Sophie clutched the handle of the brand-new cat carrier as Brandon set her down on the landing in front of her apartment. He needed to stop carrying her, especially there in front of her apartment where one of her neighbors would see. A long childhood of hearing “what will people think” made her extremely uncomfortable with exposing herself to the curiosity of the people in her family’s social circle.
But she didn’t say anything to him. Not after he’d done so much over the past couple of days, including helping her get through today.
“Doormat is in the right place. No marks on the door handle or doorjamb. Let me go in first and clear the apartment,” Brandon murmured. “Come just inside the door behind me and stand in the corner, please.”
She swallowed hard and nodded. His caution was frightening, but comforting, too. If he was this vigilant, then something bad couldn’t happen again, could it?
She didn’t ask. Instead, she prepared to look for anything out of place once they were inside. The women’s self-defense workshops at Revolution MMA taught awareness, perception. If she saw so much as one of her blankets moved or a blind bent, she’d be ready to let Brandon know.
He paused a foot away from the beginning edge of her apartment door’s silhouette as he gently placed his knuckles on the doorknob. The memory of Sifu Gary’s voice whispered in her head.
Is the door hot? Is there a zap of electricity? That might not be static. Try to notice anything unusual.
Less than second later Brandon tried the knob, silently turning it and pushing. The door was locked, as it should be. He inserted her key into the deadbolt and turned it, leaving the key there and turning the doorknob. As soon as the bolts were clear of the door frame, he forcefully slapped the door open hard. She couldn’t help it; she jumped at the impact. And that was the point; it was supposed to startle anyone waiting directly inside her apartment.
Haydn had crowded forward at Brandon’s heel, and Sophie did her best to do the same without actually touching either of them.
They waited there, silent, as a full heartbeat was allowed to pass.
No explosion. No shot rang out from an ambusher lying in wait. Just silence. Sophie’s chest was tight with apprehension, almost wishing they’d found something. So they could relax.
Brandon murmured a command so quiet, she had no idea what he’d said. But Haydn had heard him and proceeded forward in a cautious crouch.
Brandon followed, springing around the doorjamb with his weapon up, walking heel-toe to keep the barrel level. Alex had demonstrated the technique once at Revolution MMA. Brandon moved away from the hinges of the door, establishing his cone of fire from the far corner of Sophie’s living room to the near wall.
She waited for them both by the still-open door, pressed into the corner and out of sight of anyone outside the apartment. She’d had workshops on this, seen the demonstrations, and committed to memory the reasons behind the procedures. It’d been fascinating, a glimpse into the life Brandon had led while he’d been away.
But the reality of being in the midst of it was terrifying. She balled her fists together and did her best to keep her eyes open, looking for anything out of place.
Brandon and Haydn worked as a cohesive team, systematically checking every nook and cranny of her home, even spaces no adult could fit into. She lost sight of them as they entered her bedroom, and there were more loud bangs as Brandon slammed open her closet and bathroom doors.
But there were no warning barks or snarls from Haydn. There was no shout or person charging out of some hiding place. In a few moments, Brandon was back with Haydn at his side. Without leaning out of the front door, Brandon moved to the left and right, looking as far down the entryway outside as he could. Then he retrieved her key, closed the door, and locked it.
“Clear.” His voice was eerily calm and devoid of tone. A different man had spoken in that moment. A new facet of him she’d never encountered.
As he turned to her, she was caught in his gaze. His hazel eyes were tending toward deep green this evening. It dawned on her that he’d always spared her the direct intensity of his stare in the years since he’d returned and established Hope’s Crossing Kennels. He’d been giving her space and letting her fall in at his side in their easygoing friendship.
But things were changing fast and it was coming from both of them.