Page 120 of The Loves We Lost

The man standing over Vi moves his weapon until the nozzle is pointing straight at the back of Vi’s skull.

“Daddy,” Avery cries as her face turns redder.

A shove sends me toward my daughter, and I run, even as I hear Niro open fire. He made the choice when I couldn’t.

Catalina bursts through the trees with Halo on her tail.

“I’ll kill her,” the man holding Avery says. He’s too wrapped around her for me to be sure of a shot from my gun, so I pull my knife from my belt.

“Stop,” he cries as he tightens his hold on her.

Confident in my choice, I don’t slow my pace. Instead, I charge, stabbing my blade into his cheek, just missing his eye, and shove him away from her. He releases Avery as he screams in pain.

Catalina grabs Avery as she falls to the ground, and I leap onto the man who tried to take her away from me.

When I yank the blade from his cheek, blood spurts out.

He howls in agony, but the sound is its own reward as I shove my blade into his mouth, slicing his cheek open. The howl becomes a gurgle when he tries to speak.

“Never mess with an Outlaw’s family,” I say as I swipe the blade across his throat and watch him grip his own neck, trying to staunch the flow of blood.

A bullet buzzes by my ear, and I roll onto the ground. “Shooter,” I shout and glance to where Vi is still on her knees.

Halo fires another bullet into the man Niro shot as he shouts, “We need to get them out of here.”

I jump to my feet and run for my family. “Move, Vi,” I yell, taking Avery from Catalina.

“I don’t think I can,” she says, her face tearstained. “I tripped and did something to my ankle.”

She struggles to her feet, her right foot hovering off the ground. I try to hand Avery back to Catalina, but she clings to my neck, squeezing hard as she cries. “It’s okay, sweetheart,” I encourage. “I just need to help Momma.”

But Avery tightens her grip.

“Fuck,” Halo curses. “I got Vi. Go.” He swings his assault rifle behind his back and lifts Vi into his arms, while Cat and Niro run in the direction of the shooter.

“Let’s get them to cover,” I say to Halo as I rub Avery’s back. There’ll be time for words of comfort once we know how many men we’re still looking for. “Did you and Cat take any out?”

Halo shakes his head. “Didn’t see any of them. The road’s over there I think.” He tips his head to the right.

“We took out one on the run in, two in the clearing. That means there are still at least two more. If Niro and Cat are chasing one back toward Noah’s house, it means we could pass the other.”

As we move, I ask, “What happened, Vi?”

“Noah’s dead,” she says, her voice shaking.

“Fuck,” Halo mutters. “Had the makings of a good prospect.”

“No,” Vi says. “It’s Sarah. His ... wife is the half-sister of ... someone called Brad Collins. And they wanted money.”

“Shit. You sure?” I pause by a large fallen tree that had landed on a small rock. There’s just enough space for us to put Vi and Avery down and have some cover. I crouch to the ground with Avery, and she still won’t let go, so I put her on Vi’s lap.

In reassurance, I kiss the top of her head, while Vi comforts her. And I press my lips to Vi’s for a heartbeat. “You’re safe now,” I say quietly. “We’ve got you. You were both so fucking brave.”

While Halo and I set up a perimeter, Vi tells us what happened. Being locked in the basement. Her convincing Noah to help them flee. Him being scared of losing his daughter.

“Sounds like bullshit,” Halo says.

“You didn’t see his face,” Vi says. “I think he was scared. Out of his depth. As we were running, I heard two shots in the basement. I don’t know what happened, but I can guess.”