Then gunfire. Close. Too close.
Patrick's backup team bursting through the side entrance.
Three men. Weapons raised. Trained on me.
I dive for cover. Bullets tear through the space I just occupied.
Patrick is crawling away. Desperate. Leaving a blood trail but still moving.
I return fire. Drop one. Two.
The third gets behind a pillar. Suppressing fire keeping me pinned.
Patrick reaches the doorway. Escapes into the smoke and chaos outside.
I curse. Move to pursue.
The third gunman steps out. Assault rifle pointed at my chest.
Time slows.
I see his finger tighten on the trigger.
See the muzzle flash.
Feel the impact as the bullet catches my shoulder. Spinning me around.
Second shot. This one to my ribs. Cracks bone. Punctures something vital.
I go down hard. Gun clattering away.
The gunman advances. Stands over me. Raises his weapon for the kill shot.
Through the smoke, I see Patrick in the doorway. Watching. Smiling through blood.
This is how it ends.
I failed them. Valerie. Mila. Our baby.
Failed again.
The gunman's finger tightens on the trigger.
Chapter twenty-nine
Valerie
The panic room is supposed to be soundproof, but I hear everything through the radio that Mikhail left with us for communication.
Mila is curled against me, hands over her ears, crying silently. She's been crying for twenty minutes straight. Since the first breach. Since the world outside became hell.
"It's okay, baby." I stroke her hair with shaking hands. "Your papa has this under control. We're safe here."
A lie. We might be safe, but Lev isn't. I can hear the battle raging. Can hear it getting closer to the house.
The radio in the corner crackles. Mikhail's voice cuts through the static as he addresses all units.
"Boss is engaged with Patrick! Main foyer! He needs backup!"