Chapter 1

The scream tore from my throat, but no sound came out.

Savannah's face, twisted with a chilling smile, loomed over me. The glint of steel. Then, darkness.

I jolted awake, cold sweat drenching my sheets.

My heart hammered against my ribs. Just a nightmare. The same one.

Then, a crash downstairs.

Not a nightmare.

The heavy thud of the main gate of our Austin estate being forced open. It vibrated through the floorboards.

It was happening again.

I threw off the covers, my legs shaky.

Last time, I'd frozen. Last time, Mother...

No. Not this time.

I scrambled out of bed, yanking on a pair of jeans.

Another crash, closer. The front door.

"Ethan? What was that?" Mother's voice, alarmed, from her suite down the hall.

I burst out of my room. "Mom, stay in there! Lock your door!"

But she was already stepping into the hallway, her silk robe clutched around her. Her eyes wide with fear.

"What's going on, Ethan?"

"No time!" I grabbed her arm, pulling her hard towards my suite. It was closer, more defensible.

"Ethan, the security..."

"Savannah took them all!" I snarled, shoving her into my room. "She took every last guard to Nashville with Cody."

For his damned country music festival audition. An excuse. He was always full of them.

Mother stumbled, her face paling. "All of them? But... why?"

She knew why. Savannah's obsession with that worthless aspiring singer, Cody. Her jealousy of me.

I slammed my heavy oak door shut and threw the deadbolt.

"Help me with the dresser," I grunted, already straining against the antique piece.

It was solid mahogany, a beast to move.

Mother stared, stunned. "Ethan, are you sure? Maybe it's just..."

"It's them, Mom. The ones Savannah ruined. They're here for revenge."

The memory of their faces, contorted with hate, flashed in my mind. The glint of their weapons.

Mother's breath hitched. She finally understood.

Together, we shoved the dresser, its legs screaming against the polished wood floor, scraping deep gouges. We wedged it tight under the doorknob.

I grabbed my phone, fingers fumbling.

Not Savannah. Not this time.

9-1-1.

"911, what's your emergency?" A calm, female voice.

"Home invasion. Harrison estate. 2400 Barton Creek Drive. They're inside the house. My mother and I are barricaded in an upstairs bedroom." My voice was tight, breathless.

"Are you injured?"

"Not yet. Send help. Fast."

"Officers are being dispatched. Stay on the line if you can."

I ended the call.

The police were miles away. Our estate was isolated, nestled in the hills. Last time, they were too late.

Mother was trembling, her hand pressed to her mouth.

"Call Savannah," she whispered. "Tell her to come back. She has to."

I didn't move. I stared at the door, at the slight gap where the dresser didn't quite meet the frame.

"Ethan, please!"

My jaw tightened. "It won't do any good, Mom. She won't believe us."

A heavy thud against the door. The wood groaned.

They knew we were in here.