The first shot cracks through the air.
Screams tear through the schoolyard. Students drop to the pavement and dive behind anything they can find. Phones hit the ground. Chaos erupts.
Naomi doesn’t flinch. She yanks both kids toward her and runs.
Brooke throws it open from inside the SUV.
Naomi runs full speed, dragging the kids behind her. Another shot fires and sparks against the curb beside them. A third shatters the rear window of the SUV.
Naomi dives into the open door with Elise and Ryan. Brooke pulls them in and covers them with her body.
Travis hits the gas.
The men break into a sprint, trying to close the gap.
I climb halfway out the window and fire. Travis peels out of the lot, tires screaming against the pavement. A bullet slams into the back of the SUV, but we are already turning onto the street.
In the rearview mirror, I see the men dive back into the black van.
“They’re tailing!” Travis shouts from the front.
We weave through traffic.
And just like that, it is us and them, burning south with two kids in the backseat who have no idea who the hell we are or what kind of war they just got pulled into
Chapter 66
Seth
“Get down!” I bark.
Brooke doesn’t hesitate. She shoves Elise and Ryan into the footwell and curls over them like a shield. One arm is braced against the seat, the other is wrapped around Naomi. Naomi tucks in tight, eyes wide, fingers digging into Brooke’s jacket.
Travis floors it. The engine roars and the tires shriek as we rocket out of the lot. For a second, we’re airborne, weightless, and then it all slams back down. My shoulder hits the door. My jaw snaps shut, hard enough that I taste blood.
They’re behind us immediately. The way they move, tight, fast, with no wasted effort, I know this isn’t random. They’re trained. And they’re going to get someone killed.
Brooke’s back is turned toward the window, her whole body curved over the kids. Naomi’s hands are still shaking. Elise is frozen. Ryan’s face is buried in his knees. They didn’t sign up for this. They’re just kids.
My brother and sister.
Fuck.
Beau leans out the passenger window and fires.
The first shot sends glass spraying. The second hammers metal. I watch the recoil jerk his arm and correct. He doesn’t hesitate. He just keeps shooting.
The SUV fishtails into the turn. I brace with my boots, lean out the shattered back window, and line up. My heart’s pounding, but my hands are steady. I squeeze the trigger twice. The inside of the SUV erupts with sound. My ears go fuzzy. The second shot slams into their windshield and leaves a web of cracks that splinter outward.
A round punches into the rear. Another one tears straight through the glass behind me. Shards spray my neck. I feel blood but ignore it. I’ve bled before.
But if one of those bullets hits Brooke, if Elise takes one to the back of the head, if Ryan dies right here in this SUV trying to outrun the kind of world I’ve been neck deep in for years, I’ll never come back from that.
“Faster,” I snap. “They’re lining up a shot.”
Travis weaves through the narrowing street, threading between parked cars. The SUV clips a side mirror, sparks fly. They don’t slow.
Another crack of a shot. This one skims past Beau.
