She did. “That’s Hannah Brooks.”
One of the surrogates, he recalled. He’d seen her in the garden shortly before that attack on Sunny.
“Stay put,” he told Livvy and Veronica.
With Livvy muttering for him to be careful, he went out into the foyer and saw the surrogate rushing toward him. “In here,”Ethan told her, leading her into the parlor. “Did you see what happened? Do you know who fired the shot?”
Hannah’s eyes were wide, and her breath was gusting as she frantically shook her head. “Is it someone after Sunny? Because she’s not here.”
Hell. He’d hoped Hannah might be able to give them some insight as to what was going on. “Could you tell where the shot came from?” he asked.
But before Hannah could answer, there was another gunshot. Then, another. The third bullet ripped through the wall of the parlor too damn close to where Livvy and Veronica were standing.
“Oh, God. Leah and Charlotte are in the kitchen,” Hannah blurted.
Leah was the other surrogate he’d seen, and Charlotte was a client. And Ethan soon heard them or maybe someone else. There were definitely some shrieks coming from the back of the house. That was probably where the kitchen was located.
“Charlotte and Leah, get down,” he shouted. “Everyone get down,” he added in an even louder voice so that anyone upstairs might be able to hear him as well.
Thankfully, Hannah and Veronica instantly complied. Even Livvy ducked down some. Not enough though, and Ethan cursed himself for her once again being in the path of danger. Which meant their baby was in danger, too.
And not just theirs but the babies the surrogates were carrying.
“Is anyone hurt?” Ethan called out a heartbeat later.
“No,” several women answered in unison. One of them might have been Chloe, but he couldn’t be sure. What he was certain of was that Franklin hadn’t responded. He hadn’t heard a male voice.
“Who else is in the house?” he asked Hannah.
She shook her head again, and it took her a couple of seconds to respond. “Chloe and Franklin. And Sienna.”
Ethan recalled that name, too. She was a client, and Leah was carrying her child. “What about Sienna’s husband?”
“He’s not here. Still away on business. And I haven’t seen Sienna this morning.” Hannah stopped talking and screamed when there was another shot.
“All right,” Ethan muttered, pulling his thoughts together. He met Livvy eye to eye. “I’m going to the kitchen to make sure everyone there is safe. Just wait here. I won’t be long.”
She didn’t repeat herBe careful, but he could see it in her eyes. Could see the fear, too. It was always terrifying to be caught up in gunfire. It was worse, though, when they had so many other lives at stake.
Another shot blasted into the wall of the parlor, and this time, Ethan had a better idea of where it’d come from—on the other side of the house where he thought there were offices and treatment areas. He wished now that he’d actually studied the layout of the place rather than just glancing at it in the background notes.
He gave Livvy one last look that he hoped conveyed that he didn’t want her to take any unnecessary risks. It was just a glance, but a whole lot of things passed between them. They’d both be careful.
And hopefully that would be enough.
Staying low and keeping his gun ready, Ethan slipped out of the parlor. He kept his footsteps as light as possible so he could hear if anyone was approaching. He definitely didn’t want to be ambushed or, worse, have the shooter storm into the parlor and start firing.
He threaded his way through the living and dining rooms and into the massive kitchen that spanned the entire width of thehouse. His stomach dropped when he didn’t see the women, but he heard some gusting breaths and whirled around to spot them.
Charlotte and Leah were huddled together on the floor next to the fridge. Both of them were holding huge knives. Good for them. Though knives wouldn’t do much good against a gun.
“You’re okay?” he verified in a whisper.
The women nodded and continued to cling to each other. “Who’s shooting?” Charlotte asked.
“Don’t know yet. Have you seen Chloe or Franklin?” he asked.
“No,” they replied.
