Page 160 of Jensen

We are getting out of this alive.

I don’t care what I have to do.

The ground crunches to the right. Two figures careen around the side of the house. I raise my pistol, ready to shoot. Then, the light catches the shadow in front—it’s Kayleigh, still in her nightgown. Brothers skids to a halt beside her, AK in hand.

“Is the front—” I start.

“Leland’s dead,” he pants. “I saw him.”

“I know—”

“We need to pull back, Jen,” he interjects. “I don’t have the guys for this. We need to pull back now. It’s over, for now.”

“I’ll take Kayleigh, Della, and Landis,” I say. “You pull your men back and meet us by the north entrance.”

“No,” Kayleigh says, falling against Brothers’ side. Her right knee is bloody, crimson and dirt smeared up her shin. “I’m not leaving you.”

He steps into the light, his hand coming up to touch her face. Her lower lip trembles. I see a flash of what I witnessed in the office, a real bond, a depth of feeling.

“Go with them, darling,” he begs.

She shakes her head. I know that look—she’s not leaving without him.

“We don’t have time to stall,” Brothers says. “Kayleigh, you go with them. I’m going to pull my men back and make a run through the front to the north.”

“Good,” I say. “Go.”

He bends in, kissing Kayleigh on the forehead. His eyes flutter shut, like he’s wondering if this is the last time he’ll get to kiss her. Beside me, it looks like Della is about to burst into tears. Then, Brothers turns and disappears into the shadows. There’s a half second of silence, then shooting, like a machine gun, rips through the night.

“No, no,” Kayleigh whimpers..

I reach for her, but she slips through my fingers like a ghost, disappearing the same way Brothers went. I lurch forward and stop myself. I can’t go after her. I have Della and her son to protect. Della gasps, hand going to her mouth. She swings her gaze to me like she’s expecting me to do something, but I shake my head.

“Jensen—”

“No, my job is getting you and Landis out,” I say. “Take your son, baby. We’re running to the side exit. I’m going to spot us.”

“Jensen,” she whispers, voice breaking.

“You hear me, Della?”

She nods, her face white. I ease Landis back into her arms. Then, we both take a breath and hold. I wait, listening for a lull.

“Go,” I order.

We burst into the side yard, running hard for the side exit. The gate is hanging open, but as we get close, a pair of dark figures appear. Caudill soldiers. Reflexively, I lift my pistol and take them both out. Their bodies drop like bricks, but the second they do, footsteps ring out, heading in our direction.

“Right, to the right,” I hiss. “Stay in the shadow of the fence.”

We move along the fence, making our way into the front of the yard. That’s when I see it, and my steps falter. In the yellow lightfrom the burning front door is the shadow of Brothers on his knees, a woman’s body in his arms.

His head is bowed. She’s not moving.

Fuck.

Della hasn’t seen them. I push between her and the horror in the front lawn, keeping my arm around their bodies as I usher them towards the north end. The fence there is open, shattered and half burnt. I put my pistol into my belt and take my AK out. We’re getting out this way, and anyone who stops me is dying.

A group of soldiers appears. They’re down before they even see us, bodies twisting as they hit the dirt. We burst through the burning gates and into the road. A heavy thud and thundering crash shakes the ground. The house is starting to fall. I can’t see anything through the smoke, but it sounds like the bullets have died down. We pause at the bend where the road branches out, and I make the mistake of turning back.