Page 318 of Primal

I dive for the gun clipped to Derek’s belt. My zip-tied hands smack metal—so close—before he grabs a fistful of my hair and flings me sideways.

Then he sighs as if we were all just misbehaving.

“Jason, Jason, Jason.” He saunters toward the men, nudges Kade’s limp body aside with his boot. “You had to try, huh?”

His hand drifts to his hip. Pulls out the gun.

No. Not Kade. Not like this—

The barrel swings left—Noah. Swings right—Kade’s temple.

“Fuck you,” I wheeze. “Fuck you, you limp-dick waste of—”

bang.

Nonono.

My ears ring as I stagger toward Kade.

The thing about blood?

It pools fast.

My eyes follow the trail …

Noah.

A chunk of his scalp’s missing. The rest is just wet and pink and—

I must be staring. My vision’s gone glassy, and I can’t blink it clear.

“I’ll kill you,” Wesley yells. “I’ll fucking kill you.”

“Noah!” the other guy cries.

Pigface answers with its taser.

Kade. I nearly fall on top of him, pressing my cheek to his. The sound that escapes is half laugh, half sob.

His fingers twitch against my leg.

Alive. Trying. Still in the fight.

I ease him onto his back. “Kade …”

Get up. We need you. I need you.

Kristy scrambles over and drops beside us.

“Let’s not make this a group project.” Derek holsters the gun. “Now, who wants to go next?”

Chapter Twenty-Two

Silence.

Dead air. The kind that settles over a room after a gunshot. After you realize the cops will be too late.

3:22 am.