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"Gideon! For God’s sake…" Wellers voice trailed off as his attention returned to his ammunition

The interlopers wore scarves over their faces like ordinary burglars or bandits For some reason the mundanity of it all offended Gideon You’d think people would have the good grace to dress up for an assassination

One s were half naked, courtesy of Nove wholly open to the ele the blanket aside and took aim, faster than Grant did, because he had less tih that he could see the fellow’s breath puffing out around his face in a foggy aura

He fired, and caught the man square in the chest

Even Mary couldn’t have missed him, he had come so near Another an a sideways retreat, or revisal of strategy--but Wellers was on his feet now, and he fired, too

Gideon couldn’t see what he hit, but the second man went down, and both the scientist and the doctor dropped back to cover Noas Wellers’s turn to shoot while Gideon reloaded everything he had When he was done, he covered his friend so he could do the saive-and-take, a frantic cooperation that had to work for theood?" Gideon asked

"Good as I’et You hear that?"

Yes, he heard shots from the front of the house, and from the far end behind hiot him"

"You’re not the one being paid to protect hi the wall to et as possible

Another loud blast, similar to the one at the front door, shattered theand blew the curtains halfway across the rooain un hand around to squeeze off three fast shots, two of which hit home

He ducked back as fire was returned, but Gideon leaned out and shot again-- to see what had happened Yes, there was a dead e Yes, a shotgun with a snubbed, sawed-short nose was lying in the grass beside hiht The new mercenaries were better armed, or differently armed; it all depended on how you looked at it

In the trees, sos

"Gideon, stay here--I have to reach Lincoln"

"Fine"

Gideon took out his frustration on the two ht as they stepped out of the woods Faces covered One with a handgun, one with another big fowling gun--a punt gun, Grant had called it, and Gideon had heard theuns by cavalrymen Whatever they were called, he knew they were a deadly h at a distance, and terrifying at any nearer range

Wellers retreated in a crouched position His shoes slid on the wood floor until they found the rug in the hall, and then he dashed

Gideon returned his attention to theand saw … nothing this tiround … and, over there, another deadaround the side of the house, so a run for another location, where the pickings were easier

"Godda the door behind hiun or a deterive the

From upstairs, the ladies fired h their a he could say to the he could do to instruct or steady them; so he just listened to the violent bursts from the s above hi froes

Next, he ran for Lincoln’s roo the door for cover--standing now, rather than sitting behind thesills--and ai no bullets Giving as good as he was getting, and he was getting it pretty good

Gideon jumped as a vase on a table behind hi the president to his defensiveover to the library, where Lincoln had had just about enough of this The oldwars like they meant business The revolver in his hand underscored the threat nicely

Gideon heard a crash from upstairs--or was it downstairs? Or behind hi at once for him to sort theun