Page 123 of Into the Dark, We Go

"And what a coincidence that all these ‘like-minded individuals’ happen to be men."

"Women ain’t cut out for this kinda power. They’re too emotional, too flighty. Men are more level-headed, more rational. We can make the hard calls without gettin’ caught up in feelings and personal opinions."

I seethed. His self-righteousness was a stench I couldn’t breathe around. He spoke of the greater good, but everything about him reeked of greed and misogyny.

If I had once been consumed by fear, focused only on making it through the night, I now wanted more. I wanted revenge. I wanted him to suffer. To pay.

I wanted him gone.

"Yeah? How tough was the decision to put a price tag on human life?" I snapped. "Your own son’s life?"

Robert gave me a condescending smile as he cleaned his lenses, then turned back to Nick.

"Look at your lady friend here," he said. "She’s got no idea what she’s talkin’ about, but she’s quick to attack me. The sooner you see she’s a problem, not a plus, the sooner you’ll be ready for the power I’m offerin’."

A shotgun blast tore through the night. Tree bark splintered near me, exploding outward like someone had taken a bite out of the trunk.

I stood transfixed, watching Mitch move—precise, practiced, deadly. He didn’t hesitate. He flowed through their ranks like a blade, clean and terrifyingly efficient.

There were six masked men in total. Three carried guns holstered awkwardly. They were expecting fear, maybe a little resistance. Not this. Not Mitch.

June hovered near the treeline, holding the shotgun steady. One twitch in the wrong direction, and she’d fire. They knew it. Her presence bought Mitch valuable seconds, which he used like gold.

One of Robert’s men panicked and fired into the dark. The crack split the air like lightning. Flashlights flickered, casting jerky shadows across the trees. The second shot went wide, hitting one of their own, a man in a grotesque stag skull mask. He yelped in pain, clutching his shoulder as he staggered back.

The mask fell away, and that was all Mitch needed. He moved fast, delivering a brutal blow to the man’s exposed face. There was an audible crunch as he crumpled like a ragdoll.

No one dared fire again, but the fighting kept on. Mitch stood among them, blood on his knuckles, but composed. He looked like he belonged in the chaos.

With one man down, Mitch still struggled with the other five. Even with June watching from the treeline, they had minutes, maybe less.

"Nell, now!" Nick roared, snapping me out of my trance.

The next moment, my raincoat was on the ground. He slashed my T-shirt down the back and yanked the bandage off, no time for finesse. The icy steel touched my tender skin, making me twitch. This was going to hurt.

I leaned against the stone, gripping it tightly, bracing myself against it. Nick began carving into my skin. I tried not to scream, instead letting out a low growl; tears streamed from my eyes.The burning was at least quick. I was terrified I’d faint, but somehow, I managed to stay on my feet, pushing through it.

"Almost done, almost done!" he kept repeating.

June screamed, and another deafening gunshot echoed through the forest.

"Fuck!" she bellowed, followed by, "Watch out!"

But Nick had finished. He scrambled me off the stone, forced the knife, slick with my own blood, and the grimoire, into my hands, and pushed me in the direction of the trees. "Run!"

One of the masked men tackled him from behind, sending him crashing to the ground. I stood there, lightheaded, knife in my hand, hesitating. I could help. But Nick roared again. "Go!"

With all the energy I had in me, I darted into the woods.

The darkness opened like a giant, hungry mouth and swallowed me whole.

33

Chapter Thirty-Three

October, 2020

My feet kickedup rotten leaves as I raced to the bridge. Behind me, heavy boots tore through a tangle of twisted branches and thorny brush. Robert’s men were after me. After the grimoire.