180: Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Nine: Rescue and Counter-Rescue 180: Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Nine: Rescue and Counter-Rescue Torrey Gandyman was shouting down the stairs when Gao Yang swiftly made two hand signals to Frey and Li Jinfang.
Li Jinfang nonchalantly helped Frey up, and once Frey realized he could move, he dragged one leg and retreated upstairs with Li Jinfang’s support.
After letting Li Jinfang and Frey retreat first, Gao Yang called out on the radio, “Second team, if the people on the first floor stop shooting, then you stop too.
We’ve caught a big fish, and maybe we can try to end this standoff amicably.
You withdraw first, repeat, you withdraw first.
National Bird, prepare to back up Team One.”
Gao Yang informed Simon and his team more conveniently than Torrey Gandyman could ever manage with his shouting, so Simon’s team had already received Gao Yang’s message.
Unfortunately, nobody paid any attention to Gandyman’s yells – the relentless gunfire in the lobby made it impossible to hear him.
While Torrey Gandyman continued to hoarsely scream, Arthur said in an urgent voice, “You have to hurry, Destin’s losing a lot of blood, he can’t hold on much longer!”
“Do not leave the ground, do not leave the ground.
The roads are blockaded, repeat, the roads are barricaded by cars, escape by vehicle is impossible.
More drug dealers are on their way; we will try to delay them as much as possible.
Second team, try to find a way to withdraw from the rooftop!”
Cui Bo’s voice also came through the earpiece, bringing dire news.
With the den under attack, drug dealers scattered throughout Tijuana were rushing over.
Their vehicles had completely blocked off the roads Simon’s team would use to withdraw.
Torrey Gandyman couldn’t control those drug dealers directly; he could only command the gang leaders – but, unfortunately, those gang leaders had been killed in the assault by Gao Yang’s team.
In short, even with Torrey Gandyman as a hostage, it was impossible to clear a path through the drug dealers in the short term.
Gao Yang had Glolov hold Torrey Gandyman, then he ventured alone to the second floor.
Ten minutes had passed since the attack began, and Destin had been injured and bleeding out since the start.
Those ten minutes were nearly fatal, and Gao Yang didn’t dare delay any longer; he had to take a risk.
Gao Yang reached the second floor first and saw no drug dealers or Torrey Gandyman’s bodyguards.
He then gestured to Glolov, who quickly brought Torrey Gandyman down to the second floor, where Gao Yang immediately whispered, “Where’s Bob?”
Torrey Gandyman pointed at a room and then shouted, “Loew, get that kid out here, and be careful!
I’ve got a gun to my head.”
After the shout, Torrey Gandyman yelled down to the first floor, “Can you hear me down there?
Ceasefire, all you motherfuckers, ceasefire!
I’ve been captured; what the hell are you still doing shooting?
Stop firing!”
No one on the first floor could hear Toller Gandyman’s shouting; the sound of gunshots showed no signs of abating.
Yet the door to the room where Bob was held opened, and Bob was slowly pushed out.
Once Bob was fully exposed, a man held a pistol to the back of Bob’s head, shielding himself behind Bob’s body as he cautiously stepped out from the door.
Then, another person holding a pistol emerged and aimed it at Gao Yang.
Glolov had his gun trained on Toller Gandyman while the guards holding Bob had one gun pressed to Bob’s head and another aimed at Gao Yang.
Seeing the two men who were escorting Bob out, Gao Yang immediately aimed his gun at Toller Gandyman and shouted, “Let him go.”
Toller Gandyman shouted back loudly, “Don’t let him go, Loew, go downstairs, tell everyone to cease fire, let their people come up, and you come up too.
If these guys plan to take me with them, just kill me along with them!”
Toller Gandyman was adamant, and Gao Yang was at his wits’ end.
Now, Bob was Toller Gandyman’s last lifeline, and unless Toller Gandyman was certain of his own safety, he would definitely not order his men to release Bob.
For a moment, Gao Yang’s mind raced.
He had to save Bob first because if Toller Gandyman kept being stubborn, even if they could regroup with Simon and the others, Toller Gandyman’s bodyguards on the first floor would all come up as well.
In that case, it would simply give Toller Gandyman more hostages and make the situation even more difficult.
Gao Yang held a shotgun in his left hand, pressing it against what-if Toller Gandyman’s head, and with his right hand, he drew the M1911 pistol from its holster.
He then aimed the pistol at Bob and, without saying a word, watched the man called Loew slowly walk past him before going down to the first floor.
The man holding Bob at gunpoint completely concealed himself behind Bob, and with Bob’s tall and hefty build, the gunman hiding behind him had no worries that Gao Yang would hit him.
While waiting for the man called Loew to reach the first floor, and while the gunshots had not yet ceased, Gao Yang suddenly jabbed the shotgun into the wound on Toller Gandyman’s right arm with force.
The excruciating pain made Toller Gandyman cry out involuntarily, and upon hearing Toller Gandyman’s scream, the man hiding behind Bob immediately poked his head out beside Bob’s neck to see why Toller Gandyman had screamed.
The guard of Bob only exposed his eyes, but Gao Yang, with the pistol in his right hand, immediately fired.
The bullet grazed Bob’s neck, then entered the left eye of the man behind Bob.
The hollow-point bullet expanded, deformed, and tumbled upon meeting resistance; it did not exit the back of the head but instead turned the man’s brain into mush.
Struck by Gao Yang’s bullet, the man holding the gun to Bob’s head immediately fell backward.
Gao Yang had hit his brain, but not the brainstem area, so his remaining reflexive nerve action still caused his fingers to pull the trigger.
But it no longer mattered; the bullet he fired hit the nearby wall, missing the back of Bob’s head.
Gao Yang fired, the guard watching Bob fell, and all of this happened in an instant.
Bob hadn’t even realized what had happened, and he was already safe.
“F**k!
F**k!
F**k!”
Seeing Gao Yang suddenly open fire and rescue Bob from his captors, Toller Gandyman was infuriated, cursing wildly, especially when he saw Gao Yang run over to Bob and then fired another shot at his already downed man on the ground.
Gandyman knew he had lost his last lifeline; he no longer had any leverage to negotiate with Gao.
Gao Yang quickly ran to Bob’s side and whispered in his ear, “Don’t talk, just pretend you don’t know us, okay?”
Gao Yang realized he had worried unnecessarily as soon as he finished speaking because, with his face covered, there was no way Bob would recognize him.
Bob’s eyes widened as he looked at Gao Yang, seemingly not hearing what Gao had whispered in his ear, and said loudly, “Who are you guys?”
“Mercenaries, here to rescue you,” Gao Yang immediately shouted.
“You’re worth ten million, so be careful not to get yourself killed.
You’re worthless to us dead.”
After shouting that, Gao Yang picked up the handgun dropped by the guard watching Bob, stuffed the handgun into Bob’s hand, and called out over the radio, “Bob is safe.
He’s coming up now.
Toad, Little Fly, send someone down to receive our asset.”
Having said that, Gao Yang pushed Bob and instructed, “Stand aside, take care of yourself, someone’s coming to get you.”
“Received, understood, I’m coming down right away!”
Lee Jinfang replied over the radio, and that was followed by a burst of cheering.
Simon yelled out, his words garbled, “Ram, well done!
Primary objective completed, National Bird go pick them up; you don’t need to worry about us!”
Gao Yang immediately called out over the radio, “National Bird to pick up Bob, but don’t leave.
Team Two, don’t give up; we still have a chance.
If we’re going to leave, we’ll do it together.
It’s not the time to give up yet.
If the shooting stops in the lobby on the first floor, come up from there.
Remember, we now have a hostage on our hands, guys.”
As Gao Yang finished speaking hastily, Lee Jinfang hurriedly ran down from upstairs, grabbed Bob in one swift movement, and then turned and ran back up.
As he left, Jinfang gave Gao a ready signal with his hand.
And just as Lee Jinfang took Bob away, the gunfire in the first-floor lobby finally ceased.
Toller Gandyman’s men on the first floor still didn’t know what had happened above them.
Waiting for the gunfire on the first floor to stop completely, Gao Yang barked over the radio, “Team Two, hold your fire.
Upon receiving the signal, come inside and join us.
Brothers, let’s take a gamble with our lives.”
After making the radio call, Gao Yang addressed Toller Gandyman, “Let our guys come up; you’ve got no room for bargaining anymore.
You should know we are mercenaries, and our primary objective has been completed.
So as long as you cooperate, we can have a decent and peaceful conclusion.”
Gritting his teeth, Toller Gandyman said, “How do you guarantee my safety?
Mercenaries aren’t exactly synonymous with keeping promises.
If I’m going to die anyway, why not let your men down there join me in death, even if I can’t take the both of you down with me?”
Gao Yang shrugged and replied, “I promise I won’t kill you.
You’re right in thinking we don’t always keep our word, but you know what mercenaries fight for.
So let our guys come up and give me some money.
I think we can find a mutually satisfying solution where you get to live, and we get to leave alive with the money.”
Toller Gandyman still refused to speak, so Gao Yang could only sigh and say, “You know we have a plane for extraction.
I could kill you and have my four members accompany you in death, then we could fly off the rooftop with Bob.
It’d be a shame, but that would mean fewer people to split the ten million dollars with, so you’d better think carefully.
Now, we’re taking you to the rooftop, and I can have my men lay down their arms and let your guys take control, to allow you a chance at a way out by trading my companions’ lives for yours.”
Gao Yang’s words finally broke through Toller Gandyman’s psychological defenses because he felt that Gao was right.
A group of mercenaries gathered together for money didn’t seem to value their comrades’ lives too much, at least that’s what Toller himself believed.
“Loew, bring those damned mercenaries outside up here to exchange for me.
If they refuse to lay down their arms, let me die with them!” (To be continued.
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