Now there would be another burden on the two men in uniform—civilians like him to slow the soldiers up and possibly cause more problems. Jacob hoped it wouldn’t be too much. He watched as Tyree released his grandmother, turned away from her, and used the sleeve of his shirt to wipe away tears.
“It’s okay,” Stephens whispered to him. “We’re gonna send someone back for ’em.”
Tyree clenched his jaw and nodded his head before looking away. He reached down and put on his backpack. “I know,” he whispered. He stepped off toward the stairwell, leading the way with a small flashlight.
When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Stephens untied the door.
“Dark from here on out; go on and cut that light,” Stephens whispered.
After the light was cut, he took the lead position and opened the door to the dark lobby. As Jacob had done before, Tyree kept his hand on Stephens’ armor and was led helplessly into the lightless lobby. James did the same, holding Tyree. Murphy gave them a moment to move ahead then looked back at Jacob. He flashed a thumb up then dropped his goggles and stepped into the dark with Jacob holding his gear.
They moved slowly, but it wasn’t graceful or quiet. Jacob heard one of the boys breathing heavily, nearly hyperventilating. Trying to calm him, Stephens whispered, “It’s okay, bro, I got you; we’re almost out.”
Objects were kicked across the floor, causing gasps; their shoes seemed to slap heavily on the tile and bounced eerie echoes off the walls. Murphy suddenly stopped, and Jacob bumped into him, his rifle clacking against the back of Murphy’s pack. Jacob felt Murphy’s gloved hand push him back against a wall. He sensed, and heard, the boys standing next to him. One of them was trembling; his legs were shaking, every movement making a noise. “Just relax, I’m here,” Tyree whispered.
“Wait one; we’re gonna pop the door, peek outside, and we’ll be back for you all,” Murphy whispered.
Jacob heard them quickly step away. The door opened and the clang of a chain on the south side rang as it was pulled tight. Jacob could see a faint slice of moonlight cut through the narrow opening in the door. Stephens was kneeling with the bolt cutters in his hands. He stretched them through the opening and strained to squeeze the arms together. After a loud clang, the chain was cut and fell to the hard concrete.
Slowly, Stephens pushed the door all the way open, walked out, and pressed against it while keeping his rifle up. With the door fully open, blue light spilled into the lobby. The rains had stopped, and the sky was clearing, allowing some stars to peek through. He pointed at the men along the wall and signaled for them to move. Jacob reached out a hand and helped guide James to the door. Two steps in and the boy panicked.
“No, I can’t,” he said, pushing off violently and sprinting for the stairwell. They could hear his footfalls and the stairwell door fly open and slam shut.
Tyree turned to go after him just as Stephens raised and fired his rifle. The bright muzzle flash filled the void in the lobby. “Leave him! There’s no time; move your ass!” Murphy shouted. “Get out here!”
“No, we gotta go back,” Tyree yelled.
Murphy grabbed the man by the collar and shoved him forward. “You stay, and you’ll lead those things back to the building!”
Jacob stepped out, pushing Tyree ahead of him, and Murphy quickly shut the door, shoving hard to feel the lock catch as it closed before he knotted the chain through the handle for extra security. Murphy then slapped Stephens on the back, indicating he was ready to move just as two rounds impacted the building directly above his head. Stephens already had his rifle up and was returning quick-aimed shots of twos while Murphy pushed the others ahead.
Jacob stopped and pivoted while attempting to raise his rifle. Murphy reached out and shoved him forward yelling, “Run!”
Stephens lowered his weapon and cut away at a sprint, catching up fast, already passing Jacob and pulling ahead. Sprinting with his head down, Tyree was close behind him. Jacob ran down the right side of the street, struggling to keep up and feeling the pain in his ribs and hip. Murphy moved alongside him and turned out as Stephens stopped at a street corner, then pressed against a building to look down the street to the left.
Murphy pushed Jacob ahead. “What happened back there?” Murphy whispered.
Stephens briefly looked back over his shoulder. “I saw three of ‘em and one had a rifle.”
“You sure it was one of them?” Murphy questioned.
“Nope, but I know it wasn’t one of us,” he answered. “Corners clear. Cover me while I move. Send ‘em when I get to the other side.”
“Roger; got you covered,” Murphy snapped back.
Stephens looked left and right one more time before sprinting to the far side of the street. Murphy waited a count of ten then slapped Tyree to follow. After another brief count, he slapped Jacob.
Jacob ran into the center of the street and nearly fell while clumsily moving forward. Struggling under the weight of the vest, he had to concentrate on his footfalls but felt as if his legs were wobbly and he would fall at any moment. He ran full speed, stepping up onto the opposing curb. Failing to slow down and not seeing clearly, he lost his footing and slapped face first into the building.
Tyree caught him as he bounced back. Looking around, Jacob felt the sting on his face but shook it off, aimed his rifle out, and
