The Portal (A Delphi Group Thriller Book 2) Read Online Free Page A

fallen, the attackers were probably waiting for a signal to launch. Should he make a preemptive strike? Or should he simply watch and wait? If the latter, he could always let them do their thing and depart. When you were outnumbered, that was often the smartest thing to do. Live to fight another day, as they say.
    But Zane quickly dismissed the thought of just walking away. The men were undoubtedly professionals and wouldn’t leave behind any trace evidence. That meant their identity might forever be hidden if they were simply allowed to leave. And if they came up empty in the house, they would surely turn their attention, and their thermal imaging equipment, toward the surrounding forest.
    No, despite the potential dangers, Zane knew he needed to take action in order to have any hope of gathering information. More specifically, he needed to apprehend one of the intruders and take them to a remote location using the ATV. He could then question the subject until he could call for a backup team.
    So what now? He clenched his jaw as he thought about how to proceed. The first question that came to mind was one he often asked when in this type of situation: What would he do if he were in their place? How would he organize an attack?
    One thing he’d want is a sniper positioned to cover the operation from a distance. But where would he place the gunman?
    The barn.
    He turned and looked at it. Except for a few bushes and rocks scattered across the clearing, it afforded a shooter a clear view of the lodge. Short of climbing a tree, no other place would provide such an advantageous position.
    But where specifically? Zane searched his memory of the barn. The gable roof was a nonstarter. Its pitch meant you’d have to sit or lie at an angle. You could also lie inside, but that might limit your view.
    Suddenly Zane remembered a stack of two-by-fours on this side of the barn. Garet had told him he was going to use the lumber to build a new cover for his well. Being both level and elevated, the pile was the perfect place to shoot from.
    Zane raised his monocular. After moving it around a bit, he finally found his target to the left of the barn. Was anyone there? There seemed to be a slight irregularity to the top of the pile of lumber, but it was too dark to tell exactly what it was.
    An idea rose to the surface of his thoughts. It was bold, risky even, but it might just help him find out if someone was hiding in the shadows.
    Reaching out, he slid his hand across the dirt. After patting around for a few seconds, he finally closed his fingers around a small rock.
    After tucking his gun away, Zane wiggled out from underneath the tree and rose to one knee. He took a deep breath, concentrating on the direction he was going to throw the rock and how far. Getting those two things right was critical.
    Drawing back, he launched the stone with as much force as he could muster. As it flew toward the other side of the clearing, he grabbed the monocular and focused it on the stack of two-by- fours.
    Seconds passed, but he never heard the rock land. Had it been too small to make a noise?
    Zane squinted through the eyepiece, determined not to take his eye off the target.
    Just when he was about to give up, he saw a round shadow move on top of the pile. It was a subtle, yet distinct, turn of a head.
    The hairs on Zane’s neck stood on end.
    The sniper had given himself away.

CHAPTER FOUR
    IT TOOK ZANE about three minutes to circle through the woods and come up behind the barn. When he arrived, he paused just inside the trees and allowed his eyes to adjust.
    He was directly behind the structure, so he moved a couple of trees over in order to see down the right side of the building. He then lowered to one knee and trained his monocular on the woodpile. As he brought everything into focus, the body of a man materialized, lying prone on top of the two-by-fours, his rifle pointed toward the lodge.
    Zane looked up. Darkness had now settled over the