“I don't think I'm actually the one being hunted, Slade. Someone's just trying to keep you guys busy.”
Picking up the pace, his hand tightens on mine. “Emmy.”
Chapter 15
Sabrina
––––––––
“Come on, pick up, pickup.”
Yet another call goes to voicemail. Cinjin, it makes sense, since he can’t very well answer while on his bike, but he’ll see the slew of messages when he gets to my apartment and we aren’t there. Reid, Boden, and Emmy’s silence though? It cuts like a knife, and every scenario I imagine is worse than the last.
Slade is deadly quiet the entire drive, and I keep expecting to see flashing red and blue lights in the rearview mirror at any second. Cars blur past as we weave in and out of traffic, my nails digging into the door handle with every close call to getting in a wreck. When we hit the driveway and slow down, I release a heavy breath of relief, only to trade one source of anxiety for another.
“Do you know how to shoot?” he demands, no nonsense and barely sparing me a glance.
“Haven’t fired one since I was fifteen, so I’m rusty as hell, but yeah.”
He doesn't complain or groan, simply charts out what he has to work with as we pull to a stop outside of the door. “I can't leave you out here alone. You’d be a sitting duck for any number of things to go wrong, and I don't even know what to prepare for anymore. You stay by me, and if I tell you to do something, you do it without question, understood?”
Nodding, I scan the area around the house, but see nothing out of the ordinary. Reaching across my lap, Slade pops open the glovebox and withdraws another handgun, flipping off the safety and loading a bullet into the chamber before pressing it in my hand.
“Donotkeep your finger hovering over the trigger. If one of the others comes around a corner and startles you, you'll reflexively shoot before realizing who it is. Any bullet could go wide or through someone, so only fire if you have a clear shot or no choice. Aim for the torso instead of their head; broader target. Eyes open, and brace yourself for the kickback.”
With that crash course refresher, I follow his lead out of the car, the two of us knowing full well that I’m more of a liability than an asset with these people. The sun has nearly finished setting, and I’m not sure if that’s in our favor or not. The guys’ senses will be heightened, but there very well might be people here who can actually shift. No clue if a wolf can hold its own in a gunfight, but with as big of a deal as shifting is to the men around here, I’m betting they could at least do some serious damage.
On high alert, his gaze swivels over the area and back again as we enter the house. His nostrils flare, jaw ticking before his eyes narrow with deadly conviction. Feeling incredibly dumb, I follow suit, taking a deep inhale to see if I can pick up on things the way he can. Promptly gagging, I throw my free hand over my face to stifle the stench. It's not the blood; of all of the smells, that one might actually be the most pleasant. Until this moment, I never realized death not only had a scent all its own, but it's so overpowering, it manages to have aflavorthat lingers on my tongue.
Slade puts a hand on my shoulder, cocking his head to listen intently. Without preamble, he grabs my wrist, running to the end of the hall and banking left. Three shots fire just as we round the corner, and I stare wide-eyed at the hole in the portrait’s forehead across from us at the junction. Slade pins me against the wall, reaching his left hand around into the hall that we narrowly escaped in time. Face devoid of anything but clinical calculation, he fires off four shots.
My ears ring to the point that I can't even hear my thundering heartbeat. I stay absolutely still and silent, holding my breath while watching Slade's face for any sign of what to do next. A few more seconds tick by before he cranes his neck, peering into the hallway to check. Clearly pleased with the result, he turns his attention back to me.
I watch his lips move, but can't discern any of the words. Rather than risk saying anything and giving away our position if I’m unintentionally loud since I can’t hear myself, I tap my ear and rapidly shake my head. His expression softens as he cups my cheek, saying something else that's lost on me while coaxing me to exhale.
My chest suddenly twists with violent ferocity, and I whip my head to the right on instinct. Without giving myself time to think about it, I raise my gun and fire three shots in rapid succession. Blood sprays across the wall as the man falls, and I've no doubt Slade joined in when I moved, that it was his headshot to claim instead of mine. Gently pushing my wrist down to lower my weapon, Slade tilts my face back to him and slams his lips against mine in a brief, bruising kiss before taking my hand and bolting.
