Free Legal Legacy 2 (Surrendering Charlotte Chronicles Book 10) by Kimball Lee Page A

to retrieve them. The main pilot was an unknown, he was Navy but whether he would show allegiance to Atticus or the Master Chief if the situation got dicey was anyone’s guess. If Master Chief Galloway refused to fire on the enemy during an extraction the team would be seriously SOL— SHIT OUTTA LUCK.
    “Listen up, ” Atticus said, motioning for Holden and Jack to huddle around him when the helicopter lifted off from the deck of the carrier and shot across the dark Caribbean Sea under a moonless sky. The stars had yet to blink on in the heavens and the world outside the craft was so perfectly black it was impossible to tell up from down. “Our pilot is Lieutenant Ramos, he’s gonna get us in with no problem and out on my command. I talked to the ranking officer on the flight deck and he vouched for him, says he’s as good as it gets. Okay, we got this but it’s not a walk in the park, stay alert, vigilance counts. This is what I got from Intel— the bad news is that the General has a couple dozen teenaged trigger-happy wanna-be soldiers guarding the property. The good news is there’s a party going on at the General’s place tonight so there should be plenty of bikini-clad diversions for the boys with assault rifles. Better yet, the General thinks of our target, Ivy Archer, as his personal trophy so she’s likely to be unrestrained when he parades her around for his comrades to admire.”
    “ Six minutes!” The pilot shouted and Atticus nodded and held up six fingers to be sure Holden and Jack understood.
    “ Alright,” Atticus said as they snapped their helmets in place and pulled down their night-vision goggles.  “The most heavily guarded area on the property is the open side that faces the water. So we drop at the edge of the jungle and it’s a twenty minute hike to the house. We scale the wall and get a visual. Holden you find your vantage point on the wall and pick off the targets who are threats, switch to thermal and take out anyone inside the house who’s in an upright position.”
    “So if they’re fucking or some chick is on her knees giving head it somebody’s lucky night in more ways than one?” Holden asked and they all smiled nervously .
    “That’s right, unless you see the flash of a weapon. There are no good guys tonight, if we kill them all look at it as a fair kill, period.”
    “Two minutes out!” The pilot shouted as the helo began its swift descent.
    “Jack, Holden’ s the sniper, he’ll clear the way and you can do your medic shit when we get back on board. Until we have the situation under control and the girl is secured, you’re right up there with me, I go left, you go right. We both lead in, get the girl, eliminate the opposition and get out clean. I signal the helo and they land right on the beach and we are gone before they have time to scratch their nuts. Let’s go,” he said and they each grabbed a rope and jumped into the night while Master Chief watched and secretly wished he was one of them.
    *
    It had gone smoothly up until the last minute, that’s when the shit hit the fan. Holden had taken out five gunmen as soon as he was set up on the wall and thanks to its suppressor there was not a sound or flash from his SR-25 sniper rifle. Intel had been right, the girl was not bound although the General held onto her arm and kept her close to his side as he showed her off to his guests. She was dressed in a microscopic see-through dress and she teetered on high heeled sandals as if she were drunk or drugged, which Atticus had expected.
    Jack and Atticus circled the beach house eliminating hostiles when they happened upon them. His first kill registered in Atticus’ s brain when the bullet struck a soldier squarely between the eyes and the young man dropped with a dull thud. He pushed the scene to the back of his mind and continued to sweep across the lawn speaking quietly into his mouthpiece. He ordered Jack and Holden to keep on task and continue to kill any