Page 62 of Beloved
More explosions.
More gunfire.
Then suddenly a click and my cell door slammed open. With a smile on my face, I walked out, realizing mine was the only open door.
The festivities were in my honor.
It didn’t take me long to find a fallen guard, stripping him of his weapons. As I moved through the corridors, I constantly scanned the area in front of me, cognizant of any movement.
I dropped and rolled when another guard came into sight, firing off a half dozen shots in a row from the automatic rifle just because I was in the fucking mood.
Prisoners were yelling at me, some begging me to help them.
All of which I ignored.
More guards were running away, all in full tactical gear. I slid against the wall, crawling along until I was able to make a turn. With a single dart of my head, I noticed the gaping hole in the side of the building.
Another explosion jarred the space but was farther away, likely eradicating one of the many guard stands.
With nothing to lose, I powered forward, a guard noticing me seconds later. He thought he had the shot.
I was quicker, blowing half his head off then running toward him. Now I had several weapons, swinging the long barrel of the rifle from right to left as I headed toward the opening. The moment I stepped outside, I grabbed a deep breath of fresh air before racing toward the perimeter.
Bad move.
The cocking sound of a weapon meant I was about to die.
Not today.
Spinning around, I was about to fire when I recognized a friendly face. Kirill was ready to level the playing field until a hint of recognition flashed in his eyes. His grin was exactly as I remembered.
There wasn’t any time for a reunion, my commander and friend required to fire several shots, spraying the area behind me with bullets.
Once the dust had cleared, he walked closer. “You’re out of practice,” he gritted out.
“Yeah, well, I have a decent excuse.”
Bullets continued to fly and he pushed me against the building. “We have fifteen men. We’ve taken out the communications system including satellites, every vehicle, and several of the buildings.”
“You’ve been busy,” I told him.
“And you were tough to find.”
“We’ll talk later. Which way is the formal exit?”
He shook his head, studying me as if he’d never seen me before. In truth, I was a shit sight. Long hair. A long scraggly beard. Twenty pounds gone. At least what weight I maintained was all muscle.
“To the right. If we can get through the minefield, we’re golden. Before we could stop them, they cut off our entrance.”
Laughing, I scanned the area. Landmines had been planted years before as yet another deterrent for any prisoner desiring to escape.
Most prisoners knew the drill, but not all the guards.
“Come on. I’ll guide the way.”
Kirill had never shied away from danger and I could tell he wasn’t interested in starting. We kept low as we headed directly for the restricted area just as another group of guards located our position.
“Follow my steps.” The location was just another training session that had been required by my grandfather. While the man was still alive, he’d been living in a retirement home for years, recently moved into the dementia center. I thought of his harsh tactics fondly as I tiptoed through the explosives.
