28. Ava

TWENTY-EIGHT

AVA

Blayne was pulling on his pants while I watched him. I'd known this moment was coming. We all had. Antonio had made it clear that he wanted all shifters dead. He was coming to finish the job.

Still, it was surreal to think that it was actually happening. Today. I was sure Blayne would be gone with the guys for the next several days. The worry in his eyes were palpable as he dressed. Part of what made this scary was that we had no clue what Antonio had planned. He could attack today in force, or it could be a slowly building fire over a few days. There was no way to know. That unknown was terrifying.

"I don't want you to worry," Blayne said as he buckled his belt.

"How am I supposed to do that?" I asked, desperately trying not to bite my nails.

He smiled at me. "You're my reason for coming home. I have to come back in one piece. Otherwise, you'll never let me hear the end of it."

"Doesn't mean I can't still worry."

He cupped my cheek. "Stay positive. We've done everything we can, and have as much help as we possibly could. It's gonna be all right."

"I guess." I didn't sound assured.

"One thing I want you to do."

"What?"

Blayne sighed. "Stay locked up in the main house. I don't want you anywhere else while this is going on. Not even here."

I remembered the men who had tried to grab me at the cemetery, and a knot of fear twisted in my stomach. "You think he might try to take me again?"

Blayne huffed. "I don't know. I've seen them try to kidnap our mates before. After what that did to my friends, I don't know what I'd do. And I don't even want to think about what your dad would do in retaliation. If I had to guess, he'd level the whole fucking town. I want you safe."

Lifting my hands, I dug my fingers into his hair and pulled him toward me to kiss him. He relaxed, and I did all I could to put every emotion I was feeling into that kiss. It had the terrifying finality of a goodbye. I clung to him, desperate for one more second with him, but he pulled away.

"I've gotta go." He looked pained. Leaning in again, he pressed his forehead to mine. "Ava, I love you, and I will come home."

Elation fluttered through me. I looked at him with what I hoped was awe, but probably looked more like abject shock. "You love me?"

He grinned. "You heard me."

He turned and was gone before I could respond. I stared at the open bedroom door for several seconds. "I love you," I whispered.

I stood up and watched out the window as Blayne got into his truck. As though he could feel my eyes on him, he looked up at the window. When he saw me standing there, he smiled and waved. Then he drove away. I hoped it wouldn't be the last time I saw him alive.

With nothing else to do, I dressed and headed back to the main house. Blayne was right. The guesthouse was right in the middle of our sprawling estate, but it was tucked up against the forest. As close as it was to the main house, it had the feeling of isolation. Even with all the guards and soldiers patrolling the property, I wouldn't feel completely safe in the guesthouse without Blayne.

The house wasn't much better. If the last few days had been manic, the house was chaos that morning. LJ and Kyle were in the living room with six other guys going over weapons. It looked like a military storage room. Assault rifles, body armor, pistols, and a dozen other things I didn't recognize lined the floor. Chris and Uncle Mike were in the den with a bunch of guys, perusing a map of Lilly Valley. Mike was circling areas with red markers.

I walked on before hearing what he was saying. It was all too much. I wanted some quiet. Even the kitchen was crazy. Marissa and a few helpers I'd never seen before were packing up what looked like hundreds of bags of lunches or meals. I guessed it was so that everyone could have food with them and not need to go on a break or leave their post for food.

I found myself upstairs in Dad's office—a mahogany-lined library that he almost never used. It had been more Mom's idea. She thought a businessman like Dad needed a library.

That was where he found me. I was pacing back and forth across the room when he opened the door.

"Ava? Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm great. Um…I guess I need to reschedule your chemo again, huh?"

Dad gave me a pained smile. "I'll go if you really want me to. I made a promise."

I sighed and stopped walking around the room. "No. It's fine. That is life and death, but this is…more immediate. Things are getting heavy, aren't they?"

Dad studied me. I was sure he was trying to find a way to break things to me in a gentle way. His face fell and he shook his head. "It's gonna get bad before it gets better. That's one thing we can bet on."

The worry on my face must have been obvious. Seeing it, he crossed the room and wrapped me in a hug. He kissed the top of my head and said, "I gave Blayne and his guys the best equipment I could. Called an arms dealer out of Mexico. He got me the best of the best." He released me and held me at arm's length. "I also had a little talk with Tate, Miles, and Steff. They know that, for me, priority number one is keeping Blayne safe. I told them that if things go sideways, their one job is to get his ass out of there alive."

"Daddy. You didn't!" I was horrified. "Blayne would lose his mind if he knew you did that."

Dad shrugged and made a face that basically said he didn't give a shit. "Be pissed all he wants. If he's pissed, that means he is alive. I'd rather have an angry Blayne screaming at me in my office than a dead Blayne being lowered into the ground in a box."

I couldn't disagree with that. "Dad?"

"Yeah, kid?"

"I'm going to spend the next few days here. It's probably safer in this house than it is in the guesthouse."

He nodded. "Glad you decided that on your own. I was going to suggest the same thing." He patted my shoulder. "Find a quiet place. I'm sorry it's crazy right now."

"It's fine. I'm going to my room. It should be quiet there."

Dad looked over his shoulder. "Luis put a few pistols around your room. Easy access in emergencies."

"Dad? Seriously?"

"One between the mattress and box spring, one on the top shelf of your closet, and another inside your medicine cabinet."

"Christ. You know I hate guns."

"You'd hate being dead even more."

I sighed. "Fair point."

Once I was in my room, I pulled out my phone. April was the only person who could really understand what I was going through. She answered so fast, I almost thought she'd been hovering over her phone, waiting for an incoming call.

"Ava? What's wrong? Have you heard anything?" She sounded tense and on edge.

"Nothing's wrong. Blayne left a little over an hour ago. I haven't heard anything since Tate called this morning. I hate this."

"I know." April sighed. "The worst thing is being stuck inside all day. All I can do is look out the window and hope I don't see anyone I'm not supposed to. It's stressful enough, but an empty quiet house makes it way worse."

"Yeah. I'd love to go out and have lunch or see a movie, but staying put is the safest thing. The guys would kill us if they knew we were out traipsing around town."

An idea flickered in my mind. A few days ago, it would have seemed silly. Now? It seemed like the best thing we could do.

"April? Do you want to come over to my father's house? If we're gonna be miserable, can we at least be miserable together? It's safe here. I know Steff has guys watching your place but…there's like an army here. It's the safest place within a hundred miles. A few days of sleeping over? Like when we were in high school?"

There was a long pause, and I was sure April was going to laugh it off.

"I'll pack a bag. I'll be there in an hour or less."

After we got off the phone, I told the crew April would be staying with us for a few days and to not freak out if a strange car came up the drive. They all seemed happy that I'd have a friend to hang out with. I think they all understood how tense things were, and none of them were going to be great company until Antonio was dealt with.

April arrived forty-five minutes after our call with a backpack and a large suitcase. As she got out of her car, Uncle Sam told a few guys to help her with her bags.

"She's a guest of Mr. Francis. You drop her shit, I kick your ass. Got it?" Sam said to the men. "Upstairs, bedroom next to Ava's." He turned and smiled at April. "Nice to see you, April. Been a long time. You were a kid the last time you hung around here. Glad to have you."

April blushed and nodded. "Uh, thanks…Mr. Francis."

"None of that shit. My big brother is Mr. Francis. I'm Sam. Same goes for Luis and Mike. Head on up. I think Marissa has your room ready for you."

I put an arm around her shoulders and led her to the house. "It's usually much less intense. These are special circumstances."

She leaned into me. "I'm just glad to not be alone."

"Me too," I said. I'd never meant anything more than I did right then. Blayne had only been gone a couple of hours, and already I was lonely.

We sat in the living room after the guys got April's stuff into her bedroom. One of the other maids who worked for Marissa brought us a tray of coffee, cream, and sugar.

We'd made our drinks and were starting to relax when things went to shit. I should have known it was too good to be true.

Dad came pounding down the stairs. I turned and saw him reach the landing, gasping for breath even though he was pissed. A knot of fear coiled in my stomach. My father never looked scared, and beneath the anger, there was the telltale frayed edge of fear.

"Ava, you and April get to the safe room. Now!"

At the back of the house, gunshots erupted. Terror hit me like a sickening punch. My uncles came running inside, screaming.

"What's happening?" I shouted over the chaos.

"That fuck thought he could attack the house. They snuck through the woods and got by our scouts. They broke into the guesthouse. My phone sent me the alarm notification. They'll be here in seconds. Go. Run!"

I tugged April along toward the safe room. "Don't get hurt, Daddy."

He stepped close and hugged me quickly, kissing my forehead.

"Hurry. They'll be here any second. Go on. I'll be fine."

I pulled April down the hallway. When I looked back, Uncle Mike was tossing an assault rifle to my father. I turned away and held back a scream when glass shattered at the back of the house. Suddenly, the whole place was filled with the deafening sound of gunfire, screams, and shouts.

The safe room was right beside the billiard room. It had a toilet, a sink, one cot, a couple of stools, and enough food and water for two or three days. This was the first time in all my life that anyone had ever used it.

I pulled April inside and slammed the door closed behind us. The erratic sounds of battle weren't fully cut off. Instead of the cacophony we'd heard, it was now a muffled thunder outside.

April collapsed onto a small stool in the room, looking pale. "Maybe…uh…maybe I should have stayed home?" she said, looking at me with a lopsided, humorless grin.

Before I could answer, April's phone rang. She dug it out and glanced at me. "It's Steff."

"Answer it," I said, waving at the phone.

She put it on speaker for me to hear too. "Steff? Baby, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Where the fuck are you?" The man sounded like he was half out of his mind. "I need to know you're safe. I got an alert that our place had been compromised. You texted earlier and said you were going to Gio's. Are you there? Please tell me you are."

"Uh, yeah…I'm at Gio's place. Steff, the hunters are here. They're attacking the building. Mr. Francis had Ava and me lock ourselves in some kind of safe room." April's lips quivered. "Baby, I'm scared."

"The hunters are already there?"

"We can hear them out there. Jesus, it sounds like a war. I don't know what to do."

"You're in the safest place you can be. Hunker down and stay there. Don't open the door for anybody. Stay safe."

His voice went distant as he pulled the phone from his mouth. "It's a set-up!" Steff screamed. "Blayne? They're at Gio's. They're already fucking there?—"

With that, the call ended. April stared at the screen for several seconds before the phone tumbled from her fingers. It clattered to the concrete floor. She looked at me with shining eyes. "He's gone. Ava…is it gonna be okay?"

The fear in her face matched the terror in my heart. I wanted to nod and tell her it was going to be okay, but the horror I'd heard in Steff's voice, the thunderous gunshots echoing beyond the steel walls, made it difficult to say anything. Instead, I pulled up the stool beside her and we wrapped each other in a hug, listening as the world ended outside the safe room.

I shivered. My father, uncles, and cousins were out there, fighting as we hid. Fighting, maybe dying. The man I loved and his friends were somewhere else, fighting to the death. I felt weak and useless inside the safe room. I wanted to help, but the men I loved wouldn't be able to concentrate with me in harm's way.

As fucking awful as it was, I had to stay put. It was a horrible bargain, but one I had to make. What else could I do? Like anyone, visions passed through my mind—April and me swinging open the doors in some show of supernatural force. Somehow, we overcame the odds and defeated all the enemies out there. Kid fantasies. Real life was uglier and more brutal.

We couldn't know how long it went on. The gunshots and explosions could have been going on for hours, days, or minutes—it all would have been the same to us.

Eventually, the shots did slow. After over five minutes of near silence, a new horror filled the room. The door had been locked. A large light above the vault had been red since we locked ourselves inside. The red light suddenly turned green, and the round handle began to spin.

April and I leaped to our feet and backed up a few feet. Our eyes locked on the door, and whatever might come through. A deep growl erupted from April's throat, and I reminded myself that she, too, was a shifter now. At least we wouldn't be completely defenseless if one of Antonio's guys came through the door.

It wasn't Antonio or one of his men; it was worse. Uncle Sam stood there, heaving and covered in sweat. An assault rifle hung from a strap across his chest. A pistol, the slide locked back showing it was empty, dangled from his left hand. He was covered in blood, spatters and smears all across his shirt, face, and legs. A quick glance told me almost none of it was his. He had a few deep cuts on his left shoulder and some scratches around his face, but his eyes told me something was wrong.

"Sam?" I said, my voice quavering. "What happened?"

He looked at me and opened his mouth, but paused, closed his mouth, and shook his head. "Your dad's been shot. Gio's hurt." He shook his head in bewilderment. "It doesn't look good."

I almost screamed, but I clamped my mouth shut. Tears sprang to my eyes, and the world seemed to tilt to one side. If April hadn't been there, I would have slid to the floor. Instead, she put an arm around me and held me up.

Gritting my teeth in anger and fear, I took the first step toward the door. "Take me to him."