She glanced at the pool awning, her brow working a frown as if contemplating her move, she looked back at me and nodded.
“Good girl. On three, right?” Again, she nodded. I could hear more men running into the den. Kat’s rifle singing hallelujah as she took them down. Stupid fucks hadn’t figured out that their best maneuver would be to come around the house below us. “Go.” I tapped Ria’s shoulder. She moved to the railing, climbed over and jumped without a thought. I watched her fall and roll to the ground. She lay there for a second, winded before I jumped, dropped, and rolled. Grabbing her hand, I pulled her up and raced off toward the woods.
“They’re in the back,” someone shouted before more gunfire erupted.
Kat making them dance as they returned fire, shooting at a ghost, no doubt. If there was anyone I’d walk into war with, it would be her. Her skills might not match mine perfectly, but she was fucking good, one of the best I’d worked with.
Bullets cut through the trees, bits of bark splintering all around us. Dragging Ria behind me, I picked off three men with headshots. I could hear Ria’s startled gasps as their dead bodies hit the ground. Another two came at us from the opposite direction and Kat’s bullets splattered their brains like falling rain.
We rounded a tree and out of the corner of my eye, I caught the glint of metal. Tugging Ria to a stop, I put a finger to my lips, motioning for her to be quiet. I was surprised she wasn’t breathing hard given our exertion. Like me, she seemed to be fit for a good run. She nodded and crouched. Not wanting to draw attention to us, I gestured for her to hold my gun and pulled out one of the knives sheathed to my ankle. Although her eyes widened, she took it, clasped it in trembling hands, the muzzle pointed at me. Shaking my head, I lowered it to the ground. She gave me a weak smile.
I crept toward the man I could see tiptoeing around the trees. With his back to me, he didn’t hear my approach. I grabbed him from the back with a hand to his brow at the same time gliding the knife from ear to ear. His throat split, blood spilling as his body twitched against me. My eyes locked with Ria’s. Even in the moonlight, I could see the shock in her eyes. She was biting down hard on her fist to stifle her scream, her body shaking, tears streaming down her cheeks. I tried to comfort her with my eyes, but shock made her inconsolable. For now.
A snap of a twig to my right and I let the man slide down my body to the ground. Stepping behind a tree, I waited for the second fuck to approach. He did, a few seconds later, his eyes on Ria. She balked. He moved. I moved. With a hand to his brow, I tugged his head back and sliced his neck wide open.
This time, Ria dropped the gun, leaned over to the side, and vomited. I crouched next to her and held her hair back from her face. When she stopped retching, I held out a handkerchief. She wiped her mouth and handed the square back to me. Grinning, I shook my head, and slipped off my jacket. Tugging her to her feet, I draped it around her shoulders. “Put it on.” She did as I asked. “Come on.” I took her hand and pulled her toward the woods while dialing Declan. “Coming up on the boundary wall, we’ve got electrical fencing,” I said when he answered.
“Hang on a sec.” He came back on a few seconds later. “Deactivated. I’ll reactive once you’re over.”
“Thanks.” I cut the call as we reached the wall. “I’m going to give you a hand up, you need to jump again. Can you do that?” She nodded and I wondered what had happened to the babble I’d met with, at the restaurant. Tucking my gun in my waistband, I cupped my hands together and leaned down. “Put your foot in my hands and use my shoulders to push yourself up, then grab the edge of the wall. Once at the top, use your hands to cling to the wall and lower yourself to the ground as quickly as possible. Okay?” She nodded and did as I asked. When she was on top, she glanced back at. “What do you see?” I whisper-called.
“More woods.”
“Good.” That would help hide us. “Can you climb down?” She nodded. “Okay, go, I’m right behind you.” When she disappeared, I climbed the nearest tree and hoisted myself onto the wall then clambered over and jumped down. Grabbing her hand, I jogged through the woods. When we were at what I assumed was a safe distance, I pulled out my phone and dialed Declan. “Talk to me,” I said, knowing he’d have eyes on the area.
“The place is crawling with men. They’ve got a couple of vehicles scanning the woods inside and outside the property.
“Kat?”
“She ran out of ammo and bailed but cost Nathaniel a pretty penny in men.”
“Good. I need somewhere to hold-up for the night”
“On it. Give me a sec.”
While I waited, I glanced over at Ria. With her back against a tree, my jacket three sizes too big for her slim frame, she held her head in her hands.
“Got you something. It’s about a mile out to your left. Old couple on vacation so their place is empty. Sending you the location now.”
“Alarm?”
“I’ll deactivate it. Just pick the lock and go on in.” He chuckled.
I glanced at my phone as the location pinged. “Thanks. I’m going to switch off my phone as soon as we get there to save battery. If there is a phone on the property, I’ll call you and you can send a car for us.”
“I wouldn’t chance it. Lay low for the night, Gabe, there’s too many of Nathaniel’s men combing the area. They’ll keep a lookout for any suspicious vehicles. I’ll keep you posted and get you out in the morning.”
I gritted my teeth, annoyed I couldn’t get more rounds in. “I need to get Nathaniel. I’m going to leave the girl at the house and backtrack—”
“Fuck, Gabe, you’re fucking good but Nathaniel’s called in a cavalry. How many guns do you have on you?”
I cursed, punching a tree. “My car’s back at his place, the trunks loaded.”
“Yeah well, that doesn’t help with shit because getting to your car will get you killed.” He sighed. “Just think about it carefully. Weigh your options, please.” I caught the underlying worry in his voice.
“Okay.” I cut the call and walked over to Ria. She looked up, her green eyes round spheres of exhaustion. “I need you to do something.”
