She did. Delaney went belly down onto the ground. Silence fell like a curtain, thick and unnatural. Eli kept his body low, his back pressed against the gravel and his eyes trained on the tree line. His ears strained for any sound. A snapped twig. A footstep. Anything.
Across from him, Delaney stayed still, herbreaths short and controlled. He knew her well enough now to see the tension in the set of her shoulders, the way her fingers flexed on her weapon. She was ready. But so was whoever had them pinned down.
Eli considered the SUV. The windows were spidered but intact. Bullet-resistant. If Delaney could get inside, she’d be safer. But she’d have to expose herself to do it. One wrong move and she could take a bullet in a spot that could kill her.
He opened his mouth to whisper a plan, but the next shot cracked through the air before he could speak.
The bark above his head exploded, splinters raining down on his arm. The angle had changed. Son of a bitch had moved.
Closer.
He bit down on the rising panic. Not fear.Focus. Keep her safe. Find the threat.
Delaney ducked lower, eyes locking with his.
“He’s moving,” she whispered.
Eli shifted again, this time crawling through the scrub to a better vantage point. His hands were scraped raw from gravel and thorns. His heart thudded behind his ribs like a war drum.
Another crack.
The bullet punched into the front quarter panel of the SUV. Closer again.
Eli aimed toward the new direction and fired twice in quick succession. The muzzle flashes lit up the shadows. No scream. No return fire.
He didn’t like that.
Delaney’s voice was tight. “You think he’s trying to flush us out?”
Eli didn’t answer. He was already moving. He commando crawled from the boulder and behind some thick underbrush.
And then he heard it.
A sound he sure as hell hadn’t wanted to hear.
The gunshot followed by Delaney’s sharp gasp. Her body recoiled, her breath hissed through her teeth, and she cradled her left arm.
His heart crashed against his ribs.
“Delaney,” he blurted on a rush of breath.
She held up her hand before he could reach her. “I’m okay,” she bit out. “Not serious. Just grazed.”
He didn’t believe her. Not entirely. Blood was already soaking through the sleeve of her jacket. The sight of it lit something dark and hot in his chest.
The bastard had shot her.
Eli turned his head, scanning the brush and trees beyond the SUV. He could feel the shooter watching. Calculating. Waiting.
Fine. Let him.
Eli shifted to his knees and rose higher than he should have. He didn’t care. He wanted the bastard to see him.
“Hey!” Eli shouted, his voice a roar that echoed across the open stretch. “You want someone to shoot at? I’m right here!”
Another shot rang out.
It hit the gravel a foot from his position, kicking up dust and stone. Then another followed, this one closer.
