“Please be careful,” her mother said.“It will be dangerous out tonight.”
Her father nodded.“Always, sweetheart.Always.”
He, Jago, and Jamie collected packs and shrugged them onto their backs.
“See you in the morning,” her father said.
Her mother’s brow furrowed when she closed the door after them.“Are we doing the right thing?”
“Staying isn’t an option, Mama.”
As darkness fell, they finished the chores and sat in the kitchen, each cradling a mug of tea.
A heavy thump at the door made them tense.A second, then a third bang—definitely not her brothers.
Sienna stood, her inner cat bristling.“Hunters?”
“Be careful,” her mother warned.
Sienna approached the door and inhaled.Two strangers—neither scent familiar.She smoothed her palms over her jeans and drew a steadying breath before cracking the door open.
The frown came naturally.
“Why are you banging on our door in the middle of the night?”she snapped, not opening it fully.
Two hunters loomed on the doorstep, broad-shouldered and stone-faced, their gaze sweeping her like predators sizing up prey.
“Who lives here?”one demanded.
“Who wants to know?And why?”Sienna shot back.
“We’re doing house-to-house searches,” the second said.
“Why?”
“For leopards.”
“In our house?”Sienna scoffed.“No animals here.Not one.”
“We’re also looking for a man with a gunshot wound,” the first said.
Her stomach hollowed.Liam?One of her brothers?She fought to keep her face blank.“Just my mother and me,” Sienna said, planting her feet firmly in the threshold.
“Can we come in?”
“No,” Sienna said.
“If you don’t let us in, we’ll assume you’re hiding something,” the man warned, edging forward.
Sienna snorted.“You wouldn’t let me into your homes, so don’t expect entry here.”She shut the door, sliding the lock across, catching them off guard.
Who did they think they were?If they pushed it, she’d call the cops in the next village.
Tense, she pressed her ear to the door.
A muffled voice said, “We’ll return when they least expect it.Tomorrow night.More men.We’ll distract from the front, while others sneak in the back.”
Sienna huffed, exasperated.They didn’t have a rear entrance.
