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“Bryn, you take Connor and Sarah. I’ll take Niall and Brooke.” Hunter looked menacingly at Kyle. “Are you coming or what?”

Kyle looked at me like he wanted to punch me square between the eyes.

I lifted my brow in silent invitation to try.

He turned away from me and faced Hunter. “Yeah, but I’m riding with you.”

Hunter set his hand on my shoulder. “Once you’re in your truck, give your gun to Connor or Sarah. Have them fire out the back if necessary.” He faced our group. “We need to get to the vehicles undetected, if we want any chance of making it to base.”

Everyone nodded, accepting their orders, and moved into position by the door.

Hunter and Connor guarded the front of our group, with Niall and Sarah holding the flank positions, and Kyle and me at the rear.

Brooke, who was shaking like a leaf but surprisingly still standing, was enclosed by the six of us.

As much as she irked me, she was a civilian—an innocent.

It was our job to make sure she stayed safe.

Sarah let out a shaky breath from in front of me. “What’s out there, Bryn?”

I reached forward, grabbing her hand. “Creatures born from nightmares,” I said as bravely as I could.

“Delightful,” she mumbled as Hunter unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door.

CHAPTER FIVE

BRYN

We filed out of the bar, pressing our backs against the brick exterior of the building.

The road was clear of creatures, their shrieking farther away now.

I tried not to look too closely at the heaps of material strewn across the asphalt. Pools of dark liquid told me there was a good chance the material was composed of bones and torn muscle in addition to vehicle debris.

On the other side of the road, storefront windows had been completely shattered.

“It sounds like they’re heading south toward downtown,” Hunter whispered to the group, his voice remaining casual, like seeing the Devil’s creations on the streets of Gray was a nightly routine.

I signaled toward our trucks across the parking lot, then up at the moon.

The moonlight gave us the advantage of good night visibility, but it also made us easy targets out in the open.

Hunter nodded to me, giving the order to move.

We didn’t hesitate, crossing the lot in our formation, eyes peeled open, monitoring our surroundings.

The night was still.

Too still.

Near the rear of my truck, I fumbled for the fob in my pocket, silently cursing myself for locking my door. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Hunter was doing the same.

There wasn’t typically a need to lock your doors in the city of Gray; nothing bad ever happened here, not counting our current predicament. But our guns belonged to The Guard, and our training taught us you could never be too careful.

Hunter signaled our countdown while I held my breath, slipping my hand around the door handle.

He ticked off his fingers quickly.