Page 94 of Shattered By the Currents

He rounded a tree, only to slow at the sight of movement. At his ten o’clock and thirty yards into the forest. It was barely visible. A flash of black moving from one pine tree to another.

His eyes narrowed.

The movement was too deliberate to be a wild animal.

Something glimmered in the morning light… a gun.

He cursed and dropped before rolling behind the closest tree.

The crack of a bullet split the air and punched into the ground near his boot, spraying dirt across his pant leg.

He took his Glock from his holster but also lifted his handheld. “I have a shooter in the trees, half a mile west of base.”

“Copy. Coming now,” Ryan said. “Five minutes out.”

It was too long. But Ethan was dealing with the hooded stranger at base, Joel was watching over Raven’s parents, and Zac was with the tourist and wouldn’t leave the guy when there was a shooter in the woods.

Connor slipped around the tree and poked his head out the other side.

Another shot tore through the air, hitting the dirt.

He pulled back. The asshole was a good shot. Not great, but he’d almost hit his target.

Connor lifted his walkie again. “Ethan. Have you caught the guy?”

“Negative. But I’m closing in.”

That meant Raven was alone at the firehouse. He swapped the walkie for his phone and hit her number.

No answer.

He tried again. Same thing.

Fuck.

Panic fired in his blood, rushing through his veins. What if this was a distraction? What if she was in danger?

He couldn’t wait. He rolled out from behind the tree.

Bullets peppered the dirt, one hitting a root, wood exploding inches away. The next bullet grazed his arm, but he barely felt it. He lifted his own weapon and fired.

He continued to fire as he jumped to his feet. Then he was running. He kept shooting until he’d put some distance between him and the assailant.

He wanted to take the shooter down, but he wasn’t Connor’s priority—Raven was.

He broke right, sprinting low and fast between trees. A couple more shots rang out, but now the guy was firing at a moving target, and he clearly wasn’t trained well enough for that.

Connor switched his focus from the shooter to the firehouse, the roofline coming into view.

His jaw tightened.

Come on, Raven. Be okay. You have to be okay.

He didn’t look back. He kept his attention straight ahead. When he reached the building, he tried the door.

Locked. Quickly, he used his key to unlock the door and flew inside. One quick scan of the room told him Raven’s laptop was here, but she wasn’t.

He froze at the smell. It was faint. A bit like gas. A chemical scent.