Page 118 of Property of Yak

Instead of replying, I do as he said. I lean around the edge of the crate and fire, taking down a guy I’ve never seen before.

“Let’s move,” Benjamin says.

“You go first, I’ll cover,” I tell him.

He nods and dashes forward as I lay down cover. Once he’s in place, I move. Rushing forward, I hit the crate, but it doesn’t move. As I try to catch my breath, I watch as Wolverine catches a graze to the arm. He jerks back but doesn’t stop shooting. Shit, this is a mess.

“Am I crazy, or are half of these people from the streets?” Benjamin asks.

I nod. “I think so. It’s kind of smart if you think about it. Employing the unemployed. Offering them a roof over their head if they do his dirty work.”

Benjamin cuts me a dirty look. “Don’t compliment the man.”

“I’m just saying,” I mutter as I reload.

Before either of us can say anything else, a whistle cuts through the air, making all of us tense.

“Stop! Yaky boy, come out. I have something you want to see,” Aragon shouts.

“Don’t do it. It’s a fucking trap,” Benjamin says.

“Yeah, well, I can’t exactly say no,” I mutter before I stand up.

Gun in hand, I aim it right at him. He has his aimed right back at me, a wicked smile on his face.

“What do you want, Aragon?” I ask.

He smirks, making my stomach sink. Something about the way he looks feels wrong. Almost as if he knows something I don’t.

“I thought you would like to know, I have my girl safe and sound. She always was mine. Now I’ll prove it to you.” He smirks, looking up.

I follow his line of sight, and I swear my heart stops as I watch someone carry Julie over their shoulder up a flight of stairs like she’s a sack of potatoes.

My heart beats out of my chest as I stare at her. She is fighting tooth and nail, which gives me hope.

Then I hear it. The movement from my side.

“No!” Benjamin roars, popping up and aiming his gun toward the man carrying Julie.

I don’t know why he does it. Instinct? Panic? Either way, it leaves him completely exposed. My eyes flicker to Aragon. I press my trigger at the same time he presses his. Mine misses its mark.

His does not.

I turn to look at Benjamin as his body jerks back. Red blooms across his stomach. Jerking forward, I grab him before he can hit the ground out in the open, dragging him safely behind the crate as gunfire kicks back up again.

“Don’t worry, Yak. I’ll take good care of her,” Aragon calls out as his voice grows more distant.

He’s taking cover like the coward he is. He has the upper hand, though. I was focused before, but I’m about to become reckless.

Fuck. I need to go after her, but I can’t let her dad die right here.

“We got to stop this bleeding,” I say harshly as I press down on it.

Benjamin coughs. “It was Ray. My second-in-command. He brought her here. I saw him behind Aragon. I trusted him.”

“I’m sorry.”

I mean the words, even. I know what it feels like to be betrayed. Even if I could see Ray was a rat, I’m sure he wasn’t always that way.