Page 59 of Tabitha

Totally unnecessary, but sweet nonetheless.

They’re trained soldiers and probably reacted without thought.

While River and Gage literally cover me with their bodies, Pierce and Bast remained crouched near me, one hand on my body, and the other holding a gun at the ready. They’re alert, Pierce covering the front of the house, while Bast has his weapon trained on the backdoor.

“Was that a mortar blast?” Gage looks shaken.

River peels himself off slowly, absolutely furious, his brown eyes flat as he clutches me to his chest with an almost feral expression on his face. “No.”

“It was a bomb,” I answer, my ears still ringing from the blast, and I wiggle, pushing my way free of the guys. The men glance between themselves, then we all head toward the door together. I grab my blades, determined to keep the men safe.

Especially when we walk outside and I see black smoke rising in the distance.

Exactly where their cabin once stood.

If they had been home, eating lunch, they would now be dead.

Chapter Eighteen

TABITHA

It takes the men a good ten minutes to coax Rocky out from under the table. The poor dog whimpers, clearly traumatized and suffering severe PTSD. Bast finally ends up wrapping the dog in a large comforter and tucking the puppy into his own bed. They surround the puppy under a mound of their blankets and shirts, which seems to be the only thing that comforts the dog.

My heart breaks for the poor beastie, and I vow to kill those responsible for triggering him.

By the time we arrive at the cabin, there’s not much left standing. The structure is completely obliterated, only slivers of wood remaining. Their truck is nothing but a burned-out husk, the metal fried to a crisp. If the men had been at the cabin, they would’ve been erased from the face of the earth.

“If you hadn’t moved in with us…” I swallow hard at the thought. “They thought you were home. Your truck was here. If we hadn’t been preparing lunch…”

Murderous rage bleeds through my rational thoughts, and I grip my knives, wanting to march back down the mountain and slaughter everyone.

I’m not even aware of moving until Pierce steps in front of me, his grip almost harsh on my shoulders. “You have no proof.”

I scoff at his claim. “We both know it was them.”

Jerking out of his hold, I give him wide berth as I move around him, determined to head back down the trail…only to find Gage standing in my way this time, his arms crossed.

I pull up short, then recoil at the imposing expression on his face. “That wasn’tmybomb, if that’s what you’re thinking. None of you are on my kill list. If I wanted you dead, I wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake of detonating a bomb without confirming you were inside.”

Anxiety tangles my emotions into knots.

For some reason, it’s important that they know I didn’t try to kill them.

I’m not sure I could go through with it, even if they did somehow end up on my kill list. I would probably feel bad about killing someone for the first time in my life, and I’m not sure I like that emotion.

The guys abandon their search of the property and surround me, caging me in like I’m an animal about to run. Bast is the one who breaks the silence. “No one is accusing you.” He shoots a glare at Gage, as if to enforce his point.

Gage’s brows lift, and he holds up his hands in surrender. “Oh, I believe you. If you wanted us dead, we would never see it coming. This job was sloppy. After watching you assemble your bomb, you’re anything but sloppy.”

I give him a sharp nod, slightly appeased, and I reluctantly sheathe my blades.

“Gorgeous.” River saunters toward me with a gleam in his brown eyes. “Did I hear you right? Do you have a murder list?”

“Ummm…no, of course not. It would be foolish to leave around evidence like that.” I fuss with the straps of my blades, looking anywhere but at the handsome man, feeling suddenly exposed, but River refuses to let me hide.

He cups my face, his expression softening. “I’ll show you my list if you show me yours? Maybe we can work on them together, take turns eliminating our targets. It would be fun!”

“River! Stop acting like such a psychopath!” Gage huffs in exasperation, shaking his head as if he’s gives up trying to rein in River’s murderous tendencies. “You’re going to scare the poor girl off.”

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