Hawke (Protective Hero: Noble Network #2)

Chapter 22

Chapter

Twenty-Two

H awke pulled the camo-colored mask over his head and shoved his arsenal of weapons in his fatigues. Kinley will be fine; she is going in for the fight of her life. Her checklist is her preparing. He slung his shooter with the spotting scope over his shoulder and took off into a cluster of trees. He needed to have a vantage point on one of the larger boulders. “I’m on the move. Lincoln’s closing in on 85 meters from her stop point. Keep your eyes on the prize.” Hawke took off behind a boulder and kicked the legs of the tripod and positioned himself belly down behind the scope.

“Hawke, she’s at 70 meters and closing,” he heard in his earpiece.

“I’m ready. Who’s heading her direction? Axel is two-stepping from the east and Jett’s jogging from the south. Luca’s following her tag. DEA in the field and at checkpoint. Tiny and Gunner are in the distance with a second set of eyes on Lincoln and back up near the check point looking for anything suspicious. Ryker’s locked and loaded and tapping your ass about now.” Hawke turned and signaled Ryker it was safe to approach. “We’ve recruited a few friendlies in and around the training camp. The mobile unit deployed an eye from the sky.”

“She’s inching close to fifty-five meters.” The woman had legs and covered territory fast. Hawke caught movement behind her, gaining speed. Hawke dialed the magnification and leaned closer to look through the spotting scope. “Who the fuck is tailing Lincoln?” He bit at his inner cheek. “Is that one of ours?” his voice seethed.

“Nope.”

Hawke needed to bolt and take the ground running, but Ryker signaled a standstill.

“I don’t recognize them. Is DEA on this channel?”

“Hurry.” He bargained with himself to stay put. They couldn’t afford any mistakes. He had to stick to the plan, but whoever this was, everything in his gut told him it wasn’t good.

“I’ll patch them in now.”

“Hawke, it’s Cade. Not one of ours. They shouldn’t be there, this place is zipped tight, unless they were already here long before we scouted the area.”

Hawke increased his swallowing. “Shit. I’m too far away. Who’s closest to Lincoln?” His thumper knocked at his chest, throbbing, aching.

Kinley stilled, covering her face. “Sorry, what’s going on?”

He spit the words through his clenched jaw. “Kinley, behind you. Two men. Black suits. Hats.” Hawke was hyper focused and direct.

She peered over her shoulder, and tensing, Kinley sped at a faster pace up the mountain scape near a structure toward the mobile unit. “I think I might know them.” She stopped when another guy with a man bun dressed in a Hawaiian shirt coming from the opposite direction took off towards her. She stopped and pointed but lost her footing, stumbling backwards towards the guys in suits.

Hawke caught sight of the one guy sporting the hairdo faux pas in the opposite direction. Shit ! He rubbed his eyes. What the… His mind was playing tricks on him, he zoomed in, increasing the magnification. The guy shifted, covering his face with his cloth necker. Shoving a ball cap lower on his noggin, he quickened his pace, and prodded toward Kinley.

“Hawaiian man bun is digging in his belt. I think he has a weapon.” Hawke swung his weapon one way, then the other, and back again. “Talk to me, dammit.” He waited for a response.

“Hawke, there’s an issue at the checkpoint. I’m in pursuit. We have a vehicle barreling past the perimeter and closing in. Axel and Jett are almost to the target,” Gunner piped in.

“Copy. I’ll give someone two seconds to get to her or I’m leaving my post.” Hawke swung around. “Take my place, Ry. I need help here.”

Hawke used his spotting scope to gauge the crowd. “I see them. Axel’s almost there. Jett’s coming close behind.”

Axel took off at a run, followed by Sutton Bishop. The redhead Kinley was supposed to meet nudged one of the planted firefighters and jogged in her direction. They were swarming at her from all vantage points. Kinley scrambled to gain her footing as one of the suited men grabbed her leg—she kicked and scrambled to fight him off.

“Fuck it!” Hawke slid off the rocks and sprinted toward Kinley, but he was the furthest away.

“Hawke, I got her.” Axel flung himself in the air and karate kicked the guy who had a hold of Kinley’s leg. The other suited guy pulled out a weapon and pointed it at Axel. A shot rang out and Axel hit the ground. Jett leaped on the guy’s back and cracked him over the head with the butt of his weapon. Hawke heard Axel grunt in pain. “Fucker shot me,” he heard in his earpiece.

Jett and the suited guy tumbled down the hill. The other guy clambered to get to her, grabbing at her legs as she buckled to the ground. Hawke caught sight of the other masked guy. Hawaiian PI on steroids pulled his weapon and ran toward Kinley.

She was fighting the suited guy off, punching him in the face with the brass knuckles, and she screamed. It tore at Hawke’s soul. “Kin hold on. I’m coming. I’m almost there.” His throat constricted, and he sucked into his lungs. Man Bun was running in his direction. He dodged and weaved his assault, but the dude did a superman leap and knocked him off his feet. He swung and landed a punch in his ribs.

“Help me! He’s got something in his hand, a needle!” she screamed. Her shrill sent shockwaves through his system. The thought of a needle anywhere near her iced Hawke’s bones. If it’s the last thing he did, he’d save her.

Hawke scrambled to get out of the guy’s grip. He kneed him in the leg, and they tumbled toward the boulders near a cluster of trees. “You motherfucker! You’re not getting near Kinley; you’ll have to put me in my grave.”

“Death can definitely be arranged. On my watch you won’t have a chance to get to her.” the bruiser said behind the fabric on his face.

Hawke scrambled to get his footing and took off toward Kinley again, but the guy pulled a weapon and clocked him. The deep thud jarred his brain, giving him an instant skull ache. This deep ache would leave a big goose egg and a dozen stitches.

Blood ran from his head; the smell of iron filled his nostrils and the copper tang hit his lips. He swiped the blood from his eyes, between fending off another crack on the cranium. His vision blurred but he kept swinging. The sting made him madder and even more determined to get to her. He swiped the blood away again from his eyes, trying to regain an advantage, but the river of red poured. Why the hell do head wounds bleed so much?

The guy came at him again, but with his vision slighted, he listened for the pounding footfalls as he approached. Hawke crouched down and hurled the guy over his shoulder. He dropped with a thud. The other guy’s weapon flew in the air and dropped in front of him as he clambered to get it. Hawke was met with a right hook, and he grabbed the guy’s hand and contorted it. The guy grumbled some obscenities that were more familiar than not. He snapped a couple of his fingers, but the guy kept at it, so he snapped his wrist back with a crack.

The guy withered into a fetal position, groaning in agony. This was Hawke’s opening, and he punched his sparring partners lights out. Each hit gave him purpose to get this show over so he could get to Kinley. He twisted and wrung the Shemagh Necker scarf tight in hopes his opponent would pass out. But he bucked him off into the dirt. He spit a mouth full of blood away and swiped at his face.

Hawke retaliated, but the fuckface had a ton of power. There were only a few people over the years able to gauge his next moves or beat his ass and he was not letting man bun get the better of him. Hawke had trained both Gunner and Hunter well. Hawke lost his earpiece somewhere in the shuffle, but he’d be damned if he was going anywhere but to his woman.

Kinley recognized the familiar faces. Help was coming. She noticed Axel trying to get up, but there was blood running down his arm. She wanted to help him, but the lead anchor weighing her down held her steadfast. People were swarming around her; Hawke wasn’t there. She surveyed the landscape—he’d promised he’d be close. Kinley shuffled to find the switchblade in her left pocket. She caught sight of a vehicle coming towards them from the bottom of the hill. There was another vehicle behind them with one of the DEA agents on the runner trying to blow out the tires. They skidded to a halt and two more guys in suits ran up the hill. She had to gain ground. A firefighter in his bunker gear flung himself in the air like a bowling ball down the hill, picking off a guy headed in her direction. Where was everyone else? She wailed at the top of her lungs. “Help me!”

Jett clambered up the hill and pounced on the guy that had a hold of her. Axel was grunting in pain and tried to get to his feet. Everything was happening so fast. Where was the man in the Hawaiian shirt she’d recognized earlier? If no one else could get to her, as he surely would; he had before. Images spun through her mind like an old movie. It was him. And she recognized these guys in the suits. They were older, but their demeanor was the same. The vehicle at the bottom of the hill was coming closer. There was someone else still in the driver’s seat of the all-too-familiar SUV with the family branding.

It wasn’t her father’s.

The two extra guys shoved a few people away. Jett was still wrapped around the guy like a vine and pounding him until the guy dropped like an anvil. Still two kept coming like they were superhuman. They were wicked men. A chill shot up her spine. They didn’t care who was in their path. Nothing had changed. Evil ran through their veins. She struggled but couldn’t get the knife loose from the pocket. She reached her hand, grabbing her left ankle and pulling the gun from the holster. Kinley flipped the safety and pointed it at one guy, then another. Her heart hammered against her sternum and her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. Endorphins kicked in and she squeezed her eyes shut. The gun fired and hit a nearby tree. Five more bullets . The guy with the needle spewed, “You spoiled rotten bitch. I’m going to silence you once and for all, only after I get what I’ve been promised for years.” She jerked back and gasped when she recognized the voice. Vlad was her uncle’s head of security. When he threatened, you listened. He’d always gave her creeper vibes when she was younger. There was something sinister in his dark eyes. There were rumors he’d do anything for power and money. Kinley had heard Vlad worked for some very bad people, and her uncle was one of them. Both men dipped to the dark side on ethical behavior.

She aimed her Glock at the monster and squeezed the trigger. There was another supersonic boom that pierced her ears. It whizzed, making contact at the side of Vlad’s face. Sulfur lingered in the air. He released one of her legs and grabbed his face. “Bitch! You’re dead!”

He stabbed her in the leg with the needle. She wailed and clutched her leg; she kicked and clawed her way free. Kinley stood but immediately felt the blood drain from her face and when she tried to move but was rooted to one spot. When she managed, her muscles stiffened. Her vision obscured and as if a switch suddenly flipped, Kinley staggered as the terrain teetered and morphed. She swept a hand across her forehead. Her hearing became impaired as if she was underwater. Nothing audible but the exploding beat of her heart. Adrenaline spiked through her system. Is this what it feels like to die ? Images of what could be flashed through her mind. Her head throbbed and voices became muffled. She attempted to scream, but nothing came out of her mouth. Dark spots clouded her sight. Kinley lifted her foot, but her knee buckled, and she crumpled to the ground. She hit the rocky terrain with blunt force and her teeth snapped together. Cold. She was so cold.