True Sacrifice

by Amanda Mackey

  Noise behind had me check over my shoulder. I prayed our men had busted in. Instead, two scruffy guys in jeans and tees held rifles at Viper and I. Where had they come from? We’d checked and cleared down below, taking out any threats.

  Spinning back around, suddenly feeling as if things were spiraling out of control, I found Mac again.

  A sliver of light across her cheek showed me half her swollen, bruised face. Rage had me cry out, “Mac! Fuck! Are you all right?” Stupid question. One wrong move and she’d take a bullet to the head, but I couldn’t think of anything else to ask.

  A slight nod from her allowed me to exhale.

  The asshole holding the gun smiled sinisterly. “I’ve been waiting for you to show up.”

  Indeed. He’d used Mac to lure me here. Well, he had me, and I sure as hell wasn’t leaving until Mac walked out safely, consequences be damned.

  “Let the woman go. You have me. She’s not a part of this,” I hollered.

  “Oh, but she is. She’s my bargaining chip. You see, I’ve been watching you closely. Finding out you survived the first attempt at killing you only drove my hunger to have you suffer even more.”

  “Why?” I knew why. Everything in me told me this guy had everything to do with our mission to save Reno and the guy I shot.

  The dude’s smile vanished, replaced by an angry grimace. “Why? You killed my brother, that’s why. And now I’m here to kill you.”

  His English had an Eastern accent wound through it. My theory had been correct. Everything I’d gone through to get to this moment had been caused by this freak. My memory loss. The break-in at Mac’s apartment. Her abduction. And the psycho didn’t stop to think that none of this would have happened if Reno hadn’t been captured and held hostage in the first place.

  I couldn’t see the fear I knew would be shooting from Mac’s eyes, but I knew it would be the same I’d seen in Reno in his final moments alive.

  Shooting a quick glance at Viper, who’d remained silent since ordering the scum bag to drop his weapon, I watched him press the button on his wrist in the sequence he’d described, to finally order an attack. I just hoped to God our men would enter silently, because if any noise sounded, we were all dead.

  Seeing my friend’s rock-steady hands holding his weapon at head height, I couldn’t tell what went through his mind. He showed no fear. This is what he lived for. He stood tall and proud to be an American and would fight patriotically to the end.

  His head never moved, solely focused on his target even though he had two at his back. I guessed we waited on our backup. It would be stupid to make a move now. If they didn’t hurry up though, I’d make my move.

  I could smell Mac’s fear now. Her fear not only for herself, but for me and Viper.

  None of this should be happening. Not again. Not with Mac. She was good and innocent. I’d die if anything happened to her because of me. The guy might be using her to lure me, but that didn’t mean she’d walk away. We both could be dead soon.

  An uneasy sensation crawled over my skin. Something felt off. Our backup should have arrived by now. What took so long? Three Black Ops soldiers ordered to go. My cooler façade began to heat up as each second ticked by.

  Asshole spoke. “You have a decision to make, soldier. Your life or hers.” He pressed the gun harder to Mac’s temple. A noise escaped her and I made my decision.

  I couldn’t risk her life. I wouldn’t make the same mistake I made with Reno. I couldn’t wait for our backup. I just hoped to God when they arrived, they could get us all out of this jam.

  With a sudden calm, I dropped my weapon and held up both hands in surrender.

  “Dec, what the fuck, man? Pick up your weapon. We got this. That’s an order!”

  Order be damned. He wasn’t my commanding officer. He might have taken charge of this mission, but I answered to no one in this instance. The sensation of doom heightened but I knew I’d made the right decision.

  “Don’t shoot, Viper. Save yourself and Mac.” I growled it out, not taking my eyes off the enemy.

  Taking a step closer, Mac’s fear became visible. She shook her head at me, tears sailing down her bruised face as I let my eyeballs sway to her then back to the guy I wanted to mercilessly kill.

  “I’m here. Take me, but let her go,” I offered, inching closer.

  “Not happening, man. I’m not letting you do this,” Viper roared, desperation lacing his low voice.

  “I’ve made the choice. Mac’s life for mine. You need to get her out of here and keep her safe. You shoot and you’re dead. I won’t stand by and watch anyone else I care about die or suffer.”

  Shuffling closer, I stopped just shy of Mac, giving her my full attention. I tried to show her everything I felt about her and what I sacrificed. I let my emotions surface and with it came the welling of tears. Who would have thought everything would come full circle. My savior now needed saving.

  Perhaps this pivotal moment would prove to be my calling. What I had prepared for my whole life. To die a hero. A martyr. We all had sacrifices to make. Some greater than others. Was I prepared to die? Hell no. Who could possibly be? But knowing she’d live and forever be protected by my wingman strengthened me to face my fate.

  Seeing her banged up and desperate confirmed my decision of surrendering. She looked a mess, and all I wanted to do was tear the heart from the enemy standing beside her. If his two lackeys weren’t in the room, it would be all over. He’s be lying in a pool of his own blood.

  Silence still loomed outside and my thoughts began racing at a million different scenarios, the main one being, had our guys been found out and killed? That seemed unlikely considering they were the elite. Even some Afghani rebels trained in combat wouldn’t get close to killing a Special Ops soldier.

  “I mean it, Dec. Don’t do this. Please?” Viper’s hard voice bordered on begging. I didn’t want to put him in this position, but what choice did I have? Someone in this room would die, but it wouldn’t be Mac.

  Shaking my head, unable to look my friend in the eyes, I focused on Mac. Even as she sat injured, her strength exuded from her. She still had fight left in her, so I knew she would heal and move forward. Everything I ever needed sat before me, pleading me to back off. Her pain became my pain. I took it in, soaking it into my pores, needing it to spur me on. The fact that I’d die for her spoke volumes about how I felt.

  “Mac…” I gritted out, not knowing what the hell else to say.

  She whimpered, a tear dripping down her cheek to the corner of her mouth.

  “Enough!” barked her captor. “Step forward!”

  Without waiting for any more rebuttal, I eased to within touching distance of Mac, feeling the terror rolling off her, curling around me. God. Why did things have to end this way? I wanted to tell her how I felt. I wanted her in my life. I wanted her. Being so close and unable to touch her destroyed the remainder of my shattered heart.

  “Untie her and let her go.” I gave my order, needing this to end. Needing to see her safely with Viper.

  The nut job before me grinned as if he’d just won the lottery. His devil eyes sparkled. He enjoyed this way too much.

  Fixing me with his hateful stare with the gun still trained on Mac’s skull, he dug into a back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a knife. Praying to God he’d honor the deal I made, I stood fixed to the spot.

  My heart stuttered, not knowing if he intended to kill Mac anyway. Every muscle in me reacted by coiling tight.

  He brought the knife to the rope at the back of the chair and proceeded to cut through it, the sharpness allowing the action to be done in a few seconds. Unraveling it, he watched both Viper and me.

  Mac’s shoulders were the only things to sag slightly.

  “Dec, I’m warning you. You’re making a huge mistake.”

  Perhaps. Perhaps not. Either way, I held the rights to the decision. Viper couldn’t sway me.

  Mac suddenly spoke for the first time, startling me. I watched on he
lplessly as she cried out, “No! I won’t let you do this, Harley. I can’t. This is who I am. I save people. I saved you once and I will do it again.” Turning to leer at the militant, she spoke loud and clear. “Do what you want to me, but let Harley go. Use me as revenge for your brother.”

  What the actual fuck? Hell no! Not happening. Had she lost her Goddamn mind?

  Never going to happen, sweetheart. Nice try, but one I will not consider.

  Grinding my teeth, I yelled at her, “Do not say another word, Mac. I applaud your attempt at playing the martyr, but there is no fucking way it’s happening. Get that gorgeous butt off that chair and walk slowly to Viper. Now!”

  Shocked at my tone, she could do nothing but stare at me. Damn stubborn woman. If I had to grab her and walk her to safety with a gun to my own head, I would. I didn’t need to though, because the gun at her head lowered before the prick hoisted her up by the arm and threw her across the floor toward Viper. Still, my hatred for him didn’t falter. He hadn’t done it in kindness. He wanted me. Nothing more.

  I breathed out in relief, turning to watch her scramble up. Viper tucked her into his side protectively, and I knew in my heart that he would be the only one who would safeguard her like I could.

  With the gun now trained on me, I waited for instructions.

  “Move!” ordered the new thorn in my side.

  Leveling Mac with my final stare, I attempted to keep it together as she fell apart.

  Her heart bled by way of the emotion in her eyes, indicating her true feelings toward me. She felt what I felt. The pull which ran deeper than affection. I’d felt it the moment I’d looked into her stunning eyes. I knew if we weren’t in this situation we could have something incredible. But I had no idea how to fix it. Guns were still trained on Viper, and now Mac, and our team had failed to get us out. I’d seen with my own eyes the call for help using the device strapped to my buddy. Had it not gone through? Something didn’t add up.

  Her cries cemented themselves in my head. Anguish held me in its grip. I wanted more of her. More of us. We’d only just begun. We had so much potential as a couple. These scumbags were taking everything from me.

  My anchor who had kept me grounded was being released, and I felt myself floating again. Right where she’d found me. Floating in a mass of nothing.

  Slanting my eyes across at the guy who’d always had my back and who still did by protecting Mac, I sympathized with him. Every muscle in his body twisted tightly and his eyes screamed out to me one last time to rethink my absurd decision. It gutted him to be losing his best friend. As if Reno’s death hadn’t been a burden almost too heavy to bear, mine would sink him completely. I hated what I needed to do. Hated that I needed to cause them so much pain. I needed to get out of here before I did rethink my decision. But that would get us all killed. Better one of us than three.

  Walking past the two people I cared most about, catching Mac’s devastated face, I watched helplessly as she broke before me, sobbing openly and crying out.

  “No! You can’t do this for me! I don’t want you to.” Her hands reached for me and I let my fingers touch hers, embedding their warmth and softness into my psyche. I’d cling on to the sensation until I took my last breath. The very hands that had treasured my body and tended to my wound. A lifetime ago.

  Viper’s face pinched with despair, and if I wasn’t mistaken his eyes misted over. His neck muscles were ready to pop, his grip on the gun a white-knuckled one.

  I mouthed, “thank you,” to him and let myself be led out of the room.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Mac

  Watching Harley walk to his death killed me. He would die to keep me alive and it totally ruined me. I couldn’t possibly live with that. Why would he sacrifice himself? It should have been me. I tried, but it had been pointless when the enemy had wanted Harley all along. I played no part in the game other than luring the prey to his death.

  I looked at Viper, and he appeared as crestfallen as me. We shared a look and he nodded slightly, motioning to me with his fingers in a circular fashion.

  Confusion must have marred my features. I wasn’t privy to secret military code, so I stood rooted to the spot, devastated. The man who had tried to protect me and had come to mean so much would martyr himself on my account. It left my heart open and bleeding. No one had ever done such a thing.

  He cared about me. Way more than I knew. God. I wanted to do something. Anything.

  Momentarily forgetting the two gunmen, I spun to face them, but the room only held Viper and I.

  The men had already gone, probably to assist in the killing of Harley. Letting out a loud wail, I fell to my knees, ignoring the jarring sensation. The tear in my heart hurt far worse.

  “Are you okay?” Viper squatted next to me, laying his weapon down.

  “No. They’ll kill him. You need to go after them. I’m fine. I’ll catch a cab back to Ann Arbor if I have to. Just go!” My voice had taken on a hysterical tone. A few bruises were nothing compared to watching someone I cared about walk away to their death. I couldn’t cope with it.

  Pulling up his sleeve, he stared at a device on his wrist with confusion. Pressing a green button a couple of times like some sort of code, he looked back up at me.

  “What is that?” I asked, suddenly dog-tired.

  “Backup. Except it’s either faulty or something is seriously wrong.” His mouth pinched tightly. “Can you stand up properly?” he asked, giving me his full attention.

  Nodding, I rose before Viper stood and held my arm making sure I didn’t teeter.

  “I promised Dec I’d watch over you. I can’t leave until backup arrives,” he affirmed, although I could hear the edge to his voice, as if he warred between leaving or staying.

  Needing him to go, I pleaded, “I am perfectly okay, I promise. You need to go save him. The clock is ticking, and if you don’t leave now, you’ll lose him for good. I’m sure you don’t want to have to live with that.”

  I purposely played with his conscience, but I hoped it would spur him into action. His eyes squeezed tightly as he reached down for his weapon. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a wad of cash and what appeared to be a hotel keycard. “Call a cab and go to the hotel. This is our room card. Address is on the other side. Stay in the suite and lock the door until I get back.” Thinking for a second, he added, “Do you have your cell on you?”

  “No. It got thrown on the ground in the parking garage below and shattered after Char called, divulging my only means of communication to you guys.”

  Digging into his other pocket, he pulled out his cell and switched it on. “Here. Take this. I have my military one on me. I’ll call you to keep you updated if I can. Call room service and order some food. Take a shower and get cleaned up. We’ll get you some clothes when we can.”

  Reaching into the waistband of his military pants, he pulled out a handgun and pushed it toward me.

  “Take this. Shoot first and ask questions later. I mean it, Mac. There may be more enemies approaching or waiting outside.”

  Glaring at the black metal, knowing it could snuff out a human in the blink of an eye, I hesitated. I’d never used a gun.

  “Mac. Look at me.”

  Rising to meet his concerned eyes, he said, “Life or death, remember. Leaving you to go to the hotel without me is dishonoring my vow to Dec to keep you safe. I need to know you’ll use it if you need to. Time’s running out. If I have any chance at all of saving him, I need your promise.”

  Deciding I was responsible for wasting valuable time, I nodded and grabbed the gun.

  While I hated the thought of bailing while he went after Harley, I knew I needed to let him do his job. I’d only slow him down. His kindness spoke volumes about his character.

  “Thank you. Truly. For everything.” I took the cell in my other hand and pocketed it. He kept his hand on my arm and walked me out of the room, gun trained forward ready to shoot.

  ***

  Back at
the hotel after a short cab ride, I locked and dead-bolted the door before hurrying to the bathroom. Placing the gun on the vanity, I almost collapsed with relief, yet fear and worry dug deeper. Outside the warehouse, I’d clung to the walls like a shadow, waiting on someone in hiding to shoot me, but all had remained quiet. Two dead bodies at the back door had failed to push me over the edge. In some ways I’d been relieved. I wanted vengeance on those who had brought this crap into my life.

  I desperately needed some hot water to scald away remnants of the animal’s dirty hands on me. I’d been violated and abused, and it all began to hit me now. I placed Viper’s cell on the vanity next to the gun, which remained ready to shoot. I’d been clutching onto the phone’s silence like a lifeline since he’d given it to me, waiting on word that he’d saved Harley, but it remained quiet.

  Peeling off my scrubs, I switched the faucets on and climbed into the shower, sinking to the floor under the cathartic spray. Surges of overwhelming sadness barreled through me as the adrenalin subsided and the magnitude of what I’d endured made sense in my head.

  Deep heaves shook my chest as the water cascaded over me. I released loud sobs and let myself curl up and sag onto the slowly warming tiles.

  The massive beating drum behind my rib cage stole my breath with its intense pounding, the beats jumping every so often from anxiety-fueled palpitations. Visions of evil shone like beacons behind my closed eyelids. Disturbed eyes chock-full of hate as if I’d been the one to kill his brother.

  It’d witnessed no empathy or compassion for human life and I wondered how anyone could become so cold and calculated.

  Huddling into myself I cried tears of grief and loss. I’d never be the same again. I’d lost a part of myself in the warehouse and perhaps even before that. Who could I trust now?

  My close friends and family. Viper, Char, and Harley.

  Switching thought patterns, my heart began to bleed for the man who’d put it all on the line for me without so much as a moment’s hesitation. And now, his life had been turned over to the asshole who had left a permanent imprint on my psyche.