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The militia were dangerous.
Liam needed to deal with them, but first he had to handle this immediate threat.
“Hunker down. Keep your eyes open and your weapons close. Wait for a situational report before you even look outside your window.”
“We will,” Dave said. “Thank you for your help. We appreciate it.” Liam half-shrugged. He didn’t do well with gratitude or compliments. He was a man of action, not words. He wanted to get out there, assess the threat, and neutralize it.
Quinn slung her .22 across her shoulder. She swiped her Windex-blue bangs from her eyes and gave him a fierce stare. “I want to come with you.” “Absolutely not,” Bishop said.
He hated that she lived in Winter Haven with Noah Sheridan, her worthless excuse of a husband. He hated that he couldn’t protect her like he wanted to—like he needed to.
Same!
Her gaze was resolute, her green eyes so clear and deep, that if he wasn’t careful, he would fall right in. His heart clenched like a fist. He’d already fallen in. There was no getting out, not for him.
It wasn’t just Hannah he needed to keep safe, but everyone in Fall Creek—this
He’d just promised these people that he would fight with them, would fight for them. He intended to keep that promise. No one was hurting anyone else on his watch.
“I have a hunch.” Bishop didn’t elaborate further.
Me too.
“I’m not afraid of Sutter,” Liam said. “And I’m not leaving the fate of the town in their hands.” Bishop nodded. “My sentiments are the same.” “We’ll watch your back,” Perez said. “Whatever revenge Sutter has planned, he’s not getting it today.”
Truitt was breathing hard, dense white jets expelling from his chapped lips. He was a young guy in his mid-twenties, one of the reserve cops who’d moved up to full-time with no pay, no benefits, and all the risks. Liam respected the hell out of that.
The militia had more men and better firepower, but their fire discipline was poor. They were overconfident and didn’t appear to see the cracks they were leaving in their defenses.
“Where’s Noah?” Liam asked. “Is he in charge? Or Sutter?” Truitt rolled his eyes. “Who do you think?
Liam shook his head in dismayed frustration. They had no coordination, no fall back plan. He wasn’t in charge; he had no influence here.
Whatever happened, he would keep himself between the attackers and Molly’s house. If they got anywhere near Tanglewood Drive, he was falling back to protect Hannah. Period. She was his priority.
“Twenty bucks says I’m a better driver and you’re the better shot.” Liam didn’t argue the point. “Cash is almost worthless.” “But the satisfaction of winning lasts forever.” “Didn’t know pastors were allowed to gamble.” Bishop flashed a tight grin. “Extreme circumstances call for extreme measures.”
“What’s the plan?” “Kephart parallels Lemon. Just past the four-way stop, it should be a half mile through the woods. We should be able to flank them if not encircle them.”
Bishop raised his brows in surprise. “That’s correct.” “I’ve been walking the town, studying the maps.” “Well, color me impressed.”
Bishop seemed plenty competent, and he handled his weapons with proficiency, but some soldiers served years and never killed another human being. Julian Sinclair had died, but not by Bishop’s hand.
They were headed into trouble, and Liam needed to be certain who he was dealing with. A crisis of conscience at the wrong moment could be a death sentence.
“You don’t need to worry about me, friend. Whatever happens next, I’ve got your back.”
Bishop gazed down at the bodies, his mouth moving but making no sound. He closed his eyes. Liam had no idea what he was doing. Bishop snapped back to attention. Without a word, he pointed back east where the first group of attackers continued to fire at the militia trapped behind the bait shop.
They needed to escape the woods before the friendlies mistook them for the enemy. They were enemies—just not at the moment.
“I recognize one of them,” Bishop said.
Yup! That's what I thought.
“Mick Sellers. He’s the head of security for the town of Niles. I met him. He helped us when Milo and a bunch of others got sick.” “He’s not helping now.” “Something’s not right about this, Liam.” Liam couldn’t deny it. And yet, these people attacked Fall Creek. They had no choice but to defend themselves with deadly force.
“Tell me why you think your attackers are from Fall Creek,” Bishop said.
“We told you about the armed men ravaging the nearby towns,” Mick said. “How three weeks ago, they came in and attacked Niles.” “You did.” “There was almost thirty of them. Well organized and well-armed. They dressed in black and smeared black grease on their faces. They came in guns blazing, riding in trucks and snowmobiles, carrying AR and AK rifles. Anyone gave them any flack, they didn’t hesitate at all. They shot men and women. They hit fast, took what they wanted, and fled before we could muster a defense. They killed seven of our people.”
Yup! Now it's coming together. We knew that back in book 3 was it?
“Like we told you then, we didn’t know who it was. But a guy who runs IT for Whirlpool got a ham radio working along with some handheld radios. We set up some repeaters to extend our range and started communicating with other townships in the area. Same story, different day. None of us had the numbers to defend against a group that size, but together we did. So we formed the Community Alliance. Not a creative name, I know, but it works. We’re five local towns working together, committed to defend and protect each other.”
Last week, the stars aligned, and we drove back an attack on Watervliet. We shot one of them. The rest of his group left him for dead. We thought about capturing him, trying to get information.”
“Two of our guys who can hunt tracked him back to Fall Creek.”
A hot spark of anger ignited inside him. Fury flared through his veins, sharp and bright.
Sutter’s damned militia. They’d both suspected it but had no evidence to confirm their suspicions. Until now.
Bishop held more faith in his friend than Liam did. He’d sniffed out Noah Sheridan’s multiple shortcomings the moment he met him.
“Our original police chief, Chief Briggs, was against the militia from the beginning. He disappeared. The superintendent’s son killed him.” Mick raised gnarled brows. “Gavin Pike? I’ve heard nasty things about that one. A bad apple.”
“Give me your radio contact information,” Bishop said hurriedly. “I promise we are just as eager to get rid of these guys as you are.
They’re parasites sucking the life from this entire region—including Fall Creek. Give us a little time, and we’ll contact you.”
“My conscience was getting at me.” “A conscience is a liability.”
“No, it’s not. It keeps us from becoming the monsters.” “You sound like Hannah.” Bishop gave a tight grin. “Hannah is a smart, perceptive woman.” Liam shook his head. There was no arguing with that.
“He’s picked his side. And it isn’t ours.”
“We weren’t certain what—or who—we were facing.” His face went ashen. “We killed innocent people.” “They weren’t innocent.” Bishop bent double, breathing hard. His breath expelled in crystalized clouds. “I killed a man. Not a soldier, not an enemy insurgent. Just a guy. A husband, a brother, a father.” Liam felt sickened, too, but he couldn’t wallow in regret, guilt, and recrimination. A soldier lost himself that way. They’d done what they had to in the moment. They’d acted on the intel available. It was the best a man could do. You had to let go of the rest, or it would eat you alive.
“We can’t lock them up in prison. There’s no one to call to deal with this. Until law and order is restored, we don’t have a choice. I may hate it, but it doesn’t make it any less true.”
“I don’t know my Bible so well, but didn’t David win?” Bishop looked at him. A broad smile split his face. “That he did, friend! That he did!”
Still in his late twenties, his clean-shaven face held a dour, world-weary look, like he had tired of all this and just wanted to go home.
Liam didn’t respond. He clenched his jaw and let Bishop carry the conversation. Restrained fury burned through him. Four more people dead that hadn’t needed to die. People who wouldn’t be dead now, if these pissants hadn’t raided and pillaged their communities.
Liam resisted the urge to punch her in the face and break a few of those pretty teeth.
Noah flinched. Kesler looked at the ground. Luther’s expression tightened. Reynoso looked sick. Truitt gaped, stunned. He shot a look at Noah as if expecting the chief of police to stop them, to do something. But Noah did nothing. He allowed it to happen, just as he’d allowed everything else.
Sutter’s hands twitched on his rifle. That was all the warning Liam needed. Without hesitating, he drew his pistol and aimed it at Sutter’s head.
Sutter pointed his weapon at Liam’s chest. “That’s how you want to play this game?” “I’m not playing any games. Are you?” “I should kill you!” “Kill me, and you commit suicide.” Tension hummed in the air. Every muscle taut, Liam applied the slightest pressure to the trigger. If Sutter even flinched, he would end him. Then Sutter’s men would finish Liam off, too. Plus Bishop and the cops. It was a zero-sum game.
“We won in part thanks to Liam.” Luther was still by the truck, standing over the slain bodies. “Three of us got pinned down, and these two broke us free.” Kesler kicked at a pile of snow. “They killed four of them. They’re good soldiers. They have useful skills. Especially Coleman. He made a few insane shots.” “He should join us!” a militiaman called out.
