Just then, Eugene finally couldn't hold it in anymore and made a strangled sound, as if someone had grabbed him by the throat.
He jerked his head up, eyes wide, and a fine sheen of sweat instantly broke out across his forehead.
"S-Sergeant Abraham...
"W-we need to reassess this. M-my data model is based on specific parameters in Washington... Rock Fortress... this is too sudden... I can't guarantee the success rate..."
His words became increasingly disjointed, his voice dropping until it was barely more than a mutter. His eyes darted around, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.
To someone who didn't know the truth, Eugene might have looked merely timid and afraid, someone losing his nerve at the last moment.
To Calista, though, it was the desperate struggle of a man whose lie was on the verge of being exposed.
Rosita pressed her lips together and gave Eugene a complicated look before turning to Calista.
"We ran into Maggie. She told us about the hospital taking people, and that you might be coming. We want to help rescue your people as a gesture of goodwill before we go to Rock Fortress."
She was straightforward about it.
"Besides, the more people we have, the better our chances against those bastards at the hospital."
Calista quickly weighed the situation.
Maggie had brought three important people with her.
Abraham and Rosita in particular were proven, dependable fighters from the original storyline. Calista wasn't lacking in strong combat personnel, but there was no such thing as too many capable people.
As for Eugene... he was a problem right now, but his later growth had proven that he had real potential. And since Calista already knew exactly what he was hiding, he would actually be easier for her to control.
Whether Rock Fortress could ultimately give them what they wanted could be dealt with later.
Right now, rescuing Glenn and Dr. Caleb came first.
"Fine," Calista agreed without hesitation, wasting no time asking for more details.
"We can discuss the specifics of our cooperation after we rescue them. For now, come with me. We've captured two people from the hospital."
She motioned for everyone to head downstairs.
Calista's decisiveness earned a brief flash of approval from Abraham, while Rosita relaxed slightly.
Only Eugene grew even more uneasy.
The group descended into the parking garage.
In the dim light, the smell of dust immediately washed over them.
At Calista's signal, Merle walked to the rear of the vehicle holding the prisoners and abruptly yanked open the trunk.
Lamson and Licari were curled up inside the cramped space, rags stuffed into their mouths. Their faces and bodies were covered in bruises, and the ropes around them had bitten deep into their skin.
"It's them!"
The moment Maggie saw their police uniforms, her voice turned sharp.
She strode to the back of the vehicle, leaned forward, and gripped the edge of the trunk with both hands.
"Where's Glenn?! Tell me! Where are the two people you took a few days ago near Mile Marker 177 outside the city?!"
The madness in Maggie's eyes terrified Licari.
He nodded frantically, forcing muffled noises through the rag in his mouth.
Merle glanced at Calista.
Calista nodded once.
Only then did Merle roughly yank the cloth from Licari's mouth.
"In a private room! His arm is broken, and the doctor who was with him is treating him! They're still alive!" Licari shouted through tears and snot, his words tumbling over each other. "Don't kill me, please! I was just following orders!"
"Just following orders?!" Maggie repeated.
Lamson shot his cowardly companion a furious glare, then turned that same resentful stare toward Maggie and the others.
That look snapped the last thread of Maggie's restraint.
What happened next was so sudden that no one had time to react.
Maggie lunged into the trunk, grabbed Lamson by the collar with one hand, and hauled him toward her.
Her other hand clenched into a fist.
She drove it down with all her strength.
"Thud!"
The first punch smashed into the bridge of Lamson's nose.
The dull crack of breaking bone was clearly audible, and blood immediately sprayed across the back of Maggie's hand and sleeve.
"When your people ran him down and broke his bones, did you ever think about 'just following orders'?!"
"Thud!"
Another punch landed across his cheekbone.
Lamson screamed like a slaughtered pig, but Maggie had him locked in place by the collar, leaving him nowhere to go.
She didn't stop.
Her fists came down again and again.
This wasn't an interrogation.
She was venting everything she had endured over the past few days. The fear and anxiety, the terror of facing danger alone, the torment of not knowing whether Glenn was alive or dead.
She poured all of it into the prisoner in front of her.
"Maggie..." Carver watched her beating Lamson like she intended to kill him and instinctively started forward.
Easy there. If she killed him, they wouldn't be able to use him in negotiations.
Calista lightly caught Carver by the forearm and shook her head.
She knew Maggie needed an outlet.
As long as she didn't beat him to death, it was fine.
Calista even spared a glance at the other prisoner, Licari.
He was terrified by what he was seeing and was desperately babbling an explanation.
"It wasn't us who hit them! It was O'Donnell and Jeffries..."
Abraham and Rosita's reactions were even more obvious.
It was the first time either of them had seen Maggie truly lose her temper.
Abraham leaned toward Rosita and muttered under his breath, "Damn... that woman hits hard."
Rosita said nothing.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she watched, her expression complicated.
She imagined herself in Maggie's place.
If Abraham had been the one hurt...
Yeah.
She might have gone even further than Maggie.
Eugene had already gone deathly pale.
He clamped both hands over his mouth and hid behind Abraham, too frightened to make a sound.
Maggie had no idea how many punches she threw.
She finally stopped only when Lamson was nearly unconscious, reduced to faint groans.
Panting heavily, she let go of his collar.
Lamson slumped back into the trunk.
Maggie's fingers were red, swollen, and split open, but the fury in her eyes still hadn't completely faded.
Then she turned toward Licari.
Her bloodstained hand started to rise again.
"Enough, Maggie."
This time, Calista stopped her.
Maggie's hand froze in midair.
It trembled violently as her chest rose and fell.
Slowly, she turned toward Calista.
The madness in her eyes gradually gave way to crushing exhaustion, and tears ran down her dirty face.
Calista walked over and looked her in the eyes, softening her voice slightly.
"Save your strength. We'll need it when we rescue Glenn."
Those words worked better than any attempt at comfort.
Maggie squeezed her eyes shut, wiped away her tears, and when she opened them again, she was much calmer.
She lowered her hand, staggered back a step, and leaned against the side of the vehicle.
Abraham and Rosita exchanged a glance.
Both saw the same shock and gravity in the other's eyes.
Rock Fortress was far more formidable than they had first imagined.
Calista, meanwhile, had already shifted her attention away from Maggie and back to Abraham and the others.
Now it was time to talk business.
"We already have the intelligence we need," she said, looking at Abraham. "Abraham, Rosita. You said you wanted to help as a gesture of goodwill before going to Rock Fortress.
"So tell me.
"How far are you willing to go?"