Red Zone (Red Zone 1)

The sultry look he cast her way made her stumble. “All the damn time, bébé, but my luck’s held out, and so far, they’ve never carried through with it.”

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

As she opened her mouth to continue berating him, the dim lights blinked out. She gasped and, without thinking, closed the distance between her and the smuggler. He stood still, blocking the space in front of her—a solid wall of taut muscle. Behind them, the unmistakable sound of laser fire echoed through the tunnel. Enforcement was breaking through the door.

“Run.” He yanked her forward as he matched his order with action.

“I can’t see.” Her nails dug into his hand as she struggled to keep up with him.

“I can. Hold on tight.”

“How?” How could he see? It was pitch black. It was impossible. Unless her information was wrong, and he was enhanced somehow.

“No time for questions. Store them up for later. Right now, run.”

The ground was rough beneath her feet; the darkness, all-encompassing. Their panting breaths warred with the thudding of their footsteps, filling the small space with noise that echoed and surrounded them. The intermittent thump of laser fire hitting metal was a timer on a bomb behind them, the creaking of metal a signal that the door was about to blow. They were about to be trapped. Underground. In the dark. With armed Enforcement agents.

Friday’s lungs burned from gasping for air. Her heartbeat pounded loud in her ears. Her thigh muscles cramped. Too much time sitting in front of a computer. No time exercising, not even the recommended thirty minutes a day. She’d been too busy to fill her quota.

There was a loud blast. Metal crashed. Voices shouted. Footsteps pounded the dirt behind them.

Striker suddenly stopped, making her crash into his back. “They’re in. We won’t make it to the end of the tunnel.” Large hands clasped her shoulders. “We need to fight. Do you know how to use a gun?”

“Of course.” She tried to ignore her roiling stomach. She could do this. She didn’t have a choice.

“Take this.” He pressed a gun into her hands. It wasn’t one of the laser guns Enforcement used, but one that fired bullets. They weren’t uncommon, but she’d never used one before. She was grateful for the darkness, as it meant Striker couldn’t see her tremble as she took it.

“All I do is pull the trigger, right?”

He swore. “You said you knew how to use a gun.”

“A laser gun.”

He cursed again. “Point and shoot. The trigger is in the same place as a laser gun, but it isn’t coded to a print, and there’s no projection to help you aim for your target. The only real difference is there is more recoil with this gun. Be ready for that. Only shoot if they get past me. I don’t want you hitting me in the back.”

She nodded, even though it was too dark for him to see her. She could do this. Point and shoot. Easy. Just don’t think about the target being people.

“I can’t see where I’m shooting.” But she could hear. The running feet were getting closer.

“Just face the way I point you and fire when I shout. Or, if someone who isn’t me comes at you, feel free to pull the trigger, then, too. You’ll know it isn’t me because Enforcement wear lights on their vests. But remember, if you hit me, the deal is off.”

How could he joke? “You’re huge and take up all the space. I can’t fire around you.” Oh God, if he dies, what will I do?

“If this goes as planned, you won’t need to fire at all.”

“You have a plan?” It was impossible to hide her disbelief.

He chuckled as she felt fingers trail over her cheek, startling her with the gentle offer of reassurance. “Yeah, I have a plan. Don’t worry, bébé, I’ve lived through worse than this.”

The pounding steps got closer. Friday’s eyes shot in the direction of the noise even though all she could see was endless black.

“We’re gonna wait until they get closer,” he whispered against her ear, the feeling oddly intimate. “Then we’ll fire at their supply packs and hopefully blow them and the tunnel around them.”

“Do they carry explosives?” she whispered back.

“Enough to do some damage. Hopefully enough to bring this baby down on top of them. Remember, they can only come at us one at a time. The tunnel isn’t wide enough for more.” He stilled. Listening. “It’s time. Crouch down. Point the gun. Fire when I tell you.”

She took a deep, shaky breath and did as she was told. “What are you going to do?”