From his concealed position near the ranch, Vince watches the fight continue and is struck by Joe Hunter’s repeated escapes from death. Hunter saves Jason Mercer from a shotgun blast, survives more incoming fire, and disappears around the house after apparently taking a hit in the leg. Vince scans for the others, notes that Rink has moved into the tall grass by the river and that Mercer has vanished from sight, then orders Bravo team to move in and pin the defenders down while he advances under cover of the rain and confusion.

As Vince closes in, he judges the ambush imperfectly executed because Harry Durrell failed to kill anyone with the first shotgun blast, turning a clean kill into a prolonged siege. David Paulson reports that Hunter is probably inside the house and that Durrell is no longer responding, confirming to Vince that Hunter has already taken the shotgunner out. Vince hears fighting erupt in the grass between Rink and another attacker, then directs his men to keep pouring fire into the house. The gunmen rake the walls and windows with carbines, trying to leave Hunter nowhere to hide.

When the shooting briefly eases, Vince orders Paulson to check the house and pressures him by invoking Paulson’s desire for revenge. The chapter then explains why Paulson is involved: he is Pamela Patrick’s older half-brother, and Vince recruited him by exploiting his hatred of Hunter and Hunter’s allies after Pamela’s death. Through Paulson’s CIA contacts and office gossip about Sue Bouchard’s secret burial at sea, they traced Hunter’s group to Harvey’s ranch and chose to ambush them there after the funeral because the remote location reduced the risk of police interference.

Believing that Rink is likely out of the fight, Mercer is insignificant, and Hunter may already be finished, Vince urges Paulson forward again. Paulson edges up to look through the window, but Hunter is still alive and blows him apart at close range. Seeing Paulson’s corpse, Vince immediately abandons any thought of approaching that same way and shifts tactics.

Vince goes in through the kitchen door instead, coordinating with a gunman on the porch to trap Hunter between them. Inside, Vince ignores Durrell’s body and hears movement in the next room, but before he can fire first, Hunter blasts buckshot through the wall toward the kitchen. The crossfire plan collapses, so Vince escalates. He holsters his pistol, grabs a grenade, spots Hunter scrambling across the adjoining room, taunts him, and throws the grenade inside before diving out the back door.