Page 147 of Oathbreaker

“Sorry!” Winter and the woman both say at the same time.

Winter reaches for the papers and pills, but I stop her from bending over. The woman quickly shuffles everything back into the bag before I can reach for anything. Keeping her head low, the woman hands everything to Winter.

“Sorry again!” The woman rasps before spinning around and jogging away from us, her ponytail bouncing from where it sticks out of her cap.

Winter blows out a sharp breath, pointing the force of her exhalation up so that her curly bangs flutter.

Scouring our surroundings, we make it to the car without incident, and before we know it, Winter’s hand is firm in mine as we both sit in the back seat of the Suburban. We’re at a stoplight about to enter the highway for the rest of the thirty-minute drive.

“I guess I better start taking these,” Winter says, thumbing through the prenatal packages.

“Absolutely, baby,” I reply.

The car glides through the city streets, the steady drone of the engine creating a backdrop to the quiet impact of the moments we’ve just shared.

Winter’s hand tightens in mine.

I instinctively glance in the rearview mirror. The cars around us seem ordinary, but something feels off.

My guys trail behind in the dark-tinted SUV, and Jared’s shock of blonde hair contrasts against the dark interior when I look out the rear window.

To the left, an inconspicuous vehicle mirrors our path, another Suburban.

To my right is the same make and model of vehicle. Even the color is the same.

I glance at the side of Rio’s face and note his eyes focused on the side-view mirror.

He sees what I see.

A prickling unease creeps through my stomach, a subtle warning to pay fucking attention.

What are the odds of four Suburbans being at the same stoplight?

Leo’s words echo in my mind, “I don’t believe in coincidences.”

The ultrasound absorbs Winter’s attention, and she remains unaware, blissful.

“Three and nine o’clock, Rio,” I murmur as his head moves, already scanning the cars beside us. Rio’s hands tighten on the steering wheel, and he nods, indicating his understanding without turning around to address me in the back seat.

“I wonder what they’ll be like,” Winter says more to herself. Her soft smile almost snags my focus away from the danger surrounding us.

Rio wordlessly shifts the vehicle into first gear as I slide my hand to the firearm at my back.

I retrieve my gun, careful not to alarm Winter, who glances up from the pamphlets she’s sorting.

Wait. Shit. Fucking shit.

“What—” Winter objects when I snatch one of the flyers out of her hands.

A bright flash out of the corner of my eye rips my attention from the paper in front of me, and a millisecond later, the back driver’s side glass cracks.

“Down!” I roar at Winter.

Rio punches the accelerator through the red light. Our guys take off after us, and the two cars fall into line quickly. Thank fuck for the bulletproof glass, otherwise, that bullet would have gone straight through my brain.

“Hunter!” Winter’s eyes are wide, terror making them glassy. I don’t wait for her compliance. Instead, I unbuckle her seat belt and push her into the foot well.

A phone call comes from our car behind us.

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