Before he can speak, there’s a shift in the air. Like our kiss broke the underpinnings of our blissful little adventure, and there’s a low rumble of thunder in the distance. He glances up at the sky, and his face clouds.
“Do you hear that?” he asks abruptly, all the thick fog that’s wound its way around us clearing the second I hear the sharpness in his tone.
“Yes. Thunder?” He’d warned me before about how fast the storms come in up here. But no sooner do I ask the question than I hear it more clearly. It’s not thunder. It’s a soft, distant, methodical hum. Like the beat of massive wings. Ones that are getting closer and closer.
He holds his hand out, urging me to stay where I am before he takes off on foot, moving to higher ground where he can see. There’s enough of a break in the canopy at this angle for me to catch a glimpse. There, at the top of our mountain, is a helicopter. The door on one side is hanging open, and if my eyes aren’t betraying me, I see guns and a half dozen men readying themselves to scale down the rope they’ve just thrown out the side.
My heart bottoms out into my stomach, and a surge of fear winds its way up my spine.
“Run.” He says it softly at first when he makes his way back to me, still staring up over his shoulder at the black metal bird in the sky, but when he repeats himself as he turns to face me, it’s a clear demand. “Run, Zephyrine!”
We both take off in a full sprint, running for the cabin. I manage to pace him despite my still-sore ankle. I’m terrified. I don’t have to wait to find out who’s inside the helicopter. I know. It’ll mean the end of us both.
“Get to the cabin. There’s a spot in the floor in the bedroom where the boards lift. You need to get under it.” He yells the instructions as we both pace our way back up the mountainside. My lungs are straining for air. It’s thinner up here, at least a mile and a half up, and going higher with every step we take. I adapted to it since we arrived, drinking lots of water and sleeping more than usual. But I wasn’t prepared to have to run for my life.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to hold him off until my guys get here.”
He pulls the walkie out from his belt loop and presses the button. I can’t hear what he says over my own heavy breathing, but I know he’s radioing his security team. I just have to hope the two of them are enough to help us.
I didn't count them, but the helicopter looked full, and my husband’s too much of a coward to come alone. If we live through this, it’ll be a miracle.
I’m not sure I believe in them anymore.
TWENTY-TWO
Levi
“Here.”I hand Zephyrine my walkie after I silence it. “Get under here and stay here. Be as silent as a church mouse. Don’t come out for any reason. I don’t care what you hear or think you hear. You don’t come out until I tell you or there’re hours of silence, you got it? If you need to call for someone, I’ve set it so those comms go to the entire security team. They’re already on their way. Someone will come for you.”
“Yes, okay. But what about you? There’s room!” She looks absolutely petrified, and it only steels my nerves.
“No. I have to take care of this. I’ve got a plan. Don’t worry.” I do my best to reassure her. I trust my team. I trust the perimeter. I just have to go through with the plan we put in place. I kiss her forehead, but her worried look doesn’t fade.
There’s a loud warning shot in the distance, and then another round of open gunfire. It’s enough to get me moving.
“Get down, and whatever you do, stay quiet,” I urge her. I put the false floor back in place over the top of her, taking her in onelast time while I work to keep her safe. Her blue eyes hold mine until the darkness covers them.
I kick the carpet back into place and grab my gun, tucking it into the back of my jeans. I skirt the perimeter of the cabin, looking out the windows to see where anyone might be, but all I see is the wide expanse of forest and the lakefront. I take a deep, steadying breath. I'm not a stranger to this kind of situation. I've lived it before. Planned for it now. But there’s always this moment where I wonder if this is it. The last one I get.
I close my eyes and breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth as I hear an explosion in the distance. I armed all the trip wires and explosives remotely just as soon as we arrived here. They’re doing their job as promised, and I sit down at the table to take a sip of my coffee and pull open the drone feed. They’re swarming now, even as Corey's guys take shots at them. The drones follow their path through the woods, and I start counting. One, three, five. I count my way through them as they cross into the second zone. Two men are already down. One’s limping, another clearly fallen behind as he tends to a wound.
I zoom in. Seven of them and her husband, I presume, pulling up the rear. He’s not interested in being cannon fodder for my defensive bulwark. He’s brought expendables with him for exactly that reason. Hoping that he can use them to get into this cabin. Unfortunately, it’ll probably work. I didn't expect someone to come from the top of the mountain down. A helicopter is clever. I’ll give him that much. Zephyrine warned me I’d underestimate him, and she was right.
I just hope Jack and the rest of the team are watching the drone footage too, using it to make the best of their positions until backup arrives. We’re deep in the woods, but their response time was near-perfect when Zephyrine made a run for it. I’m hoping they have the same timing today. We’ll need it.
Another round of fire comes that sounds closer than before. An explosion follows. More gunfire. It echoes against the mountainside, and there’s shouting in the distance as another man falls within the drone's frame.
More screams echo through the forest, and the din of male voices gets louder and louder as they move closer. My heart rate kicks up a notch when I hear the footsteps on the gravel path below the cabin.
I grab my coffee and take one last swig before I stand, walking my way toward the door and putting my hand on my gun. I close my eyes, trying to take in every sound around me. Another round of gunfire, the sound of a body hitting the ground, and I hold my position in front of the door. I’m her last line of defense, and I don’t want to fail her.
Footsteps fly up the gravel and pound their way over the front porch of the cabin. There’s someone breathing heavily at the door, out of breath and heart racing. Someone rattled. Panicked. I could use that to my advantage.
I aim my gun and fire a round through the wall.
“Fuck!” He cries out, and I hear him crumple outside the door. For a moment, I move forward, thinking this was all easier than I thought. But he stands again, and I watch the door handle rattle and turn. The attempt grows more erratic as he loses his patience. I keep the barrel aimed on the entry.
