Page 84 of The Devil's Chaos

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “This was always a one-way trip for me. We both knew that.”

“Don’t say that. I’ll come to get you. Just hang on.”

“No,” I rasped, shaking my head even though he couldn’t see me. “It’s too late for that. You have to get Mila out of here.”

“You are so close to freedom. I will protect you. The Brotherhood will protect you. I can’t leave you,” he insisted fiercely.

“You have to.” My voice was growing weaker, and the edges of my vision were darkening. “I’m sorry… I wish we had more time.”

“Don’t you dare say goodbye. Don’t you fucking dare!” His anguished plea tore through my heart.

“You know me…I was never good at goodbyes.” With trembling fingers, I pulled the earpiece out, letting it fall to the floor. I smashed it with my heel, scattering its pieces down the hallway in hopes that they would go unnoticed in the chaos before what had just happened right under his nose.

The compound erupted into chaos as alarms blared and guards shouted orders. I could hear their heavy footsteps approaching, the sound of impending doom. I slumped against the wall, my blood smearing a crimson trail as I slid to the floor. The gun clattered from my weakening grasp, my fingerstoo numb to hold it any longer. The shouts and footsteps were getting closer, echoing through the corridors like a pack of bloodthirsty hounds closing in on their prey.

I knew it was only a matter of time before they found me.

Before Alex found me.

A bitter laugh bubbled up in my throat, turning into a wet cough that sent searing pain lancing through my abdomen. Of all the ways I thought I might go out, bleeding to death in the bowels of my brother's compound after betraying him wasn't high on the list.

But I didn't regret it—not for a second. Mila was safe and free, and that was all that mattered. I had made my choice, and I would face the consequences, whatever they might be.

This was it—the end of the line. I had always known my luck would run out eventually, but I never thought it would be like this—bleeding out in a dimly lit hallway, alone and abandoned. I had done what I set out to do, even if it cost meeverything.

35

THIRTY-FIVE

KAI

Icouldn’t pinpoint the exact moment when everything changed. It could have been when I was at the club, surveilling one of Alexander Benson’s shady clients in an attempt to uncover his whereabouts and gather information on his drug operations. Or maybe it was as I watched a certain green-eyed, ebony-haired seductress dancing on stage, her perfect tits barely contained in a black lace bra and her round ass teasingly rubbing against the dicks of Benson’s perverted patrons. She commanded the room with her tantalizing movements, her curvy hips capable of making any man forget their name and succumb to their primal desires. These sleazeballs were mesmerized by her, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away either.

Every time our eyes met, everything else faded into the background. I shouldn’t have felt that way about her. Hell, I’d never felt this way about any girl. I’d had Maddie keeping my dick warm every night, and yet, all I could think about wasmydark-haired goddess. I fantasized about her lips on mine, her hair tangled in my fingers, and my cock buried deep inside of her, stretching her to the brim. I was a hit-it-and-quit-it typeof guy. One that fucked hard and left before the sun came up. I had a strict “no sleepover” rule, and no one would change my mind. So, why was I wasting my time chasing down the girl who couldn’t be tamed? Why did I watch her, night after night, begging for her attention, just for her to turn me down? I wasn’t a guy who got friend-zoned, yet every time I got close and chipped away at her defenses, she’d rush to fix the cracks, making her walls even more impenetrable.

So, when I watched Mila run up the hillalone, and Haven stopped answering me on the earpiece, I felt a suffocating emptiness in my soul. Like the air had been sucked out of the room. I wanted to charge into the compound and bring her back with me, but I couldn’t. She wasn’t my mission. And every hour that went by, with no word from her and no indication that she was alive, the ache in my heart festered, seeping through every fiber of my being and taking root in my soul.

Now, I was scouring every connection I had to learn of her status. I wanted to be present in my life, but my thoughts were consumed withher.Sitting outside, I watched Archer and Mila interact with each other. Mila was laughing at something Archer was saying, and he was looking at her like she was some cosmic event, watching her, paying attention to every detail like each second was his last. I craved a connection with Haven as soul-consuming as theirs. They were bound together by blood, lost in each other, ignoring the rest of the world around them. I couldn’t help but feel jealousy creeping up, like a poisonous vine wrapping its tendrils around my heart, suffocating any hope of happiness I might have had.

I poured another double shot of whiskey. My mind was numbed with alcohol and regret. My eyes were fixated on the glowing screen of my phone, scrolling through Instagram photos of her green eyes, full, pink lips begging to be kissed, and that intense stare that seemed to see right through me. Five glasseslater, I was starting to doze off when my phone vibrated loudly on the table, jolting me back to reality. In my drunken stupor, I fumbled for it, spilling my drink all over the cream rug beneath my feet.

I felt around for my phone, flipping it over to seeHflashing across the screen. I thought I must be dreaming.

With a bated breath, I answered, “Hey, are you okay? I’ve been calling you.”

“Uhm, hi. This is Everly from Riverview General Hospital.” My stomach was in knots as I heard the unfamiliar voice on the other end. “I’m a nurse caring for a female patient named Haven Benson, and you were her emergency contact on her cell phone. Can I ask who I am speaking to?”

She put me as her emergency contact.

“This is Kai Montgomery. Is she okay? Can I talk to her?”

“Unfortunately, Ms. Benson is currently in surgery to repair a splenic hemorrhage caused by a gunshot wound. I was actually calling to gain some clarification, hopefully.”

My chest tightened as she explained Haven’s situation.

“Clarification?”

“Yes, sir. Ms. Benson was found near the ambulance bay of our emergency department, and the police are hoping to talk to someone who might know how she got shot.”

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