One Night Standoff - By Delores Fossen Page 0,43

He started running, and Lenora picked through the gunfire and the other noises in the house so she could listen to his footsteps. It didn’t take long before she could no longer hear them, but she did hear Stella’s frantic voice.

God, she hoped that Kirby hadn’t been shot. Or worse. It sickened her enough to know that this monster was after Clayton and her, but she didn’t want his foster father pulled into the middle of this.

More footsteps.

Clayton was probably moving them to a safer location. The footsteps weren’t far away from her when Lenora heard and felt the loud blast.

Another shot.

But this one hadn’t come from the back of the house. This bullet had torn through the front door. That sent her already-racing heart beating even faster. Because they weren’t just dealing with one shooter, but with two.

At least.

Heaven knew how many of them were out there, waiting to kill them.

Clayton threw open the powder room door and practically pushed Kirby, Stella and the nurse inside. There wasn’t a drop of color in Kirby’s face, and the two women looked terrified. This couldn’t be good for Kirby’s already-fragile health, and she hoped it didn’t cause a setback. Clayton was already dealing with enough guilt over these attacks, and he’d never forgive himself if Kirby got hurt.

It was a tight fit when all four of them piled into the small room, but since Lenora was the only one of them armed, she worked her way to the doorway so she could try to protect them if the gunmen got into the house. It wasn’t something Clayton would want her to do, but they didn’t have a choice.

Lenora nearly caught Clayton by the arm when he started toward the front door. Right where the second shooter had targeted. But the sound caused him to go to a standstill.

Sirens.

Lots of them.

His brothers were on the grounds, and while it didn’t mean they were safe, she liked their odds better now they had some serious backup.

Just like that, the shots stopped. However, Clayton didn’t. He hurried to the front door and looked out. Lenora couldn’t see what immediately caught his attention, but she clearly heard his profanity.

“Stay put,” Clayton warned all of them.

“You can’t go out there,” Lenora warned him right back.

“I can’t let him get away.”

Clayton spared her a glance from over his shoulder, and she saw the warning repeated in his expression. He didn’t want her trying to help, and even though that was exactly what she wanted to do, Lenora had to concede that someone needed to stay inside with the others. At least until Clayton’s brothers managed to make their way to the house.

Clayton barreled onto the porch, slamming the door behind him, and she heard him start running. She also heard something else.

A shot.

Probably not Clayton’s, either, because this one sounded farther away from the house than he probably was. That meant someone could have shot at him. She couldn’t quite choke back the fear that slammed through her.

Mercy, how had things come to this?

“Clayton’s gonna get killed,” Kirby mumbled. “Give me that gun so I can help.”

The man could barely stand, so Lenora doubted he could get off a decent shot. But she could. “I’ve had training,” she said to him. “And I’ve saved Clayton before.”

Of course, it was possible she’d created the danger that required him to be saved in the diner, but that was guilt she’d have to deal with another time. For now, she needed to focus on the gunfight going on just on the other side of the front door.

Staying low, Lenora scrambled across the entry and levered herself up slightly so she could look out one of the sidelight windows. She wasn’t sure what she would see, but she immediately spotted Clayton.

Just as he threw himself to the side of his truck.

It wasn’t a second too soon, because a bullet slammed into the side of the vehicle.

That put her heart in her throat, and she’d never felt more helpless in her life.

The shooter darted out of the line of fire, too, and landed behind a tree. He was a white male, mid-thirties, wearing dark clothes. Lenora tried to commit everything about him to memory in case the guy got away.

He was armed with what appeared to be a Glock long-range pistol. Definitely not an amateur’s weapon. She was almost positive he was one of the same men who’d attacked the church.

A dozen bad possibilities went through her mind, and she replayed both