“Same here,” David said.
“This way,” Lucy said as she sprinted for thewoods.
He surveyed the others as they followed Lucyinto the trees. Blood trickled from a cut on Ian’s forehead, andCharlie had a spreading bloodstain on her thigh, but it didn’t slowher. Lucy reached for the doors covering the stairs, but Kyleslapped his hand down on top of them before she could fling themopen.
“I’ll go first,” he said.
“I know the way,” she protested.
“There’s only one way, and that’s down. I’llgo first.”
She hesitated before stepping away. “There’scameras in the stairwell.”
“Will you be able to point them out?”
“Yes.”
“Then we’ll take them out as we descend.They’ll know we’re coming, but they won’t be able to watch us.” Helooked around at the others. “Are you ready?”
“Always,” Willow said with a smile andtouched the handle of the sword strapped to her back.
Kyle grasped one of the handles and threwopen the doors. He ducked back when gunfire erupted from below.
CHAPTER 45
The bullet thatwhizzed by his cheek, tore away flesh and seared his skin a secondbefore Kyle ducked back. When the gunfire stopped, he poked hishead over the side, only to have more erupt from below. He duckedaway again.
When the gunfire ceased once more, he pokedhis head over the side to take in the stairwell. He only had asecond before more bullets erupted. However, that second was enoughtime to tell him what he needed to know.
For the first ten feet, a ladder descendedinto the darkness before ending on the stairwell below. The shooterstood at the top of the landing; he was only a few feet away fromthe ladder and half hidden in the shadows.
Grasping the edge of the doorway, Kyle pokedhis head over again. When a new barrage of bullets erupted, heducked back and waited. He gestured to his family, letting themknow he was going in, and the second the gunfire stopped, hegrasped the edge of one of the doors, swung himself into thestairwell, and dropped down.
More gunfire sounded, but with the reflexesof a human, the shooter kept his weapon focused on the opening fortoo long. Kyle was already standing beside him by the time theshooter started to lower the gun to aim it at him.
Grasping the end of the barrel, Kyle jerkedit away before the shooter could fire again. He threw the gunaside, pulled back his fist, and slammed it into the man’s face.Blood sprayed outward, but the man didn’t have a chance to stop theflow; he was unconscious before hitting the ground.
“Are you okay?” Ethan demanded as hedescended.
“I’m fine,” Kyle said as he retrieved thegun.
Searching the guard, he discovered a set ofcuffs he used to bind the man’s hands behind his back. Once hefinished, he moved deeper into the stairwell as the others fileddown the ladder.
He passed the gun to Ian. “Give this towhoever takes up the back of the line.”
Ian passed the gun to his mate, Paige, whohanded it off to Aida, who gave it to Mollie and then on to Maggie.At the back of the line, he heard Stefan say, “Thank you.”
Brian and Lucy made their way to the front ofthe group with his parents. He hated seeing his mom down here, buthis dad couldn’t convince her to stay with Abby.
“There’s a camera,” Lucy said and pointed tothe lens ten feet up on the concrete wall.
“I’ll get it,” Willow said. “A boost?” sheasked Declan.
They positioned themselves beneath thecamera, and Declan used his joined hands to lift her off theground. Willow swung her sword at the camera and sliced it off thewall. When it hit the ground, Vicky stomped on it.
Kyle peered into the shadowed stairwell belowbefore glancing at Brian. “Can you sense Melanie somewhere inhere?”
Brian shook his head. “No, I think beingunderground is throwing me off, or she’s not close.”
