Page 74 of Savior

The two other women sob. Cry. Hyperventilate.

But Penny doesn’t lose her determination. She keeps pressing on Chloe’s wound, her fingers drowning in blood as the spluttering loses its ferocity, the wide eyes of the dying girl growing dull.

“Chloe,” Penny warns. “Stay with me.”

There’s nothing I can do, not one fucking thing, as Chloe’s soul quickly slips from her body. She gurgles with the blood suffocating her, her shoulders twitching, once, twice. Then she’s gone, her head slumping limp, the red stream of death still dripping from her innocent lips.

The other women wail, grasping at the deceased’s hands and face.

They beg. They plead. They sob.

All Penny does is stiffen.

There are no tears or weakness. She doesn’t show one ounce of vulnerability as she stares unblinking at her fallen sister.

The gunshot echoing from the other side of the house doesn’t even make her jolt. It’s the other women who scream and scramble to their feet to run for cover as heavy footfalls approach from the hall.

I step in front of Penny, shielding her, and aim my gun. A figure invades the doorway, tempting my trigger finger.

“It’s me,” Decker calls, withdrawing from view. “Don’t shoot.” He waits a heartbeat then re-enters as more thunderous steps carry toward us. “Hunter’s behind me.”

He takes in the sight before him with apprehension, his gaze sliding over the newest additions to our crew before settling on the corpse on the floor. “Is she dead?”

I nod. “Bullet to the gut.”

Hunter storms into the room, his attention following the same path as Decker’s. “We’ve gotta get out of here. The asshole who escaped could be calling backup.”

“Did we get any intel?” Decker asks. “Have the safes been checked?”

“There’s no time. I’m not willing to risk it.” I start for Penny and jut my chin toward the two other women cowering on the floor. “Hunt, you help them. Deck, you get back outside and grab the duffels. We can’t leave anything behind.”

Decker eyes me, then Penny. He’s about to make another comment about me getting between him and his sister, and I don’t have the fucking patience.

“If I knew where you put the duffels I’d get them myself,” I growl, “but I don’t. So get your ass moving.”

He glares, making me well aware I’ll be paying for my actions later.

I don’t fucking care. We need to move.

“Ladies, it’s time to leave.” Hunter starts toward them as Decker jogs from the room. “It’s not safe here.”

I don’t wait to watch their reactions. I keep my focus on Penny, who remains at Chloe’s side, her hands still pressed into the pool of blood on the woman’s abdomen.

“Shorty…” I walk up behind her to crouch at her back. “We need to get moving.”

She doesn’t acknowledge me. Doesn’t budge an inch as her attention remains riveted on the woman staring unblinking at the roof.

“Pen?” I brush her arm. “We need to go.”

There’s no sound. Nothing. She’s emotionless. Catatonic.

“Come on.” Hunter raises his voice. “You want to go home, don’t you?”

“Home?” one of the women ask.

“Yes, home.” Hunter claps his hands as if trying to gain the attention of school children. “We’ve gotta go.”

The two women climb to their feet together, hand in hand.

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