Wild Side [h.s au]

Chapter 14

My body spins, noticing Louis jumping and waving at me behind the bushes a few metres away. "Let's go," I say and lead the way as Alex and Jess follow me.

"Shit," is the first thing Louis says when we reach them. "This shouldn't have happened."

"I know," I exasperate. "They knew. I'm sure they knew. We can't stay here any longer."

"Ugh, I hate everything," Liam mutters, sitting on the ground, leaning against a tree. There's a cloth wrapped around his leg, preventing the blood from leaking.

"Calling all units," H's voice comes through the earpiece. "Retreat to the base right now. I repeat, retreat to the base right now."

"This is our cue," Tori says. "We just need to get out in the open where the bloodshed is happening and leave. Totally a piece of cake."

"How are we going to leave? They blew up half of our vehicles," Louis reasons.

"We can steal one of Vortex's or try to find a place for us in one of ours," I say. "Let's improvise."

Louis and Alex pull Liam to his feet while the three of us slowly leave our hiding place, preparing for the run. A frown twists my features as I inspect the death and chaos surrounding me and I can't help but feel a pang of guilt. I obviously couldn't know they will be prepared for us, but I was the one who was claiming we will win this fight.

"What about the others?" I ask, glancing over my shoulder. "Surely not everyone will be able to run away."

"That's why we're divided into teams," Louis says. "This might sound harsh, but you're supposed to only look after the people in your team. You simply cannot save everyone, you can only die trying."

I nod, holding my hand up to signal them to wait, my eyes surveying the area, trying to find a vehicle for the six of us. The remainder of Hazard's vehicles are way too far, we'd be risking too much if we tried to reach them. However, the ones from Vortex are fairly close, we could easily snatch one and drive away.

"We'll steal one of those," I say, turning my head to look at the guys. "They're bigger than ours, so all of us will fit." They all nod simultaneously. "Liam, you're able to run, right?" I ask and he nods. "Okay, Tori, Jess, and I will cover your back and the three of you run ahead toward the vehicles. Any objections?"

"No, captain," Liam says amusedly. "We're ready to run, just say when."

"You'll be able to handle it, right?" I speak to Jess quietly, accusation present in my tone. "You were rather reluctant to help my brother earlier."

Her dark eyes slightly widen in surprise, guilt flashing in them. "I'm sorry, El, I really am. I was frozen, he-- he came out of nowhere. Two of our team members had just been killed, I was stunned."

"It's fine, just. . . try to focus, alright?" I say, my voice softer than moments ago. Sometimes I forget everyone reacts to death differently. "Go ahead, guys."

Louis, Liam, and Alex begin to run out in the open, my heart starting to pound again. I'm the first to dart out after them, Tori and Jess following right behind me. I decide to drop the heavy rifle, pulling out a loaded handgun, my fingers clenching it firmly. I jump over the bodies lying on the ground, not paying attention to the bloodshed around me. Bullets start whizzing toward us repeatedly, hitting the ground beside our feet, my hand aiming the gun in the direction they came from, my finger pulling the trigger.