Page 138 of Sheltering You

“Perhaps he is not, though, now that he knows about Khalid.”

Neither of them seemed to know what to say about that, and silence settled.

“What’s the plan?” Sophie asked a few minutes later.

Summer answered. “We want Qasim’s men to believe they’ve succeeded in taking us by surprise. They’ll creep through the woods. Grant and Michael will approach from the sides. Daniel will follow from behind. There’s a tree they used to climb, I guess, so he’s going to go up that. His job is to report what he sees and to stop anybody getting away with Jasmine—or any of us.”

“And Grant and Michael?” Jasmine asked. “What is their job?”

“To confuse. Make the enemy believe they’re outgunned and outflanked. We want them to give up and run. If necessary, Grant and Michael will take out as many as they can from the sides. Bryan and Roger will focus on the woods near the house, and Eliza, Camilla, Leila, and I will watch for enemies who get close to the house. If a few manage to breach a door, Sam and Derrick will stop them.”

The thought brought terror, which escaped on a gasp.

“Don’t worry,” Summer said. “Grant doesn’t think anyone will get that far. We have the element of surprise, the high ground, and cover. We shouldn’t have any trouble pushing them back. Hopefully, they’ll figure that out and run long before they get here.”

Maybe the others would, but Khalid? If he was in charge, he’d let every man die for him. He wouldn’t care who perished if it meant getting his only child back.

A staticky sound filled the room.

“Movement in the woods.” That was Bryan’s voice. “They’re here.”

“Hold.” Even speaking in a whisper, Grant sounded commanding, fully confident in the role of general. “Thirty seconds. Let them get closer.”

Time dripped slowly. Slowly.

And then, Grant said, “Now.”

The first bullet was fired, and gunshots exploded all around.

Huddled in coat and hat, Jasmine gripped Sophie’s hand. They’d moved to sit beside each other seconds after the first gunshot. Now, they prayed aloud, their words more gibberish than logical pleas. But God knew what they meant. He understood.

Firing every few moments, Summer had already emptied her handgun and reloaded. Cold air wafted through the open window, carrying the scent of snow and gunpowder. She seemed calm, as if everything were going as planned.

At unexpected moments, one of the men would shout a warning or an update, but mostly, the walkie-talkie was quiet, everyone too busy fighting enemies to keep the rest apprised of what was going on.

Please, God. Please protect us.

Jasmine’s cell phone vibrated in her pocket. Probably an email from Basma, wanting an update. Except it continued to vibrate. A phone call?

Very few people had her phone number, and all of them were busy at the moment.

She pulled the phone out and checked the screen.

“Who is it?” Sophie asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Telemarketer?”

“Must be.”

The vibrating stopped but started again a few seconds later. The same number.

She had a very bad feeling about that.

Sophie’s gaze flicked from the phone to Jasmine’s face. “Maybe you should answer, just in case.”

At the window, Summer seemed unaware, her focus on the forest outside.