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Two more shots rang out in quick succession. Both looked like they hit Sven in the back. He groaned and went down like a fifty-pound feed bag had dropped to the floor.
Colton started running at first, but when Sven got shot, he stopped to take aim at the gunman perched on top of the roof across the street.
He glanced at his three friends still positioned in the dirt. This was like something out of a bad dream.
Colton turned to his right where the shots had come from, lifting his gun arm as he moved. He didn’t have time to get in front of Isabelle. So he aimed for the shooter he saw perched belly down on a roof across the street.
How did that fucker get up there?
Colton took quick aim and fired from an angle. His shot hit the gun near the trigger. The guy shouted, dropping his rifle over the edge of the roof. It clattered below onto the wooden sidewalk after bouncing along an overhang for several feet. At least he couldn’t shoot anyone else.
The man then stood up, walking in a half crouch away from the roof’s edge. Colton took aim and fired again, hitting the shooter’s arm. The guy kept moving. Colton shot him in the leg, and he finally went down. He suddenly saw Kendall on the roof standing over the shooter. He signaled the guy was down and disarmed.
Colton turned his attention to his three wounded friends. He darted across the expanse to Sven, Ari, and Isabelle, all lying in the dirt in front of the shooter’s stand.
It didn’t look like anyone was moving.
Chapter Seventeen
Warrick drove back to Enclave after a particularly annoying visit with a lawyer friend of his in Miser. There was no help for his future in any legal arena. He’d barely gotten on the road, looking forward to getting back to Isabelle and Colton, when surprising call came from Duke.
“Hey, what’s up? I figured you’d be halfway to your third victory by now. Or Colton would be.”
“Where are you?” The serious tone of Duke’s voice made the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up.”
“On my way to Enclave, why?”
Duke started talking so fast words were running together and Warrick could only pick out few of them.
“Slow down. What’s going on?”
Duke pushed out a hard breath and said, clearly, “It’s bad.”
“Tell me.” Duke started talking but not quite as fast. Warrick heard several troubling things. Shooter. Both Ari and Isabelle shot. One hit in the chest. One in the arm. He didn’t know which was which.
Duke said, “Sven took two rounds in the back trying to keep Ari and Isabelle from getting shot a second time.”
“And Colton?”
“He’s fine. He took out the shooter.”
“Who is the shooter?”
“Don’t know yet, but at least we have him in custody in a different wing at the same hospital.”
Warrick wanted to have a few choice words with him. “I’m on my way.”
“I already know you’re going to drive over the speed limit, just be careful. I’ll meet you over at the hospital. Colton’s there already. I was told he rode over in the ambulance with Isabelle. I came to the scene after the three shooting victims had already gone. I wish I knew her status.”
Warrick ground his back teeth until they ached, hating that he’d not been there to help or prevent it. “Thanks for the info, Duke. I’ll be there as fast as I can.”
“Drive safe.”
Warrick made it to the hospital in record time with his heart lodged firmly in his throat all the way.
He couldn’t lose her. Could. Not.
Entering into the waiting room, he saw a redhead with her arm in a sling, but he didn’t see her face yet. Could be Ari. Could be Isabelle. Her glorious fall of hair didn’t give him a hint either.
He took a step forward, hating to need this extra minute, to bear up and plan for bad news.
“Isabelle,” he said barely above a whisper, not wanting her to turn around yet. Not wanting to learn that his love was shot in the chest.
The redhead didn’t turn around. Next to her was Colton. In front of her was Sven. His shirt was rumpled and untucked. He’d never seen Sven so disheveled before. In fact, he looked completely wrecked.
“Isabelle,” Warrick said again. This time she turned around. Isabelle’s face. Arm in a sling. Ari was the one in surgery with a chest wound. He tried not to be relieved.
“How is Ari?” he asked first off.
Isabelle’s wan smile was the most beautiful thing he’d seen since Duke called. “She made it through surgery just fine. The bullet broke her collarbone, but missed everything vital. We were both lucky. After we both got shot, Sven took two rounds in his back to keep us from getting shot a second time.”
