ONE
Hayes
Death walking, Bravo team cuts a swath of destruction through Maximus Angelo’s estate. This isn’t the first time we’ve been sent on a rescue mission to this grand estate.
It’s cursed, and evil keeps dragging us back.
Not too long ago, we rescued Izzy from this hellhole. Some time ago, Izzy, along with her best friend Angie, were kidnapped while on a humanitarian aid mission to Nicaragua. Working for the organization Doctors Without Borders, their medical team was taken hostage by the Coralos cartel.
Bravo team rescued Izzy and Angie, along with the rest of their medical team, in two successful rescue missions. That should’ve been the end of it.
Izzy and Angie accepted jobs with the Guardian Hostage Rescue Specialists as members of our medical team. They should’ve been safe, but Maximus Angelo sent a team of men to kidnap Izzy and recover a fortune in diamonds she unknowingly carried in a rabbit’s foot.
There’s much more to that story, but those diamonds are only half of a very twisted and, as of yet, unsolved puzzle.
Our technical team discovered information hidden on the brad of the rabbit’s foot, raising questions as to what was really being smuggled.
Was it diamonds?
Or encoded information?
Turns out, it’s far worse.
Everything points back here, and we discovered something else.
It’s not just diamonds or information that Maximus Angelo traffics through his country. It’s not just stirring up a war between rival cartels or attempting to steal the presidency, that occupies his time. Maximus Angelo is a monster who traffics in stolen lives.
There’s far more at stake than we realized, but we will get to the bottom of it.
One way or the other.
As to why we’re back, when we rescued Izzy, Carmen Angelo, Maximus Angelo’s daughter, hijacked that mission. She jumped onto Bravo Three and clung to Rafe during exfil.
At first, we thought her a spy for her father. When she told us about a human trafficking ring running through her father’s estate, and begged us to save not only those poor unfortunates, but her dearest friend, a young woman named Rosalie, we built out this mission to dismantle Maximus Angelo’s human trafficking operation and rescue those who’ve been taken.
Everything was set.
The mission planned.
The gear prepped.
Contact established with the CIA to provide cover.
We were ready to go.
But then Maximus Angelo sent his man, Matias, to kidnap Carmen right out from under our noses.
Yeah, Carmen’s ours.
Rafe claimed her and she said yes.
She’s our family now.
Not his.
Maximus Angelo underestimates the fury of the Guardians when one of ours is threatened.
This time, we brought two teams. Bravo team to rescue Carmen and Rosalie, and Charlie team to free those imprisoned beneath the estate.
Charlie’s busy outside, with ten of Mitzy’s robotic menaces backing them up. The Robotic Ultra-Functional Utility Specialists, aka R.U.F.U.S, are fully autonomous robotic canines developed to assist us during our missions. We call them the Rufi when they run in packs.
They’re freakin’ cool as shit and are out there creating chaos and a diversion for Bravo team as we infiltrate the estate directly.
Our initial plan, parachute to the roof and rappel down into Carmen’s bedroom window, went up in smoke when we ran into wrought iron bars covering the windows and a team of men waiting for us inside.
Carmen and Rosalie weren’t there. The fucking bastards squirreled them away, forcing us to infiltrate deeper than we intended on the hunt for both Carmen and Rosalie.
It’s been a clusterfuck since, but we thrive in chaos.
At least one thing went off without a hitch.
Mitzy’s EMP disabled all electronics, turning the enemy deaf, dumb, and blind. All their surveillance and communication systems are down, and the ensuing panic of Angelo’s men is fucking awesome.
I’d hate to be one of them.
Truthfully, while our initial plan is a dumpster fire, his men are so poorly trained, we pick them off like fleas.
It’s almost too easy, which never ends well—for them.
On high alert, my senses prickle with unease. One of a Navy SEALs most famous sayings is The only easy day was yesterday. Which means, the shit’s about ready to hit the fan. What kind of shit that may be remains to be determined.
Angelo’s men run around like chickens with their heads cut off. We cut them down in our search to find where Angelo’s men took Carmen and Rosalie.
We enter one of the many open-air hallways traversing the estate. It borders a courtyard with overturned chairs and a table tipped on its side. In the far corner, anxious squawks from fanciful birds locked within an iron cage, fill the night with their harsh calls. They agitate the stillness of the night air.
Zeb takes out a couple of guards trying to sneak up on our six.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
They’re down for the count. I give them the good ole’ double-tap, which ensures they stay down for good. The gunfire sets off the birds, turning anxious squawks into terrified screams.
Movement in my peripheral vision catches my eye. I pull to a stop and turn, bringing my weapon along to follow my gaze as if it’s an extension of myself.
Which it is.
A man holds a terrified woman and presses a knife to her throat.
TWO
Rosalie
Matias, a man with a soul blacker than black, my nightmare of all nightmares, presses the cold steel of his blade against my throat.
There’s no scream.
No sound.
There’s nothing but terror flowing through my veins.
The villa, owned by Maximus Angelo, Matias’s boss, is under attack. Gunfire sounds all around me. With the power out, the private estate of Nicaragua’s Minister of the Interior is plunged into darkness, turning the expansive grounds into complete chaos.
Men shout in the distance. Those yells are cut off suddenly, punctuated by gunfire. Distant screams come from all directions.
The air seethes with violence as men assault the massive estate.
The estate is generally immune to violence, except tonight, it’s all around me.
I’m not the only one scared by the sounds, gunpowder, and death. Terrified squawks slice through the night air; screams of captive birds trapped within the massive wrought iron cage standing in the far corner of the courtyard. Matias drags me through this space.
Starlight shines down on us, providing minimal light, barely enough to make out the shadows moving in the darkness.
But there are shadows.
And they are moving.
Silent shadows filled with lethal intent.
Those shadows advance into the courtyard, where Matias drags me against my will. Six warriors, all cloaked in black, separate themselves from the shadows. They’re a terrifying force.
Matias sees the men and hauls me in front of himself, turning me into a living shield. He faces off against this unexpected threat with malevolence and male bravado that will probably get us both killed.
Unlike Matias, I don’t fear these men. My best friend, Carmen, Maximus Angelo’s daughter, whispered in my ear, confiding in me. These are Guardians sent to rescue me and those held captive below.