Adrenaline Heat

by Carolyn Reilly

  He started firing at the glass, and it shattered instantly.

  “Shit.” Oliver pulled Luna into one of the rooms, pushing the door shut behind them. “Stay behind the door.”

  Two sets of heavy feet thumped down the corridor and finally stopped outside their door. Leaning the carbine against the wall, Oliver grabbed the assault rifle by the barrel.

  The door flew open, but Luna managed to jump back before it crashed into the wall where she’d stood.

  Rage burst through Oliver’s veins, and he shoved his weapon’s broad butt into their first attacker’s nose. Blood sprayed, and cartilage crunched as the man stumbled backward into the guy behind him. Oliver spun the rifle in his hands and pulled the trigger. Attacker one went down. But the other guy ducked and went for cover behind the wall, evading the last bullet Oliver’s rifle held.

  Oliver leaned the empty weapon against the wall and grabbed the carbine as the second attacker lunged and took him down on the floor, smashing Oliver’s head into the cold marble. Sharp pain exploded through his head and his vision blurred red.

  His opponent jumped to his feet again and reached for the carbine that had slipped from Oliver’s hand.

  Blinking to clear his vision, Oliver realized that his attacker already had his finger on the weapon’s trigger, aiming straight for his heart.

  A gunshot rang out to their right, and his attacker’s expression went slack as he slumped back against the doorframe and slowly slid to the ground.

  Oliver’s gaze jumped to Luna.

  Swallowing hard, she lowered her SIG with trembling hands. “I think he’s dead. Are you hurt?”

  He wet his lips in disbelief and scrambled to his feet. “You shot him.” Regret swept through him. He knew she’d never killed a person before. “I wish you wouldn’t have had to do this.”

  “He was going to kill you.” Her voice was small but steady. Staring at the two dead men, she stepped next to Oliver. “Let me see your head.”

  Oliver’s vision was still blurry, but he was pretty sure he only had a small laceration on the back of his head.

  A little crackling sound in the corridor had both Oliver and Luna freeze immediately. Oliver put his finger to his lips, took Luna’s SIG, and motioned for her to return to her spot behind the door.

  Then he spoke in a louder voice. “It’s nothing. We need to move.”

  Somebody inched closer toward their door, and the barrel of a rifle became visible. As their next opponent stepped into the doorway, Oliver dropped to his haunches, hauled up the body of his dead attacker, and fired two rapid shots using the body as a muffler. Attacker number three gurgled and sank to the ground.

  Clearly shocked by his tactics, Luna stared at him with wide eyes.

  Oliver let go of the body and lowered the SIG. “I’m sorry, but we can’t keep alerting more of their buddies.”

  She slowly nodded, but when he held out his hand to her, she hesitated for a second before she took it. He couldn’t blame her. She was just starting to get to know the killer GovCorp had created. He checked the SIG’s magazine and held the weapon out to her. “You’re good to go. Nine more bullets.”

  Luna stared at the weapon but didn’t reach for it.

  He held his breath, unsure if she would take the firearm back. “We don’t know how many more of them are waiting out there. I need you to back me up.” He searched her eyes. “Can you do that?”

  After a beat, she nodded and reclaimed the SIG.

  He took her other hand and tugged her behind him. “Great. We’ll get out of here.”

  After they’d reached the broken glass door that led them back into the auditorium, he checked left and right, before he firmly placed her hand on his back again and moved toward the side exit.

  As they passed the last row of tables that separated them from the exit, a whimpering sound made them halt. Someone was sobbing underneath the table to their left. Oliver looked back at Luna and signaled her to make a run for the exit.

  She shook her head and whispered, “You said you needed me for backup. I’ll wait and watch your back.”

  He glared at her for a moment, but she held her ground. They didn’t have time for arguments. “Okay, but you stay here and stay low.” He crouched down and lifted the lacy tablecloth until he saw two tiny feet. A little boy lay on the ground, curled up in a ball and sobbing.

  Who the hell would have brought a kid here? Oliver had no clue about children, but he guessed the boy to be five or six years old. He slowly extended his hand. “Hey, there. Do you want to get out of here?”

  The boy watched him through round green eyes and nodded.

  “Okay. I’ll pick you up now.” Oliver slowly put his arm around the kid’s middle and pulled him out from under the table before he hoisted him up in his arms. Luckily, the boy didn’t protest. He wrapped his arms around Oliver’s neck and held on for dear life as Oliver and Luna sprinted the last few yards toward the exit.

  Oliver swept his gaze left and right before he stepped outside, Luna’s hand still on his back. He welcomed the cold blast of winter air on his skin and couldn’t see anybody in the area in front of the side entrance. There was a lot of commotion to their right though at the main entrance area.

  They inched toward the corner of the building and peeked around. Injured people lay in the snow, ambulances wailed in the distance, and police sirens flicked red and blue lights at the building’s wall. Looking up, he saw several drones hovering above and laid the carbine on the snow-covered grass before he shoved it behind a bush with his foot. “Wouldn’t want those drones to get the wrong idea.”

  Luna wanted to do the same with her SIG, but he stopped her. “Put it in your purse. We might still need it.”

  “Don’t you think we’re safe now?”

  “Just a precaution.”

  Sliding the weapon into her purse, Luna followed Oliver as he slowly walked around the building walking toward the nearest police car.

  He rubbed the little boy’s back. “Are your parents here with you?”

  The boy started stirring in his arms as they passed a fighting couple.

  The middle-aged man’s head was fire-engine red as he yelled at a petite, crying woman. “How could you have brought him along with you? I swear I’ll file for sole custody.”

  The woman barely gave him any attention as her tear-stained eyes focused on Oliver and she started running in his direction. “Dalton. Oh my God.”

  Hearing the woman’s voice, the boy started crying harder. “Mom.”

  Oliver set him to his feet, and his mother swept him up in her arms. Holding the boy close, she gazed up at Oliver and Luna. “Thank you. Thank you so much. I thought I’d lost him.”

  The corners of Luna’s eyes crinkled, and she put a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “We’re glad he’s all right.”

  The apparent father reached them and shook Oliver’s hand heartily. “Thank you for saving our son.”

  “You’re welcome. Is this area secured?” Oliver kept scanning for threats.

  The man nodded. “Yes. Those Fronters, who aren’t dead or managed to flee, have been apprehended.” His gaze dropped to Oliver’s wrist and darkened, focusing on his V-scars. “I’m grateful you saved my son.” Contempt crept into his voice. “But without you GVs, we wouldn’t have this whole Fronter problem now.”

  Luna hissed next to Oliver as her eyes narrowed at the boy’s father. “How dare you?” The sight of her fists balled at her sides as if she was ready to physically defend Oliver painted a smile on his lips even though his pulse had spiked at the man’s accusation.

  The scowling man grabbed his son from the mother’s arms and stalked away without another word.

  Lifting her hands to her face, the woman shook her head. “I am so, so sorry. He has always been an ass.” She looked Oliver in the eye. “I can’t thank you enough. This is on the Front and GovCorp, not GVs.” Then she hurried after her ex.

  Luna’s hands relaxed, but she pulled her lower
lip between her teeth, seemingly lost in thought.

  “What is it?”

  Luna rubbed her bare arms. “They just reminded me that I didn’t return the divorce papers to the lawyers yet. I’m sorry.”

  He took off his suit jacket and held it out to her. “The divorce papers are the last thing I care about right now.”

  Luna slipped into the jacket and wrapped her arms around herself. “Thank you.” She looked tired, and it was no wonder after this ordeal.

  Oliver let his gaze travel until his eyes caught Lewis. Of course, he seemed unharmed, surrounded by his assistants who tapped away on their phones and notebooks. No doubt, Lewis would use the suffering of his guests for another PR opportunity.

  Luna placed a hand on Oliver’s arm, and he followed her gaze. Security guided injured people toward GovCorp’s hospital wing.

  A security guard hurried by, and Oliver yelled at him. “Are the people in the hospital safe?”

  The guard stopped and yelled back. “Yes. The wounded are getting emergency treatment here until the ambulances from the community hospital arrive to transfer them.”

  Oliver’s mind raced. With all the commotion, this could be their chance to get inside the hospital. He pulled Luna closer. “It’s a risk, but this might be our best shot at finding Lexi.”

  Luna blinked. “How do you want to do this? We’re on our own, and I still don’t have Lexi’s medical files.”

  “Yeah, we might not be able to get her out, but at least we’ll be able to take a peek inside. I can get the layout.”

  He pointed at all the people that were being led by them. “I bet they’re in over their heads in that little emergency room right now.”

  He took both of Luna’s cold hands in his and started rubbing them. “They’re using the same computer systems as in the main office building, right?”

  Luna nodded. “Yes. As much as I know.”

  “Okay. If you got access to the hospital’s computer, could you pull up Lexi’s file?”

  Luna furrowed her brow, but her eyes shone with interest. “I’m pretty sure I could.”

  Maybe Oliver’s newly devised plan would work then. “Do you know how much other staff will be on duty except for that Zach guy?”

  “No, but it can only be a handful.”

  “That’s what I thought. Take me inside, find Zach, and offer to help them with the data of the injured. If he gives you access to their system, you could get Lexi’s file. It’s worth a shot, don’t you think?”

  She nodded, but doubt marred her brow as she looked at the wounded people heading toward the hospital. “It doesn’t feel right acting as if I want to help these people when I’m really not doing anything for them.”

  Oliver cupped her face. “Their injuries will be treated no matter if the hospital has their data or not. They are invited guests on GovCorp’s grounds.” He lifted his palms. “It’s Lexi or them. You got to make a decision now.”

  She lacked the cold efficiency with which Oliver had been trained to make decisions, but he was pretty sure she’d choose her little sister over complete strangers.

  She placed her hand on top of his and nodded. “Okay.”

  As they reached the hospital wing’s entrance area, a security guard stopped them. “Are you injured?”

  Luna pressed her lips together. “No, but my sister, she is in there somewhere.”

  Holding up a hand, the guard blocked their way. “I’m very sorry, ma’am, but I can’t let you enter. Only seriously injured people at this time.”

  Sensing Oliver’s anger, he fixed him with a hard stare. “I’m sure you understand that we have to set priorities in a critical situation like this.”

  Luna nodded and tugged at Oliver’s arm until he reluctantly followed her back around the main office building.

  Eyes dull, she leaned against the building’s glass façade. “I guess that would have been too easy.”

  But Oliver had a plan B. Probably not the best, but they were out of options. “Let me speak to Derek real quick. I have an idea.” Taking a few steps away from Luna, he pulled his phone out and called Derek.

  His boss answered immediately. “Watching the news right now. Wasn’t sure if it was safe to call. Are you guys okay?”

  Oliver appreciated Derek’s precaution. A beeping phone could well mean an operative’s death in a situation like this. “Yes. We’re good. But we don’t have much time.” Then he told Derek about his plans.

  “I don’t like it, but if that’s what you really want to do, I guess it’s worth a shot. I already sent Max your way, in case you needed assistance.” Derek didn’t sound too happy, but as Oliver had expected, he understood.

  “Okay. Great. I’ll text Max as soon as I have new intel.” Oliver ended the call and gave Luna a thumbs-up after he slid the phone back into his pocket. “Let’s do this.”

  Shivering in her flowing dress, she shook her head. “What do you mean? They won’t let us in.”

  “They will.” He leaned down and sifted through the pebbles in the pathway until he found a stone with a sharp edge. He pulled in a deep breath and rammed the stone’s edge into his right kidney. Pain flared up, immediately sucking the air from his lungs as black spots crossed his vision.

  Next to Oliver, Luna yelped and jumped to his side. “Oliver, are you crazy?”

  He knew she wouldn’t have let him do this if he’d warned her. “Third time’s a charm, right?” For good measure, he also pulled the sharp edge over a small laceration above his eye. It had already started to clot, and he needed more blood on his face for dramatic effect.

  Luna grabbed his hand and tried to wrestle the stone from him. “Stop it already.”

  He didn’t want Luna to hurt her own hand, so he decided to drop the stone. As he looked at the ground, he already saw some drops of crimson mixing with the soft snow.

  She glared at him. “That wasn’t necessary.”

  He groaned. “I think it was. It needs to look like an emergency.” He chin nodded toward the hospital entrance to their right and placed a hand on her shoulder as if he needed her assistance. “Now take me inside.”

  Approaching the entrance, they angled their bodies away from the guard they’d spoken to earlier.

  Thanks to the severity of his bleeding, another security guard hurried to help Luna and accompanied them inside. Paramedics wheeled a man with a badly mangled leg by them on a gurney toward the ambulance waiting outside.

  Entering the small hospital for the second time in only two days, Oliver had to admit the guard had a point earlier. The tiny entrance area was overflowing with patients.

  The guard who assisted him inside helped Oliver to sit down on the floor before he hurried outside again.

  As Oliver had expected, he only saw three nurses taking care of the wounded in the hall.

  Since this was GovCorp’s private facility, there was no real waiting area, just a small lounge with two white sofas. Most of the injured sat on the tiled floor and leaned against the wall waiting their turn or for the next ambulance. The smell of blood and disinfectants slowly clogged his nostrils as he adjusted his position to alleviate the pressure to his wound.

  Crouching next to him, Luna nodded toward a male nurse behind the reception desk. “That’s Zach. I’ll go talk to him.” She hurried over. The nurse typed away at his keyboard but looked up at her as she opened her mouth to speak. She pointed at Oliver, and Zach immediately rounded the desk and followed Luna to Oliver’s location.

  So, this guy was Zach. Oliver had hoped the nurse would be a smallish, chubby guy, but Zach was tall and muscled. He helped Oliver up without much effort and accompanied him and Luna to a small emergency room that almost burst with patients. The same young doctor, Mia Wu, that had already treated him after the attack at the airport strode over and motioned for him to sit down on a stretcher. “Mr. Shaw, I didn’t expect to see you again so soon. What happened?”

  Almost automatically he answered her questions, but his focus was o
n Luna.

  She took a few steps back and blinked at him before she started talking to Zach who was just about to walk out of the room. The nurse furrowed his brow and shook his head, but Luna went on, and finally, the nurse nodded and left.

  Although concern was still edged all over Luna’s features, the corners of her mouth curved up, and she stepped closer as the doctor examined Oliver’s wounds. “I’ll wait outside.” Giving Oliver a quick thumbs-up behind the doctor’s back, she left.

  Ten minutes later, Oliver walked out of the emergency room. Dr. Wu had cleaned his wounds and given him the same shot he received the last time, and whatever was in that syringe worked wonders. He could practically feel the edges of his wounds knit together.

  A smile tugged at his lips as he saw Luna working on the computer behind the reception desk. Great. She’d made it.

  Zach and the other nurses seemed all busy taking care of the patients as more injured people poured into the hospital.

  Oliver strode over to Luna, but she was so focused on the screen that she didn’t notice him until he leaned over the reception desk.

  She flinched, but the corners of her mouth curled upward as she realized it was him. “Don’t sneak up on me like that. I’m not cut out for this kind of work.” Exhaling, she asked, “How are you feeling?”

  “Good. Did you find anything yet?”

  Her smile broadened. “Yes. It was incredibly easy. I took photos of her file and already sent them to Bergmann. Lexi is in room No. 133. The combination for the room is 2235. It’s just down that hallway.” She nodded down the corridor to his left.

  Oliver pulled his phone from his pocket and texted Max to wait for him as close as he could manage to get to GovCorp’s back gate. By now it would probably be just as crowded with police and ambulances as the front gate, but it still seemed to be the better alternative.

  Only seconds later, his display lit up with Max’s reply. Got it.

  He muted his phone and set it to vibrate. “Okay. I’ll try to get her. Call me if you see anyone heading in our direction. And see to it that you get out of here as soon as Zach isn’t paying attention. You need to get to the back gate. Max will wait for us there. If you’re not there by the time I get Lexi out, I’ll have Max take her to the Committee, and I’ll come back and find you. Okay?”