From the main room, I hear the low murmur of voices, my father and Kane strategizing in hushed tones. Carter moves past the bedroom door, a gun glinting in his hand.
"Morgan?" Sydney appears in the doorway, her eyes soft with concern. "Everything okay in here?"
"Charlie's still asleep." I brush a strand of hair from her face. "Any news?"
Sydney shakes her head. "Your father's calling in more club members. They'll secure the perimeter."
The word "perimeter" sounds so military, so foreign to this peaceful mountain setting. I think of Evan out there in the darkness, watching us, planning his next move. The deer head on our porch flashes in my mind next, that bloody warning.
"What if he tries to come in?" I whisper.
Sydney settles beside me on the bed, her hand finding mine. "Then he'll find out what it means to threaten the Devil Souls' family."
Despite the fear coiling in my stomach, I find strength in her words, in the fierce protection of these people who've become our shield. I think of Trenton and Matthew racing back through the night, their truck eating up the miles between us.
"Morgan?" My mother enters the room, her face pale but composed. "Your father wants us all in the main room. He thinks it's safer if we stay together."
I nod, carefully extracting myself from beside Charlie. "Will you stay with her? Just for a minute?"
My mother takes my place on the bed, her hand automatically finding Charlie's small back in a soothing motion. Sydney and I move to the main room where the atmosphere has shifted to one that's tense.
My father has opened the weapons cabinet by the fireplace I hadn't even noticed was there. He hands Kane a shotgun, keeping another for himself. Kane accepts it, checking the chamber with practiced efficiency.
"He's out there," my father says simply when he sees me. "We caught movement near the creek. Whoever it is knows the terrain well."
"Evan was a hunter," I recall, remembering what we'd learned about him during our investigation. "The police files mentioned it."
My father's expression darkens. "Then he knows exactly what he's doing."
Carter moves to the back window, peering through a slim gap in the curtains. "No sign now. But he's there. I can feel it."
The feeling of being watched crawls up my spine. I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly cold despite the warmth of the cabin.
"Trenton and Matthew are twenty minutes out," I tell them. "They found evidence at the motel that Evan knew about the cabin before we even left."
My father exchanges a look with Kane. "He set this up from the beginning."
"He wanted us all in one place," I realize with growing horror. "The attack on the house was just to get us to move here."
Sydney moves to stand beside me, her presence steadying. "Then he's made a mistake. He's brought the fight to people who know how to finish it."
From Charlie's room, I hear a small sound, a whimper that grows into frightened words. "Ms. Morgan? Where are you?"
I move instantly, returning to her side as her eyes flutter open, filled with confusion and fear.
"I'm right here, sweetheart." I gather her into my arms, her small body trembling against mine. "Everything's okay."
But even as I whisper reassurances, I hear the front door open and close, noting it's someone going outside to check the perimeter. The cabin suddenly feels like both a sanctuary and a trap, our refuge transformed into a battlefield.
My phone buzzes again. Trenton. We're 10 minutes out. Stay down. Stay inside.
I hold Charlie closer, her heartbeat rapid against my chest.
I count the minutes, each one stretching like an eternity as I hold Charlie against my chest. Her small body is tense, her breathing shallow. Outside, I hear movement, soft footsteps, whispered commands.
"Morgan," my mother says from beside me, "they're coming."
I hear it then, the distant rumble of an engine growing louder. Not just one vehicle, but several. The sound grows until headlights sweep across the front window, illuminating the cabin's interior for a brief moment.
