Chapter 16 - Blood in the Dark
The sound of the safehouse door blowing inward was deafening, followed instantly by the staccato rhythm of suppressed automatic gunfire.
In the master bathroom, I pressed Lily beneath me in the cast-iron bathtub, covering her ears with my hands. She was trembling violently, tears streaming down her face, but she didn’t make a sound. She was so brave. So much like her mother.
In the living room, the darkness was illuminated by strobe-light flashes of gunfire.
"Federal agents! Drop your weapons!" I heard Agent Harrison roar, followed by a barrage of return fire.
The cartel hit squad hadn’t come to negotiate. They moved with terrifying, militaristic precision. I heard the thud of a body hitting the floor, followed by Sarah Collins shouting something incomprehensible over the deafening noise.
Crash.
The bedroom door right outside our bathroom splintered open. Heavy boots crunched over the drywall. They were clearing the rooms, executing everyone inside.
I looked wildly around the pitch-black bathroom. There was a small frosted window high up on the wall, leading out to the back perimeter. But to reach it, we had to get out of the tub.
The bathroom doorknob rattled. It was locked, but that wouldn't stop them for more than two seconds.
I kissed Lily's forehead. "Close your eyes, baby. Do not open them until I say so."
I stood up, stepping out of the tub just as a heavy boot kicked the bathroom door. The wood splintered around the frame. One more kick, and it would give.
I reached for the only weapon I had: the heavy, ceramic lid of the toilet tank. I lifted it above my head, standing flush against the wall next to the doorframe.
BAM.
The door flew open, the lock completely shattered. A man stepped into the bathroom, a tactical rifle raised to his shoulder. He wore night-vision goggles, the green lenses sweeping the small room.
Before he could process the empty bathtub, I swung the ceramic tank lid down with every ounce of strength I possessed.
It connected with the side of his head with a sickening crack, shattering the night-vision goggles and the ceramic lid simultaneously. The man collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, dropping his rifle to the tile floor.
I didn't hesitate. I scooped up the heavy rifle, ignoring my shaking hands, and turned to Lily.
"Up, Lily! Now!"
I hoisted her onto my shoulders, boosting her toward the small window. I smashed the frosted glass out with the butt of the rifle. "Climb through! I'm right behind you!"
Lily wriggled through the narrow frame and dropped into the wet grass outside. I tossed the rifle out after her, grabbed the ledge, and pulled myself through, scraping my ribs raw on the broken glass.
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As I hit the ground outside, I looked back at the safehouse. The living room was a war zone. I couldn't tell if Collins was alive or dead, and I couldn't stay to find out.
"Run," I whispered to Lily, grabbing her hand. We sprinted into the pitch-black woods, swallowed by the cold, unforgiving rain.
