Page 76 of Under Fire in Big Sky

Brandon made the mistake of using a nylon zip tie around Eli’s wrists. It wasn’t impossible to break out of it, if you knew what you were doing. And Eli did.

Gripping the tip of the zip tie with his teeth, he yanked on it, tightening it as much as possible, creating tension at the locking mechanism. He raised his hands above his head and brought down his arms forcefully and fast toward his stomach, mimicking a chicken wing motion as he did, and overstressed the mechanism, breaking it.

Sean whirled in his direction, swinging at him. Adrenaline surged through Eli as he blocked the blow and shuffled backward. With a little distance between them, Eli pivoted into a roundhouse kick. But Sean caught his leg with both hands and slammed it down against the top of his own rising femur, bruising Eli’s leg.

Putting the weight on his other leg, Eli tried to shake off the pain.

Smiling, Sean swung again. Eli stepped into the punch, driving the heel of his hand hard into the man’s shoulder before the arm could finish the swing. Sean countered, first with a tight jab and then he launched himself at Eli.

Forced back by a series of lightning-fast blows to his face and body, Eli tamped down panic. A flash of a knife swiped toward his gut.

“Eli!” Olivia screamed.

He jumped back in the nick of time. Grabbed the laptop from the table and used it to go after Sean’s blade.

The barn door flew open. “Shepherd!”

“I’ve got this,” Sean said, sounding so cocky it made Eli’s teeth ache. “Torch everything.”

Eli managed to get Sean up against a horse stall, knocking the laptop against the guy’s wrist and ramming his knee into his groin at the same time.

It was a dirty move. Street-fight dirty. Eli would resort to any means necessary tactics to ensure his and Olivia’s survival.

He heard a hiss of air through Sean’s teeth as the blade slipped from his opponent’s grip, hitting the ground.

Eli seized the opportunity and went for the knife. But Sean threw a kick to his head, sending Eli stumbling backward.

More gunshots rang outside. Then the smell of smoke and gasoline hit him before he caught sight of the flames that were licking up the barn walls. Olivia was handcuffed to a stall. He had to get her out, and fast.

Sean advanced, his expression implacable, like that of a man used to killing. The next thing Eli knew, Sean was on him, throwing vicious punches and elbows and knees. The combinations were sharp and powerful and quick, targeting Eli’s weak spots—head, throat, knees, and kidneys.

All Eli could do was defend against the overwhelming onslaught. Blood filled his mouth. Pain blasted his ribs and face. A terrible realization hit him with each striking blow. Sean was a better fighter. A lot better. Eli was outmatched.

And the barn was going up like a tinderbox.

Cinders went off like firecrackers in the air. The sky looked like it was on fire as the flames swept over the roof.

“Sean, please!” Olivia pleaded. “Stop!”

But Sean had Eli on the defense. The man was in the zone, and he was winning.

Eli wasn’t counting on any mercy being shown. But the one thing he could take was a beating. From bullies at school. From his abusive uncle. From anyone who thought they could

break him.

He had something Sean didn’t. Fortitude. A type of mettle that couldn’t be taught, that had to be earned the hard way.

Rage and desperation driving him, Eli lashed out in a last-ditch effort. He threw another knee aimed at Sean’s groin. As the guy shifted, dodging it, Eli lunged, biting his ear and not letting go, and he didn’t stop there. Having Sean locked in so close, Eli jammed a thumb into his eye.

Sean landed a blow to Eli’s chest, with the meaty part of a hammer fist, hitting his solar plexus. Air wheezed from Eli, his jaw unclenching, his hands opening, and he staggered back. Wheeling around, Sean threw a stunning kick, planting a bootheel into Eli’s stomach. The impact of the blow knocked him backward over the table, landing closer to Olivia.

Heat swept through the barn. Gray clouds of smoke and sparks boiled across the ceiling.

Eli climbed to his feet just as Sean pulled the gun from his holster and took aim.

“Sean, don’t!” Olivia cried, and Sean hesitated. “I’ll do anything. I’ll go with you. I’ll join you. Please!”

Suddenly, a gut-wrenching whomp made the floor shake and the barn tremble. A burning beam crashed down from the roof and landed right in between them, putting Sean on one side, with Eli and Olivia on the other. Fire raced along the rafter, the wave of heat forcing both men backward. The splintered part of the beam burst, catapulting blazing embers in a whirlwind—forming an uncrossable trench of flames.