Page 109 of Ash Storm

“How can you do this?” Chloe whimpered, her face in her hands.

Afsan smiled a chilling smile. “Saints are in heaven. Anybody who’s here with us,” he said, waving a hand around the room, “is not a saint.”

You can say that again.

Ash thought hard. There had to be a way to take him down. There had to be a way to—

“Put your weapons on that side of the pool table, gentlemen. Before I lose my patience and decide to break her neck.”

Ash was the first to comply. He took the two steps towards the table. His hand grazed the unusual electric blue fabric covering. He took his gun out of its holster and put it down, then did the same with the two knives strapped to his chest.

He had another knife against his leg, but he didn’t reach for that one.

“That’s everything,” he said.

Afsan smiled a satisfied smile. Ash’s temper flared as he ran a hand down Reka’s body, but he forced himself to stay still. He couldn’t risk her life.

“Now you,” Afsan said to Griffin, who still hadn’t moved a muscle. The three guards all turned their bodies to look at Griffin. Now that Ash was unarmed, Griffin appeared to be the bigger threat.

As they turned, so did the guns they were holding.

Exactly as Ash had hoped.

He knew he wouldn’t have a better chance than this.

He thought of the chess set sitting by the window in his room. Sometimes, a strong piece had to be sacrificed for the greater good.

Ash didn’t hesitate. He would much rather die than watch the two women be taken again, or see either of his teammates killed.

He remembered his thoughts from earlier that day. As long as he could take Afsan with him, he’d die a happy man.

He didn’t look at Griffin. He would provide the opportunity and trust Griffin to act on it.

Ash slid under the pool table, simultaneously reaching for the knife strapped to his lower leg. And he knew the table wouldn’t protect him for long, but an instant was all he needed.

He was out the other side before any of the guards had had time to act, but now their attention was divided. One shoved his semi-automatic weapon under the table, not realizing Ash would be out long before he managed to pull the trigger. The other two still had their weapons trained on Griffin, but their attention, too, was divided.

Ash almost pitied them.

They were trying to keep Griffin pinned down, while at the same time looking at their boss and figuring out what Ash was doing.

Too many things.

It was a lesson Ash had learned his first day in the Army, and that had always served him well—you never took your eyes off someone as long as you were pointing your weapon at them.

Particularly not when Griffin already had his hands on the butt of his gun.

Ash screamed Afsan’s name, hoping the danger to their boss’s physical integrity would force the guards into action.

The guard who’d gone looking for him under the table had good reflexes. His first shot went wide, but his second shot, fired an instant later, hit Ash in the arm. He grunted but kept going.

A bullet to the arm wasn’t going to stop him now.

Afsan has to pay.

The next shot came from a Glock-19—Griffin’s favorite weapon. Ash didn’t need to look to know one of the guards was down. He’d seen Griffin in the shooting range, and Griffin didn't miss.

Ash rushed Afsan, using his momentum to pull Reka out of the tycoon’s arms. Together, they flew through the air. Ash twisted at the last instant to ensure his body would be the one to take the brunt of the fall.