The tires spun on the packed snow, throwing gray slush against the brick walls of the alley.

I gripped the plastic handle above the window.

The headlights cut through the swirling white flakes, illuminating the rusted loading dock of the warehouse.

Inside the receiver, the sounds became chaotic.

“You think you’re leaving here alive, Adrian?” Leo shouted.

“I don’t care,” Adrian replied.

“As long as she is safe from you.”

There was the sharp, metallic slide of a gun chambering a round.

“Get down!” Adrian yelled.

Miller swung the steering wheel to the left.

The car skidded on a patch of black ice, the rear end fishtailing before striking a frozen trash bin.

The impact jolted my spine, but I kept my eyes locked on the warehouse doors.

A loud pop echoed from the speaker, followed by another.

They sounded like firecrackers muffled by the heavy winter air.

Then came the sound of breaking glass from the warehouse’s second-floor windows.

“Shots fired!” Miller yelled into his radio.

“Shots fired at the warehouse!”

He threw open his door, the freezing wind rushing into the warm interior of the sedan.