BooksBarbecue
Back The Neighborhood Save as PDF
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

He knelt down, slid forward onto his belly, aimed the suppressed muzzle of the MPX, and grabbed the monocular. Whomever they sent would have to come this way. He was certain of it. It’s what he would do.

What he didn’t expect was the crashing sounds from his left that exploded through the woods as two men started running more than eighty yards away. What the hell? They couldn’t see me yet. No way. Something else is happening.

He ignored the sounds and scanned the backyard, which was when he briefly saw two figures dash across the gap between his house and the Hawkinses’ home next door. With horror, he realized their objective. Sam. She must have stayed in her house, and now they’re coming for her, thinking she’s me. He had to do something, and he had to do it fast.

But the moment he moved, he risked revealing his position and ceding the only advantage he had left. He calculated his options and forced himself to remain still. He only needed seven or eight more seconds. Zack just prayed that Sam could hide and stay alive long enough for him to get to her.

Chapter Thirteen

ChapteR
THIRTEEN

Sam lay on her stomach on the thick carpet, the shotgun barrel resting on the floor between the two posts in the upstairs railing. She’d considered all her options, and every one had resulted in her being captured or worse by the men with guns. She figured that if they had men out front, they’d likely be out back as well. She needed to give herself a fighting chance and getting caught before she could escape didn’t seem like the best idea. If Ben could fight back, so could she. She just hoped her boyfriend—after the transmission, she’d instinctively and protectively applied the term to him—hadn’t been hurt or . . . Her mind trailed off, a sudden swell of emotion slamming her consciousness with ominous foreboding. You can’t think like that. He’s fine. He’s not going to do anything too stupid, even if he is a teenage boy.

The second-floor balcony overlooked the two-story family room. The staircase from below wrapped along a curved wall more than thirty feet away. She’d positioned herself at the far end of the balcony, adjacent to the wall that led to her parents’ bedroom. From her vantage point, she had a clear line of sight to anyone coming up the stairs. She was still holding out hope that the men would bypass her house and leave her alone to plan her next move.