Page 50 of Dead Devil's Playground
"This way," Camden urges, guiding us toward the staff exit at the back of the VIP section. "My team is securing the club. The patrons will be fine."
Kai and I exchange a glance, a silent conversation passing between us. We've known Camden for years—he's Hudson's right hand, practically family. If he says this is protocol, we follow.
We move swiftly through the darkness, Camden leading us through service corridors I recognize from the building plans. The sounds of the panicked crowd fade behind us as we push through an emergency exit into the alley behind the club.
The night air hits my face, cool compared to the heat of bodies packed inside. The alley is dimly lit by the ambient glow from the club's exterior lights and the distant neon of the city skyline. Camden's SUV sits idling at the end of the narrow passage, its dark outline barely visible.
"Where's the rest of your team?" I ask, the unease growing stronger with each step toward the vehicle.
"Securing the perimeter," Camden replies, his pace quickening. "We need to get to the safe house before they make their move."
"Who's 'they'?" Kai demands, his voice sharp with suspicion. "What exactly are we dealing with here, Camden?"
Camden reaches the SUV and pulls open the rear door. "Get in. I'll brief you on the way."
My instincts are screaming now, but before I can act on them, I hear the softest whisper of movement behind us. I start to turn, reaching for the knife at my belt—
Pain explodes at the base of my skull. My vision splinters into fragments of light and shadow as my knees buckle beneath me. I hear Kai grunt beside me—he's been hit too.
I fight to stay conscious, to reach for my brother, but my limbs won't obey. The ground rushes up to meet me, rough asphalt scraping my palms as I try to push myself up, but my arms give out. The world spins, my senses dulling as Camden's boots appear in my narrowing field of vision. He crouches down, grabbing a fistful of my hair to lift my face toward his.
"You will listen to me now, won't you?" he sneers, his face twisted with contempt I've never seen him display before. "Not so powerful anymore."
I try to speak, to ask why, but my tongue feels swollen in my mouth. Blood trickles warm down the back of my neck from where I was struck. Through blurring vision, I see Kai face-down on the asphalt beside me, his body unnaturally still.
My brother. I need to reach him.
"Get them in the vehicle," Camden orders someone I can't see. "And make it quick. We need to be gone before Hudson realizes what's happening."
Rough hands grab me under the arms, dragging me toward the SUV. I struggle weakly, fighting to maintain consciousness, but it's like swimming through tar. My weapons are still on me—they haven't bothered to disarm us yet, which means they're either stupid or extremely confident.
Or they don't plan on us waking up again.
As darkness closes in, I hear footsteps approach and another voice—cold, emotionless, devoid of any human feeling—says, "Kill them quickly. No loose ends."
Camden's response fades as consciousness slips away from me, but I cling to one thought as the darkness claims me:
Rylan.
They've separated us from her. And that means whoever is behind this has just made their fatal mistake.
Because nothing on this earth is more dangerous than Rylan when someone takes what's hers.
Chapter 20 - Ry
"Find them," I snap, already moving toward the hidden staircase that leads to the security room. "Now."
Hudson follows close behind, his body a solid wall between me and the panicked crowd as we navigate through the darkness. The music continues to play, the spotlight still focused on Malik's performance—a distraction, I now realize. A deliberate one.
We burst into the security room to find it empty. The bank of monitors shows nothing but static, the communications system dead. Hudson tries the backup generator switch—nothing.
"This was planned," he growls, slamming his fist against the console. "Whoever did this knew exactly what they were doing."
He pulls out his radio, trying to reach Camden. "Camden, do you copy? Camden!" Nothing but static. He tries again with the same result before hurling the useless device against the wall.
"Our radios are being jammed," he says, running a hand through his hair. "We're blind and deaf."
I reach for my phone, a cold calm settling over me as adrenaline clears the fog of panic from my mind. "Not completely."
