Page 49 of Wicked Games (Silvercrest U #1)

KILLIAN

Felix is subdued on the plane ride home, and he only gets quieter after we land and pack up the car. I don’t like it, but other than demanding he tell me what’s wrong, I don’t know how to help him.

I know he’s not a big fan of being home, and he really hates any sort of family gathering, so Thanksgiving being at our parents’ house this year is probably stressing him out.

And he’s also dealing with the comedown from the molly. The crash can be rough and mess with your emotions, especially if you’re not used to it.

All of that explains why he’s acting this way, but that doesn’t mean I like it.

Instead of trying to push him into talking, I do my best to give him some space while still keeping him in my orbit and not letting him out of my sight.

At least he’s not pulling away from me physically and spent most of the flight, and now the car ride, pressed up against my side.

“What the fuck?” Xave says from the driver’s seat about two seconds before Jace, who’s sitting shotgun, says, “Motherfucker.”

“What?” the rest of us chorus from the back of the car as Xave slows down.

I lean around Xave’s seat so I can see out the windshield. The road ahead of us is blocked by a fallen tree.

“Was there a storm recently?” I ask as Xave brings the car to a stop.

“No,” Jace and Jax say together.

“I double checked before we left. The last time it even rained was a week ago,” Jax adds.

“How long do you think it’s been there?” Felix asks from beside me.

“No clue.” Xave unclicks his seatbelt. “Depends on if anyone called it in or not.”

The road we’re on is an old back highway that’s barely used anymore, which is one of the reasons we always take it instead of the main highway when we’re going to or from the airport. There’s never any traffic on it, and no cops patrol it, so there’s no one to enforce the posted speed limits.

Because of this, there’s a chance the tree has been there for a few days and no one reported it, but that doesn’t explain how it fell if there hasn’t been a storm or even strong winds in a week.

The rest of us also undo our seatbelts, and we all step out of the car and walk up to the tree.

It’s not massive or anything, but it’s big enough there’s no way we can move it without a truck or something to do the heavy lifting.

“Is anyone else’s Spidey sense tingling?” Jace asks as he scans the area around us.

“Yeah,” I say as the hair on the back of my neck stands up. It feels like we’re being watched, but other than trees and brush, there’s nothing around us.

“Fuck yeah,” Jax says.

“Do you see this?” Felix asks.

He’s bent over at the waist and looking at something on the base of the tree. I’m about to ask what he means when my entire being zeros in on the tiny red dot that appears on the side of his head right over his temple.

I don’t even have time to scream his name before Jace rushes toward him at full speed and closes the distance between them in only a few seconds.

Everything seems to slow down as Jace grabs Felix in a bearhug hold and tackles him. Felix screams, and they tumble to the ground with Jace on top and protecting Felix with his body.

As soon as they hit the ground, everyone moves at once. Jax is running toward them, and Xander pulls the gun he always wears when we’re off campus out of his side holster.

I’m already rushing toward where they fell, and my stomach roils when I see the streaks of bright red blood coating Jace’s arm as he rolls them toward the car, dragging Felix along with him.

A soft pop, followed by a gentle snap, rings out before a bullet hits the ground right where they lay only a second before and ricochets into the brush.

Jax and Xave are right behind me, and the three of us drag both Jace and Felix behind the car to use it as cover as three more bullets hit the ground only inches from us.

“Son of a bitch,” Jace grunts as he falls back against the side of the car, holding his injured arm against his chest. “Motherfucker shot me.”

“How bad is it?” I ask as Jax yanks off his lightweight sweater and hands it to his brother.

“I’ll live.” He crudely wraps Jax’s sweater over his wound and yanks it tight to stop the flow of blood. “Think it’s just a deep graze.”

Felix makes a weird sound, like a squeak mixed with a gasp, as he stares at Jace’s arm in horror. His face is so pale that even his lips are white.

“I’m all good, kid.” Jace shoots Felix a reassuring smile. “But where the fuck are they shooting from?” he asks the rest of us.

“I think it came from our ten o’clock,” Xave says, his gun up and at the ready. “Is anyone else carrying?”

“You know it.” Jace lifts one leg and wiggles his foot. His pant leg shifts, and something dark and metallic flashes in the sunlight.

Jax immediately pulls the gun out of his brother’s ankle holster and flicks off the safety.

Felix looks like he’s about to be sick as he stares at the blood running down Jace’s arm. The flow has stopped, but the stains are dark against his shirt and skin.

I grab him and settle him between my legs, turning him away from Jace and using my body to give him some extra cover.

“Here,” Jace holds one of his butterfly knives out to me.

It’s not nearly as effective as a gun, but I take it with a nod of thanks. I’d rather have a knife than nothing at all.

“How many are there?” Jax asks.

“Can’t be sure, but I think it’s only one,” Xave says.

The unmistakable pop of bullets hitting the side of the car ring out in rapid succession, and we all instinctively flinch.

Cars are solid and give good visual cover, but this one isn’t bulletproof, and it has a shit ton of weak spots that are leaving us vulnerable.

I’m sitting almost directly under the side mirror, and I flip the blade of Jace’s butterfly knife open and jam it between the mirror and the plastic casing. I give it a few wiggles, and the mirror pops out and tumbles to the ground.

Jace grabs it and holds it up, using it to see through the windows of the car.

It’s not the best option, but right now it’s all we have.

The window above us shatters, causing glass to rain down on me and Jace. I do my best to cover Felix as needles of pain explode on my neck and shoulders, and Jax throws himself over his brother to protect him.

Felix is whimpering in my arms, and one of the twins, I can’t tell who, grunts in pain.

“Okay, now I’m pissed,” Jace says, and relief courses through me at his voice and Jax’s agreement. They’re both okay.

I take a second to make sure Felix is too. He doesn’t seem to be cut, but I can’t say the same for myself.

Jace holds up the mirror again, and two more bullets embed in the side of the car.

“Gotcha, fucker,” Jace says. “I see him.”

“Where?” Xave and Jax ask together.

“Ten o’clock. He’s using a tree as a blind.” Jace tosses the mirror to Xave. “He’s stepping out each time he shoots. You’ve got a two-second window, max.”

Xave lifts the mirror and angles it toward where Jace said he saw the shooter. Two more bullets hit the trunk of the car, and Xave tosses the mirror onto the ground. “Got him.”

“Can you make the shot?” I ask.

He nods.

“Here.” I unceremoniously dump Felix into Jace’s lap. “I’ll distract him.”

“No!” Felix reaches for me. “Don’t go out there.”

“I’ll be fine.” I give him what I hope is a reassuring smile, then flick my gaze to Jace.

He nods. We don’t need words for him to know I’m telling him to protect Felix at all costs, no matter what happens to me.

“I’ll go,” Jax says.

“No.” I shake my head. “He’s after Felix, and we look the closest from a distance. I’m the best chance we have of drawing his attention away so Xave can do his thing.”

Jax nods and sets his mouth in a grim line. He wants to argue with me, but he doesn’t because he knows I’m right.

The twins have long dark hair, and Xave’s is golden brown.

Felix and I both have medium brown hair and wear it in similar styles.

Our body types are different, but we’re both in jeans and dark hoodies.

From a distance, and with our backs turned, we’d look almost identical to anyone who only caught a glimpse of us.

“You good?” I ask Xave.

He’s already in position, his gun at the ready.

He nods.

I pull in a deep breath, and I fix my gaze on a break in the trees about twenty feet away. If I can get to it, it’ll give me enough cover in case Xave can’t make the shot.

If not, then I’m good as dead.

I count to three in my head, then take off toward the break as fast as I can with my head down so the shooter hopefully doesn’t realize I’m not his target.

I’m halfway across the space when a bullet whizzes past my head and embeds itself in a nearby tree. Less than a second later, two shots ring out, the sharp crack of them loud and jarring. I keep running and don’t slow down until I’m safely through the break.

“Fuck yeah, motherfucker!” Xave shouts.

I peer out from behind the tree I’m using as cover and see Xave standing, his gun at his side and other arm raised in a victory pose.

I’m already running back to them when Jax climbs to his feet and reaches down to help Felix and Jace up.

The relief on Felix’s face when he sees me warms my chest, and surprisingly, so does the way he’s clinging to Jace like he’s his lifeline.

“I’ve got him,” Jace says, his unhurt arm wrapped tightly around Felix. “Go see who the fuck that was.”

I nod and slip Jace’s knife back into his pocket.

Xave and Jax are already heading toward the other side of the road. I jog to catch up with them as they approach the body lying next to one of the bigger trees, a rifle with a scope on the ground beside him.

Xave and Jax keep their weapons trained on the body while I kick the gun away, making sure it’s out of his reach just in case the fucker is playing possum.

“Here.” Xave holds out his gun.

I take it and train it on the fucker as Jax slips his own gun into his waistband, and both he and Xave kneel so they can better inspect the body.