Chapter 37 - The Glass Sanctuary
A mile away, in the deep woods of the Oregon timber reserve, the silence was shattered by the high-pitched hum of a drone motor.
Back in the Subaru, Leah leaned over the front seat to adjust Maya’s blanket. The baby’s cheeks were flushed pink, her tiny chest rising and falling in deep, peaceful sleep.
*Click.*
Leah froze.
The sound hadn't come from inside the vehicle. It had come from the rusted steel door of the abandoned office shack thirty yards to the right.
Leah reached beneath the seat and pulled David’s spare revolver into her lap, cocking the hammer with a trembling thumb. Her heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird.
Through the rain-streaked side window, she saw a small red dot dancing across the passenger door.
*A laser sight.*
"David!" she cried out instinctively, her hand flying to the horn.
Before her palm could strike the steering wheel, the rear window of the Subaru blew inward with a deafening *CRACK*.
Tempered glass exploded in a glittering blizzard across the interior. Maya shrieked in terror as the shockwave rocked the car.
Leah threw her body over the car seat, using her own back as a human shield against the flying shards. She screamed as sharp fragments shredded her raincoat and cut into her shoulders.
Two men dressed in tactical black gear, wearing full-face ballistic masks, materialized from the dense tree line. One carried a hydraulic pry-bar; the other held a suppressed MP5 submachine gun.
"Target secured! The child is in the second row! Take the mother out!" a synthesized voice barked through a comms unit.
Leah rolled onto her back, thrust the snub-nosed revolver through the shattered window, and pulled the trigger.
The gun roared in the confined space of the cabin. The lead operative staggered backward, clutching his shoulder as the round penetrated his tactical vest.
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"David!" Leah screamed at the top of her lungs, racking the hammer back again. "DAVID!"
***
