54 |

Burj Khalifa, 142nd Floor
Dubai, United Arab Emirates

 

Dawson led the way toward the stairwell with Spock, Niner covering their six with Acton as Laura provided additional cover for Atlas, cradling Karlsson in his massive arms. Acton and Laura were two of the few civilians he would trust with his life, the two of them not only well-trained by her ex-SAS head of security, but proven in battle, neither hesitating to put their training to effective use.

And she’s one hell of a driver.

He never hesitated to take advantage of their abilities in situations like these, whereas most civilians he’d never dream of giving a weapon to—the risk of getting one of their own asses capped by a panicked misfire was too great.

But Acton was ex-National Guard, and the two of them had been under more fire than any civilians he knew, and always managed to survive either by dumb luck or mad skills.

He wagered it was a bit of both.

An elevator chimed behind them and Dawson cursed. “Let’s go!” he hissed, urging them toward the door. Spock reached it first and held it open. Laura rushed through, Atlas on her heels, but it was too late.

Shouts erupted and four security guards rushed their position, weapons rising.

“Suppression fire!” ordered Dawson.

Niner spun and opened up on the ceiling above the new arrivals who immediately hit the deck, clearly unaccustomed to actual gunfire. He backed toward the door, Acton’s hand on his shoulder guiding him to safety, as Niner fired several supplementary bursts to keep the innocent heads down.

Dawson shoved the door shut behind them, then pulled a small metal wedge from his pocket, jamming it into the doorframe before following the rest of his team down the steps to the floor below. “Niner, execute Plan B.”

Niner grinned, holding up a detonator. “With pleasure.”

He flipped the cover clear then pressed the switch. A deafening rumble filled the stairwell, and within moments, alarms blared as the power flickered then failed. Spock pushed open the door to their floor, dust and smoke rolling past him. They pressed forward, the screams and cries of confusion from the guests migrating from their rooms and into the hallway as the evacuation began.

Dawson kicked their door out of the way, already off its hinges, ushering the rest in before pressing the door back into place. He surveyed the damage. “Do you think you overdid it a bit?”

Niner shrugged as he and Atlas pulled on the rope they had attached to the window earlier with breaching tape, preventing it from falling onto the unsuspecting pedestrians over a thousand feet below. “Hey, those were blast reinforced window frames. You wouldn’t want me having to try blowing it a second time while we’re on the run, would you?”

Atlas grinned. “Go big or go home.”

Dawson shook his head, but had to acknowledge the man was right. “Everyone out of the monkey suits.” He stripped out of his business suit, revealing jet black fatigues underneath as the others did the same. He turned to Acton. “Have you ever done any skydiving?”

Acton nodded. “Yeah, we both have.” His eyes bulged. “Are you kidding me?”

Dawson grinned. “I never kid when I’m talking about jumping out of a perfectly good hotel.”

Spock emerged from the bathroom where the CIA had stowed specific gear in the event Plan B was enacted, dropping seven parachutes on the floor. He pointed at Karlsson, lying on what remained of a couch. “He can’t jump by himself. Not in his condition.”

Dawson agreed. “Tandem.”

Spock held up the harness. “Way ahead of you.” He quickly went to work hooking Karlsson up as everyone else donned their chutes.

Dawson inspected Acton’s then Laura’s. “You two ready for this?”

They both nodded, Acton replying. “As ready as anyone could be for something as insane as this.”

Dawson chuckled. “You’ll do fine. Spock will go first with the professor. Atlas will go next, providing cover, then you two. Follow them. Don’t worry about what’s happening on the ground—”

Acton’s eyes narrowed. “Why? What’s happening on the ground?”

Dawson ignored the question. “Like I said, don’t worry about it. Just follow them. Niner and I will have your six. Understood?”

Acton exchanged a nervous glance with his wife. “It’s not like we have a choice.”

Dawson laughed, smacking Acton on the shoulder. “That’s the spirit!”

Spock was already at the window, Atlas helping him with the barely conscious Karlsson. Shouts in the hallway from men who sounded like they meant business hastened their exit.

Dawson activated his comm. “Control, Zero-One. Executing Plan Bravo now.”