I glance over my shoulder and motion for everyone to join me. They move quickly, forming a line next to me.
“Well?” whispers Wallis.
“Two guys guarding the rear entrance,” I say. “Can’t see inside clearly.”
“Silent takedown?”
I shake my head. “Too far away and too far apart.”
I sigh. There’s no way inside without taking these two out. And there’s no way of doing that without shooting them, which will make an awful lot of noise, and attract a lot of unwanted attention.
I peek around the wall again. The guy by the tree hasn’t moved, but the other one with the submachine gun is walking back across the building toward us.
He’ll have to go first. I’ll have a second, maybe two, after dropping him for the guy by the tree to react and turn round.
Plenty of time.
I look back down the line, catching everyone’s eye in turn.
“You know that element of surprise I’ve been so desperate to keep?” I ask.
They all nod.
“Well… fuck that.”
I turn and move out, raising my gun and firing twice. The first bullet hits the guy with the submachine gun in his chest, high up just below his throat. As he falls backward from the impact, I snap left and fire again, catching the second guy in the side of his head as he steps out from behind the tree. His face disappears in a crimson flash, and his body slumps to the floor.
Screams from the street beyond fill the air, and I look up at the building, expecting to see signs of commotion sixteen floors above me. There’s no movement anywhere, so I walk quickly over to the first guy, tucking the borrowed Glock 22 back in my waistband. I pick up his weapon, a Heckler and Koch MP7, feeling the weight and checking the mag.
Time to end this.
37.
11:26 EDT
I take position next to the door, with Wallis across from me. Raynor and Clark spread out, covering from a slight distance. I look across and nod, and Wallis responds the same. I push the door open hard and dash in, sliding to a stop on one knee and sweeping the area quickly for signs of life. Wallis appears next to me, with the others coming in moments later.
The area isn’t as spacious as the main reception area out front. There’s a small station on the right side, currently unoccupied, with elevators in the far wall opposite us. On either side of them are double doors—the right side leads to a stairwell, according to the sign next to it; no idea about the left, but my guess would be it’ll eventually bring you to the front of the building. In the center of the space is a mid-sized circular decoration made of marble, with some indoor plants in it at the base of a large palm tree.
I jump over the glass gates by the swipe pads and walk toward the elevators, gun ready. As I draw level with the plants, the door on the left bursts open, and three men rush through, screaming and firing carelessly in my general direction. I spin away to my left, ducking behind the tree. I look as everyone scatters; Wallis and Clark dive right, behind the desk, while Raynor crouches by the glass swing gates.
Looking back, the three men are fanning out, firing at us relentlessly. I squeeze off a quick burst of blind fire off to the right, creating a momentary pause in their onslaught as they move for cover. In that split second reprieve, I stand and take aim, firing at the man on my far left and dropping him with a controlled burst to the chest.
To my right, I hear multiple shots from Wallis, who’s resting on the desk and taking aim at the remaining two gunmen. He kills one with a well-placed bullet to the head, and wounds the other by catching his shoulder. As he stumbles from the gunshot, I let off another burst and hit him in the right side, pushing him away and into the door. He hits it hard and slides lifelessly to the floor.
“Everyone alright?” I shout over in the deafening silence that follows any gun battle.
“We’re good,” replies Wallis as he walks out from behind the desk with Clark close behind.
Raynor steps over the glass gates and joins us. “So much for the quiet approach,” he says.
I shrug. “I’ve never been one for stealth,” I say. “Now, we need to get to the sixteenth floor. Elevators aren’t an option.”
“Agreed,” says Wallis, nodding.
“We’ll split up—me and Raynor will go left; Wallis, you and Clark take those stairs on the right. Keep quiet, don’t fire unless absolutely necessary, and we’ll converge on the sixteenth.”
“Won’t those doors lead us to the front of the building?” asks Raynor.
I nod. “I assume so, yeah. We just need to keep our heads down, and be quick at taking anyone out. I know there’s a door to some stairs in the left corner as you look from the front doors. My guess is we’ll come out at the opposite end of a corridor to these two.”
“That might actually work out well,” adds Wallis. “If the media see you from outside shooting terrorists, the story will break that we’re fighting back, which will put pressure on the people who should be and aren’t.”
I hadn’t thought of it like that, and it certainly make sense. But it makes me think about another factor.
“It’s not going to be long before people turn up who don’t want us here,” I say. “The CIA will try to kill us. The FBI will try to arrest us. Either way, it doesn’t end well. Bottom line is, El-Zurak’s somewhere above us, and he needs shooting. Preferably after he tells us what this has to do with the director of the CIA.”
“Agreed,” says Wallis. “We need answers, ideally with evidence, before we shoot anyone important. Good luck, Adrian. See you up there.”
I nod and look at Clark, who doesn’t look well.
“Bob, relax,” I say, sensing his reservations about going into battle. “There are three MP7s over there, so everyone grab one. Let Wallis take point, you stay back and provide covering fire where necessary. Once we’re up there, we need you to disable Cerberus.”
“If I can…” he replies, quietly.
“You can,” I say. “I know you can. We’ll buy you all the time you need to do it, okay?”
He nods and I turn to Raynor.
“Ready?” I ask him.
“When you are,” he replies.
The three of them move over to the newly-dead terrorists and take a weapon, putting their handguns in the waistbands as I have. We then pair off and head over to our respective doors.
“Thanks, Tom,” I shout over. “Watch your back.”
“Any time,” he replies. “You too.”
He heads through the doors on the right, somewhat reluctantly followed by Clark.
“You think they’ll be okay?” asks Raynor.
“Don’t worry about them,” I say. “Worry about us.”
I walk over and open the door to the left, stepping to the side and propping it open with my foot. Raynor nods and walks through, stopping in a crouch and covering as I step through. I guide the door closed behind me with my hand, to reduce the noise.
We’re at one end of a long corridor. There’s plush carpet underfoot, which I’m thankful for, as it reduces the noise of our footsteps. Halfway along, on the left, is a fire exit. Just farther on from that, on the right, I can make out another door, but can’t tell what it is from here.
“Watch my back,” I whisper as we both set off down the corridor toward the main reception area ahead. We make it halfway when the door on the right bursts open and three men step out. I freeze and hold my breath, holding up a fist to signal to Raynor behind me.
They look in a hurry, and thankfully don’t look left—they practically run ahead and disappear out of sight.
I let out a heavy breath and hear Raynor do the same.
“That was close,” he whispers.
I nod and set off again. I manage two steps before the same door bursts open again. Two men step out, but this time they turn left and stop in their tracks when they see me, not moving—frozen like a crazy statue with a goofy, awkward smile on my face. The whole scene slows to a stop for a moment, wit
h everyone caught off guard.
“Hey fellas…” I say.
Just as they resume normal speed and go to shout something, I squeeze the trigger twice with only a slight movement in between. Two bursts of fire hit them both in their chests, and they flail backward to the floor. I step to the side to allow Raynor a clear shot ahead.
“Wait a sec,” I say to him.
Sure enough, the three from before head back around, guns aimed at us. I fire off a couple of bursts, as does Raynor. Between us, we drop them all before they have chance to fire at us.
“So far, so good,” Raynor says.
“So far…” I reply.
We reach the end of the corridor, and I peer round the corner. I can hear a faint roar of commotion from outside, and the flashing of cameras through the doors momentarily blinds me.
Our little exchange was obviously overheard.
It looks clear, so I step out, checking the angles while Raynor covers my six. The door to the stairwell is on my right in the corner, as I remembered.
“We good?” I say without turning round.
“I reckon so,” replies Raynor. “I assume most of their manpower will be upstairs.”
“I’d imagine so.”
I make it to the door and wait for Raynor to take up position across from me. I put one hand on the handle, ready to pull it open, but just as I do, I hear a noise behind me. I look round to the front doors and see objects being thrown, breaking through the glass and skidding across the floor.
Oh shit…
“Tear gas!” I yell, bringing my left arm up across my face, as the violent hiss of releasing gas fills the air. “Get through the doors!”
Raynor opens them and steps through. Gunfire erupts from the front doors, and I return blindly, coughing on the fumes. I dive through the doors and drop to my knees, struggling to breathe.
“You alright?” asks Raynor, crouching down beside me.
I nod and stand, looking through the glass in the door to see a four-man squad entering the building, dressed head to toe in black, wearing masks and tactical goggles, and armed with assault rifles.
“Shit,” I say, still choking. “The CIA’s here.”
“You sure?” asks Raynor.
“I recognize the outfit. They’re not here to arrest us—we need to move.”
We turn and start up the stairs, taking two at a time, not caring about who hears us. By now, everyone will know someone’s here, even if they don’t know it’s us. I just hope Wallis and Clark are having better luck than we’ve had so far.
We make it up four floors before I hear any noise. Above us a door slams open, and I hear the stamping of multiple pairs of boots on stairs. I take a chance and lean over the railing to look up. I very quickly duck back as a hail of bullets spits down at me, followed by shouting.
“Company?” asks Raynor.
“Maybe three floors up and heading this way,” I reply.
“Those CIA boys won’t be far behind us either.”
We keep going, quickly reaching the fifth floor stairwell, and I stop by the door to catch my breath.
“We’ll dig in here, kill these bastards, and carry on,” I say.
More gunfire rings out in the stairwell, this time from below.
“You seem awful confident!” shouts Raynor over the noise of the gunfire, sounding unconvinced.
“Confident… crazy—it’s a fine line, I guess.”
I look at the door and back at the stairs, playing out every scenario I can think of in my head.
“Okay, go back down the stairs,” I say after a moment. “Just one flight—crouch down out of sight.”
Raynor does so without a word. I wait near the door, listening for the men approaching. When they’re only one flight away, I pull the door open hard so it slams against the wall, then head back down the stairs, quickly and quietly, to join Raynor.
“What are you doing?” he hisses.
“Watch,” I reply.
The men appear a second or two before the door slams shut. There are five of them. Instinctively, they open it and pile through.
Hook, line and sinker; assholes.
“Come on!” I whisper to Raynor.
Swiftly, we run back up the stairs and through the door, turning right to see the men filing through the office area in a blind rush. They all stop and fall over each other as they hear me enter, but I open fire before they have chance to turn and react. Taking my lead, Raynor fires as well. With them huddled together and caught off guard, a few controlled bursts of gunfire drops them all with minimal fuss.
I know, I could’ve let them go and snuck past, but that would mean there are five guys running around, who will ultimately head back to the sixteenth floor, and I could do with leveling the playing field as much as possible before I get up there myself.
“You’re a devious son’bitch, you know that?” he says, half smiling, but with a look in his eyes that betrays his concerns.
“Just doing what I need to,” I reply with a shrug. “Come on, we’re not done yet.”
We move and stand either side of the door just as the four CIA agents pass us. I look at Raynor and nod, which he acknowledges. As the last one draws level, I push the door open, hard, and hit him with it. I step out and crouch, emptying a burst of fire into the chest of the guy on the floor at close range. Behind me, Raynor fires over my head at the group of three, dropping two of them, but missing the one who is already halfway up the next flight of stairs. I snap my gun up and fire, catching him in the leg, causing him to fall back down the stairs. As he lands, Raynor fires and finishes him off.
“There’s hope for you yet, Sheriff,” I say with a smile.
He scoffs. “After a week in your life, I’m ready to retire… How the hell did you live like this?”
I shrug. “I’d say you get used to it, but I’d be lying. You just… learn to ignore the things any sane person would find issue with.”
We take a couple of moments to catch our breath before setting off up the stairs again, taking two at a time. We make it to the sixteenth floor without further conflict.
I listen at the door, hearing movement close by. I signal to Raynor to sit tight, and I adjust my grip on my gun, getting comfortable as I prepare for the next onslaught.
I don’t know what’s beyond this door, but I have to assume the Armageddon Initiative has come prepared. El-Zurak’s here, so he’ll make sure he’s well protected. They’ll also have hostages. The fifth floor looked empty, but I don’t know about the rest. My guess is the majority of people were able to get out of here during the initial takeover. I doubt anyone on the sixteenth floor would’ve been so lucky though.
I have to play this smart and absolutely shouldn’t kick the door down and start shooting… no matter how much I might want to.
I look at Raynor, who by now, I assume, has come to know me pretty well. He looks at me with a raised eyebrow and sighs heavily, as if sensing my struggle between what’s smart and what’s crazy.
I place a hand on the door and gently push it open a fraction, revealing a slim glimpse of the corridor running off to the right. I see a couple of offices on the left, but can’t see all the way to the other end.
“Looks clear,” I whisper.
I push it open farther, but stop when I hear footfalls away to the left. I hold the door still, not allowing it to close. Whoever’s there might notice it’s slightly open; they might not. But they would definitely notice it move, so I play the numbers game and sit tight, holding my breath.
Two men walk into view, striding purposefully away from me with guns held loosely by their side. I signal to Raynor, gesturing with my hands what’s happening and to follow me. I ease the door open enough to fit my head through and quickly look around to my left. A quick movement, just a glimpse.
There’s no one there. I look right, to the end of the corridor, and see the door leading to the opposite stairwell. I hope Wallis and Clark have made it here unscathed. The two men stop at th
e far end, just in front of the door.
“Wait,” I hear one of them say as he reaches for a radio clipped to his belt. He picks it up and holds it to his ear, listening intently. His body language changes, and he appears on edge, looking around and shifting on the spot.
“We’re under attack!” he says to his friend. “Come on!”
They rush off to the left, out of sight, unblocking my view of the other door just as it opens a fraction. I see Wallis poke his head out, doing exactly what I’ve just done. Our eyes meet, and we give each other the ‘OK’ gesture with our hand. I signal to him to head down the corridor to his right, after the two men. I’ll head left with Raynor.
Keeping low, we all step out and check the immediate vicinity. Happy we’re clear for now, I move off to the left with Raynor close behind me. They know we’re coming, which makes things slightly harder, but it’s not exactly unexpected, so we’ll deal with it as best we can.
At the end of the corridor is a right turn, with an office on the left taking up the corner. I stop with my back against the wall on the right and peer around it. The layout seems to be a square within a square. I suspect the majority of the personnel are based toward the center, with the outlying offices reserved for management.
I see no movement, so I make my way around the corner, keeping beneath the windows of the offices, out of sight. It’s a large office—as you’d expect in such a large building. As I make my way along the left side with Raynor behind me, I realize exactly how big it is. It feels like the goddamn TARDIS!
I hear movement close by and stop, signaling for Raynor to do the same. There’s a low hum coming from up ahead, making it difficult to hear any footsteps. Just in front of us is an opening that leads inside the inner square, to the right. Must be another corridor running through the middle…
I edge slowly along the wall, keeping in a crouch, and stop at the intersection to take a quick peek. I feel my eyes widen at the sight before me. I was wrong about the layout… the inner square is open-plan, with a large bank of computers at the far end, in front of a huge display screen that runs practically the full width of the wall. It looks like something out of a NASA launch control center—which, I immediately realize, would make sense, given it’s from this floor where they run the Cerberus satellite.
Deadly Intent: An Action Thriller (Adrian Hell Series Book 4) Page 29
