“Downstairs,” I rasped, leading the way.
Adrenaline was coursing through my veins as I stepped over bodies and carefully peeked over the railing to the stairs. There was no sound coming from down there, but that didn’t mean anything. Someone could’ve been hiding.
Erik passed me and hurried down the stairs first.
It didn’t feel good to be proven right when automatic gunfire came from the media room to the left of the stairway.
“Motherfuckers,” Beau spat as he took the stairs two at a time. He reached Erik just as he’d dropped down behind the railing. Thankfully, between the two of them, the shooting stopped.
“You can let go of me now,” I told Ambrose through my teeth. His hand felt like it had burned a hole through the skin of my arm.
“Sorry,” he said quietly as we followed the others. I turned off lights as we moved through the house, going out of my way to make sure that we weren’t lit up like a fish tank for anyone outside to see.
When we reached the center island of the kitchen, I had to force myself to reach beneath the counter and press the minuscule button.
“And turn and go up to the open door boldly, and knock to the echoes as beggars for roses,” I said, knocking twice, then four times more.
“What?” Beau asked. “Are you quoting Robert Frost?”
I didn’t have to reply because the end of the counter began to swing inward from the floor. As soon as it had swung parallel to the counter above it, Aunt Halle’s head came into view, her eyes filled with fear.
“Rosemary?”
“Sometimes during the day I will look at the house and the house will look at me, and the house will weep.”
“Yes, it does,” she whispered back.
“I can feel it,” I told her hoarsely, my throat tight with tears of relief.
“Oh god,” she replied. “Come on, boys.”
Aunt Halle climbed up the ladder first, her eyes widening when she saw the Vampires with me.
“Daniel’s family,” I told her, putting my hand on her shoulder so she wouldn’t rise into view of the windows. “Stay down there for a sec.”
“Rosemary Halle, I wiped your ass.”
“And Uncle Dalton taught me to operate,” I countered, my eyes on Erik’s back as he stared through the window. “Now stay put for a minute.”
“Flower?” Grant asked in surprise. He looked around as he crawled out. “Whoa.”
“Quiet,” I ordered. Erik was watching something, but I couldn’t tell what it was.
“Seamus, get out here,” I murmured, keeping my voice low. “We need to move.”
“Where’s Uncle Gary?” Grant asked worriedly.
“He’s here,” I assured him as we ushered my aunt and the boys along the wall opposite the windows. “We’ll see him soon.”
“Fucking hell,” Ambrose hissed as his arm flew out and slammed both Grant and Seamus closer to the wall. “We’ve got more.”
“How many do you see?” Beau asked.
“Two trucks, you?”
“I see three,” Beau called from the other room. “No, four.”
“Why the fuck are there more of them?” I asked no one in particular.
