Page 68 of Line of Resistance

Life was all about balance, and so was she.

“I’m actually a pretty good hunter.” Eloise moved to the window, barely shifting the drapes to one side so she could peek out. “My dad was an outdoorsman and taught me all kinds of shit.”

He was also the reason her vocabulary was as colorful as it was—yet another aspect of her personality that had crept to the forefront over the past few days. It was the one thing she really did need to suppress. At least while she was at work.

Right now, though, the curse words were going to fly.

“That’s probably a real good thing considering we’re about to be stuck outside.” Reggie looked her over. “You got any idea who in the hell is out there?”

“I’ve got a couple ideas.” And sharing them with Reggie didn’t seem like a great idea since both involved armed men. On the plus side it could be someone coming to rescue them—

But it could also be someone coming to kill them.

Eloise waited as the minutes ticked by, dread growing more with each one that passed.

“I think we should go look for him.” Reggie reached for the curtain. “He should have been back by now.” Before Eloise could stop her, the old woman grabbed the curtain and yanked it back. Eloise jumped back on a yelp as panic dumped adrenaline into her system.

A man was standing directly on the opposite side of the window, close enough Eloise could see the whites of his eyes.

Unfortunately that was all she could see because he was completely covered otherwise. Decked out in the same white tactical gear Nate wore, along with a knit mask that obscured his identity and would make him nearly impossible to see in the snow.

Reggie jumped back, her reaction a little delayed. “Jesus Christ.” She flipped the curtain closed, but it was much more than too late.

“We need to hide.” Eloise grabbed Reggie by the arm, planning to drag her… somewhere. Before they could even make it across the room, something hard and heavy hit the front door, rattling it on its hinges.

She turned, heading in the opposite direction. “Where can we hide? Is there a cellar? A closet? Something they won’t find right away?” The thumping on the front door continued, each hit coming faster than the one before it.

“I’ve got a—” A jostling at the back door cut off Reggie’s words.

Eloise watched in horror as the door swung open and the man from the window stepped inside, yelling something her panicked brain couldn’t make out.

All she could focus on was escape.

“Well, shit.” Reggie stepped in front of Eloise, trying to protect her with her smaller frame. “Get your ass back outside. I just mopped those floors.” She pressed back against Eloise, urging her away from where the man stood. “Are you trying to give an old woman a heart attack? What’s wrong with you?”

The banging at the front door continued as someone hit it with a force hard enough the whole house seemed to shudder around them. Eloise looked from side to side as she grabbed Reggie. They were trapped. “Is there a side door?”

Reggie hefted up her shotgun, but before she could get it to her shoulder Eloise grabbed it. “If you shoot, everyone outside will open fire and we will die.”

The old woman snorted. “Not sure if you’ve noticed, but it looks like we might die anyway.” She yanked at the gun. “I’m not goin’ down without a fight.”

Eloise held tight, refusing to let go.

She held fast right up until the front door flew open, banging against the wall hard enough the knob punched into the drywall of the entry, lodging it in place. A giant, white clad form raced through the opening.

Nate’s eyes were wild as they locked onto hers and it was impossible to tell if she was relieved to see him or terrified. Because now he was going to die too.

Nate reached her in two long strides, grabbing her by the coat and yanking her body behind his. Reggie ended up shoved right beside her as if Nate thought he could protect them from the barrage of bullets that were surely coming their way.

“Fucking finally.” A familiar voice sent Eloise peeking around his arm just as the man at the back door whipped off his knit mask. Tyson’s shoulders sagged. “We’ve been trying to find you two for days now. Naomi’s ready to kill me for not finding you sooner.”

Eloise stepped out from behind Nate. Her whole body was shaking as panic fueled adrenaline raced through her veins. She grabbed the closest thing she could find and launched the throw pillow at Tyson’s face. “You scared the shit out of us, asshole.”

The pillow bounced off Tyson’s chest. His brows lifted as he focused on Nate.

“Yeah.” Nate hooked one arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side and pressing another of those confusingly perfect kisses to her forehead. “She’s come out of her shell a little bit.”

Tyson’s already high brows climbed higher as his eyes shifted between them. “Seems like it’s not the only change that’s happened.”

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