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“The open ones are empty, but I will have Luther bring his rookie team in to relocate the unopened crates to a warehouse on the base.”
“On our land, but not underground?”
Daryn huffed. “I don’t trust Cage; he is up to something. This person is acting on his orders. Maybe one of his mercenaries. If there is another explosion, I want it topside.”
“Fair enough. So we head back to the base?” I asked.
Daryn nodded. “I think we should...” he tapped his hunter link. “Cipher, did you locate the fake Cage?”
“No. There has been another breach. It’s only a few blocksfrom your location. Can you check it out? Indy and Kaine are en route.”
“Send a team to clean out this warehouse. It belongs to Cage. We will meet Indy and Kaine at the site.” He cut contact and grabbed my hand before jogging toward the door. I took the computer quickly and followed Daryn.
I got into the passenger’s side and put the computer on my lap before fastening my seatbelt. I waited for Daryn to start the vehicle before I spoke. “Where are we going?”
“Spirit Falls Park. It’s a gate located near a pathway. Not near the playground or main entrance.”
The park was large, and we had discovered multiple bodies near the area people used to take wedding photos. “I hope nobody has been hurt.” The park had reopened after the king was remanded to the underworld and the gate moved to the hunter base, but the children’s park was deemed secure. There were a couple of unstable gates in the large government-owned park, but they were at the outer edges and considered low risk. That assessment may change now, though.
After we exited the industrial area where the warehouse had been located, we drove on a forest-lined road for a few minutes before Daryn pulled onto a small dirt road. There was a sign that alerted visitors they had entered the secondary parking area that led to a series of trails. This was used for avid hikers only as it was a few miles from the main parking area.
The lot was completely dark, and we exited slowly. Daryn scanned the area while his headlights illuminated the pathway that led to the forest trails.
“Where are they?” I asked.
“There is no indication they are headed toward town. The demons are acting completely out of character. They should be all over us.”
We turned when another vehicle pulled into the lot and Indy exited the black SUV ahead of her brother.
“I hope you aren’t trying to save all those dirtbags for yourself.”
Daryn shook his head. “They aren’t attacking.”
Indy took out her phone when it beeped. “Cipher says there are some demon signatures ahead of us.”
Indy took point, and I fell in beside Daryn with Kaine at our rear as we entered the dark pathway.
Daryn flicked his hand before a small orb appeared and raised above us, acting like an overhead light. A small moon that followed us as we entered the forest darkness.
As we crept deeper down the park pathway, a shiver ran down my spine. The orb light barely pierced the thick canopy of trees before us. It cast eerie shadows as we moved that seemed to dance around us. The night was still, and the air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and the distant promise of death.
Daryn walked beside me as I clutched the hilt of my Sica, feeling the familiar weight of it in my hand. The darkness pressed in on us, and the silence was deafening, broken only by the occasional rustle of leaves or the distant hoot of an owl.
The trail ahead twisted and turned, the path uneven beneath our feet. We moved in unison, each step calculated, each breath measured. The night seemed to hold its breath, as if it knew that something sinister lurked in the shadows.
As the tension reached its peak, we heard deep growls in the distance. Low, guttural sounds that sent a shiver down my spine.
“Come to momma,” Indy whispered as she bolted toward the sound.
I saw a flicker of gray skin as we ran after Indy, but the red eyes reflected in the night bolted away from us.
The orb kept perfect pace as we raced after the demon attempting to flee from us.
It dodged and weaved as if leading us on a wild adventure before Indy slid to a stop. “This one is leading us away. It’s a decoy.”
Daryn stopped and glanced back the way we had come. “What are they trying to lead us away from? There is nothing here.”
Indy had barely broken a sweat while I panted from the brisk run. “That’s the million-dollar question. What should we do?”
