Undercover Badge; Next Generation

Chapter 45

"Wind speed is at normal increments, air pressure and temp holding steady, no radiation in the area." Mickey announced. "Switching to thermal vision." He flicked a switch on his binoculars. "We've got eighteen souls below, all armed. I can't see into the vault, but I can see two armed guards. I think the hostages are in the vault." Mickey reported.

Team four were reaching over to quietly slice into the putty holding one plane of glass in place. They made quick work slicing into the putty and popping the one glass panel off like clockwork before the both approached the edge backwards, giving themselves rope slack. "Team four, ready to infil." The guy across from me announced. My heart slammed my ribs and my hands were slick against the grip of my weapon.

"Breakaway in five." My lungs felt like I couldn't get air fast enough and my heart was slamming into my sternum.

"Four." I palmed my weapon.

"Three." Mickey dropped to a couch beside me.

"Two." He caught my hand and met my terrified eyes over the skull face. He squeezed.

"One."

All that remained for a moment was this eerie silence that dragged out like an elastic band that stretched and stretched and stretched....

I scrambled in a crawl over to the edge of the skylight and stared down.

... the band stretched further and further....

There was a light clattering sound as I saw four fist sized barrels roll into the open space at the bottom floor.

.... the band stretched and pulled and stretched and pulled....

And snapped.

I yelped as a bright flash burst from the room, throwing up an arm to protect my eyes and scramble back. My yelp was covered by the rumbling sound of four distinct, huge bangs as the flash-grenades exploded. Team four leapt through the hole, abseiling to the center of the room, their entry hidden by the grenades pouring bright green, red, blue and purple smoke to disorientate the other men down there. Through my ringing ears I heard the front door get blown away and gunfire as team one came through the door. As smoke filled the space it became too blurry to see anything but the muzzle flashes that spat from guns like fireworks.

I turned and looked at Mickey. He had a grim look on his face, looking through the skylight with his binoculars. Amir was calm and cool and collected, looking down through the sky light through his rifle's sight.

I rose to a crouch, holding the gun out in front of me, looking through the glass. This could go so badly, I needed it to go okay. I needed to get Matthew back. The muzzle flashes weren't ending.

The creaking was the only warning I got. I whipped around but it was too late. The bullet flew through Mickey's skull, and he collapsed. Amir scrambled to get to his feet, but he wasn't fast enough. The man who had fired stood behind him wearing gear similar to ours, but no mandible to be seen. I raised my gun and fired through the space just below his right shoulder. He fell to his knees, his gun skittering. At the same time, his second bullet struck my chest. I felt two ribs break on the impact and lost my breath, the Kevlar stopping the bullet from piercing my flesh. But it didn't stop the step back I took, my foot hitting what remained of the skylight hard before all my weight hit it as I landed on my back.

For a moment it was silent and then the glass shattered and I gasped as weightlessness hit me. A moment later, my left arm was wrenched from its socket. I looked up to Amir's face straining as I heard the glass rain down beneath me. He had a two-handed grip on my arm and next to him, the strap of the black bag poked over the edge of the hole by two inches.

"Amir." I gasped, pain radiating from my ribs and my shoulder. I heard shuffling and looked up to the bad guy getting to his feet, slowly reaching for the gun.

"Amir, let go! He's alive he's going to shoot you!"

"No," he growled. "I won't let you go."

"Amir!" I cried, hearing the gunshots beneath me.

The man had his hand around the grip of the gun and was rising. "No!" I roared, and with the last of my strength I yanked myself closer to Amir with the arm he held, raising my right hand and firing off one shot. It him square in the thigh. In the same fluid move I found my hand releasing the gun as I flung my arm to try catch onto something. I began to feel myself fall again. My fingertips grazed the strap of the bag and gripped it for dear life. My weight pulled it into the hole with me as Amir's grip failed. He was yelling for me, but it was too late. As I fell, I clawed the air, and my left hand caught the bag as close to me as it could in a fist. I saw my hair fly past my vision, felt the rush as the marble floor rose to greet me.

 For a second, I saw the rainbow plume of smoke surround me before I crashed to the floor hard enough to kill me.

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