Chapter 6 - The Fatal Distraction
Ethan froze in the doorway, completely blinded by the darkness and utterly confused by the shadowy figures in the foyer.
“Who the hell are you guys?” Ethan slurred, swaying dangerously on his feet.
The lead assassin didn't say a single word; he simply raised his suppressed rifle toward Ethan's chest.
I couldn't let my husband die, no matter how terribly he had betrayed me.
I aimed my shotgun at the ceiling above the assassins and pulled the heavy trigger.
The deafening roar of the shotgun blast shattered the quiet darkness of the house, sending drywall raining down onto the stairs.
“Get down, Ethan!” I screamed at the top of my lungs.
The assassins instantly shifted their focus away from Ethan and aggressively returned fire up the staircase.
Suppressed bullets chewed through the wooden banister and the drywall right next to my head.
I dove backward into the hallway, feeling the sharp sting of flying wood splinters hitting my cheek.
Ethan finally realized he was in the middle of a deadly firefight and dove terrified behind the heavy oak entry table.
“Laura, what is happening?!” Ethan screamed hysterically from the floor.
“Keep your head down and do not move!” I ordered, quickly reloading another heavy slug into my shotgun.
I knew I couldn't hold the top of the stairs forever against three heavily armed, highly trained mercenaries.
I needed to change the tactical dynamics of the engagement immediately.
I army-crawled into the guest bathroom and grabbed a large, heavy bottle of industrial bleach from beneath the sink.
I quickly poured the bleach onto a spare towel, creating a crude but highly effective chemical irritant.
I peeked around the corner and hurled the soaked towel directly down the stairs at the advancing assassins.
The heavy chemical smell instantly filled the narrow stairwell, burning their eyes and lungs despite their tactical gear.
The lead assassin coughed violently, blindly firing a burst of bullets into the ceiling as he stumbled backward.
I didn't hesitate; I leaned out and fired a precise shot, hitting the lead mercenary squarely in his heavy ceramic chest plate.
The massive kinetic impact knocked him backward down the entire flight of stairs, crashing heavily into his teammates.
Before they could recover their footing, the wailing sound of multiple police sirens finally pierced the quiet neighborhood.
Red and blue lights aggressively flashed through the front windows, illuminating the chaotic scene in the foyer.
The two remaining assassins realized their covert mission was completely compromised and violently dragged their injured teammate toward the back door.
“Police! Drop your weapons immediately!” a voice boomed over a heavy megaphone outside.
The assassins completely ignored the warning, sprinting through the back patio and disappearing into the dark woods behind my property.
Heavily armed SWAT officers swarmed into my house seconds later, clearing the rooms with blinding tactical flashlights.
I slowly lowered my weapon and raised my hands, showing the officers I was not a threat.
Ethan crawled out from under the entry table, covered in dust and absolutely trembling with pure terror.
“You saved my life, Laura,” Ethan whispered, looking at me with wide, completely shocked eyes.
I walked down the stairs, completely ignoring him, and handed my weapon over to the lead SWAT officer.
“I didn't do it for you, Ethan, I did it because I refuse to let anyone die in my house,” I stated coldly.
The lead officer approached me, looking incredibly grim as he checked his radio.
“Ma'am, we secured the perimeter, but you need to come with us right now; the situation is much worse than we thought.”
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“What do you mean?” I asked, wiping a streak of blood from my cheek.
“The assassins didn't just target you; we just found your mother-in-law's car abandoned on the highway, and both she and Megan are completely missing.”
