Page 154 of Scars Run Deep

“Smashing it to shit would be much swifter, but it’ll alert any of the enemy searching this area of the building for me outside.”

“It’s all right, almost there,” he said, as the mechanism finally gave way.

I let him take over with opening it as I stepped back and pulled my phone out. “I need to alert Asher and the guys.”

He snatched my phone out of my hands in the next second and pocketed it in his jacket. “It’s not safe. They’re surrounded by enemies. They could be compromised at any moment. You won’t know who you’re really communicating with if you send a message to them now.”

Before I could argue on it, the door gave way and the invaders started pushing against the pool table.

“Go! Go! Go!” Ronan urged, pushing me toward the now open window.

I climbed through and landed in a primed crouch beside a flower bed.

My senses screamed at me and I turned into a running attack from an Infidel.

As I dodged out of the way, I saw Ronan struggling and only halfway out the window as the invaders came at him. He kicked one back with his boot.

That was all I was able to see before I had to react swiftly to block a fist coming at me. I caught it in my palm, then shoved my knee into his forearm, ripping it away. Before I could finish him off, a shot rang out, making me jump back. It hit wide. Along with another and another. Purposely, I realized as I was forced behind the trunk of a tree, several feet from the window.

Ronan made it down, landing in a steady crouch.

But he had to flatten himself on his stomach on the ground as shots rang out from every which way.

We were pinned down, unable to get to one another.

He started firing from the ground, me from behind the tree.

But we were firing blind, the shooters blended too well into the night with those damned robes.

One of the invaders started clambering out of the window.

It forced Ronan to lift his arm in a bid to knock the guy back and defend himself.

A bullet zinged through his arm, making him grunt.

Shit.

I bolted from my point of cover, ducking and rolling toward him, to protect him as another two made their way out the window, clearly intending to finish him off.

I realized on my way over that none of the shots came anywhere near me.

Thinking about it, they’d all hit really wide of me inside the house too.

They were trying not to harm me because they wanted me as a doll. I honestly hadn’t thought they’d care about inflicting harm, because I’d seen it up close for those hostages during the takedowns. So, what was going on?

There was something more to it.

As with this whole thing tonight, I had no time to think on it, before something else got in the way along with all the rest.

This time it was Hexwood House security barreling into the area, firing back.

That should’ve been a good thing, until a barrage of robes responded by breaking through the trees and heading right for us all.

Flashbangs came into play, compromising several of our security all at once.

More and more.

Some were forced to fall back, others were hit by gunfire as they suffered the intense disorientation of the grenades and couldn’t find cover through it all.

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