Third Degree

by J. D. Dudycha

  “It’s loaded and the safety’s off.”

  She breathed in deeply and said, “Got it.”

  Kramer moved beyond Collar and toward the other four vehicles. Two more teams from the FBI office joined them on this mission and all the men were awaiting his arrival. Collar followed behind to hear the plan. There was a total of ten agents, not including Collar and Risen.

  “The driveway is one mile west of here. We huff it on foot. We’ll break apart and move in three-man teams like we discussed in Rochester. Risen, Collar, and I will go together up the middle. Alpha team, take the east. Beta, you’re on the west, and Charlie, you come in from the south. If we’re lucky, this compound will be heavily guarded, and if that’s the case, we’ll know we hit the jackpot. But be careful. Most of the men guarding the compound will be contractors, former military of some kind, and if they catch wind of our arrival, we’ll be screwed.”

  “Copy that.” They said in unison.

  “Comms check.” Kramer reached to his ear. “Test. Test. Copy, test.”

  They all heard him loud and clear in their earpieces.

  “Good. Now let’s move.” Kramer marched forward.

  As Collar followed on Risen’s heels, she couldn’t help but think Kramer was leading his men into a firefight they weren’t ready to win. They had the cover of darkness, so surprise was on their side, but if the guards outside the compound were in fact ex-military, they’d have far more training in a raid than any of the FBI agents marching alongside Kramer. But she couldn’t worry about that now. There was no time to assemble anyone else, not if Niki or Ashley were still alive. If these men were willing to follow Kramer to their death, so be it. Who was she to stop them?

  A thousand feet from the property, the Alpha and Charlie teams dispersed, running into an open field to the south that paralleled the country road. Collar watched as they jumped through the deep drifting snow.

  The cold air that continued to fill Collar’s lungs was taking a toll on her body. A one-mile march in any other circumstance would be a walk in the park for her, but here her lungs burned. She kept telling herself, though, if Kramer could do it in his current state, so could she.

  At five hundred feet away, Kramer slowed to a fast walk.

  Thank you, Collar thought, catching her breath.

  “Beta, take your team west,” Kramer directed through the comms.

  Collar felt the breeze as three men whistled by her in a blur.

  They were close now, no more than fifty feet from the driveway. Kramer stopped and bent to his knee. “Huddle round,” he whispered.

  Collar and Risen both took a knee and leaned in, but Collar craned her neck to see the house. It was lit up. And echoing clamorous voices boomed in the night.

  “Alpha in position,” a voice said over the comms.

  But Kramer didn’t respond, he simply looked at Collar, then Risen. “We won’t make our way down toward the house until Charlie has cut the power.”

  “You think that’s a good idea?” Risen said.

  “I do,” Kramer said.

  Collar remained silent. She didn’t want to sit back and wait. She wanted to enter first, to find Ashley and Niki, but maybe Kramer did have a solid plan. Cutting the power would put them at an even greater advantage.

  “What do you think?” Risen turned to Collar.

  “I think it’s a solid plan.”

  “Good. Then we’re in agreement.” Kramer turned his head and tilted his ear to his shoulder. “Charlie, where are you?”

  “In position, sir.”

  “Do you have a visual on the electrical panel?” Kramer said.

  “Affirmative.”

  “Take it out.”

  Collar expected to see the house go dark, followed by loud commotion by all inside.

  “There’s a problem, sir,” Charlie said. “Two guards are guarding the panel.”

  “Can you take them out without drawing attention?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Then engage.”

  Collar stared at the house; after three seconds everything went dark.

  36

  ON THE FLASH BEFORE darkness, Niki went rigid. She was stuck in fear for a moment, wondering what happened. Did the power go out? Or was this just a ploy, a plan from the man standing in the room by the door? She heard rustling throughout the house.

  Sergei’s voice roared from outside her door, but it was muffled. Niki discerned panic in his voice. She reached for her chest to feel for the knife. She lifted it, just when the man at her door said, “I would’ve have liked to have seen you naked for the first time in the light, but I assure you, I can make do with this.”

  I bet you can, you, son of a bitch. Niki opened her mouth to respond with confident protest, but she figured that might give her away. Instead, she decided meekness was best. “Please, sir, I beg you, please no.” Niki spoke into the darkness of the room.

  She couldn’t see him, though, and didn’t know where he was standing anymore.

  “Keep talking so I can make my way toward you,” the man said.

  Niki waited. By the sound of his voice, he was still far enough away. Most likely still close to the door. This was an opportunity she could use to her advantage. She closed her eyes and pictured the room inside her mind, recalling the exact dimensions.

  The man took two steps, then tripped over the side of the bed. “Damnit, Sergei!” he blamed the lights going out on him. He paused for a moment, then said in frustration, “Where are you, woman?”

  Using her other senses, Niki knew he was to her left and walking slowly toward her. I’m right here and I’m not moving. You come to me. She grinned, then stuttered, to bait him in, “I’m sca-scared.”

  “Ah, there you are.”

  Niki heard the shuffle of his footsteps along the floor. She remained calm, kept her eyes closed. He was close enough for her to smell his overpowering cologne. She would likely only get one shot at this. She waited for him to touch her.

  When she felt his fingertips, a shiver went through her, not because she was scared but because his fingers were ice cold. “Aha, there you are.” Once his fingers grazed her skin, he reached out and wrapped his entire hand around her forearm. His grip was strong. She could’ve reacted then, but she still couldn’t see him entirely. Like a trained soldier, she waited for the right moment to kill.

  “Pl-please, no.” Niki again acted the part perfectly.

  “I’m going to kiss you.” He leaned in.

  And that will be the last thing you ever do.

  She knew once his head moved for hers she could strike with multiple slashes before he knew what hit him. She licked her lips and could feel his presence moving toward her. Once she felt the warmth of his breath near her lips, she knew that was her chance.

  There it is. Three quick strikes. One to the neck, one to the abdomen, and one to the groin, and the man toppled to the ground, writhing in pain. She wasn’t certain of the accuracy of her slashes, but she knew it was only a matter of minutes before he bled out on the floor.

  From the floor, he reached for her foot and gripped tightly. She ripped her foot free and said, “I don’t think so.”

  He pushed out breath, then choked from the excess amount of blood exiting his carotid artery. She stepped over him, not waiting any longer; she needed to save Ashley and the others. And if the power remained off, maybe this was her best opportunity. She stepped toward the door. To her surprise, when she reached for the handle, it turned downward and clicked open. She opened it only a sliver. Panicked voices echoed through the hallway. But they were overshadowed by the pained screams coming from the room next to her.

  Ashley. Niki opened the door, only wide enough to squeeze through. Tiptoeing through the hallway, Niki saw the forms of multiple men working their way toward the staircase. She froze and pressed herself against the wall. She couldn’t be seen, and they all had flashlights. But they didn’t seem to notice her. Before Niki reached Ashley’s doorway, she overheard
one man say, “We’re under attack. We need to get outside.”

  Attack? Niki thought. Collar. She grinned, but then another scream came from Ashley’s room and shook her back to her mission.

  Feeling her way along the wall, her hand met the frame of the doorway. She grabbed the handle and pushed inward. Again, to her surprise the door was unlocked. She pushed inside, this time keeping her body close to the wall. She assumed the room was set up much like hers and the bed would be to her right, but when a man’s voice spoke, she understood it was just the opposite.

  “Who’s there?”

  Niki whipped her head to the left.

  She didn’t even hesitate. The man needed to stop whatever he was doing, and she needed to bait him, much like she had her own tormentor.

  “A friend,” she said.

  “Psh. Friend.” The man laughed. “You’re just some other slut, coming in here to hide out from the power outage. Once I’m finished here, I’ll come and find you.”

  “I don’t think so,” Niki said.

  “What did you say to me?”

  Again, she closed her eyes and heard his heavy body push away from Ashley.

  This is going to be too easy, Niki thought. She could use his anger against him. She would listen for his movement, something other than a kiss this time, but first Niki needed him to become even angrier.

  “Get your hands off my friend, you pathetic excuse for a human being.”

  “You’re going to pay for that.” He stomped.

  Niki could’ve moved somewhere else in the room, but she decided to remain by the door. It would give the man a straight line of sight, and from his heavy footsteps Niki would be able to tell how close he was before she struck.

  She counted his footsteps in her head, knowing the wall of glass was about twelve feet away. One. Two. Three. Four. She figured on his fifth step he would be within striking distance. Niki ducked and swiped her blade across what she figured to be his midsection. She felt the blade tear into his flesh.

  Not expecting the slash, the man cried, “You bitch!” At the sound of his voice—a mistake of his she could take advantage of—she struck again, this time higher. Her move proved costly, as he grabbed her arm and ejected the knife. He grabbed for Niki’s chest, not knowing where her throat was. She swatted him away and punched blindly into the darkness. She caught him on the chin. He was short, maybe five seven, the same height as she was.

  He stumbled, and that’s when she attacked again. Knowing his height now, she kicked with the top of her foot, catching him in the groin. The blow toppled him over, then Niki moved behind him and reached her hand under his chin, wrapped her arm around his neck, and locked him in a rear naked choke.

  Shocked, the man flailed for her arm, trying to rip her arm away, but he was bleeding badly, and with the shot to the groin, he didn’t have the strength. Niki’s grip was too much for him to bear. She held on for dear life until he fell limp to the floor.

  Finally, Niki released her grasp and pushed off his back. She was breathing heavily catching her breath when Ashley spoke. “Is he dead?”

  In between gasps Niki said, “Yes. Can you stand up?

  “Yes.” She heard Ashley’s feet hit the ground.

  “Good, then let’s get out of here. I need to find out what’s going on.”

  Ashley joined Niki by the door. Niki whispered over her shoulder, “Stay behind me, and don’t say a word.”

  They pushed into the hall. No one remained there. Not one guard. All had exited the premises or had gone downstairs. Niki walked to the edge of the staircase balcony and leaned over. She heard Sergei’s voice but didn’t linger long enough to listen to what he said. She heard the first shot of gunfire, and noticed the flash bang had come from her left. She instantly shifted her attention to the window.

  When they reached the window, Niki and Ashley peered outside and witnessed more gunfire lighting up the darkness.

  “What’s going on?” Ashley said.

  “That’s our rescue.” Under the glow of the moonlight, Niki flashed a smile. “I’m getting you home. Soon this nightmare will be over.” Then Niki turned her attention back inside the house. “But first I have to pay a visit to our new friend Sergei.”

  37

  “COLLAR! GET DOWN!” Risen hit the deck outside and reached for Collar as she fired her rifle.

  There was little in the way of cover from their position, but luckily there were nine other men attacking the home from different positions, and in the darkness she could move easily enough without being seen.

  One more burst of shots, and she did just that. Movement was life, and she knew better than to sit and wait for Risen or Kramer. “Sorry, Pete, but I have to breach the house now!” With all the shots being fired, the women inside were in even more danger.

  As she ran toward the house, the snow caught her boot and she tumbled into the drift. If anyone had seen her fall, she would’ve been sniped for sure. She yanked her leg hard, but it was stuck. In that same second a bullet whistled over her head.

  She bent over awkwardly, with her knee still trapped in place, lowering her trunk close to the ground, and scanned the area for the shooter.

  There was no sign of anyone. When she pulled her leg again, this time the snow gave way, and she ripped her leg free. She continued to lay prone but didn’t linger long. She crawled on her stomach, edging closer and closer to the house. A burst of bullets rang out in front of her, but she was not the intended target.

  “This is Alpha. We’re taking heavy fire. Masterson is already down, and Bright is injured. I don’t know how long I can hold them off.”

  Shit. From her position Collar saw the men shooting into the darkness, but there was little she could do. The guards who fired on Alpha team were behind a small stand of trees, thick with brush.

  “Collar, can you see them?” Kramer said over the radio.

  “Yes. But I can’t get a clear shot.”

  “Can you maneuver for a clean shot?”

  “Negative.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I’m being hunted.”

  The line fell silent for a moment. Then the Alpha team lead said, “Now Bright is down.”

  Heavier fire blasted in Alpha’s direction.

  “I’m out! Did you hear me? I’m out of magazines.”

  Collar dropped her head, knowing he’d be dead soon.

  “Hang in there, Alpha. Charlie, can you get to them?”

  “Negative. Not without giving up our position.”

  “Alpha, can you make it back to the motorcade?” Kramer asked.

  But the line was dead.

  “Alpha?” he said. “Alpha?”

  But again, nothing.

  Collar continued crawling. She wasn’t about to give up, not now. She thought to herself, Idiot. I knew Kramer had no idea what he was doing. He just got at least three of his men killed.

  As she continued crawling, two men ran from the side toward the front of the house. Their voices carried all the way to her position. They were excited, too brash after their kill.

  “You see that, Richard? We got at least three of them over there.”

  Collar looked up from the snow to see Richard. He must have been the man hunting her. He reprimanded the other man for being too loud.

  Bingo, she thought.

  Collar peered through her sights and got eyes on him. She couldn’t move much closer, or they would have heard her scraping against the rough snow.

  More shots were fired, this time from the back of the home, just as more chatter commenced in her ear. “This is Charlie. We’ve just eliminated two guards. Would you like us to move in?”

  “Negative,” Kramer said. “Not yet.”

  Collar peered upward and noticed two guards moving in from the west side of the home and wrapping around the rear.

  Must be the backup. Collar continued to peer through her sight. She still had Richard there. This would be too easy, now that the others had left him.
Just stay still. A little longer. Collar reached her index finger inside the trigger hole and felt the steel of the rounded trigger, then squeezed. Only one round was needed. Richard dropped to the snow in a heavy heap.

  “One more down,” Collar spoke through her comms. “You’ve got company, Charlie. Two more coming toward you.” She warned them, then peered upward again. Three more shots rang out, this time from the east side of the home.

  “Beta team, report,” Kramer said.

  But there was no answer, only more shots firing, then a barrage from the rear.

  “What’s happening? Charlie? Beta? Report.” Kramer was frantic.

  Collar raised to a crouch now that her threat was neutralized.

  “This is Charlie. I think we got one more.”

  “And Beta. We got one as well.”

  “Copy that. Good work. How many more do you see?” Kramer asked.

  “Charlie sees one more.”

  “Beta sees none.”

  “Collar, do see any more?”

  Collar leaned to her side. Now crouching, she could see one man standing guard on the front door. But he was immobile, would be an easy target once she got closer. “One man is guarding the entrance.”

  “Can you take him out?” Kramer said.

  “From here, no. But once I get closer, yes.”

  Now it was Risen who came over the speaker. “Collar, wait.”

  “What is it, Pete?” she whispered.

  “Don’t go any farther,” Risen said.

  “Why not?” She expected to hear him come back with a reason.

  But it was not Risen’s voice that came back over the speaker; it was Kramer’s. “You son of a bitch. It was you.”

  Collar’s stomach fell. She whipped her head around, back in the direction of the two men she’d just left, and all she saw was the orange flame of muzzle fire.

  There was more silence, both in the night sky and over the radio. Finally Pete said, “I’m sorry, Collar, but I can’t let you enter.”