A CRACK filled the air.
The guard looked up and turned to the other. “Hey, I just heard something!”
“No shit. It’s the fucking woods.”
Treycore grabbed another branch and cracked it in half.
The first guard looked back to the second, seeming to indicate that they needed to be concerned.
“Okay, okay,” the second one said.
They headed toward Treycore. He turned to see Kid and Kinzer running across the yard, creeping alongside the house.
You be careful, too, you little bastard.
***
Kinzer opened the door Hayde had directed them to and peeked in.
All clear.
He slipped in, and Kid followed.
Hayde descended into the house and pushed to the front, leading the way. He guided them down the hall, to a door at the end, which led to a stairwell.
“They were taking her upstairs,” Hayde said.
As they reached the second story, Hayde opened the door and headed out.
Kinzer and Kid tailed behind him.
A muffled sound, like whimpering, filled the air.
“Maggie?” Kinzer whispered.
Hayde glanced around like he was trying to figure out the best route to her. They continued along and rounded a corner. A light beamed from an entry at the other end of the hall. A blob-like shadow shifted in the light.
A groan that seemed to come from the other side of the hall assured Kinzer that Maggie was part of that shadow. But surely, she wasn’t alone.
Kinzer and Hayde exchanged serious looks.
***
The pain ripped through Maggie like some creature was crawling through her body, tearing her apart from the inside.
Veylo had handed her over to two guards, who carried her by either arm to her room.
She cringed as the pain sharpened.
“Ah!” she cried out as they rounded the corner.
“Come on,” one of the guards said. “Gotta keep on moving.”
The other guard tightened her arm around his shoulders when a door beside them swung open.
“What the—?”
Kinzer rushed out of the doorway.
