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I crouch low, reaching up to test the doorknob. The fools didn’t even bother to lock it.

My breathing increases, my chest tight and my temples throbbing. Before I have a chance to rationalize this and tell myself to wait for the fucking professionals, I’m inside the door.

Adrenaline turns me into a machine. Any thought of worry or fear takes a back seat to the driving need to get to Gilli. I hurl myself across the space and knock into the back of the nearest man, the one with the bat.

We both topple to the floor, with me sprawled on top of him. I grab him by the back of the head and slam his face against the floor before he has a chance to react. I slam the dude’s face down once more for good measure until he stops moving. I’m in the middle of the mêlée now. There’s no turning back.

“You son of a bitch!”

The man nearest the camera races toward me. The glintof light on the sharp end of the switchblade is the only warning I get before he swipes it toward my throat. Instinct sends me rocking back on my heels and almost losing my balance.

My arms windmill and he reaches for me, but I’m faster. Dropping into a roll, I hit the floor and barrel into his legs. He falls hard. I take the opportunity to put more distance between us so I can assess the situation now.

“Oh, this is wonderful,” someone says. “I wondered when you might make an appearance. So you found the unlocked door. Better than a welcome mat. Isn’t it?”

The third man, the one watching Gilli with interest from behind his mask, steps forward, distracting me, allowing the dude with the switchblade to close the distance.

He swings the knife at me again, but I’m ready this time. I dodge and then chop down on his wrist as hard as I can. He loses his grip on the knife, but drives his fist into my face. He then drives his other fist into my gut.

The punch drives the air out of my lungs, and when I curl in on myself, his knee comes up and slams into my nose.

The world goes white, then black.

I’m floundering backwards and losing my balance all over again. My spine slams against the wall and the switchblade dude rushes for me again.

“Stop it!” Gilli’s scream comes from the left.

I never expected in a million years to see the half-naked woman jump on the masked man’s back. Her legs wrap around his midsection, her right hand twisting around to yank the mask off of his face. I catch a brief glimpse of his features before Gilli digs her thumbnails into the corners of his eyes.

The man swings around in a circle, yowling in agony, but he can’t shake her loose. His yowls distract the dude in front of me long enough for me to rise, slamming my skull into his jaw. His head snaps back.

The pain I feel is something to push through. I’vesurvived worse. What are a few bruises compared to survival?

I have to help Gilli. And Aiden and Soren.

The unmasked man stumbles, and Gilli’s hips hit the counter. Her scream grates like icy nails down my spine.

I’ve got to narrow my focus. One thing at a time. If I let myself get distracted then I’ll have a knife between the ribs for my effort.

My own opponent is slow to recover. My skull throbs but I duck to the left, grabbing his wrist and pushing my own thumbs against his tendons hard enough to get him to release the knife.

I’m vaguely aware of Gilli tumbling to the floor as I stoop to grab the knife, avoiding the man’s grasping arms. If I can kill the newly revealed Ghostface, then this will end.

I rush across the living room and knock the camera over as I go. Fuck whoever is watching from the other side. Fuck all of them. We’re not going down without a fight, and this man is?—

In my haste, I can’t avoid a puddle of blood on the floor. My sneakers land squarely in it and my legs fly out from under me.

I land agonizingly hard on my tailbone, the rest of me going down fast. Stars dance in front of my eyes when my skull hits last.

Some hero I’ve turned out to be.

A dark outline overhead slowly solidifies into the unmasked Ghostface. “You worthless piece of shit.” He kicks me in the side. “You fucking goddamn worthless piece of shit veterinarian!”

He kicks me again. The pain is unbearable.

“Did you think I’d let you get away with screwing with my business? Any of you?”

Oh Christ, he’s going to break all of my ribs. The shattered edges of bone will puncture straight through my organs.