Page 53 of Challenged
“Uh, guys?”
“Look out!” Rion suddenly shouts, pushing me aside as a cascade of boxes comes tumbling down from above, barely missing us.
“Something about that crate set off a trap!” I shout.
It doesn’t stop there. Rion’s rush to get to me releases darts that go flying through the room.
One hits Griffyn who is too focused on me to notice.
“Fuck!” Aksel rushes over to Griffyn.
“Paralytic,” Griffyn whispers clumsily before losing the use of his limbs.
Rion and I climb over the lasers and make it to Griffyn and Aksel.
The door slams open and we prepare to fight but the figures are familiar.
“Blaze! Felix!” My voice is a shout laced with fear and warning, echoing off the concrete walls. “Stay out!”
But it’s too late.
“Dammit, watch out!” I scream, even as I witness the first trap spring to life. It’s a cascade of chains that whip through the air towards them. Felix dodges with feline grace, a blur of speed and agility, but Blaze isn’t so lucky. He takes the brunt of the impact, hissing as the metal bites into his skin.
“Anna, we thought you were—” Blaze begins, only to cut himself off as he assesses the full extent of our predicament. His eyes meet mine, a silent apology for the chaos he’s unintentionally unleashed.
“Thought we were what? In immediate danger? Congratulations, you guessed right,” I say, my voice a mix of relief and exasperation. But despite my words, my gaze softens when it rests on him.
They came rushing here for us.
“Stay there,” Aksel demands.
Rion takes Griffyn and carries him as we make our way across the warehouse, avoiding any more traps.
“We probably have seconds before they show up here for us. Transport out but not home. We can’t leave a trace back to our safe house.”
I go to a busy downtown area, move away from that spot then transport back to the safe house, grateful we talked about a plan if this ever happened.
The moment we step inside our safe house, the weight of what we’ve just experienced hangs heavily in the air. I can’t shake the sense of unease that has settled over me like a thick fog. We gather around the living room table, anticipation and worry etched on our faces.
Aksel digs through one of their bags and pulls out a vial of something. He sticks Griffyn in the leg and seconds later he’s moving again.
“Well that sucked.” Griffyn shakes out each of his limbs, testing them.
I wrap my arms around him. “I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault, Vixen. Don’t dwell on it. Let’s see what we’ve got,” Griffyn says, producing the camera from his pocket and connecting it to the laptop. As the images load onto the screen, I hold my breath, hoping for something.
“Wait, pause on that one,” Aksel interjects abruptly, pointing at the screen with a furrowed brow. Griffyn complies, and we all lean in closer to examine the faces of one man and one woman featured prominently among the group.
“Who are they?” Rion asks, studying the faces.
Aksel’s eyes narrow as he scrutinizes the photograph. “That’s Kenneth Vandenberg,” he says, pointing to the man. “He’s a wealthy businessman, owns a chain of high-end hotels across the country.”
“Rich and powerful?” Griffyn muses, a hint of excitement creeping into his voice. “Sounds like our kind of guy.”
“Who’s the other one?” I ask, trying to keep the tremor out of my voice.
“Her name is Elise Reme,” Aksel replies, his voice tense. “She’s mated to the demon councilman, Roner.”
