Page 156 of The Hunt

I smiled thinly as I stared down at his screen. Apparently, Tessa had come through on her end. Several famous content creators had posted videos that were currently sitting on millions of views, all containing information about the data I’d stolen from my father’s phone.

“Wait…” Ari frowned and took a slight step backward, suspicion suddenly flickering in his eyes. “Rhett? Is that you?”

“Yes,” I said calmly, handing his phone back to him.

He looked at the screen, then back at me. “Was thisyou? Did you leak all this stuff?”

“Yup.” I tilted my head. “You’re supposed to shoot me now, aren’t you?”

“Yeah,” Ari said stiffly. “I am.”

I smiled, though he couldn’t see it beneath my mask. “Do you wanna give it a shot?” I asked, one hand sliding toward my pocket.

He was silent for a moment, throat bobbing as he stared at me. Then he shook his head. “Go and finish what you started, man,” he muttered. “I won’t tell anyone I saw you.”

He turned away, and I called out. “Wait!”

“Yeah?” Ari looked back at me, brows furrowing.

I took a step closer. “Over in the west wing, there’s a woman on the first floor, four doors down. Nikki Hahn. She’s been shot, and she needs care,” I said. “So before you leave, go and get her. Take her with you and get her to a hospital as soon as you can.”

He nodded. “Got it.”

“One more thing. Have you seen Peter Jennings anywhere?”

“Yeah, a few minutes ago. He was with all the other Patriarchs.”

“Where were they?” I asked sharply. “And was there a girl with them?”

Ari jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “They were heading for the northeast tunnel,” he said. “I didn’t see a girl, but a couple of them were carrying something wrapped in a sheet, and it looked pretty big. So… maybe that was a girl?”

I swallowed hard. “They’re going to the hunting grounds?”

“Yeah, I think so. But I have no idea why,” he said, slowly shaking his head. “It’s over, man. It’s so fucking over.”

Something clicked in my mind, and I pointed to the west. “Go. Get Nikki.”

“Okay.” Ari turned away again, but then he hesitated and looked at me over his shoulder. “Good luck.”

I nodded, set my jaw and strode away, heading for the northeast tunnels entrance.

I knew exactly where Everly was.

36

Everly

I woke with a start,my head pounding and my body aching as if I’d been crushed under heavy stones. The air surrounding me was cold, and the scent of damp earth and rotting leaves filled my nostrils.

For a moment, I couldn’t piece together where I was or how I’d gotten there, but then I felt the rough scrape of rope digging into my wrists and realized I couldn’t move. I was tied to something. A wooden pole, rough and unyielding against my back.

My heart sank like a stone as I blinked, my vision adjusting to the dim moonlight. Then it hit me. I was in a clearing.

Thatclearing.

The one I’d scoured the hunting grounds for over the last two days, chasing tunnels and escape routes, only to come up empty. Now, after all this time, I’d found it—or rather, it had found me.

It was the place where it all began, really. The place where I’d first glimpsed the Wilder ritual that haunted my childhood dreams. But this time, I wasn’t hiding in the shadows, a terrified child peeking through the underbrush.

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