Caribbean Rescue (Coastal Fury Book 16), Matt Lincoln [best book recommendations .txt] 📗

We were being accompanied by two other pairs of officers, aside from Crowley, to make sure we had plenty of backup. Assuming Daniela had done her part to make sure the women were ready to move ASAP, our current plan was to storm straight in and catch them unawares. Since we needed to make sure we had the element of surprise on our side, we had waited until just before twelve to arrive, just in case we happened to get spotted.

As we pulled into the parking lot, I was immediately alarmed to find someone standing outside the building, just beside the door. My anxiety eased somewhat as we got closer and I realized it was only Daniela.

As I got out of the car, I noticed that her posture was rigid. She looked tense as she surveyed everyone as they all got out of their vehicles, distrust bright and clear in her stern expression.

“Part of me didn’t believe you’d actually come,” she muttered as I approached her. “I’m so used to disappointment. I don’t believe a thing until I see it with my own eyes.”

“Well, we’re here now,” I replied. “And we’re ready to move. How many men are inside right now?”

“Six in total,” she replied quietly as everyone gathered around to listen. “Two of them are awake. They’re supposed to be keeping watch, but I managed to distract them. They’re both sitting at the bar right now.”

“Good.” I nodded. “And the women?”

“Upstairs,” she replied. “I’ve gathered them all into one room, the one immediately to the right as soon as you get upstairs. They’re ready to go as soon as we get your signal.”

“What about the rest of the men?” I asked urgently, nervous about wasting time out here.

“They’re upstairs as well.” She frowned. “Though I’m not exactly sure which rooms they’re in.”

“Okay,” I replied as I turned to address the group. “Once we’re inside, Holm, Crowley, and I will deal with the two men at the bar. Officers Davis, Thompson, Grayson, and Hanks, you head upstairs and secure the remaining men. In the meantime, Agent Hastings and Daniela can get to the girls and get them out of the bar as quickly as possible.”

The officers who had been sent to work with us all nodded in agreement.

“Okay,” Holm replied. “Let’s go.”

Daniela opened the door quietly. I drew my gun from my holster, and all around me, everyone else did the same. As soon as it was open wide enough for us to step through, we all rushed forward.

“Federal Agents!” I yelled as Holm, Crowley, and I moved quickly forward, straight toward the bar at the center of the floor. Two men were sitting there, just as Daniela had said, tall pints of beer clutched in their hands.

“What the hell is this?!” one of the men roared as he jumped to his feet.

“Don’t move another inch!” Crowley yelled as he stepped forward, his gun pointed straight at the men.

The man halted in his motions, his hand frozen halfway toward his back.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I spotted the rest of our group running toward the back of the bar to make their way upstairs.

One of the men must have noticed them, too, because an instant later, he disregarded Crowley’s order and pulled something from behind his back.

“Stop!” Crowley yelled just as I pointed my gun at the man and pulled the trigger.

I was just a fraction of a second too late, though. The man had already managed to shoot. Luckily, the bullet didn’t hit any of our comrades, instead striking a table by the window.

The man fell with a groan as my own bullet hit him. His buddy yelled with fury and reached behind his back.

“Don’t even think about it!” I yelled as I pointed my gun at him. “Unless you want to end up like your friend there.”

The man gritted his teeth and glared at me but didn’t otherwise move.

“Put your hands up,” Crowley commanded. “And step away from him, slowly.”

The man did as he was told and continued to follow Crowley’s instructions. I waited until he had the man on the ground before moving forward to check on the one I had shot.

The first thing I did was retrieve the gun he’d dropped when I’d shot him. The second was to check his pulse. It was extremely faint, and he wasn’t at all responsive.

“I’ll call an ambulance,” I muttered as I looked over to Crowley and Holm, who were getting the other suspect into a set of handcuffs. Honestly, it probably wouldn’t do much good. I’d shot the guy square in the chest at pretty close range. It would be a miracle if he survived, not that I would be all that broken up about it.

Before I could call, an ear-splitting bang rang out from the second floor.

“Dammit,” I hissed as I shoved my phone back into my pocket and took off. Something must have gone wrong. Holm was beside me in an instant, though I didn’t see Crowley. He must have stayed behind to watch the suspect.

We ran toward the back of the bar where I’d seen the rest of our group headed. There was a wide door tucked into the back corner of the bar marked “stairs.” I pushed the door open just as another round of gunshots went off.

My heart was pounding almost painfully as we raced up the stairs. I had no idea what was waiting for us at the top. I didn’t even know who it was that was shooting.

I got my answer as we made it to the top of the stairs and burst through the door that led to the second floor. The door opened into the end of a long hall lined with doors on either side. Just a few feet away, two of the officers that had accompanied us, Davis and Thompson, were down on the ground. I couldn’t see any blood, likely due to their bulletproof vests, but it looked like