Follow the dogs? What kind of bullshit instruction was that?
Seeing Maisie struggling to bear Lethal’s weight, he sprinted toward the pair. She sagged under Lethal’s larger frame but kept moving forward, seemingly determined to get him to safety. When Terror reached them, he slipped into position on Lethal’s other side and took over the burden. Maisie flashed a relieved smile his way before turning to take up a covering position. He glanced back at her, his concern clouding his better sense, and stumbled across the uneven terrain.
“Eyes forward, asshole,” Lethal ground out between clenched teeth. His skin glistened with sweat, and he had gone pale from the pain and blood loss. “Unless you plan to let me fall and break my neck before I bleed out.”
“You’re not going to bleed out,” Terror lied, his focus on the two dogs loping through the woods ahead of them. As stupid as the idea of following two dogs to safety was, he had to admit they seemed to be intent on a particular path. Maybe they weren’t as useless as he had assumed.
“I am,” Lethal grunted as he limped as quickly as his legs would take him. “I heard the general call out for QRF when Hazard and Zeph took their first hit. I heard the Valiant’s reply, and I know you did, too.”
Terror avoided Lethal’s gaze. He could feel it burning into the side of his face as they moved too slowly down the sloping mountainside. He had heard the short radio traffic from the Valiant. The attack on their position had occurred at the same time a digital virus had taken out all the satellite and radar capabilities of the entire fleet. It wasn’t a coincidence. Someone on the Valiant—a traitor—had activated that virus to make sure that the Splinter cell stationed on Calyx was able to get their hands on Maisie again. They needed her back for some nefarious reason and had risked outing their double agent aboard the ship to make it happen.
“There are other ways to fix you up,” Terror insisted as he took more of Lethal’s weight. “We don’t need a rescue team and medics. We just need some basic medical supplies.”
“Pass,” Lethal ground out with a harsh laugh. “I’ve seen enough of your work on other Shadow Force guys to know that I don’t want you sewing me back together.”
“You won’t be awake to argue.” Terror managed a quick look at Lethal. He had gotten paler and sweatier. His eyes were drooping with exhaustion and shock. If they didn’t stop soon and get pressure on that leg, he was going to die.
With a thunder of boots on grass, Vicious suddenly arrived on Lethal’s other side. “I’m out of ammo.”
Terror immediately reached for one of his extra magazines, but Vicious shook his head. He swept Lethal off his feet and tossed him over his shoulder. Yet again, the general’s formidable size had come in handy. He bore Lethal’s considerable weight without complaint. Catching Terror’s eye, he said, “We need to move. The girl says there’s a ravine up ahead. She said to jump and wait.”
“Jump?”
“And wait,” Vicious confirmed and rushed after the two dogs with an unconscious Lethal dangling over his shoulder.
Unnerved by the instruction, Terror slowed down and glanced back to see Maisie sprinting toward him. She had good aim and control of her weapon when she fired behind her, and when she had to switch magazines, she did so smoothly. He caught her gaze, and she made a zero shape with her fingers, letting him know that she was out of ammo. Grim was only a few paces behind Maisie. He flashed a signal at Terror, indicating he, too, was almost out of ammo. Their situation was getting worse by the second.
Lack of ammo didn’t seem to be a problem for the huntress yet. She had switched from her rifle to the pistol, firing scarily accurate shots that nearly always hit their target. Luck had brought her into Maisie’s path, and he could only hope that luck would hold a little bit longer. Whatever awaited them at the ravine had better be something that was going to save their lives.
Up ahead, the dogs started to howl. They didn’t seem to be howling in fear or aggression. It was more like a beacon, a way to alert the humans following them that safety was close at hand. Concerned that Maisie would get left behind and be unable to hear or call out for