BooksBarbecue
Back The Neighborhood
Chapters (59)
  1. Part I Reconnaissance
  2. Chapter One
  3. Chapter Two
  4. Chapter Three
  5. Part II Incursion
  6. Chapter Four
  7. Chapter Five
  8. Chapter Six
  9. Chapter Seven
  10. Chapter Eight
  11. Chapter Nine
  12. Chapter Ten
  13. Part III Under Siege
  14. Chapter Eleven
  15. Chapter Twelve
  16. Chapter Thirteen
  17. Part IV Course Correction
  18. Chapter Fourteen
  19. Part V Balance of Power
  20. Chapter Fifteen
  21. Chapter Sixteen
  22. Chapter Seventeen
  23. Chapter Eighteen
  24. Chapter Nineteen
  25. Chapter Twenty
  26. Chapter Twenty-One
  27. Chapter Twenty-Two
  28. Chapter Twenty-Three
  29. Chapter Twenty-Four
  30. Chapter Twenty-Five
  31. Chapter Twenty-Six
  32. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  33. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  34. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  35. Part VI Spy versus Spy
  36. Chapter Thirty
  37. Chapter Thirty-One
  38. Chapter Thirty-Two
  39. Chapter Thirty-Three
  40. Part VII Winds of War and Flame
  41. Chapter Thirty-Four
  42. Chapter Thirty-Five
  43. Chapter Thirty-Six
  44. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  45. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  46. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  47. Chapter Forty
  48. Chapter Forty-One
  49. Part VIII Strong to the Finish
  50. Chapter Forty-Two
  51. Chapter Forty-Three
  52. Part IX Spy Games
  53. Chapter Forty-Four
  54. Chapter Forty-Five
  55. Chapter Forty-Six
  56. Part X What Goes Around
  57. Chapter Forty-Seven
  58. Chapter Forty-Eight
  59. About the Author

The group turned to see Nick Chambers leading a wounded Barrett Connolly, the last remaining survivor of the assault team and the only one who would face life in the notorious supermax federal prison facility known as ADX Florence in Colorado.

When Barrett had charged him, Nick had already made the decision not to kill him, and he’d shot him in the right foot, the least fatal target he’d thought of at the moment. Barrett had collapsed to the ground, and as he fought back the pain, Nick had rolled him over and zip-tied his hands behind his back. He’d forced the wounded man to hobble out of the woods, excruciating pain flaring with each step, and Nick had enjoyed every moment of it, smiling behind Barrett’s back. He figured it was the least he could do for all the misery the sociopath had caused in his temporary reign of terror in Hidden Refuge.

Barrett saw the corpse of his friend and looked at the group, including Belyakov and his men, and the finality of his situation set in. He looked at the ground, defeated, and Nick sat him down in front of the bumper of the Explorer they’d abandoned at the end of the chase. “If he moves, anyone has my permission to shoot him in the face.”

Nick walked over to Zack and looked down at the small combat knife sticking out of his leg. “You might want to see a doctor. Just saying . . .” he added with a bit of a grin. Both brothers knew from experience that Griffin had missed all vital arteries and veins. The knife had torn through muscle and tissue, but it would heal completely, minus the scar, a symbol to remind him of the day his neighborhood was attacked by hostile forces.

“Here,” Belyakov said as he handed Nick a first aid kit in a tan canvas bag that one of his guards had retrieved from the helicopter. “Consider it a token of my appreciation,” he said with a straight face.

“Hey Zack, who the hell is this guy?” Nick asked, scrutinizing and assessing Belyakov.

“An old friend from a former life,” Belyakov said. “But your brother can fill you in later.” He turned his attention to Zack. “Now, I really do have to be going. Your law enforcement should be here shortly, and as much as I’d like to stay for the entertainment, I can’t.” Belyakov stuck his hand out one last time, and Zack shook it without hesitation.

As Zack gripped the Russian’s strong hand, he asked, “Were you really going to let him kill me? I mean, I know what I said, but come on.”