Page 57 of Ready or Not

The urge to break his neck is strong, but I need to back up Garza.

My head flies up as the car window rolls down.

Ranger looks placid as he stretches an arm out around the too-slow window.

I exhale in pure relief.

“You’re going to want to stay down,” Ranger growls, aiming his weapon from the still-moving car window.

The echoing thump of a silenced bullet being fired draws my attention. By the time I twist my head, Cooper is bleeding like hell from a wound just above his left hip. He falls to cover Vale, but Ranger lands a bullet into the third assailant’s right eye.

Thank God.

Ranger always works with silenced weapons.

At least in public.

My hands meet the pavement as I push myself up.

If I’m not mistaken, the man under me is one of Landis’s crew.

Ranger shoves the car into park and throws open the door. “Help me get them into the trunk. Unless you’re calling it in. In that case, you’ll need to take this.” He holds out his gun.

I shove myself to my feet, ignoring the offered weapon. “I’ll handle asking Merrick to wipe the feeds.” Yanking out my phone, I send a series of haphazard messages that include asking him to use my GPS while also clearing any camera feeds downtown. Once I’m done, I shove it away, glaring distastefully at the blood on my knuckles.

“We’ve got no hope of cleaning up the blood or brain matter.” Garza stands, scanning for any additional targets.

“You bled all over my forehead,” Vale says in a distracted tone. “First Bishop and now you. Cooper, you’ve been shot.”

“Fuck, trust me, I know. It stings like a bitch,” Garza grumbles. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she says. “A little surprised I didn’t pee myself, but okay.”

Ranger snorts, nodding to the live one. “Get him in the trunk. There are zip ties on the right side, next to the garbage bags. We’ll toss the other two back there with him.”

I nod, aiming for the ties.

“What are you doing?” Garza asks, but I can’t see exactly who he’s speaking to.

“Could you move? I want to check their faces,” Vale says.

Ranger laughs. “Grab any casings you come across while you’re looking.”

“I don’t know what that means,” Vale says.

“Bullet casings,” Ranger replies helpfully.

I grab the zip ties and glare around the open trunk at the psychopath. “Don’t involve her in our crimes.”

“I have doubts she could bend down to pick them up, but it would be convenient if she could help with spotting them,” Ranger says with an oddly jovial lilt to his tone.

He’s probably excited that we’ve got a live victim for him to torture.

The fucking lunatic.

“I can bend over just fine,” Vale snaps. “Move, Cooper.”

He chuckles. “Yes, ma’am.”