Page 39 of R for Rough

Ryan handed out the tablets, one to the non-interrogators and one for our group.

I took the opportunity to shed my windbreaker. My hoodie and undershirt were enough—or would be, once I got the blood pumping. The others were dressed similarly, jeans or utility pants, hoodies, gloves for some, beanies for Dave and Ryan.

I rolled my shoulders and cracked my knuckles, finally feeling the anticipation build up within me. It usually took me a while, because before an event, I was so focused on preparations and observing my partner. This time more than ever. My focus had been on him all day.

“Please don’t let my husband torture our boy too much,” Lucas requested. “They’ve been goading each other nonstop since we woke up.”

I smirked, and Madigan and Ryan chuckled.

“Because of your display of faith in me, I’mma torture him extra, darlin’,” Colt promised.

Lucas sighed and rolled his eyes.

Seeing Jameson with our tablet, I stepped over to him and eyed the screen.

“They’re not scattering,” he noted.

Not a whole lot anyway. They were still running farther into the woods, with both groups sticking together for now. I wished we could see more of the terrain on the screen, but as it was, the night-mode map only revealed streams, elevation, and the fact that it was a forested area. We kind of already knew that last part.

The prey appeared on the screen as little red dots.

Colt came over too, and he smirked when he studied the screen. “It’s startin’ to look a lot like they want a fight.” He glanced over at Madigan. “They’re not scatterin’.”

“We should still pick them off one by one,” I said. “But a few of us will have to ward off the sideline brats.”

“Agreed,” Ryan answered, closing the distance too. “Have they split up into two groups, at least?”

“They’re doin’ that now,” Jameson said.

He was right. They were splitting up.

“Have we waited long enough?” Madigan asked. He pointed to the tablet. “Because we’re gonna need to locate the right group.”

And we didn’t wanna do that when they had put too much distance between the two groups. Yeah, of course. Technically, they could’ve mixed the groups completely, with some of “our” prey running off with the other group’s prey, but given that they didn’t wanna be exposed to that kink tonight, it seemed unlikely.

“Who knows the actual location of this symbolic key we’re gonna find?” Colt asked.

“Greg,” Ryan responded. “Once we have ’em tied up and questioned, he’ll come out and check ’em for lies.”

Good strategy.

“Okay, let’s go.” Jameson handed over the tablet to Ryan. “Dave! We’ll go for the eastern perimeter—y’all go west. If we run into the wrong squad, we’ll each grab one brat and push them closer to the center.”

So we could follow the dots on the screen—good plan.

“We’ll discuss scare tactics and implements along the way, I assume?” I questioned.

“The more, the better, as I always say,” Madigan agreed. “My pockets and my brain are chock-full.”

Get ready, sweetheart.

CHAPTER 10

Tracy Judd

“Over here!” Angel panted. “Watch your step—go around. It’s hella swampy because of the creek.”

I jumped over the narrowest part, then ran half a circle around the wet grass and moss. She wasn’t wrong. It was practically a swamp right here. Hopefully, it would slow down our Predators if they caught us here.

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