Alik, Creed and Cole looked on with awe as they watched from their prone positions.
“Leave my family the hell alone!” Evan screamed and hurled the light right back where it came from. The night sky lit up exposing the circus of soldiers clambering for cover as Evan’s blast rocketed back. When it made contact, the boys could hear echoes of surprised screams.
Dust was still billowing through the shattered front door when a barrage of gunfire attacked from the east and west corners of the house. The simple yellow house with a wrap-around front porch was instantly peppered with bullet holes from no fewer than a half-dozen automatic assault rifles.
They knew better than to try to open their eyes much less move. After Evan threw his return fire, he dove behind the nearest sofa and landed right beside his brother Alik.
Crashing roars of bullets ripping the house to shreds were deafening. Shattered debris from its wooden frame spun like shrapnel-shaped acrobats through the air. Desperately trying to protect each other, the brothers locked forearms, all prior animosity forgotten in the heady breath of violence.
As quickly as the gunfire began, it halted leaving what looked like a war zone in its path.
“No one better be dead or we are so screwed,” Cole muttered under his breath.
“Ready for round two?” Creed whispered to the room. The boys were peering around the torn furniture to get visual checks on everyone else. Cole’s head was bleeding, but it looked like a simple flesh wound. He gave a reassuring thumbs-up to the frowns he was getting from the others.
On Creed’s queue, they began commando-crawling past the blocks of C-4 that hadn’t already detonated thanks to the RPG. In their planning for this day, they knew they wanted to take out as many assailants as they could, so Margo had given Creed and Farrow free rein to make the plastic explosives when they first moved into the yellow house on the hill. Evan was too badly injured at the time to be of assistance other than to watch them manipulate the compound and stabilizing agents with their smooth, undamaged hands.
This is what Evan was thinking about when he heard a creak come from the hallway. The boys were on the floor of the kitchen making their way to the garage door in the back of the house, as was their established plan. They were always supposed to be the decoys, drawing the fire to the house while the rest of the family escaped. Then everyone would meet at an old, abandoned billboard just off the highway 7.8 miles from the airport.
That was the plan.
The creak down the hall was not part of the plan.
Shit! The boys collectively thought but remained absolutely silent and listening.
The boys stood and for a moment debated whether they should make a run for it or stay and fight it out. Cole motioned to the back door. The other three glanced at each other and shook their heads, no. Cole rolled his eyes in the dark, but nodded in agreement.
Creak. Shuffle.
Creed spun his finger in the air and Cole and Evan scattered to the far corners of the room while Alik and Creed flanked either side of the pitch-black hallway. They were all listening intently when someone on the opposing team crunched down hard on one of Danny’s forgotten toy cars.
The footsteps came more quickly.
The boys steeled themselves for the onslaught.
9 Defend or Attack
The ornate, green palms on either side of the front door were shredded in the wake of the RPG. Their fan-like leaves swayed in the breeze to the chorus of frantic screams coming from neighboring houses.
Evan’s attention was on the beam of moonlight right within reach, but everything changed at the sound of boots crunching in the thick grass on the front lawn.
They’re attacking from both sides! Damn it!
A quick glance at Alik was all Evan had time for when three deadly barrels of assault rifles stepped from the shadows of the hallway. The gunfire was deafening.
Creed grabbed the hot barrel with his bare hands and in one swift motion shoved it back into the soldier’s solar plexus knocking the wind out of the attacker. He spun the weapon in his hand and opened fire.
Pop, pop, pop!
Like ants, the soldiers dressed in full battle gear spilled into the room until gunfire, shouts of violence and skin-on-skin smacks echoed off what remained of the living room walls.
Alik’s massive size didn’t slow him from using his viper speed. He turned to the side, avoiding the trifecta of bullets aimed at his face. With his left hand, he shoved the rifle to point up and slammed his fist into the curve of the soldier’s elbow. One strategic punch to his nose had shards of bone exploding in the soldier’s brain causing death on impact.