The figure crossed the room and crouched by the bed, shoving at it as he moved it.I didn’t look under the bed.The thought rushed to her mind as another one hit her, and the person straightened. Her eyes widened.That can’t be Oscar!The person was stockier and maybe slightly taller.
Carrie’s breath steadied. She forced her pulse to slow down and stepped from the shadows, taser raised.
“Stop.”
The figure spun. In the dim light from the window, she saw the gleam of a blade in his hand. A balaclava covered his face, leaving only the whites of his eyes.
Her mind snapped back to another night, only that time Carrie was staring down the barrel of a gun, and a sickening lurch of fear rose in her gut that sparked anger over being made to feel afraid and helpless. NO. Not again. Not this time.I’m not a victim.
Before he could come at her, Carrie lunged, jamming the taser into his side. Electricity crackled, blue-white and violent.
The man’s body convulsed. His knife clattered to the floor. He crumpled, a heavy thud shaking the floorboards.
Carrie stood over him, chest heaving, taser still buzzing in her trembling grip.
MATT
Matt staggered through the front door, drenched, muscles burning. He laid the unconscious man on the sofa. Andy slammed the door, locking it against the storm after the dogs tumbled inside, soaked and panting, shaking water across the foyer.
“I’ll get Carrie,” Matt said, breathless. “She’ll know where Lori keeps the first aid kit.”
“I’ll get the fire going again,” Andy called, already fumbling with the lantern and kindling.
Matt pounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time. His heart thudded harder than the storm outside.
At Carrie’s door, he froze, hearing a strange sound—the sharp crackle of electricity, followed by a groan, then a thud like someone falling.
“Carrie!” Matt shouted, slamming the door open.
She spun toward him, taser still clutched in her hand, her face pale, eyes wide. The taser clattered to the floor as she flew into his arms, trembling, her body shaking against his chest.
“What on earth happened?” Matt demanded, holding her tight.
“I was searching the room,” she gasped, words tumbling over each other. “I heard footsteps. At first, I thought it was Oscar. But it wasn’t. He had a knife. I—I used the taser.”
“It’s not Oscar.” Matt’s stomach dropped. “Oscar’s downstairs. Knocked out. The stupid kid ran outside, probably trying to create a diversion, and knocked himself out. Andy found him.”
Carrie pulled back, her face stricken. She looked down at the unconscious figure on the floor.
“If Oscar’s downstairs…” Carrie’s voice was soft. “Then who is that?” She pointed to the man on the bedroom floor.
Matt released her reluctantly, then stepped forward. He hooked a hand into the balaclava and yanked it free.
Carrie gasped.
Matt’s breath hissed out between his teeth.
“Ian Marshall?” they said together.
