Page 76 of Tactical Lies

She was tied up and helpless, surrounded by six big men who watched her like she was nothing more than prey they couldn’t wait to pounce on, tear to pieces, and then devour. The storm raged outside, isolating her even further. No one would hear her screams when they were torn from her lips. And Connor was possibly dead, but at the very least, incapacitated in some way and wouldn't be swooping in to save her like he had in Cambodia.

Right as one of them reached out and palmed one of her breasts, an ear-shattering boom shook the cabin.

Chapter

Eighteen

August 23rd

1:26 A.M.

Kill.

That was the word that echoed through Connor’s head as he ran through the torrent of rain pounding down around him.

Every single one of those men who had dared to put their hands on Becca, hurt her, scare her, they all deserved to die.

Slowly.

And painfully.

But since he wanted Becca safe more than he wanted those men to suffer, he’d suffice for just dead.

As badly as he wanted to run to one of the cabin windows, confirm that Becca was alive, and see what they were doing to her, he couldn’t risk it. Not only would it waste time they didn't have, but if one of them caught sight of him before he was ready, it would ruin his plans.

So instead of following his instincts to creep up to the cabin, he bypassed it, circling it at a safe distance and heading for the small shed out the back.

Thankfully, when Cade and his then girlfriend had first bought this place it had been a wreck, about two steps up from dilapidated. The whole family had spent a lot of fun hours out there, rebuilding the cabin, crafting furniture to go inside it, sleeping under the stars at night, and cooking around an open fire. It had been wonderful, brought them all closer together, and even though he could never have foreseen how his life was going to turn out, that Becca would be back in it, and they’d both be there fighting for their lives, it meant that he knew every inch of the place.

Knew where the tools were. Was able to snatch up a hand saw without needing to be able to see where it was in the wall of tools inside the shed. It also meant he knew the perfect way to create a distraction that the men in the cabin couldn't attribute to him.

Once he had them outside, not only did it give him a clear shot at eliminating them, but it also lessened the threat to Becca.

With the saw in his hand, Connor barely noticed the rain, the screeching wind, or the throbbing pain in his shoulder as he ran for the tree closest to the cabin. When they’d been rebuilding the place, they’d debated for almost three weeks whether to leave it where it was or have it cut down. It was a beautiful old tree, and it provided shade for the cabin on hot summer days, but there was also the possibility that in a storm such as this, it could either topple over or lose a branch and damage the cabin.

Exactly his plan for tonight.

Well, he was going to do his best not to damage the cabin, but he also needed this to be real enough that it would get everybody’s attention.

Climbing the tree in the middle of a raging storm with a saw in his hand and one of his shoulders messed up wasn't as easy as he would have liked, and he lost precious seconds. Once he was high enough that he could reach one of the branches that fanned out over the cabin, he sat, wrapped his legs around it, and shuffled his way along. When he was about halfway, he got to work.

The rain made everything slippery, and he almost lost his grip on the handle of the saw several times, but he was determined, which helped him fight back against the storm’s advantages.

Becca was counting on him, and he wasn't going to let her down.

Not again.

Not ever again.

Nothing was going to stop him from saving her.

With a groan, the branch he sawed began to wobble, then with the most exhilarating sound, it broke off and slammed into the side of the cabin with a crash.

Because he hadn't cut off anything too big, damage to the cabin was minimal at best, not that Cade would care if he’d had to destroy the thing. Family. That was what was most important. The people you loved who loved you back, they were what life was all about. Raising his daughter alone after losing his wife meant Cade knew that better than most.

Fueled by adrenaline, Cade didn't bother climbing back down the tree, he simply jumped.

The landing was hard, but he barely felt the pain that ricocheted up his legs, and the now-soaked and muddy ground helped to cushion his landing, preventing him from breaking anything like he might have if he’d jumped that same distance twelve hours ago.

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