Chapter Eighteen
Friday, April 19
As early morningfiltered golden sunlight through the windows, Seth glanced at the group eating Ngaire’s breakfast feast around the kitchen table. Conversations bantered around them. He tried to ignore the tension thickening the air.
Beside him, Beck perched Heavenly on his lap, thick arm banded around her possessively, while Seth fed their girl a forkful of fluffy scrambled eggs.
They should be enjoying each other now, damn it. Heavenly had finally committed to him and Beck—and proved her love in every way. Under normal circumstances, he and the surgeon would whisk her home so they could start the rest of their lives.
But nothing about now was normal.
How long would they be here at the lodge? Would Jedediah and his “Saint Squad” catch up to them in a day? A week? A month? How many of his friends would still be standing after the war was through? Seth fucking hated not knowing.
All they could do was be as ready for the onslaught as possible. After all, Liam’s lodge was miles from the rest of town—and any other civilization. No one would hear their gunfire. No one would call for help.
They were on their own.
Thankfully, River, Dean, and Adam had worked tirelessly through the night to prepare them for The Chosen. The caretaker had retrieved several deer stands from deep in the forest and reattached them to tall trees that flanked the driveway and would create a triangulation of fire. After River rigged up some incendiary surprises for the battle, he laid down a couple of motion detectors at the base of the private gravel road. In the meantime, Dean remounted half a dozen wireless game cameras along the drive leading to the lodge. Then they filled sandbags with soil from Ngaire’s freshly tilled garden and stacked them high to block the lodge’s plate-glass windows and fortify the dual balconies to provide cover for the shooters around the house. When the trio finished, Adam checked the perimeter. River positioned their arsenal under the grand staircase to ensure everything they needed to defend themselves remained within easy reach. Dean gave a head’s-up to the local police, who could do nothing until a crime had actually been committed, as well as a buddy at the FBI field office in LA, who said he’d be on standby.
Just before breakfast, Liam had shown the men the passageway to the roof. The large deck, designed to take in the vast view of the lake and the forest, also afforded a perfect observation point so see who—or what—was heading up the mountain.
Grateful to the others for finishing the preparations on his to-do list so he and Beck could spend the night with Heavenly, he handed her a mug of coffee.
As their girl took a sip, Gloria leaned close to Beck. “Looks like you three took Liam’s advice and got your house in order last night.”
Beck sent his ex a wide grin. “Oh, yeah. She finally said those three little words we’d been dying to hear.”
“Do me again?” Gloria teased.
“Ha ha,” Beck drawled as the woman chuckled.
Heavenly giggled, too.
“I’m happy for you three.” Then she sent their girl a wink. “About damn time you put them out of their misery, honey.”
“Past time,” Heavenly agreed with a smile.
Seth plucked up a piece of bacon. “Open up, angel.”
She complied, biting down before he leaned in and kissed her lips, tasting the lingering hickory-smoked flavor.
When breakfast was finished and Ngaire cleared away the dishes, Seth walked everyone through the plans he, River, Dean, Adam, and Beck had brainstormed last night. When he was done, Buddy leaned back in his chair and frowned.
“I’m honored you want me to guard the women in the gun dungeon, but I’m a damn good marksman. You boys are going to need my skills up top when the shit hits the fan.”
“And I’m not happy about being locked up like some fragile doll,” Gloria groused. “I can shoot, too. After what those cocksuckers did to me, I’d love the chance to send some straight to hell.”
“I’ve never shot a gun, but I could learn,” Heavenly piped up.
“I’ll teach you someday, but becoming proficient takes time we don’t have right now.” And the thought of his angel being anywhere near flying bullets made Seth’s blood run cold.
His angel didn’t look happy. “Then let me find some other way to be helpful.”
Beck shook his head. “You, Raine, Gloria, and Ngaire need to be someplace safe. It’s not up for discussion.”
“Your attitude is old-fashioned and sexist,” Raine pointed out.
“It’s practical. You don’t know shit about firing a gun, princess.”