17. Boyd
SEVENTEEN
BOYD
The gunfire stops as suddenly as it started.
One moment the air is thick with the sharp crack of rifles, the shouts of men, and the metallic ping of bullets striking the gate and lodge walls.
The next, everything falls silent. The attackers outside the broken gate stand motionless, weapons lowered.
They look at each other, confused, then begin to retreat in an orderly fashion.
They climb back into their vehicles without another shot fired and drive away down the mountain road, taillights disappearing into the trees.
I lower my rifle slowly, staring out through the shattered front window.
My heart is still hammering. Sweat drips down my back.
The air smells of gunpowder and splintered wood.
Silas steps out onto the porch first, rifle still raised.
Rafe moves to the side window, scanning the tree line.
Rhett and Wyatt lower their weapons but stay alert.
The rest of the men exchange the same confused glances I feel.
“What the hell just happened?” Silas mutters, scanning the empty gate area.
Rafe shakes his head. “They were pushing hard. They had numbers. They were about to breach. Then they just… stopped. Packed up and left.”
Rhett lowers his rifle completely. “That doesn’t make sense. They were determined. They had us pinned. Why retreat now?”
I don’t like it. Something feels very wrong. The kind of wrong that settles in your gut and refuses to leave. I’ve seen too many battles to trust sudden silence. Especially when the enemy had the upper hand.
The bunker door opens behind us. The women start coming up the stairs. Harper first, holding Poppi tight. Kayley with Aidan tucked against her. Sadie, Fiona, Daisy, Emma, and Hannah. All of them look shaken but unharmed.
Then Piper emerges.
She steps into the main room on her crutches, moving slowly but steadily. Her face is pale. Tears stream down her cheeks. Her eyes find mine immediately, full of pain and a heartbreaking determination that makes my stomach drop.
She walks straight to the center of the room and stops. The silence is heavy. Everyone is watching her.
“I’m going back,” she says, voice trembling but clear. “With my father. He called while we were in the bunker. He said he would call off the attack if I agreed to go home with him. I said yes.”
The words hit me like a bullet to the chest.
No.
I step forward, heart hammering. “Piper. No. You don’t have to do this. We can protect you. We can fight this. You’re safe here.”
She shakes her head, tears falling faster. “I can’t let you keep risking your lives for me. This is my mess. My father. I have to end it. If I go back, maybe he’ll leave all of you alone.”
I close the distance and cup her face with both hands, thumbs brushing away her tears. “You don’t have to leave. I love you. We’ll find another way. Please, Piper. Don’t do this.”
She looks up at me, eyes full of love and sorrow. “I love you too, Boyd. More than I ever thought I could love anyone. But I cannot watch you or any of these people die because of me. I have to go.”
The other men and women stand silent, watching us. Harper has tears in her eyes. Sadie looks devastated. The weight of the moment presses down on all of us.
I pull her into my arms, holding her tight against my chest. “I will not let you go back to him. He is dangerous. He tried to kill you once. He’ll do it again.”
She clings to me for a long moment, then gently pushes back. “I know. But if there is even a chance that my going back stops this, I have to take it. I can’t live with more blood on my hands.”
I search her face, looking for any crack in her resolve. There’s none. She’s determined. Scared, but determined.
My chest feels like it’s being ripped open. Heartbroken doesn’t even begin to describe it. This woman has become everything to me. The quiet mornings. The bird watching. The way she fits perfectly in my arms. The future I started to let myself dream about.
I can’t lose her.
The black SUV that must have been waiting pulls up to the gate. Two men get out and stand there, waiting.
Piper looks at me one last time, tears streaming down her face. “Thank you for everything. For saving me. For showing me what real safety feels like. For loving me. I will never forget it.”
She turns and starts walking toward the door on her crutches.
I stand there, frozen, heart shattering with every step she takes away from me.
This can’t be how it ends.
I won’t let it be how it ends.