When I got to the doorway, I stuck my head out and peered left and right. It appeared to be clear, so I started out of the bedroom. Cradling the girl in my arms made it a little more difficult to make our way through the maze of rooms.

Just as I got to the doorway of the house, the stinging bite of a bullet pierced my left calf. “Motherfucker,” I groaned before whirling around. The moment I saw it wasn’t one of our guys who might’ve shot in mistake, I started firing. I clipped the guy in the shoulder, sending him crashing to the ground.

Throwing open the front door, I waited for any gunfire in response. When everything remained silent, I eased out onto the veranda. Peering into the night, I saw one of the relief vans sitting outside the gates. My left leg dragged slightly behind me as I hustled as fast as I could. I was halfway across the courtyard when an explosion rocketed through the compound, sending me crashing to the ground.

The next few seconds ticked by agonizingly, as if the world had slowed to a crawl. The blast had robbed me of my hearing, and I struggled with the feeling of having cotton in my ears. Gradually, I heard a chorus of agonized screams along with various voices yelling.

“Come on, Rev,” someone said at my side. I glanced up to see Chulo standing over me. He grabbed my arm and helped hoist me up. I then bent over and picked up the girl. “Fuck, man. You’ve been hit.”

“It ain’t bad. She’s in worse shape,” I replied.

“You sure you got her?”

I nodded. “You just cover our asses, so I don’t get nailed again.”

“You got it.”

Carrying Annabel with my wounded leg seemed to take forever to get through the gate. Just as we reached the van, Breakneck came running over to us. “You found her?” he asked, his face lighting up.

His question caused my chest to tighten in agony. I didn’t know how I was going to kill his hope. Finally, I shook my head. “No, man, this isn’t Sarah. I found her in Mendoza’s private quarters. She’s been beaten almost to death.”

Breakneck’s face fell. “It’s not my Sarah?”

“I’m so sorry. Maybe one of the others has her.”

Shouts and gunfire tore our attention to what was happening beyond the gate. Our group of men came around the corner of the house. Some were running, while others were barely limping along. Most were covered in blackened soot and ash.

“What the fuck happened?” I demanded.

“The bunker where he kept the girls . . .” Bishop shook his head. “It was rigged with explosives. The second we got through the alarm system, someone blew it all up.”

I closed my eyes. It was a fucking coward’s defense strategy. Destroy the evidence of your crimes when you were about to get caught. In this case, Mendoza sacrificed the lives of the young women for no reason at all.

When I opened my eyes, I saw that Breakneck was staring wide-eyed at the flames billowing into the night sky. It was painful to watch as the realization washed over him. An agonized cry tore from his lips as he sank to his knees on the ground. To come this far only to lose Sarah in the end was brutal.

“Okay, boys, let’s get the fuck out of here before the reinforcements arrive,” Chulo ordered.

With anguished eyes, Breakneck whirled around. “No. We can’t leave. Sarah’s still in there.”

Bishop placed a hand on Breakneck’s back. “I’m sorry, man. She’s gone.”

“You don’t know that. We don’t know unless we find her body.”

Chulo grunted in frustration. “Listen, man, you forget any idea about going back for her body because there ain’t nothing left. That place was wired so tight the feds won’t find a scrap of anything. You get me?”

Although a look of defeat flashed across Breakneck’s face, he didn’t respond. He once again resumed staring at the flames.

Glancing down at the girl in my arms, I said, “Chulo, we need a hospital for her.”

“And for you,” he replied.

“You were hit?” Bishop questioned.

“It’s nothing.”

“Yeah, well, that nothing looks like it’s bleeding pretty bad,” Nero observed.

“Whatever.” With the girl weighing heavy in my arms, I went to get her settled in the van. When I started to ease her down on the seat, I noticed the blood pooling down her thighs. “Jesus,” I muttered. Whirling around, I grabbed Breakneck’s arm. “Forget about me. She’s hemorrhaging or something.”

Breakneck threw a glance at Annabel before returning his stare to the inferno at the compound. “I . . . I can’t.”

Grabbing him by the shoulders, I shoved him into the side of the van. “Listen to me. I’m sorry we didn’t get to Sarah in time. I’m sorry that you lost her. But you can’t shut down. We’ve got a girl who needs your help.”

Breakneck shoved me away. “Fuck you!”

“Guys, we gotta move. Now,” Chulo said.

The second van cranked up its engine. I shook my head at Breakneck. “What about your fucking Hippocratic oath, huh?”

Breakneck glared at me. “My little girl was just murdered, you bastard. I don’t give a shit about anyone else. You can fucking bleed out for all I care.”

“You think this is what Sarah would want? You think she would be proud her old man was refusing to treat someone—a girl who had been through the same hell she had?”

Breakneck refused to look at me. Instead, he was staring at something on the girl’s hand. He brushed past me to go over to her. He took her hand in his and then brought it closer to his face. “This was Sarah’s.”