Page 81 of Citadel

I’ve got both of Cole’s handguns, and I start firing them toward the camp. I aim high because I’m such a bad shot. There’s just as much chance I’d hit Cole or his brother or even Breanna as hit one of the bad guys.

I’m the distraction. I need to draw their fire so Cole can come at them from behind.

We just have to hope between the darkness and the distance, they won’t be good enough shots to hit me.

They turn around and fire at me, the gunshots loud and shocking in the darkness. Men are now running out of both tents. It feels like a lot of them. Way too many of them. It’s probably my fear and urgency, but it seems like the tents are some sort of clown car, holding far too many people than could reasonably fit.

They’re all shouting and firing at me.

I keep aiming high since I have no idea now which one is Cole’s brother.

Two of them drop without warning. Cole must have shot them from behind. Some of them turn toward him while the others keep aiming at me.

It’s chaos. And surreal at the same time. This can’t possibly be me.

Eventually my guns run out of ammunition, so I drop them in my bag and, keeping low on the ground, hurry down the hill.

Cole must have taken weapons from the guards he killed because he appears to be in possession of an arsenal. All the men are facing him now, and he’s taking a stand against them alone.

“Breanna!” I scream when I’m close enough to be heard over the gunfire. I haven’t seen her yet. If she’s not here, then all this was for nothing.

She appears at the entrance of one of the tents after a few seconds. She must have heard me. She looks around urgently, so I call her name again.

I don’t know if she sees me or not—I’m still crouching down where the brush offers some sort of protection—but she follows the sound of my voice, keeping low as she runs past the distracted men.

Everything is a tangle of sound and action and violence for a few seconds. A couple of the guys try to come after Breanna, but Cole shifts position. The next thing I know, he’s standing with his back to me and Breanna, putting his body between us and the men.

There’s blood on his shirt now. A lot of it. It makes me almost vomit.

Breanna has reached me, grabbing me in a two-second embrace before she spits out, “You’re out of your fucking minds!”

I ignore her. I’ve always known she’d be mad when she finds out I’m risking my life for her when she’s always believed it should be the other way around.

“Cole!” I scream when I see him advancing toward the men. More have fallen now. It looks like there are only three left standing.

One of them is his brother. I know it’s Mark because Cole isn’t shooting at him. The man isn’t shooting now either. He’s obviously recognized his brother.

For a moment, I think he might change course. Start to help us. Be the brother he’s supposed to be.

But he doesn’t. He turns on his heel, reaches down to grab a pack from the ground, and runs into the trees, disappearing into the darkness.

I see Cole’s head shift, watching his brother run away.

“Go after him,” I yell. “We’ll be fine.”

I don’t think that’s true. There’re two more guys alive, smarter than the others because they’re using a tree for protection as they shoot. If Cole goes after his brother, those men will come after me and Breanna.

But what else can I say? Cole’s brother will always be his priority.

He’ll always choose him.

“Run!” Cole bellows, moving toward the trees and shooting toward the guys left standing at the same time. “Don’t stop!”

Another man who previously fell to the ground must not be dead. He sits up and starts firing too.

Breanna grabs my arm and drags me away before I can decide what to do, leaving Cole to hold them off at the head of the trail we need to follow through the woods.

I have no idea what’s happening. Nothing is making sense. My whole body aches, and my heart is hammering its way out of my chest.

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