A Merciful Secret (Mercy Kilpatrick #3)(94)

Christian stared at her, his rifle clenched to his chest. “Are you nuts?” he whispered.

“He’s terrified of me.” Salome choked on her tears and giggled, a wet clogged sound. “He’s always believed I was a witch.”

“You would see him? When?” Christian still looked rattled.

“Our paths would cross here and there in the past. He always gave me a wide berth.”

How can I use that to our advantage?

“You’ll burn, whore!”

“That’s not the way to speak to your half sister, Gabriel!” Her whoops echoed off the ceiling.

She’s falling apart.

Yanking her focus back to their safety, Mercy took another look at the camera angles. Gabriel had moved into her forward camera’s view, crouching behind the roasting Hummer.

“Can you keep him distracted? Keep yelling at him?” she asked Christian and Salome. “I’ll sneak out the back, go wide, and try to get a clear angle.”

Salome nodded, but Christian grabbed Mercy’s arm. “What are you planning to do?” Terror and worry filled his face.

Mercy was stunned at the anguish for his brother on his face. “He’s a threat, Christian. He murdered your father and Olivia. He won’t stop until Salome and probably the rest of us are dead too.” Why does he think I gave him a gun?

“But . . .” He couldn’t finish his sentence, his gaze darting between her eyes.

“I understand.” She laid her hand on his. Gabriel was Christian’s brother. He had every right to be rattled at the thought of his brother being shot, murderer or not. “I’ll only do what he pushes me to do.”

His face fell, but he nodded and pulled his hand away.

“Good luck,” he told her.

“You’re not my sister!” Gabriel roared. “You’re the spawn of a whore!”

Mercy pointed at Salome. “You’re up.”

“I’m going to curse your dick, you asshole!” Salome shrieked. “You’ll never get it up again!”

Well done. She flashed Salome a thumbs-up.

Mercy slipped out the back door and silently went down the steps. If she veered left, she should be out of Gabriel’s line of sight until she reached the edge of the woods. Then she could circle behind the barn and move closer using the cover of the trees. It was a long and roundabout way, but she didn’t see another option.

Gabriel shouted an unintelligible threat, and Salome started to chant at the top of her lungs. A singsong string of nonsense to Mercy’s ears, but eerily familiar to what she’d heard at Olivia’s deathbed. Goosebumps rose on her arms.

That ought to rattle him. Especially if he believed Salome had powers.

She was almost to the barn when more shattering glass followed by a muffled whoosh made her stop and check the house. No shots had been fired. Fresh smoke rose from in front of the house. It’s the Hummer. Something else ignited. The sounds repeated and a fresh burst of smoke appeared over her house.

Flames flashed in her upper windows.

He threw Molotov cocktails through the broken windows.

Her heart stopped as her world tilted off center.

My home. My work.

A barrage of miniexplosions sounded. Glass containers exploded as Gabriel threw them at the front of her home. Flames flickered in her small lower windows, and she took two steps toward the house, her gaze fastened on the back door, silently begging for Christian and Salome to appear. Get out!

“Aunt Mercy? What’s happening?” Kaylie was in tears.

She grabbed her radio. “He’s throwing Molotov cocktails into the house.” Vomit surged up her throat.

“It’s on fire?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Mercy choked out. “As long as everyone is safe.”

“Those were the sounds we heard in the barn . . . he was emptying the canning jars. He must have used them and the gas—”

Mercy cut her off. “I’m almost behind the barn. I want you two to get out of the cabinet and meet me outside the back door. We can’t take the chance that he sets fire to the barn next.”

“The back door is fastened from the inside with that chain and padlock.”

And the key is in the kitchen.

A major fuckup on my part.

They couldn’t go to the front of the barn; Gabriel would see them immediately. “There are bolt cutters in one of the cabinets.” Mercy closed her eyes to think. “I think the third one. As soon as you’re out, I want you to head east. Don’t stop. I’ll radio you when it’s safe.”

“We’ll leave tracks in the snow.”

“I don’t care. Just get moving. He’s occupied at the front of the house.”

Movement out of the corner of her eye made her turn to see Christian and Salome darting away from the house to the woods. Mercy exhaled noisily, her mental load lightened.

Everyone was out of the way. Now to get the girls farther away.

Mercy awkwardly jogged through the deep snow. A minute later she reached the back of the barn and pressed her ear against the door. Clanking sounded from the other side. Kaylie had found the bolt cutters.

Two feet of snow piled up against the outside of the door, nearly as effective as the padlock for keeping the girls locked inside. Mercy dug at it like a dog, exertion heating her face. Finally the door could open enough for Kaylie to squeeze through. Morrigan was right behind her. Mercy hugged her niece tight to her chest, wishing she’d left the girl back in town. “You need to head through the forest.”