her thighs. She grunted with pain as a rock cut into her upper back, but she didn’t dare move. Seeing his fist raised to strike through the smoke, she squeezed her eyes shut and waited for a hit that never came.
Instead, his scarred fingertips brushed along her cheek and jaw. The touch was so light she almost thought she had imagined it until she opened her eyes and saw him staring down at her in disbelief. He wore an expression unlike any she had ever seen, his face a mask of relief and longing and fear. He seemed trapped in the moment, his fingers moving over her lips as if trying to convince himself she was real.
He was so enthralled in her face that he didn’t see the Splinter breaking the tree line—but she did.
Snatching the front of his jacket, she yanked him down while drawing her weapon and covered his exposed ear, protecting his hearing, with the inside of her firing arm. Knowing the Splinters wore chest armor, she flicked away the safety and sighted the Splinter’s face just as he lifted his gun. She fired first, squeezing the trigger twice and hitting him once in the neck and then in the eye. He was dead before he hit the ground.
Clove leaped onto the other Splinter who had made it through the trees. The dog knocked him off balance and then Fay finished him off, slamming her hatchet into the man’s throat. Blood sprayed the air, and she placed her boot on the dying man’s chest to yank her hatchet free.
Bloody hatchet in hand, Fay reached down to grab Terror’s arm. At the same time, he grabbed Maisie’s hand, pulling her up and shoving her forward. He made sure she could read his lips as he shouted, “Run.”
So she did.
Chapter Four
Reeling from the shock of being rescued by Maisie and the other woman, Terror fired at the Splinters chasing them through the woods. He and Grim were in the rear, protecting the group from the onslaught of their enemies. Vicious and a wounded Lethal had taken the lead, traipsing after the speckled dog that seemed to have a destination in mind. Maisie and her friend were in the middle with the blood-spattered brown dog racing alongside them. His mind was filled with questions about the crack shot hunter and the dogs, but those questions would have to wait.
Right now, he needed to know how many of the Splinters were left. He tried to calculate, but he didn’t trust his recollection. “Grim, how many?”
“Fuck if I know,” Grim admitted between heavy breaths as they hid behind thick trees and exchanged fire with their pursuers. “The girl killed ten? Eleven? I got three before we got pinned down.”
“I had four and Vee had two and Lethal had one. At least,” he added uncertainly. His gaze darted around the confusing maze of trees and brush. “If we get flanked—"
“We’re fucked,” Grim finished his thought as he changed magazines. “Where the hell are we going anyway?”
Terror shook his head. “Down. Away.”
“Real fucking helpful, Terror.” Grim fired four shots. “Go.”
Terror took off as Grim covered him and caught up to the girl with the rifle, the huntress. She whistled to get Grim’s attention, and he fell back, racing toward them as he kept low. Like a dance troupe that had been performing together for years, they exchanged positions as they ran down the mountain. Two would stop to provide suppressive fire. Four would run. The next two would stop and the two in the back would run toward the front. On and on it went. Stop. Fire. Run. Stop. Fire. Run. Down and down and down the steep slope.
With a streak of lightning and a crack of thunder, the raging storm Terror and his men had missed during the night began to unleash hell again. Vicious and the huntress had taken up the rear covering fire position now. He raced to catch up to Maisie and Lethal, who leaned heavily on her for support. The wound in his leg had been aggravated by their race down the mountain, and blood soaked his pants. Terror gauged the blood loss and knew it was only a matter of minutes before Lethal collapsed.
He tapped his mic. “We need to hold. Lethal is going to bleed out if we don’t.”
“No cover,” Grim answered, scouting the area. “We’ll get pinned down.”
Behind them, Vicious called out to the huntress. Seconds later, he came across the radio. “The girl says to