His Dangerous Ways✔️

Chap. 28 Shattered Glass

WARNING: this chapter includes violence, so if you do not feel comfortable with guns/shooting, blood, death, or any general description of violence, you are advised to skip this chapter. You have been warned.

River's POV

Without thinking, I tackled Caterina to the ground in order to keep her out of the gunfire. "Oh my God, River! What's-"

"I don't know," I admitted as I shook my head. "But we need to get you out of here now." Like a chain reaction, the cry of breaking windows filled the air as fatal bullets flew through them.

That's when the first one of us was hit, a guy named Greyson from the thirteenth branch went down with a grunt, crimson quickly staining his white dress shirt from his abdomen. The shot killed him instantly.

Screams soon accompanied the gunshots that continued filling the air as men began quickly getting their girls to cover and the men and women who came alone rapidly pulled out their guns and began shooting at the Silencers who crept through the windows like spiders. Their faces were covered by their own sick variations of masquerade masks. Grotesque and contorted facial expressions were the masks they hid behind, each splattered with a deep crimson that eerily looked like blood.

"River!" I heard Mason yell as he frantically motioned for us to come to him. I tightened my grip on Cat's wrist before I pulled her alongside me toward Mason where the rest of the crowd was going, Cat stumbling behind me as her heels made it difficult for her to run.

"I-I can't run in these!" she frantically cried, hysteria evident in her voice as she stopped, causing me to jerk to a stop with her. "I-I need to take them off," she said as she hurriedly started working off her right heel. Just as she did, I caught a glimpse of something out the corner of my eye and without hesitation, I tackled Cat to the ground once more just as a gunshot went off, its bullet wedging itself in the wall right behind where Cat had been standing. Within an instant, I pulled the gun I had concealed in my waistband out and fired. The man on the far side of the room that had had his gun pointed at us dropped his gun, a bullet hole right between his eyebrows and a blank look on his face, and fell over without a word. A shriek escaped Cat's lips and as much as I regretted her seeing that, I'd do it again in order to protect her.

"Come on Cat, we've gotta go," I instructed as I helped her up. Her body shook violently in my arms and her eyes were wide and glued on the man I'd just taken down. I swallowed the feeling of guilt that was climbing up my throat knowing that this was going to traumatize her, but I couldn't focus on that right now. All I could focus on was keeping Cat, Mason, and Liam safe.

"Take her to a safe room," I instructed Mason as soon as we'd gotten to him. "Liam and I will clear the area and then get you when the cost is clear, okay?"

"Of course," Mason nodded, his face void of expression as he took my trembling baby girl in his arms. "I'm taking her to saferoom Alpha. It's the safest and it has a good vantage point so I can take them out before they even know we're there."

"Good. We'll clear the southeast doors." Mason nodded as his grip on his gun became tighter. "I"m trusting you to protect her."

"And I'm trusting you to protect him," he quickly responded, looking Liam. "I love him."

"And I her," I said my eyes falling on Caterina whose face was buried in Mason's chest to prevent her from seeing anything else. She jumped every time a shot was heard, "and I won't let anything happen to him. We're brothers."

"Please be careful," Cat pleaded and I gave her forehead a quick kiss.

"I will,  I promise. Just stay with Mason," I said before a gunshot sounded off, the bullet within a yard of where we were standing. Mason wasted no time dragging Cat away while Liam and I covered their getaway, sending bullets into every Silencer in sight. Adrenaline ran through my blood as we shot and dropped the Silencers like flies...just like it had yesterday before Mason and I almost got killed- but I can't think about that. Not now. Not when my friends- my family was in danger.