Page 41 of Montana Silence

Just like with the Chinese food, I wasn’t sure what Mara liked or ate for breakfast. So I ordered a bunch of things, making everyone in line behind me hate my guts. More than one movie I remembered had a scene just like it.

Smiling to myself, I pretended not to notice. Mara was worth whatever frustration people had at me, and I left a good tip for the baristas. I knew how hard Lena worked at Deja Brew, and the people here were no exception.

I ended up with four drinks and a bag of pastries that looked like I was buying food for an entire office. There was a nearly audible sigh of relief as I stepped out of the way, and I smiled. They were never going to see me again anyway.

Despite the crowd in the coffee shop, the sidewalk was almost entirely empty this early. If I was lucky, Mara would still be asleep when I got back, and I would get to be with her when she woke.

Blowing out a breath, I steadied myself. It was way too soon for me to be thinking about waking up every day with her, but my mind didn’t agree. It wasallI could think about. Gorgeous blue eyes opening and meeting mine, both sleepy and happy? It sounded like heaven.

Air moved, and I sensed the impact a second before I felt it.

A body slammed into mine, taking me into the alley next to me. I hit the wall hard. Pain ruptured through my arm, and again where the assailant was punching me.

Assess.

More than one person was around me. They wore masks to hide their identities. Three of them and two in waiting? This was an ambush.

Defend.

My mind still reeled from the first hit, but it didn’t matter. I’d dealt with more pain than this. Another hit came, and I ducked underneath it. Backed against the wall wasn’t the ideal way to fight, but I didn’t have to worry about anyone behind me.

I caught a foot before it connected with my ribs and shoved it away, but they were coming all at once. My head snapped to the side, and fire flashed behind my eyes.

Fuck.

Lucky punch.

One of them had a bat. If I got hit with that, it could do some serious damage.

Turning off my mind, I let loose, going to a place where survival was the only goal. I shoved the attacker in front of me across the alley and used the momentum, carrying him into the opposite wall and hitting him three times in rapid succession. Fast enough that the other two barely had time to register.

I dropped the now-unconscious man and turned, ducking under the swing of the bat and knocking it in the same direction so it flew out of his hands. And I ran.

Ninety percent of the time, the most important thing in any combat situation was survival. I ran past the mess of coffee and food on the ground and straight to the hotel. Only once did I look back, and they weren’t following. They had some combat skills, but the way they’d jumped me, I doubted they were expecting me to fight back. They were less concerned with me and more concerned with the one I’d knocked out.

In the lobby, I slowed down only to make sure the staff didn’t panic. Though, looking the way I did—with blood dripping down my face—I probably still appeared out of my mind.

Not bothering with the elevator, I sprinted up the stairs two at a time. Everything in me needed to get back to Mara. I didn’t believe in coincidences, and getting jumped the day after what had happened in the courtroom? It felt convenient.

Mara might not have seen the way Malcolm’s followers were looking at both her and me, but I had. Combine it with receiving the veil, and then this? It added up to someone trying to terrify and isolate her. On top of it all, if they knew where I was, they knew whereshewas.

I unlocked the door to my room and opened it as quietly as I could. Nothing looked amiss, and a second later, I heard the shower in Mara’s room.

After checking to make sure her room was, in fact, empty, I retreated and sat on my bed, catching my breath. They’d gotten a few good shots in while I was disoriented. I would have some bruises on my ribs, but it could have been much worse. My head could be cracked open with a bat right now, and Mara would be alone.

In the mirror, I saw the nasty cut on my cheek. Bastard must have had something on his knuckles. But it would be fine once I cleaned it.

The shower shut off, and I took a painful breath. I needed to report this, but I also didn’t want Mara to hear me talking to the cops before I had time to tell her and show her.

When I heard the bathroom door open, I called to her. “Mara? I’m back.”

“Okay.” Her voice was soft.

“Something happened. I’m okay, so please don’t panic.”

The silence in the air became acute.

I tracked her quiet footsteps to the doors between the rooms, and she pushed them open, wrapped in nothing but a towel. Her eyes went wide. “Liam.”

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