I gritted my teeth and swung the hatch closed, pulling the bed back over it as I straightened and moved to grab my rifle from beside the door.
I cast a sweeping look over the cabin to make sure I hadn’t left out anything else that might give away her presence then wrenched the door open and stepped out onto the porch. I tossed it closed behind me to keep Tyson inside, much to his disgust, and he started barking frantically as he leapt up at the window to get a look at our unwelcome guests.
Duke Polinsky and his band of merry assholes were striding towards me through the snow and I cocked my rifle over my arm as I looked at them with a scowl on my face. These were the assholes who ran the cannabis farm over on the north side of the mountain and I usually made it my mission to avoid them as much as humanly possible. They were a bunch of power hungry motherfuckers and the best thing they’d ever done for society was to remove themselves from it.
“What are you doing out here in the middle of the night, Duke?” I demanded. “You woke my damn dog up and got me out of bed.”
“You seen a girl out here, mountain man?” Duke called in a friendly tone as he strode up the steps of my porch looking like he owned the goddamn world. Snow had settled in on the wide brimmed hat he wore over his slicked-back black hair and his cold eyes swept over me for a moment before he turned his attention to my cabin. He eyed the window where Tyson was looking out, lifting a hand to smooth down his horseshoe moustache.
“The only ones mad enough to come out here in this blizzard are you assholes,” I muttered.
Duke licked his lips as he came to stand before me, casually drawing a long hunting knife from his belt. “Remember that time I asked you if you’d seen a buck I was hunting when I met you up in the forest last summer?” he asked slowly. “And you told me it had run on down to the river.”
I grunted in vague recollection of the memory.
“But then the darn thing appeared right behind you, in the complete opposite direction to what you’d just said.”
“I’m not grasping the point of this tale and it’s freezing out,” I growled.
Goosebumps covered my bare chest and my breath rose in a fog before me so my statement was true enough.
“Point is…” Duke leaned in close to me so that I could smell the tang of cheap whiskey on his breath. I was taller than him and it seemed like he was standing up straighter than usual to try and match my height. “I don’t trust you, mountain man. I think you’ve got a soft spot for a victim. But just like that buck, this girl’s life is mine. And unlike that buck, I won’t be so forgiving if you try to keep her from me.”
“I like being alone,” I growled, rolling my shoulders back. “I don’t invite people into my home. Not missing girls or assholes who show up unannounced in the middle of the night. But if I see her, I’ll be sure to tell her what direction to run from you.”
Duke snarled at me, raising his knife and I raised my rifle in reply.
“You shouldn’t bring a knife to a gun fight, Duke,” I warned, my finger kissing the trigger.
The sound of all of his men cocking their own guns at me came as expected, but I kept my gaze fixed on the asshole in charge.
“Be a good boy and let us come in and check your story, mountain man,” Duke purred. “It would be a shame to fill you with holes if it turns out you ain’t lying this time…”
My lip curled back and I gave him a hard look before pulling my door wide to let them in. “Make it quick.”
I whistled to call Tyson to my side and the dog shot to my heels, snarling as he eyed Duke with a look that said he wanted to rip his throat out. It was damn tempting to let him.
I lowered my rifle and placed a hand on Tyson’s head, tussling his fur to calm him. Duke tipped his hat to me mockingly and stomped into my home without another word.
Four of his men trailed in behind him and I followed them with