Niall put his hand out for Arden’s binoculars, then slid to the end of the van to peek around the side. There was the whiz-whiz sound as he adjusted the digital sliders on the side of the view caps. Humming as they caught focus.
Everything was in position, and yet she couldn’t get rid of the pit lodged in her chest. She rubbed it, pressing the heel of her hand tight against her sternum to try to release the pressure.
“What’s wrong with you?” Colin asked.
Arden dropped her hand, gripping her fist tight at her side, and blew out a long breath. “Nothing.”
Do something, she reminded herself, so she wouldn’t look like a complete noob worrying over the outcome of their rescue. She checked the charge of her phaser. Trying to will away the tension that had taken her over.
Niall returned.
He handed Arden’s binoculars back to her. “All clear. It’s a go.”
Arden nodded. Then Niall and Uri were off, heading in opposite directions.
Using the binoculars, Colin watched the other two get into position. “Your jolly mood seems to be spreading.”
“Give me the binoculars and shut your trap,” she said playfully, fully expecting the punch in the arm he gave her. She put the binoculars to her face and did another sweep of the hoverport.
When the door finally opened fifteen minutes later, three people walked out. Mariah was in the middle. Her hands bound with electro-cuffs: three-inch metal bracers covering her forearms, bound together by magnets. Her head was down, her face covered by her hair.
On either side walked two guards. They wore govie-greens, phasers in their hands at the ready.
“See? I told you she would be here,” Arden said, feeling a rushing relief. Dade’s info had been correct. She owed him big-time.
Mariah lifted her face into the cold blast of wind, her skin littered in bruises. Both eyes were nearly swollen shut. Her hair hung in stringy clumps. She was still in the same outfit she’d worn to the club, though now it sported rips and tears. What was left of it was heavily stained with blood.
At least she was walking under her own power. Broken bones, torn skin—those could heal. Dead meant Mariah couldn’t come back.
Arden sucked in her breath, feeling each second of torture they’d put Mariah through as if she’d been the one battered. It made Arden determined to pull this off. No one was going to mess with her family.
“I’m going to kill them,” Uri said through the earpiece. His voice shook with unhinged rage.
“Hold,” Niall commanded.
Arden focused the binoculars on where Uri hid. Assuring herself he was going to stay in place. His body vibrated, yet he didn’t make a move toward the building. She released her breath. This operation would blow up if he went crazy. He’d ruin their one shot, not that she blamed him for his anger.
The trio made its way to the transport hovercraft, the guards on high alert. Both of them repeatedly scanned the area, their phasers slowly panning the surrounding deck. The back door of the hovervan opened on their approach, accompanied by a series of beeps.
Arden slid away her binoculars, strapping them into the pocket of her suit. She leveled her phaser, training it on the guards, then relaxed her shoulders and body to get into the right mind frame to take a shot if needed.
They waited.
Seconds ticked, seeming too slow. And yet Niall still didn’t give the signal. Their window was closing, and they all felt it. Adrenaline pumped through Arden. Her fingers were itchy, and her body strained forward. Beside her, Colin also kept his body ready, coiled with anticipation.
“If we wait any longer, they’re going to take off,” Uri said. If that happened, the rescue was over.
Arden agreed. They needed to move.
“Not yet,” Niall said. “Wait for it—”
There was a split second when the first guard moved toward the driver’s side and the second guard turned to the back of the vehicle.
“Now,” Niall said.
The order hit like a crack. They were on their feet within the next heartbeat. Arden and Colin ran the length of the trackway. They kept their approach partially concealed, crouching as they ran, moving between the hovercars. Phasers were level and out, powered on high.
Colin came around the front of the car, surprising the first guard and catching him with a fist to the gut before the guard could raise his phaser in return. Then he rounded a kick to the guard’s hand, kicking the phaser out. It clattered to the ground.
Arden focused on the other guard. Coming up behind him, she squeezed his neck, pushing on the trachea. He squirmed, knocking her in the face. She held on, climbing his back, her hands staying in place until the lack of air caused him to pass out. It would have been easier to shoot both of them, and they would have if necessary, but they couldn’t alert the rest of the govies that something was happening outside.
When the guard slumped to the ground, Arden checked back with Colin, making sure that he’d subdued his guard. He nodded to her, moving forward to help with Mariah. Together they urged her to the edge of the hoverport.
Behind them, Uri focused his attention on a line of govie speeders, having already taken care of the hovervans. He quickly went down the line, on each one using a silenced charge, designed to take out their electrical system. Meanwhile, Niall ran to the door of the South Grid Lockup. He blew out the door scanner with several phaser shots. Which triggered the alarm.
Sirens blared. The loud pulsing beat hit Arden’s ears, the vibrations nearly driving her to her knees, as they were designed to do. She forced herself to keep moving.
Niall ran past Uri, yelling, “That’s only going to hold them for a moment. Let’s go.”
“I’m not finished.” Uri blew out another speeder in the line, before he started running too.
“Move.” Niall ran to the end of the hoverport, where Arden and Colin were jostling Mariah, and jumped over.
Niall landed on the platform where they’d parked the speeders. Colin and Arden followed. They were getting onto their speeders when Arden realized Uri and Mariah hadn’t jumped. She looked up and watched an unspoken moment between Mariah and Uri.
“Hurry up,” she screamed.
That snapped Uri out of whatever fog he was in. Uri moved, then jumped over the side, landing in a crouch.
Mariah was supposed to be next. Uri stood below, arms out to catch her since her balance would be off from her still-shackled hands. Yet she didn’t jump, instead standing there frozen. The wind tossed her hair into her face as she looked over the edge with a vacant look of terror. The moments trickled by, seeming like hours.
They all began to scream at her—urging her to jump.
The deck flooded with govies. They’d managed to circumvent the door. Firing round after round, they ran toward Mariah. She ducked to avoid the shots, yet still wouldn’t make the leap.
Uri hopped on his speeder, bringing it up and around close to where she stood. He had his phaser out, shooting back at the govies as he neared the platform to grab her. But he was going too fast, his trajectory off. Arden could see there was no way he’d be able to pull Mariah onto the speeder with him.