Chapter 38 - Wolves in the Wood
Inside the sawmill, the echoing report of the gunshot cut through Arthur’s confession like a butcher's knife.
David didn't hesitate. He spun on his heel and sprinted toward the light of the mill exit, gravel and sawdust flying beneath his boots.
"David, wait!" Arthur shouted, limping rapidly behind him, pulling a heavy-barreled Colt .45 from beneath his duster. "They’re not county deputies! It’s the extraction team from Blackwood Security! They’re authorized for wet work!"
David burst into the open rain.
The scene before him was absolute carnage. The Subaru’s windows were blown out. Leah was leaning out of the shattered driver-side door, firing blindly toward the trees as a second operative advanced on the passenger side, reaching through the broken glass to unbuckle Maya’s car seat.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" David screamed.
He raised the Glock with both hands, tracking the operative at the passenger door, and fired three rounds in rapid succession.
Two hollow-point bullets struck the man’s Kevlar vest, knocking him off balance. The third shattered his knee. The operative collapsed into the mud with a guttural roar of pain.
From the tree line, suppressed automatic gunfire erupted. *Thwip-thwip-thwip!*
Rounds chewed through the mud at David’s feet, kicking up fountains of wet dirt. David dove behind a rusted steel conveyor frame, the metal groaning as high-caliber bullets struck the opposite side.
*BOOM!*
A deafening shot echoed from behind David. Arthur had knelt beside a concrete footing, leveling his .45 with terrifying, military steadiness. A sniper perched twenty feet up in a hemlock tree tumbled through the branches, crashing lifelessly into the ferns below.
"Get to the car!" Arthur roared, racking another heavy round into the chamber. "The road is blocked behind you, but there’s an access barge on the reservoir! The engine is running!"
David didn't ask questions. He broke cover, sprinting through the crossfire toward the driver’s side of the Subaru.
Leah was bleeding from multiple cuts on her forehead, but her eyes were wild, feral with maternal fury. Maya was screaming hysterically in the back, the infant’s cries piercing through the smell of cordite and burning rubber.
David wrenched the rear door open, sliced the car seat straps with his pocket knife, and pulled Maya against his chest. With his other arm, he grabbed Leah by the jacket, dragging her out into the mud.
"Run! Toward the dock!" David yelled.
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Another burst of automatic fire pinged off the Subaru’s hood. Arthur fired two suppressive shots, buying them five seconds of precious air, before turning and limping furiously toward the black water of the reservoir.
***
