. Every little noise threatened to destroy my ability to stay calm. I’d never been this unnerved, even in the worst dangerous situations. Something was different, and that something was Aden.
My protective instincts had kicked in, and I needed to ensure his safety. It wasn’t that I just wanted to shield him from harm; I needed to. Getting him out alive became the singular focus of my existence. I’d never felt that way about an Alpha before. Sure, I’d wanted to keep my soldiers safe, but Alphas didn’t feel possessive of other Alphas the way I suddenly did over Aden. I didn’t have time to contemplate it.
The alley was about to end, so Aden and I had to take a turn that would put us back out in the middle of the street eventually. I hoped that when we got there, we’d be clear of our pursuers.
We got to the alley opening and stopped. I looked around the crowd and saw that only one of Javier’s men was near. They must have split up to look for us.
“We should make a run for it. We’ll go on my signal. Run fast, but stay low and try not to attract attention,” I said. “Got it?”
“How is that not going to attract attention?” Aden asked.
“I don’t know, but we can’t stay here. We’re sitting ducks. They’ll find us eventually.”
“I’ll follow, sir.”
I nodded at him and scanned the crowd again. I could see an opening, and I decided to take it. The soles of my shoes dug into the pavement as I sprinted through the opening in the crowd.
Before I got very far, I heard an ooof sound, and then someone falling to the ground. I turned and saw that a tourist had come out of a shop and run right into Aden. He’d fallen on the ground and his weapon and bag had rolled away. He quickly retrieved the rifle, but before he could get his bag, Javier’s man noticed us. There was no more time. We had to get out of there and find a hiding spot, or get to the safe house, before Javier’s soldier alerted the rest of his men.
“Leave it,” I said.
“I can’t.” Aden looked pained.
“That’s an order,” I barked.
Instead of waiting for him to comply, I grabbed his arm and jerked him to me. Chaos overtook the crowd as people noticed our weapons. Tourists started to run and scream, and Aden’s bag was swallowed up. “My bag,” he practically whimpered. It pulled at my heart to hear him so despondent, but I could replace whatever was in it as long as we lived. If we died, whatever he’d lost was irrelevant.
Thankfully, the pandemonium provided us with enough cover to slip away. The fallback safe house was on the beach, but on the other side of town. I saw it come into view, and the thundering in my chest quieted. We’d made it alive.
“Stop for a moment,” I said. “I need to make sure we’re really alone.”
Aden and I were between two other beach houses near the safe house. I could see a few people walking around and a few more playing in the water, but there was no one who looked like one of Javier’s soldiers. The only sounds I heard were the lapping of waves on the sand and laughing. I had no idea where Rory and Kali were, but I took it as a good sign that I couldn’t hear any gunfire.
“I think we’re good to go.”
We left our hiding spot between the houses and proceeded to the safe house’s back entrance. I keyed a code into a pad that had been hidden in a panel behind a doorbell that didn’t work.
I could tell that Aden was pissed about losing his bag. Whether he was angry with me or the world, only time would tell. I’d done my best to keep us alive.