"What was that?"

Ava merely hummed her response, a clear indication that she didn't know the answer to Paloma's breathy question and she wasn't planning to uncover the mystery either. Instead, she gingerly lined the brunette's jaw with kisses, her fingers skillfully gliding their way down the woman's thigh. Paloma had to admit, like her girlfriend, she was much more interested in Ava's breathtaking touch than she was in the quiet thumps that sounded in the distance.

Her lips curved upwards into a smirk once she felt the redhead begin to tug her shorts down her thighs. Paloma lifted herself up just enough to aid the woman in her conquest. Ava sat up and tossed the clothing onto the floor before finally settling herself back down on top of Paloma. Even though their lips only parted for a moment, the act alone granted the brunette all the willpower she needed to dedicate her senses to the movements that seemed to travel down the hall.

"Okay, don't tell me you're not hearing that," Paloma reiterated with a frustrated sigh. This time, she propped herself up on her elbows and fixated her eyes on the bedroom door as if she was waiting for someone or something to burst through at any moment.

"I hear it," Ava assured, her breath still ragged. "I just don't care."

Paloma only tore her eyes from the entrance and looked back at the woman once she tugged her t-shirt over her head in a torturously slow manner, an act that Ava was certain would get Paloma's attention.

And she was right.

Ava released her grip on the clothing, allowing it to silently kiss the floor. She welcomed the smirk that claimed her lips when a defeated groan escaped the depths of the brunette's throat because Ava knew exactly what she was doing.

Paloma's hands retreated to Ava's waist once the mahogany-haired woman settled her legs on each side of the brunette, trapping her between herself and the bed. Ava leaned down and delicately pressed her lips to Paloma's. It wasn't until the distant sound manifested itself yet again that Paloma pulled away. Ava released a irritated sigh, the sudden act gnawing away at her patience. Paloma shot her a knowing look, still, the redhead failed to lift herself from Paloma, instead, she merely shook her head in response.

"It's probably just Quinn. It sounds like its coming from her bedroom."

"I'd believe that if she could actually climb the stairs by herself."

Ava shrugged. "Siberia maybe?"

The noise grew louder and nearer. It wasn't until they heard more movements followed by the shattering of glass that Ava matched her girlfriend's frown. Both women narrowed their eyes but it was Paloma who took action.

Ava's back collided with the mattress once the brunette, without warning, quickly climbed from beneath her. Paloma tugged her shorts back up her thighs and quietly tossed Ava her top. Ava soundlessly slipped the article of clothing back over her head. Her breathing grew ragged, this time, however, for an entirely different reason.

She looked on as the woman pulled her closet open in a slow manner, praying the loud creek the door typically produced would fail to come to fruition. To both women's surprise, it opened without any fuss.

Paloma trailed her fingers along the outskirts of the top shelf as swiftly and silently as she could.

"What are you doing?" Ava whispered harshly.

The brunette failed to respond, instead, she focused on the task at hand. The second her digits made contact with a square shaped, cold, metal item, she used both hands to pull it out of hiding. She entered a nine-digit code into the safe and tugged on the handle once a small clicking sound signaled her access.

"Paloma!" came Ava's second plea, this time the whisper was a bit more demanding.

The woman in question opened the safe with ease. She carefully removed its contents—a Smith & Wesson with a set of bullets to match. Paloma fished around for one final item—a compact flashlight.

She trapped the light between her teeth as she loaded the gun with a full clip, ensuring the safety remained on...for now. It wasn't until she turned to face Ava that she finally saw a sense of fear in the woman's light green eyes. Paloma fought the instinctual urge to comfort her girlfriend and, in contrast, hardened her expression, hoping to keep her mind focused on the urgent situation at hand.

Ava crawled towards Paloma but remained on the bed once the brunette held out her hand, signaling for her to stay back.

"What the hell are you doing?" Ava hissed.

Once her weapon was properly loaded, Paloma removed the flashlight from her mouth and took it into her hand. She then motioned towards the light that illuminated the bedroom. "Turn off the lamp."

"Paloma—"

"Now!"

The austere expression the woman wore finally convinced Ava to heed her instructions. Paloma clicked her flashlight on with one hand and gripped the gun tightly with the other. She met Ava's frightened gaze with a reassuring one before nodding her head back towards the closet.

"Lock yourself inside and don't come out until I say so."

Her voice held a level of earnestness that Ava wasn't familiar with, still, she couldn't bring herself to listen.

"No," she murmured firmly. "What the hell are you thinking? We both need to get inside and call the police! You're gonna confront whoever the hell's out there head on? Are you crazy?"

Had the situation not been so urgent, the bite in Ava's tone would've made Paloma laugh. The redhead's southern accent, that she tried so hard to bury over the years, always managed to claw its way to the surface when she got particularly riled up about something and now, the accent was particularly evident.

"Fine, you get in and call the police. My phone's still downstairs."

Now that Paloma mentioned it, Ava realized hers was too. The last thing on the couple's mind in the midst of their hasty sexual encounter was their cellphone.

"I'm going out there."

Ava gripped Paloma's wrist and drew her closer, not allowing her to step any closer to the exit.

"Do you have a fucking death wish?" she snarled through clenched teeth. "You can't possibly believe I'm gonna let you go."

"Quinn's out there, maybe asleep, weighed down by two casts around her legs. She's alone, extremely vulnerable, and probably scared." Paloma tensed her jaw. "I'm going."

At this, Ava's eyes softened, the anger that was originally apparent in her gaze being replaced yet again with fear. She loosened the grip she had on the brunette's wrist. It wasn't until she let go entirely that she realized she was holding on so tightly.

Ava studied Paloma's features for a moment before climbing out of the bed and slipping on her house shoes.

"Fine, then I'm coming with you."

The brunette's long locks swayed sided to side as she immediately shook her head. "Hell no."

"You can't go out there alone. I won't let you."

"I can and I will," Paloma hissed, her determined attitude meeting Ava's recalcitrant one.

"It's not up for a debate," was Ava's swift counter.

"You're damn right it's not. I don't have time to argue. Get inside." Paloma motioned towards the closet, maintaining her rigid demeanor. "Now!"

Paloma blew a huff of air through her nose once Ava shot her one of her famously defiant looks. Both women would surely let Hell freeze over before faltering in their stances. It was situations like these that reminded Paloma that she had truly met her match. The women only ceased their long-term glare at one another when they heard footsteps drawing nearer.

The elder Sullivan instantly turned the safety off the gun, then aimed the weapon and flashlight towards the door. Knowing Ava's fear of the unknown wasn't a powerful enough motive for her to stay behind, no matter how much Paloma wanted her to, she finally relented. She failed to look away when she addressed Ava who's trembling hands latched onto her bicep.

"Stay behind me."

This time, Ava simply nodded in compliance, her fear not allowing her to do anything more. Paloma inched closer and stopped in her tracks once she reached the door. She turned the knob in a slow manner and eased it open. Paloma's breath caught in her throat once the door produced an audible creak. She ceased her movements and winced in anticipation as Ava's firm grip on her arm grew impossibly tighter.

Paloma only opened her eyes when she heard the movements continue. Ava was right, it was without a doubt coming from Quinn's bedroom. They breathed a sigh of relief because, for whatever reason, the intruder didn't seem to notice their clumsy interactions.

Even so, the brunette narrowed her eyes and attempted to swallow the bile that crawled its way up her throat. The mere thought of someone breaking into her home made her skin crawl but knowing the intruder began their raid in her little sister's bedroom lit just enough fire beneath the woman to face the thief head on.

She and Ava tiptoed soundlessly out of the bedroom and pressed their backs to the wall in attempts to eliminate their chances of anyone sneaking up behind them. Paloma shined the flashlight into the adjacent bathroom, her gun pointed in the same direction. She returned her gaze ahead once she saw that the room remained vacant.

The noise was solely coming from Quinn's bedroom which meant that, at the very least, the intruder was cornered and more importantly, Quinn was safe downstairs in the guest room. It went without saying that both she and Ava felt at least some relief because there only seemed to be one set of footsteps.

Or so they thought.

Ava instinctively dug her nails into Paloma's arm, this time the action drew blood. But neither of them noticed. They were too focused on the rapidly approaching footsteps that ascended the staircase in sets of twos. Ava's heart threatened to pound out of her chest once she heard the brunette cock her weapon. She squeezed her eyes so tightly shut that her head started to ache.

After a few moments of silence swept through the air, Ava peeked her eyes opened. She was certain her ears were going to be ringing for days on end, the sound of a bullet soaring through the air deafening her indefinitely. But, to her pleasant surprise, Paloma hadn't squeezed the trigger at all.

She released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding once Siberia met them at the top of the staircase. She'd never been so happy to see the dog. Siberia, on the other hand, wasn't all that interested in greetings. Her lips were scrunched up into a vicious snarl as she showed her canine teeth in attempts to ward off anyone that threatened to challenge her.

Much like the brunette, she was determined to find the source of that night's disruption. Ava only tore her gaze from the dog once she felt Paloma's hand on her own. The brunette mouthed to her inaudibly, something she was always terrible at doing but after knowing each other for years, Ava learned to make out her poorly formed words.

"Stay here."

Again, Ava shook her head defiantly. She was scared of coming face to face with whoever was on the other side of the door but she was even more terrified of what would happen if her girlfriend went in alone. As opposed to offering the woman yet another form of verbal pushback, Paloma looked at Ava earnestly, allowing their eyes to have a silent conversation.

Ava knew that the brunette had a certain way about her. She understood the mechanics of a gun, that much was obvious, and she was more than capable of holding her own. Even though everything in her was petrified out of her mind to let her go, the determination and silent promise present in Paloma's pleading, coffee brown eyes somehow persuaded her otherwise.

After a moment, she released her death grip on the other woman. A shadow of a smile made its way onto Paloma's features as she met Ava's weary gaze once more.

"I'll be right back," she promised.

Ava immediately nodded her head as if she feared not doing so would jinx them both, thus leading to the downfall of the entire plan. Assuming there was one at all.

Paloma looked at her one last time then joined Siberia who stood right outside of Quinn's door. The husky's humorless eyes were fixed on it, her teeth were still showing but a growl had yet to escape the depths of her throat. Like Paloma, she valued the element of surprise.

The brunette nearly smiled. Siberia was so smart she was practically human. Somehow, the husky always seemed to understand the world around her, especially when things didn't seem right and for that reason, Paloma could think of no one better to have by her side.

Paloma took in a steady breath and turned the doorknob as quietly as she could. It helped that the intruder wasn't exactly quiet. Muffled thumps traveled throughout the room. Paloma took this opportunity to force the door open as quickly as her hand would allow.

She could barely aim her weapon before Siberia darted inside. This time, the dog's deep growls traveled through the room while she pounced on the person, instantly tackling them to the ground.

Paloma briefly surveyed the room. Relieved that the intruder was acting alone, she followed Siberia's lead and ran forward before the person could get the upper hand on the husky. Paloma aimed her weapon and projected her booming voice, "Don't move!"

Siberia's belligerent barking soured through the air as she stood on the person's chest, her snout merely inches from their face. Her incessant yapping filled the still night and it was a wonder how the intruder was still drawing breath.

I'm back! For now at least, haha. Hope you enjoyed the cliffhanger. The next chapter will be posted really soon but until that time, I'll let you guys fester in the unknown. Thanks for 6k reads and be sure to share this story if you're liking it so far. As always, thanks for reading! 🤗