my gun and jerked my head at the house, smirking at my friend. “You coming?”
“You know it.” Rising silently while he spoke, he waited for me to lead the way.
As I started the stealthy approach, weaving my way through the shrubs and hedges lining the property, I felt the familiar spike of adrenaline coursing through my veins. I fucking loved my job.
Everything inside my body vibrated with the thrill of the mission while at the same time, my mind became calmer than ever. Pure fucking magic.
This, right here, was what I lived for. The rush, the clarity of mind, the sense of control, and the knowledge of impending danger. It was like a drug to me, and like the addict I was, I craved it every second I didn’t have it.
I would never give this up. Not for anything in the whole wide world.
If it wouldn’t have given our position away and placed the hostages’ lives in danger, I would’ve let out a whoop. That was how good I felt.
My boots crunched on the hard, icy ground. Small white puffs of air left my lips with each breath, vanishing into the early morning as we walked right on through them.
I tucked my chin close to my chest, only vaguely aware of the crisp bite licking at the exposed skin of my face. Combat gear covered every other inch of me.
Eden and I made it to the building without being seen. I held my fist up to stop him once we were there. Flattening myself against the exposed brick, I risked a peek around the corner to make sure we were still alone.
Only after confirming that I wasn’t about to lead my friend and partner into a surprise firefight did I give the signal to go ahead. Our footfalls were soft thuds against the concrete walkway surrounding the house.
I kept my eyes wide open, but I couldn’t see any of the guards I knew were around. Hoping they were holding their positions where Eden had spotted them before, I jogged to the back door.
From it, we had a straight shot up the stairs and into the room on the second story where the hostages were being held. Stopping once we reached the unassuming wooden door with slatted glass panes set in it, I strained my ears and squinted to see if I could make out any movement on the other side of it.
The doorjamb was made of solid brass, and it gave easily when I tested it. My brows jumped up in surprise. I shot Eden a glance, but he just shrugged and shook his head from side to side.
These guys must have been pretty damn confident about the location of their safe house if they hadn’t even bothered to lock the door. Their loss was our gain since it allowed us to keep the element of surprise even longer.
“We’re going in,” Eden murmured quietly, his pale green eyes holding mine as he delivered the update to our lieutenant and the rest of our team.
They were going to be pissier than Eden’s devout Catholic ex had been after finding out he’d gone to that strip club, but we’d have to deal with it. There was no other way.
Before there was a burst of activity over the speaker and the Lieutenant threatened my poor innocent balls, I shut the sound off. Those hostages weren’t going to save themselves, and I would be useless to them if I didn’t stay in my zone.
Eden ripped his earpiece clear out, letting it hang by its cord over his shoulder as he nodded at me. “I’m ready.”
“Stay behind me.” I dipped my chin, grinning over my shoulder at him as I slowly twisted the doorknob and aimed my gun. “Let’s go raise a little hell.”
A thick carpet absorbed the sound of my boots stepping into the house. Eden closed the door behind us with the softest of clicks. Neither of us communicated as we crept to a wide, sweeping staircase in the center of the room. We didn’t need to.
Ascending the stairs as fast but quietly as we could, we ran into the first sign of trouble on the landing. One of the guards had his back turned to us as he stared out of the window with a lit cigarette stuck between his teeth.
He hadn’t seen us yet, but he would. If he turned around, the automatic weapon he cradled like a newborn fucking baby in his arms would be in our faces in no