Page 23 of Daemonium

Our shoes were wet, which made this already difficult task ten times harder. I lost my footing more than once, each slip lodging shoving my heart further up my throat. Another scream echoed from below, causing me to look back down just in time to see April plummeting into the water and immediately getting swarmed. I forced myself to ignore it and concentrated on climbing. The ledges continued to shift and move, requiring constant adjustments.

"Keep going, Sunshine," Ky’s encouraging voice came from below, his composure a stark contrast to the chaos surrounding us.

I gritted my teeth and pushed on, ignoring the burning sensation in my muscles and the fear gnawing at my mind. Every inch I climbed felt like a small victory. Mel was struggling too, her face pale with pain, but she refused to slow down.

Dion and Brody stayed close beside her, ready to assist if needed.

I wanted to check on Lana and Ciaran, who had to be on the opposite wall climbing with Char and Hayven. However, if I turned too much, I knew I'd fall off. The top still seemed impossibly far away.

I felt someone move on my other side and turned my head to see the older man making his way up, while I looked down at Roger. His eyes kept flickering towards Ky, and I could feel his anxiety. If he stumbled, he would pull Ky with him.

"Ky," I whispered, my voice urgent. My fingers slipped on a rough edge of rock, causing me to cut my hand as I grabbed onto it. Instead of feeling pain, I experienced a warm rush of adrenaline. Annoyed, I surveyed the wall and attempted to get a better grip before losing my balance completely.

“Gracelynn.” He used my full name sharply, a change from his usual demeanor.

"I was trying to warn you about him dragging you down," I snapped at him.

He didn't seem fazed and responded calmly, "I know."

Despite knowing that he was holding back and moving slower because of me, I continued climbing.

He always prioritized my well-being over his own, which was starting to wear on my already frayed nerves. The thought of anything happening to him because of me was unbearable.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Roger's voice echoed through the loud music and alligator sounds a minute later.

I risked a quick glance down as I kept climbing, seeing Ky deliberately blocking Roger's path and preventing him from going any higher.

"I'm getting rid of the dead weight," Ky responded, his voice barely audible over the chaos. He kicked Roger in the face with his boot, causing blood to spurt from his nose. He lost his grip and fell into the water below, his rage-filled scream echoing around us.

I kept climbing, looking back briefly to see Roger struggling in the water but not getting very far.

“Problem solved,” Ky stated nonchalantly as he climbed faster to catch up with me.

Even though he had just kicked a man to his brutal death, I couldn't bring myself to be angry with him. "Good job," I praised, my eyes quickly averting from his intense gaze when I saw how much my words meant to him. My hands trembled slightly as I managed to climb to the top of the wall, using my fingers to grip what felt like mucky clumps of clay for support. I had to dig in to pull myself up.

As soon as Ky pulled himself over, I crawled on my knees to help Mel, but Dion and Brody were already taking care of her. One was lifting her from the bottom with a strong hand on her backside, while the other supported her waist without putting any pressure on her chest or injured arm.

It was a dynamic that I was extremely grateful for in that moment. I felt a sudden surge of strength as Ky lifted me off the ground and placed me back on my feet. "The only time you should be on your knees, Sunshine, is when you're opening your pretty mouth for me," he whispered in my ear, his hot breath sending shivers down my spine.

Mel shot him a playful look and then stared at Brody, who still had his hand lingering on her bottom. "Oops." He quickly removed it with a sheepish grin.

"I should thank you, but the free grab is thanks enough," Mel joked.

We all laughed, releasing some of the tension and adrenaline we had just experienced. She and I inched closer to the edge, watching as the others climbed up and over the wall on the opposite side.

“You, okay? I asked softly.

She nodded. “Much better than them.”

From our vantage point, we could see the alligators still thrashing about in the water far below, fighting over their torn-up meals.

“Fucking alligators. What else do these people have inside the city?”

“I don’t think we want to know.” I turned my hand over and looked at my bleeding palm. It didn’t hurt—only slightly stung and that wasn’t causing me any pain. A light tug on my hair pulled me back from the edge.

I turned into Ky as I stepped away, and he dropped his hand to the center of my back.

“I’m assuming we go through that door?”

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