Page 125 of The Devil We Know

I smile.

Light explodes in my vision.

And I let go.

52

The Devil May Come

Jessica

Declan, Matt, and Tonytake off at a sprint, running recklessly across the giant tower of containers toward the ladder.

They all but fall down it, their feet running before they’ve fully touched the deck, and they’re racing toward the side of the ship where Darius and Antoinette fell.

It takes the rest of us a minute longer to get down the ladder, and by the time I’m maneuvering through the narrow gapbetween container stacks, the three of them are leaned over the rail, shouting.

But no one’s there.

No one answers.

I scan the dark water, stepping right out onto the edge and bending down as far as I dare, but there’s nothing. No air bubbles, no agitated water indicating something is beneath, struggling to break to the surface.

Declan is already in the water, having left a trail of clothing in his wake. Tony has his shirt off; his boots half-kicked off, and his phone and weapons in a pile at his feet. He dives into the frigid water without hesitation, disappearing beneath the surface as we look on helplessly.

Matt pulls his shirt over his head, bending and unlacing his boots as he turns to Kaian and says, “Call in for help and then take the girls and make sure this is fucking done. Make sure every fucking last one of those motherfuckers is dead, and if they’re not dead, then make them fucking dead.”

Kaian nods, looking at me and Camilla expectantly as he pulls his phone from his jacket pocket. We both step toward him, ready to make good on the mission. He types out a message, pocketing the phone before turning to Lilith and Carolina. “You coming?”

They turn distraught faces to him, and my breath catches in my throat, sadness and anger boiling in my guts at the thought that Darius and Antoinette won’t be found.

I take a shuddering breath in, intent on controlling myself as Matt dives into the bay, but all I want to do is throw myself in after him. To protect him. To shield him from whatever pain might find him.

“Focus.”

Kaian's sharply spoken word draws my attention back to him.

He gives each of us a sympathetic look, then scowls. “I know not thinking about what's going on in the water is difficult, but right now, you all need to keep your head in the game. We're going back in there, not knowing how many people we’re up against, which means we all need to be on guard and ready. Do you understand?”

I swallow the lump in my throat and nod. Everyone else nods as well, and Kaian pulls the backpack off his back, dropping it on the ground in front of him and unzipping it. He pulls out a weapon, checking that it's loaded, and then hands the bag to me. “You know how to use any of that?”

I roll my eyes at him and snort. I don't bother replying; instead, I fish around inside the bag until I find a standard nine-millimeter. I pull it out, hand the bag over to Lilith, and then go through my own checks without any comment. Kaian squints at me and then nods.

Once everyone has refreshed their weapons and ammo, the bag makes it back to him, though now it looks rather empty. He zips it up, places it on his back again, and then turns and walks in the direction of the building. “Let's go. Get this shit over with.”

I fall into step beside him, more than ready to get it over with. “How do we know who to shoot?”

“If they're not standing in this group right now, shoot them.”

"That's not a problem," Lilith replies.

Kaian laughs and shakes his head. “This is not surprising coming from you.”

“Who was that other man disguised as Darius?”

Kaian shrugs, his pace slowing as we come up on the building. “I have no fucking idea. Hopefully, we'll find him, so we'll know.”

“Maybe Dare knows,” Carolina interjects. “And he'll tell us when we find him.”

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