Teaser Tuesday digs explosives

Hey all, haven't posted one of those in a while so I figured it was about time for another Teaser. This one is pretty self-explanatory, from a chapter I just finished in which Raeyn and Damian are in some deep shit. Again.

As always there be swearing, but since this entire book is going to be told from Damian's PoV, you better get used to it ;)

Raeyn was handcuffed and stood on one of Taerien’s barstools that someone’d dragged outside with one of the dozen or so Redcoats surrounding him fastening a noose around his neck.

“About time someone put a leash on Taerien’s dog,” one of them snickered. The rope was slung around the lower branch of one of the trees lining Taerien’s front gate. Raeyn stood pale as death and unmoving as the Redcoat next to him tightened the rope.

“Any last words?” Now I recognized the guy. It was Jon fucking Sykes. Ares’ fuck buddy.

Raeyn’s face’d been set as stone, but now he gave Sykes that trademark arrogant smile of his as if he wasn’t barely able to stay upright, bleeding all over the place and about to get a first class ticket to the Redcoats’ favorite past time aside from Cleansing little girls.

“You know what they say: those you thought dead live forever.” Raeyn gave him his most brilliant smile, his eyes sparking purple fire. “Also, tell my father I will see him soon. In hell.”

Sykes kicked the stool from under Raeyn’s feet. 

I was already down and off that tree in time to hear the rope snap tight, hoping that it wasn’t the snap of Raeyn’s neck. I didn’t see him gasp for breath as he choked, feet kicking, eyes rolling back in his head. I didn’t need to. They all did. For the moment my full attention was set on getting the fuck back to the hover. I had an idea. It was fucking stupid and slightly suicidal, but that was how this kind of spur of the moment-thing usually went down. Either way I’d better hurry before it was too late.

I’d minutes at best. Raeyn better hold on that long.

I almost tripped as I made it back to the hover, cursing as I busted my knee on the toolbox in the back. There I found just what I needed to cause one hell of a distraction.

“Jay, you’re a fucking genius.” Seriously, I loved our techie at that moment. Trust her to pack explosives – and more importantly duct tape – into the hover, just in case.

Man, she’d be pissed.

I’d worry about her later. Now, I grabbed a few of the TATP bombs Jay considered fit to take on random runs out of their stabilizing containers. Yeah, there were safer, less volatile substances that’d do the job, but acetone peroxide was your explosive of choice if you wanted to make things go boom fast. Just needed to know how to use it properly. Ever tried to just shoot at a gas tank? All that’ll do is make the gas leak out. Tape a few bags of acetone peroxide to your gas tanks - different story.

Say anything about being well equipped, say duct tape is the solution to all your troubles. Damn handy to tie someone up or tape explosives to your hover’s gas tanks.

Also, the hover’s autopilot better not take a dump on me today. Blowing myself up at random just wouldn’t do.

“All right then. Let’s do this,” I said and started up the hover. It whirred to life and gunned the gas pedal, pointing the autopilot to get the thing straight through Taerien’s gate. Good thing it was blown open wide already.

Thanks, Redcoats, for making my job easier.

As for jumping out of a hover at full speed, I don’t suggest anyone try it. There’s just no good way of full-on hitting asphalt. Hurts like a motherfucker, strategic falls, my ass.

Ignoring the ten thousand or so tiny rocks ground up into the skin of my hands, face and entire left side seemed like a good idea. I’d have to fucking kick things up a notch anyway to get a good aim at the hover.

Scrabbling in the dirt of the road, I finally got my feet under me. Too late.

“Ah, fuck it all,” I snarled and fired. Once. Twice.