Page 51 of Devil's Vengeance

“Chase?” Mariah’s voice trembled.

“Holy shit, what did they do to you?” Riley demanded at the same time. She got about two steps down before the front window shattered and the shooting started.

“Get to the safe room!” I bellowed, kneeling to pull out my pistol. Just in time, too, because a volley of shots went through the little windows beside the front door, whizzing over my head just as I ducked down. I rolled out of the way, firing back blindly. Thankfully, Riley had been coached for this by literally everyone on the crew. She didn’t hesitate. And she dragged Mariah with her, disappearing back upstairs to the master bedroom where Croy had a safe room installed in the closet. He wasn’t taking any chances with her.

The power cut out, making me wonder if the safe room still functionedwithout it, but I didn’t have time to go check. I found cover in the formal dining room, which was turned into a game room because Croy couldn’t be bothered with anything using the word ‘formal’. I had a direct shot to the front door while using the pool table as cover. It also gave me a good spot to make sure no one got close to heading up the stairs. On the off chance the safe room didn’t work with the power out, I didn’t want any of these assholes getting close to the girls.

I couldn’t see how many there were. Shots were coming from all directions. One or two tried to get in, but they died trying. The attackers seemed more interested in staying outside and shooting through the windows in hopes that they’d hit their targets. It wasn’t until the back door shattered that I realized they were distracting us so that more could come around the back.

“Fuck. Back door!” I bellowed over the sound of gunfire.

I didn’t see where everyone else had gotten cover, so I didn’t know who was closest, but I was pinned down where I was. I couldn’t move from the room without crossing directly through the line of fire. I saw a dark figure move toward one of the windows and I aimed, pulling the trigger when they tried to step inside. The first shot missed because my head was all fuzzy from the exhaustion, but the second one was a direct hit. He went down with a shout and was quickly dragged out of the way. Shots flew my way and I ducked to avoid them. I was waiting for the break in the volley to aim again when, over the sound of the attack, I heard an equally unwelcome sound in the distance.

Sirens.

The fucking pigs were coming, and they’d use any excuse to put us all behind bars. And there wasn’t a damn thing any of us could do about it. We couldn’t abandon the house to get out of sight because the girls were upstairs. I’d rather live the rest of my life in handcuffs than leave either of them behind.

CHAPTER 31

MARIAH

I thought the confrontation with Trick was terrifying, but I never thought I’d be anywhere near a shootout, either. The first few shots confused me. I didn’t know what the sound was, but Riley didn’t hesitate, dragging me back to her room and into the closet. I heard shouts and more pops of noise, but it was like my mind couldn’t catch up with what was happening.

“What’s going on?”

“Shootout,” Riley said, her voice oddly calm for the situation. She shoved some clothes aside, exposing paneling that popped open to reveal a door behind it. She slid it open, ushering me inside before following and putting the paneling back and sliding the door shut again. I’d never been in a panic room before, but it was a little disconcerting. It wasn’t very large, maybe half the size of the walk-in closet. Big enough for a cot and some storage with food, along with a computer and a hardline phone. It was a little creepy, to be honest, and the lack of windows or any exit aside from the one we came through made me nervous.

“You okay?” Riley asked, as she tapped on the keyboard to wake the computer. “You’re not claustrophobic, are you?”

I never thought so before, but I kind of felt like maybe I was wrong. It felt stifling in here and we had only been in here for a minute. The monitor came up, showing videos around the house, but before we could take agood look, the power went out, killing the cameras. The lights went out in the panic room too, but came back up a minute later.

“I, uh…”

“It’s going to be okay. Backup generators handle the power in here. We’re safe. Take deep breaths. I’m going to let Croy know what’s going on and–”

“Croy? We need to call the cops!”

She shot me a frown over her shoulder. “You do realize who we are, right? I’m not calling the cops unless I absolutely have to.”

“But it worked last time!” I pushed. “If it's Trick’s crew, they scattered when I threatened to call the cops. That’s how Chase and I escaped.”

She looked uncertain, but I didn’t wait around for her to decide. Chase was down there and I didn’t want him to die. This whole situation was insane, and I seriously questioned myself for sticking around through all of this. Once he was safe, I was going to need to reevaluate just how attached I was to the people I’d gotten to know.

Pulling out my cell phone, I scowled at the lack of reception. The walls were probably too thick, which explained the land line. I picked that up instead, dialing 911, and waited impatiently for someone to answer.

“911, what’s your emergency?”

“People are attacking our house. They’re shooting through the windows. We need help!”

The operator asked for an address, but Riley looked reluctant to give it. She was in too deep with the crew and didn't want to draw attention to the police. I wasn’t so loyal to the crew. It was Chase I cared about.

“I don’t know. I’m at a friend's house. Can’t you trace it? I’m using a landline.”

“Give me one second. Are you in a safe place?”

“Yes, we got to a panic room on the second floor. How long?”

I heard her fingers tapping, and it didn’t take long for her to reply. “Okay, I have your location. Officers are on their way now. We have some in the area, so it won’t be long. Just stay calm and don’t hang up.”

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