Page 127 of The Devil We Know

A group of men stand there all looking rather smug. It appears as if Camilla, Carolina, and Lilith got ambushed, each of them being held by two men. Camilla and Lilith look outraged enough that they're practically frothing at the mouth; however, Carolina stands there calmly, looking almost bored, which is a testament to her history.

One of the men holding Camilla releases his grip on her neck, and he leans close, stroking his hand down her chest as he says something close to her face. She reacts by attempting to bitehim, getting a tiny nip in that has the man jumping back in order to avoid serious injury.

He pulls his hand from her chest, giving her a good slap across the face, and for a moment, I'm confused by a soft growling that seems to be happening near me.

I glance over at Kaian, raising my brows in amusement, but then an escalated ruckus across the room draws my attention back to the group of people.

I recognize some of these men from being around before I left. One of them, in particular, was good friends with Finn, and the likelihood that he stood by and watched as I was drugged and assaulted is high.

I turn to Kaian and whisper, “How many rounds do you have left?”

I quickly check my own weapon while he does the same, and then he pulls his backpack off again, pulling out the extra rounds and handing two to me, keeping two for himself. He drops the bag on the ground, immediately changing the magazine for a full one and pocketing the other as a reserve. I follow suit, and then he leans in closely. “Accuracy is key here. Don't stop until they're all dead.”

I nod as he steps back, motioning that he's going to circle around and for me to wait. I track him silently while keeping an eye on how things are escalating across the room.

It doesn't take him long to get in position, and though I can't see him clearly, when his first shot goes off, I quickly follow suit.

Half the men are down before the other half has time to react. In the ruckus, Carolina and Lilith escape the men holding them.

Those four men turn their attention to us, attempting to locate and eliminate us, but all this does is open themselves up for our bullets.

The men holding Camilla double down as she fights them. I manage to take one of them out before I start clicking empty. Ipull out my last reserve magazine, quickly exchanging it for the empty one and returning my sights to where they were.

The man is now dragging Camilla away. I race around the pillars, bringing my gun up and taking aim again just as a body flies in front of me, obstructing my view. Kaian comes out of nowhere, grabbing Camilla’s attacker by the head and bodily pulling him away from her.

He tosses him on the floor, driving the butt of his gun into his face over and over again before he loses his grip on it, and it tumbles to the ground. The man's hands are still trying to push Kaian away, so Kaian reaches behind him, pulling a blade from its sheath on his back, flipping it in his grip, and swinging it around in one smooth motion.

The man twitches a few more times before his body goes lax. Kaian stands, his chest heaving, with blood splattered all over him. He looks at Camilla, saying something I can't make out. She glares at him, and I quite clearly hear her words. “You can fuck all the way off with that hero bullshit. I was fine.”

I close the distance between me and them, completely understanding both sides of the impeding pissing contest, even if neither of them wants to admit it. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

They both snap their mouths shut, but continue to glare at each other, and I slowly turn away. Carolina and Lilith are standing nearby, watching on curiously, and I shrug as I join them, the corners of my mouth twitching as I do my best not to smile.

Kaian and Cami walk over, both of them outwardly disgruntled, but then Kaian looks at Lilith. “Everything secure?”

She nods. “As far as I can tell.”

Kaian removes his phone from his pocket, sending off a quick message before pocketing it. “Clean-up crew will be here in thirty minutes.”

“They gonna fumigate?”

“Nah, just a thorough extermination for now. Make sure we don’t have an infestation hidden somewhere.”

“Good plan.”

Kaian motions toward the door. “I know the shortest way out back.”

We follow him out of the room with less excitement than we normally would under typical circumstances. While I’m relieved to be done in this building, my anxiety and nervousness over the fate of Darius and Antoinette has my guts churning.

It only takes a fraction of the time for us to exit the building, once again on the harbor side. We hurry toward where we last left Matt and Tony, but now, the entire area is illuminated, guiding our way.

My heart sinks at the number of people who are obviously actively searching, and my eyes scan the crowd for Matt.

I locate him further down the terminal, where the massive ship is tethered. They’ve set up a temporary base, equipment dotting the dock. Men race around, boats slowly maneuvering through the water, and spotlights shining brightly.

I manage to catch his gaze from about twenty feet away. I raise my brows in question, and he shakes his head, the pain on his face cutting and deep. I frown, wanting nothing more than to go to him, to comfort him, but I know now is not the time.

So, I turn to Kaian and rest my hand on his arm. “What next?”

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