Page 72 of Twilight Tactics

Ollie reentered the house, and when she returned, she had another bag that held the books. “Ready.”

Sully gave a sharp nod. “I’ll get the Bronco. Be back in five.”

Piper stilled, her head tilted toward the lake. “You hear that?”

Elena did. “A low hum. Like a swarm of bees or something.”

“Or drones,” Ollie said. “Saw an episode ofAmerica’s Got Talentthat had a really cool drone show. That’s exactly what they sounded like.”

Elena took off around the side of the cabin and stopped when she had a better view of the whole lake. And the sky above it. The others had followed her. The sound grew louder, and as if to prove Ollie right, a drone crested the ridge just beyond the other side of the lake. And then another and another, their lights growing brighter with each addition.

“Everyone back inside!” Sully’s shout spurred them to action and they raced back around to the front. The drones were right overhead now, and Elena watched them peel off in organized precision. She shoved Ollie through the doorway as the first burst of fire hit the ground behind them. Dirt and rock exploded, peppering the porch. Sully grabbed her and practically carried her inside.

“There are more,” Maya yelled. “Two more from the south! How is this possible?” She checked her phone. “It’s still jammed.”

“They’re preprogrammed,” Piper said. She slammed the door shut. “They don’t need radio control. They’ll execute based on preset triggers.”

“Triggers?” Elena blinked. “Like what kind of triggers?”

“Visual movement,” Sully said.

Gideon was already checking the windows.

“Or they’ll just spit bullets—or bombs—at coordinates they’ve been programmed with,” Ollie said. She dropped herbackpack on the couch, then curled into a ball, wrapping her arms around her knees.

Piper nodded. “Or that.”

An explosion rocked the ground nearby and the walls trembled.

“The barn,” Elena whispered. “What if they bomb the barn? All of the animals...”

Sully nodded. “Not to mention our prisoner still in his little makeshift cell.”

Elena could see another drone swooping low. “Everyone on the floor! Now!”

Everyone dropped. Piper grabbed Ollie from the couch and covered her with her body. A spate of bullets blitzed a path across the back of the cabin. Glass shattered, then the drone was gone.

Elena bolted to her feet and pulled her pistol from the shoulder holster. “We have to shoot them down. It’s the only way.” She ran to one of the broken windows, ignored the blast of frigid air blowing in, and took aim at the nearest drone.

“Elena! Get down!”

Sully’s voice echoed, but she had the thing in her sights. She fired. The drone spun, then plunged into the backyard near the edge of the water.

Javier and two other vets, armed with rifles, burst from the barn.

“They’re going for it,” Sully muttered. He shot a look at Elena. “Piper, Ollie, we’re going to make a break for it as soon as we can. Be ready.”

A burst of gunfire followed. Two of the drones jerked in the air, spiraled, then exploded in a flash of heat and light.

“Now! Take the path behind the storage shed. Run toward the back of the barn. Gideon, you and David and anyone else who can shoot, make sure we make it.”

“Got you covered. Go!”

“Move fast and stay low,” Piper said.

Ollie reached for Elena’s hand and held tight. “We got this,” Elena whispered.

“Right.”