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“I’ve found them. Sergei and his team, they may have hidden from Saint, but I’ve got them now,” Easton divulges, and I nearly sag with relief. “They’re on their way here.” Panic freezes my heart.
“The girls…” I’ll die if anything happens to them.
“Casey, Drew, and Gunner are taking them to the panic room. It’s impenetrable,” Dominic reassures.
“How many?” Jax asks, his voice steely. Easton turns the computer screen around for us to see three vehicles driving quickly. “Do I want to know how you got that footage?”
“Drone, actually. We have about thirty minutes. They’re going to try and come in guns blazing. They only have about eight men, none of which are prepared for the force they’ll be met with.” Easton grins, and I already know what he’s going to say. “Saint and I spent the morning setting explosives outside, away from the buildings, but the animals are going to freak the fuck out.”
“What about Scotlyn?” Jax’s hold on me tightens.
“She’s staying right here.” East grimaces and flinches when Dad’s eyes land on him.
“Bait. I’m the bait.”
“No fucking way,” Jax protests, but I can see why this would be to our advantage. “We’re not using her as bait. She should go to the panic room as well.”
“No!” Spinning in his arms, I grip his shoulders, attempting to soothe him. “I can’t be where the girls are. I won’t put them at risk. Your mom, your aunt, Gracin, I won’t do it. If I’m here, I have the five of you watching my six. I know you won’t let anything happen to me, just like I won’t let anything happen to those sweet girls. I can’t be responsible for that, Jax, please.”
Growling, I feel his chest rumbling under my touch, the way his muscles tense and quiver beneath his flesh. I feel his frustration.
“Cavalry is here,” Easton announces as I hear the crunch of gravel from outside. Glancing out the window, I see my Uncle Luther, his son Nolan, and Easton’s brother Bishop.
“Uncle Luther,” I breathe out as he walks through the door. His arms open wide for me, wrapping me up in his embrace before releasing me.
“Promised your mom I’d give you that as soon as we got here.” His eyes roam over me, and I know he’s checking me out to ensure I’m okay. “She’s fine, kid," he reassures me. "Very eager to meet this man of yours, though.” Grinning, I step back and into Jax as I introduce him to more members of my family.
“Damn, Scotty, you sure know how to set the world on fire,” Nolan teases with a grin as he walks through the door with Bishop. Nolan is the biggest flirt I’ve ever met, and I can’t wait until he finds a woman to settle down with.
“How’s Lake?” At the mention of his sister, he grimaces, and I hear Saint growl.
“Hey, Scotty-girl.” Bishop kisses my forehead the same way he’s done for as long as I can remember.
Jax cocoons me in his protection as they all begin discussing the plan of attack before Sergei and his men get here. I see Dad, Luther, and Dominic talking in the kitchen, and from the looks of it, it’s intense.
Saint and Bishop exchange a glance when they notice it, too, and it’s like everyone is communicating silently as Easton informs everyone of where their place will be.
“Five-minute warning,” Luther says as he, Dad, and Dominic head outside with Saint and Bishop.
Jax and Nolan are staying inside with me. Nolan at the top of the stairs and Jax at the back of the house on the porch outside the kitchen door, while Easton will be on top of the barn with a rifle.
“Don’t take this off. Not for any fucking reason, Scotlyn. You got me?” After securing the bulletproof vest, Jax helps me put my shirt back on. “You don’t leave this house or my line of sight. Stay in the living room, be mobile. Pace back and forth, check your wrist like you’re waiting for something, but don’t sit down. Don’t stop moving.”
“I know.” Until now, my fear had simmered on the back burner. Now that I'm about to be left alone, it’s rising to the surface.
“I love you.” Jaxson drags me into his body again and lays a claiming kiss on my lips. Not lingering for exploration, he lets me go and stares for a minute before disappearing, and suddenly, I’m by myself.
“Breathe, Scotty. You can do this.” Staring out the window, I see billows of dust from the road in the distance. “Walk, Scotty. Pace.” Convincing myself to move is more complicated than it seems. My feet are frozen in fear.
“Move, Scotty!” Nolan yells down the stairs, and it kickstarts my legs into doing as they’re told.
Lifting my wrist to check my watch, I hear the measured shifting of gravel again. My heart pounds inside my chest, threatening to break free. My ears ring with the remembered fear of when they grabbed me the first time.
Circling the island in the kitchen, I bend down when I spot a dish towel on the floor. Jaxson catches my eye and gives me a head nod. I straighten back up and feel more grounded as I place the towel on the counter.
Continuing with my pacing, I stop short when the doorbell rings.
They ring the doorbell?
