Up From The Deep by Vaughn Jackson (highly recommended books txt) 📕

back and forth between Raymond and the bald man and sighed.

“Captain, will you please take Mr. Han and I to the control room to meet the staff,” he said at last with a resigned sigh.

“And Ms. Zhang?”

“Is here for security analysis. She will assess the station and make sure there is nothing unexpected waiting for us.” He forced a smile and nodded at the Chinese woman.

“As you like.” Raymond opened the nearest door. “This way.”

When the two men crossed the threshold, he added, “Ms. Zhang, please don’t lean too far off the edge of the platform. Water from this height...like being slammed into concrete.” He pounded his fist into his hand in demonstration.

Bae Ling rolled her eyes again and disappeared up a nearby flight of stairs.

“Gentlemen,” Raymond said, disappearing into the dark portal and sealing the door behind him. A crimson light flooded the narrow corridor. “I hope no one is claustrophobic.”

They continued down the hallway. Ishii tripped over the raised lip of an open portal as they passed, almost tumbling to the cold iron floor. “Watch your step, Mr. Ishii,” Raymond said, “everything in here is metal. Please don’t crack your skull.”

Han helped Ishii to his feet, and they continued until they came to a door labelled “CONTROL” in large red letters. The door opened onto a dim room lit by several flashing monitors. A few people sat at computer terminals glanced up as Raymond motioned the two men in. As soon as they crossed the threshold, Raymond sealed the door behind them. He looked in through the small porthole and gave a terse wave, all of his false demeanor dropped in an instant.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” he said.

Han slammed his fists on the heavy metal door. “Open this door or—”

“Or what? You’ll be trapped in a control room?”

Ishii’s face appeared in the window. “Captain please, you’re making a mistake.”

“Says the man who has his back to a room full of assault rifles,” Raymond said, motioning for the two men to turn around. He leaned against a nearby wall and pulled his smartphone from his coat pocket, connected his headphones, and selected his favorite song. His eyes stayed focused on the door for when Bae Ling arrived.

#

Ishii and Han wheeled around and came face to face with six soldiers in dark military fatigues. The two men’s suits lit up with three laser points each.

“I am Commander Ira Shah. Under the jurisdiction of Interpol, you are under arrest! Put your hands above your heads.” The foremost soldier motioned with his gun. “Now.”

Ishii began to comply, but before he could, Han shoved him to the side with a loud grunt and dove to the floor.

“Goddamn it,” Shah said. “Open fire.”

The roar of bullets filled the room as all the soldiers opened fire.

“Please! Don’t shoot,” Ishii screamed, his voice cracking. “Mr. Han, stand down!”

“No.” Han popped up to the left of the soldiers and fired twice. The first bullet struck one soldier dead center. There was no blood as they crumpled to the ground with a gasp.

The second shattered a monitor across the room, sending sparks flying and smoke billowing. He ducked back behind the computer desk before the next volley of bullets filled the space he left behind. “Bulletproof, of course,” he growled.

Ishii covered his head and screamed as the soldier on the floor crawled to grab him and cuff him to a nearby pipe.

“Don’t move.”  The voice was female and each breath coming from the masked face sounded laborious. “Stay low.” She pressed her back against a nearby console. One hand clutched her chest where the bullet had struck the Kevlar, the second pointed a small handgun at him with unwavering focus.

Ishii nodded and sank down into as comfortable a position as he could. Tears and sweat coated his face, and his rumpled suit was more askew than before. “I hate this job,” he said.

#

Raymond slowly took out his headphones as Bae Ling stormed into the metallic hallway, her gun aimed directly at him. In her other hand she clutched a radio, and Raymond cursed at the idea that her reinforcements might be en route.

“Open the door,” she commanded.

Raymond sighed and tucked away his phone. The sounds of the gunfight made it hard to hear in the confined space.  He wondered how long it took to subdue a coward and a brute. “I’d rather not be filled with lead.”

“Open the door, or I will replace your fucking brains with lead,” she said, holding the gun inches away from his face.

“Do you mind?” Raymond said, motioning to his hat. “The brim is low, and I find it impolite not to look you in the eyes while you threaten me. I’m just—”

He grabbed her wrist and jerked it to the side just as she fired. The report of the gun deafened his right ear. Raymond rotated so that his body was alongside hers, still gripping her wrist and pointed the gun away from both of them. He looped his hand around the trigger of her gun and fired six of her shots into the ground.

“I was hoping you’d just surrender,” he said, as he kicked her in the back of her knee. Her grip on the gun loosened and he plucked it from her hand. Pointing it at the back of her head, he said, “Please do not move.”

“Go fuck yourself,” she said.

“I have the last one,” Raymond shouted. “Hurry up in there.”

As if in reply, another burst of noise from multiple rifles. Blood splattered the broken glass of the control room porthole. There was a moment of silence followed by “Shit!” in Shah’s rasping voice.

“Ishii! Han!” Bae Ling shouted. “Damn it!”

She held up the radio and Raymond realized too late what it really was. He lunged forward but it was too late. She clamped down on the red button on the side. Immediately the whole platform shook with the force of the first explosion. A second and third sounded off shortly after.

Raymond tumbled to the ground but managed to hold