“Go left! Go left!” shouted Kane and Laura cursed as she reached the end of the driveway.

  “Whose left?” She had to look. She sat up then swung her head to the left and right. She gasped. Two cop cars were down the street being shot up, muzzle flashes in the bushes revealing the enemy positions. Kane was sprinting across the lawn firing, and she spotted Sherrie and Fang using trees as cover. She ducked back down, realizing he meant her left. She cranked the wheel, turning them onto the street then hammered on the brakes. She shoved it into drive then floored it, the backup camera giving her a brief glimpse of the mayhem behind them.

  She rose slightly so she could see ahead, then reached up and adjusted her rearview mirror so she could see behind them. She couldn’t see Kane and the others anymore, though gunfire continued, and all she could do was pray that they would be all right.

  She rounded a bend in the street, putting them out of the direct line of fire, then sat up a little more so she’d have better control, for she had no intention of slowing. James was about to sit up as well when she reached out and pushed him down. “Everybody stays down until I say so.”

  “You’re the boss.”

  She came to a stop sign and blasted through it, cranking the wheel to the right, sending them hurtling toward the gate that she could see just ahead. “We’re almost at the gate. Everybody hang on.” She continued to accelerate. She blasted past a dark SUV and cursed as its brake lights flared and it pulled a 180.

  “We’ve got company!” she cried. Body armor hanging out the windows might have provided them with protection, but it also left no doubt as to whom they were. Muzzle flashes and gunfire erupted from behind them as two gunmen leaned out the rear windows, raining lead on them. Bullets slammed into the rear, the back window shattering.

  James grabbed the bulletproof vest draped over his window and tossed it back to Milton. “Put this behind your back and head!” he ordered. Milton grabbed it and struggled with his bad back to get it in position. Tommy popped up and helped the man as the impacts continued to shudder through the vehicle. The gate was just ahead now, but it didn’t matter. There was no chance they could get away in time, and as soon as a tire was hit, even if it were a run-flat, this chase was over.

  Headlights ahead flicked on, high beams momentarily blinding her, and her heart sank as she spotted muzzle flashes ahead.

  29 |

  Outside Overlook Village Gated Community

  St. Paul, Maryland

  Niner rapidly squeezed the trigger of his AR-15, the semi-automatic hurling lead toward the pursuing SUV which he assumed was filled with bad guys. Sergeant Leon “Atlas” James, standing on the opposite side of their car, did the same.

  “What I would give to have my M4 right now,” rumbled the big man.

  Niner agreed. “Or at least a bump stock.”

  The lead vehicle blasted through the gates and Niner continued firing. He spotted Laura crouching behind the wheel and his heart leaped a little. Despite being in a committed relationship, there was just something about her he found intoxicating, though he would never act on it. Not just because of Angela, but because of his respect for Acton.

  Not to mention the fact the woman would probably break his neck if he laid a finger on her.

  “That was Laura!” he shouted. “Looks like we’re shooting at the right guys.” He fired his last round then drew his Glock, emptying the mag in the engine block, Atlas taking out the gunman on the driver’s side. The engine clanged, a high-pitched whine squealing as the hostiles raced past, rapidly slowing.

  Niner reloaded his Glock and focused his attention on the rear driver’s side tire. He took it out and the back end fishtailed, the taillights flaring as the driver hit the brakes. Niner reloaded as he sprinted toward the pursuing SUV while it careened to a halt. He broke to the right, indicating for the slower Atlas to cover the driver’s side since the big man already had an angle on it. The passenger-side doors opened, two men stepping out, and Niner double-tapped both of them then followed up with single shots to the head as they no doubt were wearing body armor.

  Atlas’ AR-15 rang out, multiple shots firing, but none from the enemy. Niner swung around the side of the vehicle, keeping his weapon trained on the interior, watching for any movement. Spotting nothing, he advanced. “Cover me!”

  “I’ve got you!”

  Niner checked the rear seat and found one body leaning out the window that Atlas had taken out earlier, the driver slumped over the steering wheel. He groaned. Niner pressed his gun against the man’s head then pulled him back, revealing a pistol in the man’s lap. The idiot reached for it and Niner coldcocked him, knocking him out. “Clear in here!”

  Several police cars blasted past, two of them screeching to a halt as Niner grabbed the driver and threw him onto the pavement. He zip-tied the man before laying down his weapon and lying flat on the hardtop, Atlas doing the same as police surrounded them, screaming orders.

  Niner twisted his head to face Atlas. “Do you think we just created a shitload of paperwork for the Colonel?”

  Atlas grunted. “I think the Colonel could be the least of our worries.”

  “T hat was Niner!” cried Laura.

  “Are you sure?” Acton popped his head up to take a look, the gunfire fading rapidly behind them.

  “Positive. He looked right at me.”

  “What the hell would he be doing here?” he asked as police cars whipped past them.

  “What should we do?”

  Acton wasn’t sure. Kane’s instructions had been clear. No matter what, get to the police station programmed in the GPS, but those instructions had never considered that any of their friends in the Delta Force would be arriving to help them. Leather must have somehow got word to them. It was the only explanation, otherwise Kane would have mentioned it.

  “Those police are going in blind.” Laura eased off the gas. “All they know is their people were taking fire. They could assume Niner and whoever else was with them are the bad guys. We have to help them.”

  Acton cursed. She was right. The variables in the equation had changed. He twirled his finger. “Let’s turn around.”

  Laura hit the brakes and pulled a rapid 180, sending them hurtling back toward the danger. She glanced over at him. “Better let Leroux know what’s going on.”

  Acton already had his phone in his hands, preparing to call Leather. “Shouldn’t we call Cam?”

  Laura shook her head firmly. “No. Leroux has all the contacts within the government. If anybody can smooth things over it’ll come through him, not Cameron.”

  She was right as usual. He logged into the secure app, firing off one-sentence messages, not sure when he’d be cut off by a police service weapon pointed at his head. He glanced up, spotting the flashing lights ahead. “You better slow down. These guys could be a little trigger-happy.”

  She applied the brakes, killing most of their speed as he continued to send updates to Leroux.

  “Hands! Let me see your hands!”

  Acton pressed Send then dropped the phone in his lap, raising his hands as half a dozen police officers approached the shot-up SUV. Acton extended his hands out the open window and made eye contact with the closest officer. “We’re the victims here, officer. They were shooting at us. We were just trying to get away.”

  “Come out one at a time! You first!” barked the officer.

  Acton opened the door from the outside, pushing it out of the way. He stepped out, his hands still high. “Officer, we have weapons in the vehicle. They’re all fully licensed and were used in self-defense.”

  “Gun!” shouted the officer, several more rushing over, the intensity of the situation ratcheting up.

  Acton stepped away from the door. “I have a knife on my hip and several spare magazines in my pockets. There’s a Glock on the front seat and an AR-15 in the passenger footwell.”

  “Advance toward me!”

  Acton slowly stepped forward. “My wife is in the driver’s seat and we have three in the back. My wallet with ID is in my back pocket. You’ll see that we live here.”

  “Interlace your fingers behind your head!”

  Acton did as told.

  “Turn around and back toward my voice.”

  Again, he followed the orders. No matter how much you felt you were in the right, you always obeyed the man with the gun. If more people followed that simple rule, a lot of America’s young men and women wouldn’t be getting shot. Handcuffs were slapped on his wrists then he was patted down, his ID retrieved.

  “Professor James Acton.” The photo ID was held up to his face. “I’ll get you to stand over here, sir, while we straighten things out. I’ll have to leave you in the cuffs for now.”

  “No problem. You do what you need to do. Just know that the first two squad cars that were sent to our house I think were shot up pretty bad. I don’t know what happened to your people, but you’re probably going to need ambulances.”

  “It’s being taken care of.”

  “There are three friendlies on site, a man and two women. They’re with us. They’re friends of ours who came to provide security.”

  “Security for what?”

  Acton sighed. “As much as I hate to say this, officer, let’s just say it’s above your pay grade.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I wish I could tell you. All I can say is that those after us are very bad people and this is a national security issue. By the time you get everybody sorted out, I’m willing to bet you’ll have a phone call telling you what you need to know.”

  Laura was brought up beside him, handcuffed. “There were two people here who helped us,” she said. “One guy is Korean American and the other guy—”

  “Was a stunt double for Black Adam?”

  Acton and Laura exchanged grins at the officer’s description of Atlas. “That would be them.”

  “They’re in the back of my squad car.”

  “You’ll probably be getting a call about them too. They’re definitely the good guys.”

  “They might be, but they’re a little more tight-lipped than you two.”

  “If you knew who they were, you’d understand why.”

  “Who are they?”

  Acton shrugged. “Would you believe me if I told you it was a matter of national—”

  The officer cut him off. “Security?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Uh-huh. Why the hell do I think I’m going to have two days of paperwork out of this shit?”

  Acton leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Actually, if you wait for the phone call, there might be no paperwork at all.”

  The officer paused. “I like the sound of that.”

  30 |

  Ministry of State Security

  Beijing, China

  Yan slammed his fist on the desktop, everything rattling in protest. He pointed at one of the controllers. “Order the rest of the teams to hold back. Spread out around the area. Acquire and trace the target. We’ll regroup for a proper attempt later.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The orders were issued and Yan rose, heading for the door. This operation had been a colossal failure but it had proven one thing that he hoped might just save his neck—Charles Palmer had to be alive. There was no way this much security would have been brought in for his sister if he weren’t. And if Palmer were alive, it meant he could have been working on his quantum computer for the past ten years, and if he were near a solution a decade ago, he surely would have found it by now.

  What had just happened was confirmation something was definitely going on beyond an innocent misinterpreted search. If his career survived the next five minutes, he could have even more resources made available to him. And if he played this right, he’d still have his second shot of punishing the professors and bringing a glorious advantage to his country.

  His future wasn’t over yet.

  31 |

  Idit’s Studio

  Sodom

  1649 BC

  Lot couldn’t tear his eyes away from his wife’s masterpiece. She had a way of painting that he had never seen before, her style so unique, it had her in ever-increasing demand, her commissions continually rising in value. Her contemporaries all painted or drew in a way where images simply seemed flat. They could be inspiring, moving, thrilling even, depending on the subject matter, but they never captured what his eye saw. When he had first seen his wife sketching something near where she lived, he had been immediately drawn to it. It had depth. It spoke to him enough that it had him mustering the courage to approach her. The conversation had led to a friendship, and when they got older and understood such things, to love then marriage.

  Her talent was unique and developing, and as he stared at her latest creation, it no longer disgusted him like it had the first time he had seen it. And he was horrified that as he slowly walked around the finished vase, his newly perverted mind picked out the positions he and his wife had already tried over the past days, and those yet to be enjoyed. He closed his eyes and clasped his hands over his face.

  God forgive me. Give me the strength to resist.

  “What do you think?”

  He flinched at his wife’s voice behind him. He opened his eyes, finding them once again thirsting to join in and partake in what was depicted. “I think it’s the perfect example of what’s wrong with Sodom.”

  “You don’t like it?” The hurt in her voice was evident and he turned to face her, taking her hand.

  “The artwork is exquisite as usual. One of your finest pieces. It’s the subject matter.”

  She frowned as she stood beside him, staring at her efforts. “Well, I didn’t have much choice there now, did I?”

  “No, I suppose not.”

  She rubbed his back. “How was temple?”

  “Good. Packed as usual, filled with hypocritical sinners. You know, while I sat there listening to the rabbi, I searched the faces of my fellow man, desperately seeking those ten good souls we spoke of, and I couldn’t find them. There were only two men there that I thought might fit the description.”

  She leaned her head on his chest. “Of course you’re one of them.”

  “No, not anymore.”

  She stared up at him, concern in her eyes. “Why not? You’re the best man I know.”

  “Not anymore. I was fooling myself. I thought I was a good man.” He gestured at the vase. “But I’ve given in to the temptations represented here.”

  She placed her hands on his cheeks, drawing him closer. “You gave in to those temptations with your wife. We’ve brought each other joys we never imagined possible, all in the privacy of our bed chamber. Surely there’s nothing wrong with that.” She ran a hand along the lip of the vase. “Surely you can see that the sin is not the action but the context. It’s the fact that they’re doing this in public. It’s the fact that they aren’t doing it with their spouses. That’s the sin. Sex outside of wedlock is a sin, but sex within isn’t. If I drew a picture of two people making love and told you they were married, would you be offended? But if I then told you that they weren’t married to each other, how would you feel? That’s when you get offended because the context has changed. You’re a good man, husband, and the fact that this offends you is proof of that. Just because you’re a little tempted by what you see depicted here doesn’t make you a bad person, it makes you a flawed person like all people are, because only God is perfect. Thinking about something isn’t sinful. It’s acting upon something that is.”

  He held her tight, taking comfort in her words, for she was right. While he might not be as pious a man as he had thought, he was still a good man. But three men in a sea of sinners could never hope to hold back the wrath of God should it be delivered upon Sodom.

  He only prayed his plan worked.

  32 |

  Outside Overlook Village Gated Community

  St. Paul, Maryland

  Present Day

  Acton rubbed his wrists as he waited for the handcuffs to be removed from the others. Apparently, Laura’s suggestion to send their plea for help to Leroux had been the right choice. Only minutes after their detention, orders were received setting them free. He gave everyone the once-over. “Are you all okay?”

  Head bobs except from Milton who had a hand pressed into his lower back. “I’m going to be paying for this for the next few weeks.”

  Acton frowned, concerned for his friend. He pointed at the car Niner and Atlas had arrived in. “Why don’t you go sit? It might take some of the pressure off.”

  Milton sighed. “I think I will.”

  Acton whistled at Niner and Atlas talking with the scene commander nearby. They both turned and Acton pointed at their car. “Greg’s going to sit in there. His back’s bothering him.”

  Niner reached into his pocket and pulled out the fob, unlocking the car. He gave a thumbs-up then returned to his conversation. Acton helped Milton in the passenger seat. His friend winced then stretched out, groaning in a mixture of agony and ecstasy.

  “Better?”

  “A bit. I just need to get home so I can lie in my own bed and Sandra can give me a proper massage.”

  Acton bit his lip, scrunching his face. “I’m not sure when you’re getting home. And if anything, we should probably get your family some place secure until this is all over.”

  Milton sat upright, his pain forgotten. “You don’t think…”

  Acton shrugged. “I don’t know what to think, but if they find out you were there, they could use them as leverage.”

 

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