A gunshot.
His chair slammed back onto all fours. He shut down thought. Training assumed control. Max nailed the terminate button on his computer with one hand as he grabbed for his Glock with the other.
A second shot rattled the windows.
Close.
Adrenaline pumped through him. He didn't question his instincts. He knew.
Two rooms down. Darcy.
He tore out the door and into the night air as a third shot reverberated. He blasted down the walkway past Lurch, already sprinting in the same direction. Doors flung open above them, feet pounding, heads peering over the balcony.
Max reached the door first. He twisted the knob. Locked. "Damn it." He shouldered the door. Not that it budged. "Darcy, talk to me."
Silence.
Lurch crowded behind him. "You wanna kick it in or should I?"
"Move. I've got it." Max backed a step. Gun up and ready, he kicked the door once, twice.
The panel crashed inward. Leading with his Glock, Max swung into the gaping doorway.
And confronted the very last scenario he would have expected. Hell, he couldn't have ever envisioned this one.
Darcy lay on her side on the floor beside the bed, legs tangled around bed sheets and...a snake.
Relief warred with a new dread.
Her arms extended and taut, she aimed her gun at the ten-foot twitching serpent. A snake whose head wasn't more than six inches away from her. With a striking distance half of its length, the creature would have a reach far beyond what it would take to nail Darcy.
A brown tree snake—he identified quickly—it only carried mild venom. Not a problem. Unless it struck repeatedly.
Max eased into the room. Closer. Careful to keep his movements unthreatening, he extended his hand, ready to immobilize the undoubtedly pissed reptile. "Darcy, you can stop. I'll take care of him."
Her hand clenched around the trigger.
"Easy now." Max held still, kept his voice even, hoping to calm the woman as much as the snake.
"Shift that gun to the side. I can stop this fella faster and safer than any more bullets. Okay?''
Her finger slid off the trigger. Her throat moved with a long swallow.
Slowly, he placed the gun on the floor. No sudden moves until...he...was...
Ready.
His hand shot forward. His fingers locked around the snake. Just behind its powerful jaws. Immobilizing its mouth.
Relief, too much, churned through him. He shoved it aside before it distracted him.
Max didn't have to debate what to do next. Given the need to control the tree snake population on Guam, the fact that it was near death anyhow and that the damned thing had scared the tough-as-nails Darcy pale, the snake would die. A quick snap and he put the snake out of its misery.
Max hefted aside the limp reptile and crouched by Darcy. "You okay?"
She elbowed up, wincing. "Positively zippy."
And nearly naked.