Page 87 of Mountain Hero

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Don’t panic. Focus. Push away the fear.

Don’t think about Thomas getting his hands on Winter again. Don’t think about her trapped in the house, burning.

“Hun.” I force a calm I’m not feeling. “Please go in the safe room. Use the trap door. Get to the woods and hide. Please.”

“No, Enzo.” She grabs my hand and squeezes it hard. “I’m not leaving you. Not this time.” She pauses. “I have an idea.”

“Wiiiinnnnteerrr!” Another glance out the window shows Thomas approaching the house, now closer to twenty feet away. “Are you coming out, or am I burning this place down?” He barks out a laugh. “Don’t think about trying to run!” Dropping one gas can, he reaches behind him and pulls out a gun. “Then you’ll really be sorry!”

Shit. I could grab Winter and shove her into the safe room. Open the trapdoor and push her through it. But if she’s not prepared, still fighting me, she might get hurt. And if she’s moving slowly, Thomas could catch her. Take her. Shoot her.

“Enzo. Can you shoot him from here?” Winter’s voice dips, low and urgent. “With one of your rifles? You can hit him. Right?”

“Yes. But if he sees me, he might make a move right away.”

“But what if I distract him? Go out on the porch? Talk to him?”

“No!” It’s almost a shout. “Never, Winter. I’m not?—”

Her words spill out in a rush. “I’ll just stand on the porch. And I’ll take one of the guns. Hide it. I’ll talk to Thomas. Tell him to put the cans down and then I’ll go to him. In the meantime, you can run upstairs and shoot him. I know you can.”

I open my mouth to argue—the last thing I want is Winter anywhere near Thomas—but I stop. She’s right. If he’s distracted, I can easily take him down with one shot from upstairs.

“Time’s almost up!” Thomas bellows. “Ten seconds and it’s bye-bye house. And bye-bye to everyone inside it!”

“Please,” Winter pleads. She’s pale, fear etched into every feature, but her eyes are determined. “I can do this. I can stall him. I trust you. Please trust me.”

Shit.

Please don’t let me regret this decision.

“Okay.” It hurts to say it. I press a hard and quick kiss to her lips. “But do not leave the porch. If he comes any closer, get inside. Promise me.”

“I promise.” Winter meets my gaze. “Go. Hurry.”

And then she darts toward the front door.

It’s the worst pain; watching her head toward danger instead of being shielded from it.

But I can’t think about that now.

This is a mission, and Winter’s my partner.

So I sprint to the gun cabinet and jab my finger at the biometric lock to open it while listening to Winter shout, “Thomas! Stop! I’ll come out if you stop!”

Fuck. Everything in me is screaming to grab Winter. To get her away from him. To not let her do this.

But we’re in it. There’s no going back. So I need to get my shit together and do my part of the job.

I yank out my MK 22 and grab a magazine of ammo, then bolt up the stairs just as Winter calls out loudly, “Thomas. I mean it. Stop moving and put away the gun. Put down the gas can. I don’t feel safe coming out otherwise.”

Fuck.

This is a nightmare come to life.

It takes less than ten seconds to get to the upstairs bedroom window, but it feels like an eternity.

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