Chapter Fourteen
More shots slammed into the SUV, each one rattling through Alena’s bones.
“Get down!” Cal barked, throwing his arm across her as the safety glass shattered and flew. Tiny shards peppered her skin, sharp stings that barely registered through the adrenaline pounding in her veins.
She ducked low, heart hammering, and yanked her gun free. Cal already had his gun drawn, scanning the trees. Another round hit the hood, then the side mirror exploded.
“Where the hell are they?” Alena muttered, trying to track the shooter. Shadows shifted in the dense trees, but nothing solid, no clear target.
Her stomach twisted hard.Please, God, don’t let this bastard be anywhere near the sanctuary.
Cal gave a quick voice command, his phone chiming as it connected. “Raines, shots fired on the approach road to Cedar Ridge. We need backup now.”
He cut a sharp look at her. “Text Noah. I want every gun we can get out here.”
Her hands shook as she tapped out the message, but she forced herself to move fast.Backup. Now. Road to Cedar Ridge. Shots fired.
Whoever this shooter was, he wasn’t letting up—and they needed to shut him down before David or anyone else inside the sanctuary got caught in the crossfire.
The gunfire kept coming, steady bursts that made the SUV shudder with every hit. Alena ducked lower, teeth clenched, glass crunching beneath her boots. They were pinned tight.
Cal’s phone buzzed, and she saw the response from Raines.On the way. Fifteen minutes out.Seconds later, Noah’s reply came through:ETA 20 minutes. Hold tight.
Fifteen to twenty minutes felt like a lifetime under this kind of fire.
Another buzz lit up her screen. This one from the Crossfire Ops guard stationed at Cedar Ridge.Locking down now. Do you need me out there?
“No,” Alena muttered, fingers flying as she typed back.Stay inside. Don’t leave the building. David could be the main target.
Her chest clenched at the thought. If this was about drawing them out, David was the easiest way to hurt her. To hurt Cal. That possibility terrified her more than the bullets slamming into steel.
“That was the guard at Cedar Ridge,” she let Cal know.
Cal’s gaze cut to hers, hard and determined even under fire. “You tell him not to leave David?”
She nodded, her throat tight. “He’s staying put. David’s safe for now.”
Safe for now. The words echoed like a prayer, fragile as glass, as another round chewed into the hood just inches from the windshield.
Cal lifted his head, just enough to peek above the dashboard. Alena’s pulse spiked, and she grabbed his shirt,yanking him back down. A shot cracked against the glass where his head had been a split second earlier. Shards rained down across the console.
“Damn it, Cal,” she hissed, her heart hammering in her throat.
“He’s in the trees,” Cal said, his voice steady, too steady. “Passenger’s side, close. He’s on the ground, not elevated.”
Another round hit, this one low, chewing into the metal just below her door. The bastard was zeroing in.
Cal looked at her, his jaw tight. “I can get out on my side, drop low, and circle around. If I can flank him—”
“No,” Alena cut in, sharply. “That’s too risky.” Her pulse raced, every instinct screaming to keep him right here beside her.
“We don’t have a lot of options,” he shot back, eyes locked on hers.
He was right, and that made her blood run cold. Sitting here wasn’t going to cut it. Sooner or later, one of those bullets would punch through the wrong spot, and they’d be done.
“I’m coming with you,” Alena said, her voice low but firm. She already had her gun gripped tight, her finger brushing the trigger guard. “I’ll cover you while you try to circle around.”
Cal gave a sharp shake of his head. “You can’t get a clean shot. Not from this angle.”
