Page 31 of Nothing to Fear

She quickened her step. Her heels clicked in a machine-gun staccato matching her pulse. They closed in on the turnstile as the guard’s gaze flickered up to them, and she realized she didn’t have her badge to swipe through.

“Officer Stone, Officer Harper,” the guard said. “I need you two to stop.”

“Run through the metal detectors.” Gideon stopped, hands raised, providing cover for her with his body.

She bolted through the steel frame of the sensor. The clacking of her heels flattened in her ears. Sprinting, she ran so fast, her feet barely touched the concrete floor.

The outer front steps loomed. A few more feet. Not far, but the space stretched in her mind, escape receding from her grasp. Her heart pounded under the rush of adrenaline. She reached for the door, and the security alarm blared.

The deafening noise pierced her eardrums, and dizzying bursts of white light flashed in the lobby. Willow covered her ears, her senses shredded, and dropped to her knees.

12

Gray Box Headquarters, Northern Virginia

Friday, July 5, 9:32 a.m. EDT

The harsh wail of the security alarm blared in the lobby. Gideon stared down at the red laser dot painted center mass on his chest.

He knew every guy in security, made it his personal mission to make sure they also knew him. Whenever he spotted one at Rocky’s Bar, he always bought them a round of drinks. It was a lot harder to put down a buddy than a nameless target. Although he didn’t know which topside guard in the sniper’s nest had Gideon in the crosshairs, it was someone he’d interacted with.

That rapport might buy him a few precious seconds of hesitation on the sniper’s part.

Glancing over his shoulder, he spotted Willow on her knees, holding her ears, rocking. She’d been so close. So damn close to making it. At least she was positioned directly in front of the door, preventing the guards from engaging a full lockdown.

If they did, a mechanized, reinforced steel gate would slam down and block the door. Similar shutters would seal the windows, all from the inside. It prevented forced entry and stopped unwanted egress. But if they lowered it now, the steel gate would crush her body.

As long as they appeared to cooperate, the guards wouldn’t initiate a lockdown.

“Officer Stone.” Stewart, one of the guards at the desk, kept it formal, using a title and last name.

Not good. Even worse, both Stewart and the other guard, Peter, held Glocks pointed at Gideon.

“We’re going to need you to drop the bag and disarm,” Stewart continued.

Gideon scanned the top landing, assessing the location of the sniper.

Slowly, he removed his weapon from behind his back, finger on the trigger but barrel pointed skyward. He raised the rucksack with his other hand in the same manner of non-aggressive compliance.

He gripped the back of the rucksack with the open flap toward the security desk and pitched it with a jerk, momentum propelling the duct-taped extinguishers out of the bag. The cylinders struck the marble floor in front of the security desk with a strident metallic ring that clamored over the alarm, drawing the gazes of the guards.

Gideon fired, hitting one of the extinguishers. The canister exploded in a loud pop, a white billowy cloud flared, and at the same time, the sniper shot off two rounds.

The bullets slammed into Gideon’s chest with the jarring impact of a sledgehammer, knocking him to the floor.

He’d been hit hard, right over his heart, but his grip on the Maxim 9 hadn’t faltered, as if the pistol was an extension of his hand. Gasping for air, down on his side, he aimed for the second extinguisher and squeezed the trigger.

Another cloud of dry chemical powder mushroomed, providing cover.

Training and ruthless survival instincts kicked in. He ignored the aftershocks of pain rippling through his body, his brain focused entirely on doing whatever was necessary to get out of there alive with Willow. He rolled toward the door, away from the incoming volley he expected. Automatic fire peppered the ground where he had just been.

A buzzing, bell-like sound blasted in rapid succession. Red lights began flashing in concert with the bright white bursts. Lockdown protocol initiated.

The reinforced steel gate started to roll down. Ten seconds before it slammed closed.

Gideon shuffled to his feet. Raw agony exploded in his chest, bringing him to his knees.

Gears rattled overhead, drawing the thick sheet of steel toward the floor. In seconds, the armored security gate would crush Willow.