Page 61 of Defenseless
“If there’s more than one person, they’ll be waiting there. The garage is our best bet,” he countered. “I’m going to kick the door closed. When I do, can you make it over here?”
Ethan glanced around the corner of his pillar then back at Chad. Chad could tell from the look on his face that he’d seen Benicio’s body. Something neither Kara nor Sabina needed to witness. Seeing one dead parent was already more than enough.
Ethan nodded. “On zero?”
Chad gave a sharp nod in response then started counting down from three with his fingers. When his hand clenched in a fist, he stepped away from Sabina and placed a well-aimed boot at the thick glass. It wouldn’t hide them from Vitor’s view, but it might distract him enough not to get a good series of shots off.
Ethan spun Kara around, keeping himself between her and Vitor, as they bolted from their spot. A hail of bullets streamed across the middle of the door. The force pushed it back open, but the glass held long enough for his cousin and Kara to make it to the same side of the threshold as him and Sabina.
Silence fell after the last barrage of bullets, and Sabina shoved his phone back into his pocket. “They want us to make our way to the garage. Killian is already on his way with an ETA of less than five minutes. He’s going to come over the fence through the back in case there’s anyone there that…that needs to be managed,” she said. “Once he clears the back, he’ll circle around the front to distract whoever is out there.”
“It is Vitor,” Ethan confirmed. “I saw him.”
Sabina inclined her head. “Once Killian starts engaging with Vitor, we need to head out and over the back fence. Teague will pick us up at the bottom of the road. When we’re clear, Killian will disengage and make his way back to his own SUV.”
For the first time since they walked onto Benicio’s property, Chad smiled. “Nice plan,” he said.
She grinned back. “I even know the best path to get from the fence to where we’ll meet Teague.” He didn’t doubt it. And he’d wager she’d lead them on the same path he’d identified when he’d studied the maps and satellite images.
Another round of bullets pelted the glass of the dining room to the side of where they stood. Kara and Sabina ducked on instinct and Chad and Ethan pulled their respective charges closer to their bodies.
“I guess there’s some good news in that the glass appears mostly bulletproof,” Ethan said, leaning over to look at the damage. It wouldn’t hold indefinitely, not against the kind of weapon Vitor had, but it was better than nothing.
Chad poked his head around the pillar to assess their options. While the house was open plan, the modern architecture was a mix of materials. Including a three-foot-high section of concrete that was the bottom part of the front wall. It was intended to hold the heavy glass that made up the rest of the wall, but for their purposes, it would make excellent cover.
He leaned back and looked at Sabina.
“Crawl?” she suggested.
“Definitely crawl,” he confirmed. “You all ready?” When Ethan and Kara nodded, he dropped to his hands and knees. Taking the lead, Sabina and Kara stayed behind him with Ethan bringing the rear. They were halfway across the dining room when Chad heard something he didn’t like at all. The sound of footsteps crunching on the shattered glass right outside the front door.
“E?”
“Got it,” Ethan said.
“Sabina and Kara, go!” he ordered. The two women scrambled by him as the first bullets tore across the room. His heart stopped when Sabina’s hand slid out from under her. She almost went down, losing precious seconds, but she quickly righted herself and kept going. At the same time, Ethan got off a couple of shots, forcing Vitor to take cover.
“Follow the women, C. I’ll keep you covered. Once you’re in the kitchen you can return the favor.”
Chad almost chuckled at that. He’d never had the chance to work with anyone from his family before. And although he’d wanted Ethan on the team, and known he’d be a good asset, he hadn’t realized how much he’d enjoy it.
“Always wanting something in return,” Chad muttered, making Ethan snort.
“Yeah, I’m not a giver like that. Now go make sure the women are okay.”
Sabina and Kara had made it to the relative safety of the kitchen. To Ethan’s point, though, that didn’t necessarily mean they were okay. Keeping to the wall, he crawled as fast as he could toward them. A scuffle sounded behind him, then a shot from Ethan’s gun.
Chad was only a few feet away from the kitchen when the sound of Vitor’s gun echoed through the house again. Ethan’s follow-up shots were nearly instantaneous. But they weren’t fast enough to stop a bullet searing its way across Chad’s calf.
He hissed in pain and jerked his leg closer to his body. Fighting the urge to stop and check the damage, he kept his eyes locked on Sabina and dragged himself the rest of the way. The second he was within arm’s reach, she reached out and grabbed him, hauling him close.
“Kara,” she snapped.
“On it,” Kara said, kneeling beside Chad’s calf.
“Can’t. Not right now,” Chad said, flipping around so his belly was on the ground. From his position, he had a line of sight to Ethan as well as the muzzle of Vitor’s gun. Despite the pain radiating up his leg and the blood dripping down his calf, he knew he’d be able to cover his cousin.
Ethan looked back at him, and Chad gave him the “go” sign. In a flash, he was on his feet, bolting toward the three of them. The muzzle of Vitor’s weapon shifted. Chad fired off a warning shot. It hit the wall an inch below where the gun rested. With a weapon like Vitor’s, he wouldn’t need eyes on his target to lay down deadly fire. But he would need to expose his arm and Chad wanted him to know that if he did, Chad’s aim would be true.
