dropped him and moved along without a glance back.
He hadn’t been able to pick Mathias and Bishop as part of the nineteen to walk with him tonight. They weren’t Defiance members, but they’d just tipped their hands, shown their allegiance.
Killing the men for Caspar was a sign of respect. They’d be good to have on his side, to watch Tru’s back especially.
He tucked that away, continued fighting as the death toll for Paddy’s group continued to climb. If he had his way, there would be zero Kill Devils left standing.
* * *
The battle that ensued was nothing short of mayhem. Rebel dragged Tru from the crowd immediately. He placed her behind the heavy gates, safely in Defiance territory with Trixie for their protection and told her to stay put. But she moved quickly, hopped onto the roof of a car and lay down so she could still see the fight, watched in horror and appreciation as Caspar moved aggressively forward after his proclamation.
He hadn’t waited for the crowd to erupt. Instead, he’d kicked Padraic’s body aside and tore into Padraic’s men. The group seemed to swallow him whole, even as Rebel, Hammer and several others followed him in.
Silas wasn’t among them. She hadn’t expected Roan to back Caspar, but Silas hanging back made her angry. Especially after all the times Caspar had fought for him when they’d all been younger.
She must’ve unconsciously started moving forward, toward the fight, when she lost track of Caspar. Strong hands gripped her shoulders, pulling her back from the fray and no, she wanted to see Caspar, to make sure he was okay. She fought hard, clawed at the hands gripping her biceps.
“What the hell are you doing?” Trixie’s rough rasp of a voice.
“I need to check on him. I can take care of myself.” She realized wanting to go to the field to protect Caspar was ridiculous, but nothing about her feelings for him had ever been rational. She held up the gun Rebel had slipped her to show Trixie, who shook her head.
“This is nothing. You’re going to have to fight for your life soon enough,” Trixie told her. “What the hell did you start, girl?”
Tru yanked away from her. “I chose my man. The rest will follow.”
“If Lance doesn’t kill you first.”
The sound of a primal scream cut through the night’s violence. She turned, saw the smoke and smelled the blood, saw the mass of bodies. Heard fists hitting flesh.
“ This is only a preview of things to come. ”
She wasn’t sure who said it, but it rang in her ears like a bell, wouldn’t stop echoing. She put her hands over her ears, shook off help.
And then she ran deeper into the compound, gun at her side, because for her, running was what she’d done best.
Running had saved her. She’d run to escape the horrors of her house and she wasn’t sure she’d ever stopped.
Chapter Seven
Caspar fought until the death count on Paddy’s side was six, with five more either unconscious or too hurt to fight, and stopped only when a siren rang in the night.
Sheriff Will wouldn’t cause much trouble for them. In return Defiance didn’t openly disrespect him, making his rule over the township and beyond easier than it would be in the face of the pervasive general disorder.
Caspar ordered his men back into Defiance’s gates, allowing Paddy’s men to collect their dead, load them up and disappear into the night.
“They’re not going far,” Rebel noted as he followed Caspar off the field and back inside the safety of the compound. They always fought on neutral territory.
“Probably going to the Manderly,” Hammer added, voice tight. He’d taken the worst of it from a Kill Devil with a knife before Rebel wrestled it away. Now, he leaned against Jeb, holding his T-shirt bunched against the wound as he limped toward the infirmary.
It was run by two doctors who’d been taken in by Defiance, along with their families, when the hospitals had been devastated. Their assessment tallied many broken
He hadn’t been able to pick Mathias and Bishop as part of the nineteen to walk with him tonight. They weren’t Defiance members, but they’d just tipped their hands, shown their allegiance.
Killing the men for Caspar was a sign of respect. They’d be good to have on his side, to watch Tru’s back especially.
He tucked that away, continued fighting as the death toll for Paddy’s group continued to climb. If he had his way, there would be zero Kill Devils left standing.
* * *
The battle that ensued was nothing short of mayhem. Rebel dragged Tru from the crowd immediately. He placed her behind the heavy gates, safely in Defiance territory with Trixie for their protection and told her to stay put. But she moved quickly, hopped onto the roof of a car and lay down so she could still see the fight, watched in horror and appreciation as Caspar moved aggressively forward after his proclamation.
He hadn’t waited for the crowd to erupt. Instead, he’d kicked Padraic’s body aside and tore into Padraic’s men. The group seemed to swallow him whole, even as Rebel, Hammer and several others followed him in.
Silas wasn’t among them. She hadn’t expected Roan to back Caspar, but Silas hanging back made her angry. Especially after all the times Caspar had fought for him when they’d all been younger.
She must’ve unconsciously started moving forward, toward the fight, when she lost track of Caspar. Strong hands gripped her shoulders, pulling her back from the fray and no, she wanted to see Caspar, to make sure he was okay. She fought hard, clawed at the hands gripping her biceps.
“What the hell are you doing?” Trixie’s rough rasp of a voice.
“I need to check on him. I can take care of myself.” She realized wanting to go to the field to protect Caspar was ridiculous, but nothing about her feelings for him had ever been rational. She held up the gun Rebel had slipped her to show Trixie, who shook her head.
“This is nothing. You’re going to have to fight for your life soon enough,” Trixie told her. “What the hell did you start, girl?”
Tru yanked away from her. “I chose my man. The rest will follow.”
“If Lance doesn’t kill you first.”
The sound of a primal scream cut through the night’s violence. She turned, saw the smoke and smelled the blood, saw the mass of bodies. Heard fists hitting flesh.
“ This is only a preview of things to come. ”
She wasn’t sure who said it, but it rang in her ears like a bell, wouldn’t stop echoing. She put her hands over her ears, shook off help.
And then she ran deeper into the compound, gun at her side, because for her, running was what she’d done best.
Running had saved her. She’d run to escape the horrors of her house and she wasn’t sure she’d ever stopped.
Chapter Seven
Caspar fought until the death count on Paddy’s side was six, with five more either unconscious or too hurt to fight, and stopped only when a siren rang in the night.
Sheriff Will wouldn’t cause much trouble for them. In return Defiance didn’t openly disrespect him, making his rule over the township and beyond easier than it would be in the face of the pervasive general disorder.
Caspar ordered his men back into Defiance’s gates, allowing Paddy’s men to collect their dead, load them up and disappear into the night.
“They’re not going far,” Rebel noted as he followed Caspar off the field and back inside the safety of the compound. They always fought on neutral territory.
“Probably going to the Manderly,” Hammer added, voice tight. He’d taken the worst of it from a Kill Devil with a knife before Rebel wrestled it away. Now, he leaned against Jeb, holding his T-shirt bunched against the wound as he limped toward the infirmary.
It was run by two doctors who’d been taken in by Defiance, along with their families, when the hospitals had been devastated. Their assessment tallied many broken
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