“Why would they do that?”

Kat shoved Missy, herding her toward the hidden attic entry. She paused at Missy’s bedroom door, glanced in to see the curtains pulled back and enough of the streetlight poured in to assure her the dog and cat still slept on the bed. She closed the door and forced Missy forward.

“I don’t know why they are here but it can’t be good. Hide. I don’t want you involved.”

“I’m scared.”

“I don’t have time to argue.”

She pushed the panel on the wall and it popped open. Missy hesitated. “Maybe you should put the gun away or hide with me.”

“No.” She nudged her friend inside. “Move!”

Missy ran up the flight of stairs, her bare feet quiet on the carpet. Kat closed the panel and shoved the table in front of it. Why would the NSO come? It wasn’t for a visit. They were in full tactical mode and ready to hit her house in the middle of the night. It pissed her off.

She rushed into her room, grabbed a bottle of perfume off the dresser and entered the hallway again. She sprayed it a few times as she moved down the hall. Darkness had told her it interfered with their sense of smell. She hoped it would hide Missy’s scent trail.

A soft pop sounded from below and she gritted her teeth, stopping at the top of the stairs. She took a deep breath and peered down. It was dark at the bottom but the first few steps creaked. She inched her elbow over and waited. Her heart pounded as she slid the safety off her gun and gripped it firmly with both hands. They thought they were going to surprise her but they were the ones who were about to be caught unaware.

Wood creaked and she jerked her elbow, hitting the light. The stairwell and hallway below lit up. She aimed at the first man who came into sight when she glanced around the wall at the top, keeping most of her body behind it.

“Freeze, ass**le!” She hoped she sounded as angry as she felt.

The guy in full gear paused, his face hidden by the shielded helmet. She adjusted her aim, pointing it at his throat area. Two more men were behind him and they raised their weapons, trying to get a bead on her.

“You take one more step up and I’m going to shoot you. What are you doing in my house? What does the NSO want?”

A loud snarl sounded and a fourth man appeared. His gloved hands gripped the barrels of the lifted rifles and shoved them downward to point at the floor. His helmet tilted upward as he seemed to stare at her. “Don’t shoot her.”

She recognized that voice. “This is how you visit, Darkness?” She didn’t lower her weapon. “What is going on?”

He released the weapons, reached for his helmet and tore it off to glare up at her. “Stop pointing that weapon at Trey.”

“You break into my house and have the nerve to give me orders?” She inched away from the wall a little but kept most of her body shielded. “No. Why are you here?”

“We need to talk.”

“My doorbell works. So does the phone. Have you ever heard of either of those things?”

“Put down the gun, Kat.”

“No. Explain to me why you brought an assault team into my house. Did you come to arrest me? This isn’t NSO land. That shit doesn’t work here. You want me? Get a warrant and send real cops to haul my ass in. I’m not going in willingly.”

Darkness scowled. “Please aim your gun at me at least. You’re making Trey sweat. I can smell him.”

She glanced at the man she kept her gun trained on. “Fine. Tell them to back off.”

Kat adjusted the barrel of her gun, lowering it slightly so the guy felt safe to move. He backed down two steps, spun and walked out of sight. He muttered something but it was too low for her to catch. Darkness jerked his head and the other two men left him standing alone.

“May I come up?” Darkness took a step forward.

“Nope.” Kat aimed at his thigh. She would hate to have to shoot him but it didn’t mean she wouldn’t if he left her no choice. “What is going on? Why are you here to arrest me?”

“What makes you think that?”

She tilted her head and arched her eyebrows. “Really? You brought four SUVs full of your task force guys and you breached my house as if I’m some dangerous felon. Give me a break.”

“We didn’t see any cameras.”

“There aren’t any. I have a dog and a cat. They let me know something was up.” It was a lie but she didn’t want to mention Missy. Both of the animals were dozing. Butch was a horrible guard dog. He was a wuss and slept like the dead when he went to bed. He’d lick an intruder to death if he were awake. “What are the charges?”

“I need you to come to Homeland with me.”

“No.”

He took another step and gripped the banister. “Put the gun down.”

“Start talking or get walking, Darkness. You didn’t do all this for a booty call. People use the phone for those these days, just so you know. I didn’t do anything wrong but say too much. You told me to leave and I did. We ended it on good terms.”

“You could be in danger.”

“You mean from the group of heavily armed men you brought into my house? There isn’t a second stairwell up if they are looking for it and the windows on this floor are painted shut. The last owner was an idiot and I never got around to unsealing them. That’s the nifty thing about central heat and air. That is one thing in this house that works well. Tell them not to bother to try to sneak up behind me. They can’t. I’ll also be furious if they hurt my pets.”