TWENTY KIERAN

Kieran"s night went from excellent to horrific to, somehow, even worse.

He"d fled from Miles after their moment in the gardens, then paced in his bungalow for several hours after, stressing over how to properly apologize, what to even say. It"s late by the time he hears people start returning to the bungalows en masse, and he waits until the clatter dies down a bit before stepping out of his bungalow. His heart is racing as he walks over to Miles" and knocks lightly on the door.

The lights are off, but Kieran knocks once more, louder. When no answer comes even then, a thread of panic worms its way into his thoughts, and Kieran takes a deep breath to calm himself. Miles is probably just asleep, or maybe he"s still at the party.

Kieran should go back, he"s already been neglecting his duties all night. He needs to stop focusing on his own feelings and pay attention to his fucking job.

He knocks once more, just in case, and before he can turn, Dakota"s voice sounds from behind him.

"Miles didn"t come back with us," she slurs, smiling up at him, stumbling a bit on the uneven sand.

"Oh," Kieran says, nodding, his brows furrowing in concern. He"s probably just overthinking, but he can"t stop himself from asking, "So he"s still at the party?"

Dakota hums, giggles, shakes her head, then shrugs. It looks like she"s way past drunk, and Kieran should probably worry about getting her to bed safely, but he"s too focused on the way her next words turn his blood icy.

"Dunno," she laughs. "I haven"t seen him since dinner."

Kieran throws caution to the wind then, pushing past Dakota and ignoring her gasp of surprise, his vision tunneling as his mind clouds with worry. His pace picks up the closer he gets to the mansion, and by the time he"s fishing his phone from his pocket, he"s flat-out sprinting, fighting against the shifting sand.

"This is Hendricks," comes the answer. "Mr. Callahan, we—"

"What the fuck is happening?" Kieran cuts him off, hoping the feedback from how fast he"s running doesn"t drown him out.

"We"re getting feed from Mr. Rivera," Burke answers. "He"s moving through the mansion with a group of people. We"re on our way over now—"

"Is he safe?" Kieran shouts, not caring if he pisses Burke off.

All that matters is Miles, that"s all that"s ever mattered, and he"s been a fucking idiot, but he won"t let that mean that Miles gets hurt.

"He"s perfectly safe for now," Hendricks assures him. "The wind is too strong to fly currently, and the waters are rough. It"ll be a few hours until we make it over. I need you to stay in place and not do anything, Mr. Callahan."

A few hours?Yeah, fuck that.

Kieran doesn"t even answer them, just hangs up and clumsily shoves his phone back into his pocket. Like hell is he going to sit by and wait when Miles may be in danger. Just because he"s safe now doesn"t mean he will be in five minutes.

He"s here to keep Miles safe, and that"s goddamn well what he"s going to do.

The gates to the mansion are closed when he finally makes it to them, his chest heaving with his breaths. It takes him all of half a second"s consideration to decide to just say fuck it, fuck their cover, fuck everything stopping him from getting to Miles right now. He wraps his hands around the wrought iron of the gate and pulls himself up, scrabbling against the intricate ornamentations and climbing over it.

As soon as his feet hit the gravel on the other side, Kieran whirls, ready to dash into the mansion and rip the place apart with his bare hands if that"s what it takes to find Miles.

He runs toward the mansion, turning a corner before skidding to a stop, his entire body tensing in rageful fear.

Blackwood stands there, grinning at Kieran, that awful glint in his eyes. A group of people in Lizard masks crowd behind him, the worn leather faces horrifying in the dark of the night. Kieran stares at them, his eyes settling on Blackwood as he levels the man with a hateful glare.

"Where"s Miles?" he pants, done with pretense.

He doesn"t care what repercussions this may have on his career, doesn"t even care if it means he"ll wind up bloodied and beaten, as long as Miles makes it out safely, he"s willing to put it all the line. His teeth ache with a sudden desire for the kind of violence only beasts take part in when Blackwood tilts his head, smiles, and holds a mask out to him.

"Why don"t you go find him?"

Kieran has never understood people who are quick to anger. Never in his life has it been a true struggle to keep himself in check, to stop himself from lashing out. But now? Now he understands.

He"s shaking with rage, his eyes wide like a dog"s just before they lunge and rip chunks of flesh open with sharp teeth. A single step forward feels like he"s stalking, every muscle in his body coiled like he"ll strike at any moment. He feels one step from feral, and when he talks, it sounds almost animalistic.

"What did you do to him?"

The words scrape up from his gut, and he shakes with the effort of stopping himself from pouncing on Blackwood and beating him to a pulp. The crowd around him perches threateningly, and Kieran knows he needs to play his cards right, but he can hardly see past the sheen of fury.

"Nothing," Blackwood insists, tossing the mask at Kieran.

Kieran catches it instinctively, recoiling at the feeling of soft leather between his fingers.

"You have to play if you want him back," Blackwood says, that awful grin twisting on his face. "I know you"re a predator at heart, my friend. Prove to me you"re not just prey, or that"s what you"ll become."

Kieran tries to breathe, to steady himself, but Blackwood takes a step forward, sadistic pleasure gleaming in his eyes. He knocks his knuckles against Kieran"s chest, and Kieran"s breath hitches like Blackwood had shot him.

"If you don"t catch him," Blackwood hums, shrugging carelessly, "I will."

Kieran"s fingers tighten violently around the mask as Blackwood turns then, nodding toward the group. He watches them follow him mindlessly, his thoughts whirling, panicked and helpless. Gritting his teeth, he yanks the mask over his own head and falls into line with them, following them all into the woods. His anxiety doubles every second, the woods growing more and more dense the further they go.

And then, suddenly, they"re in open space; a circular clearing lined with torches and paths leading off into the forest.

Kieran"s stomach lurches when he recognizes the clearing, thinking back to the painting and catching Miles before he fell down the stairs. He glances off to his left, seeing the mouth of the tunnel they"d entered through last time.

His heart skips several beats when his eyes finally find Miles, unable to decide between relief and further panic. The ugly smudge of a bruise peeks up from his collar, wrapping all the way around his throat. Kieran clenches his fist, fury and despair twining around each other in his mind.

Perfectly safe for now.

Kieran has never been happier than he ignored instructions in his entire life. He needs to get Miles the hell out of here, and he needs to do it now. His best chance of doing that is to play along, at least for now.

Kieran half hopes that Miles will recognize him, but Miles" eyes are glued to Blackwood, furiously glaring at him with so much hatred Kieran is surprised that Blackwood is actually capable of ignoring it. Without so much as a word from Blackwood, one of the Lizards steps forward, and Kieran tenses when he sees the glint of a knife in the woman"s hand. Everyone in the center of the clearing tenses, too, and Kieran grits his teeth at the sound of screaming that starts to echo as people start to try fruitlessly to get away.

The screaming stops when the knife flashes, and Kieran winces.

Before he has a chance to realize what happened, the person is stumbling up, glancing at their now free wrists, and then dashing off into the forest. The others follow in quick succession, all rushing down various paths, running as soon as they"re cut loose.

Miles is last, standing alone in the center of the clearing, still glaring straight through Blackwood. His ties fall to the ground and the woman steps back, sheathing her knife and rejoining the ranks of the Lizards.

Miles doesn"t budge.

He stands there, his eyes dark and violent, flexing his wrists, and Kieran almost thinks he"s going pounce on Blackwood and attack him here and now. He tenses in anticipation, but Miles doesn"t move, just glares, breathing and cracking his knuckles.

Blackwood grins, the nastiest thing Kieran has ever seen on another person"s face, and pulls his mask on.

"Run," he hisses, his voice harsh.

Miles hesitates for a moment longer, but finally takes a single step back, then turns and flees, dashing off down the path furthest from the tunnel entrance.

Kieran tenses as Miles disappears from sight, Blackwood turning to address all of them again.

"We have a few new friends tonight," he announces, looking straight at Kieran. "Feel free to pick any weapons or tools you"d like. Our prey is given a gracious head start, as is fair, so take your time to stretch now."

A few laughs sound from the group, and Kieran"s stomach turns in disgust. The rest of them disperse, immediately going for the trunks. Kieran doesn"t move for a moment, just scowling at Blackwood. Blackwood shrugs, tapping the watch on his wrist, and Kieran bites back rage, stepping toward the trunk closest to the path Miles took.

He wants a weapon in case he gets into any trouble, and he needs to stop looking at Blackwood before he tries to rip the man"s throat out with his bare hands.

Besides, he has an idea.

He tucks a taser into his pocket along with a can of pepper spray, then, after glancing around to make sure no one's watching, he grabs one of the spare Lizard masks he and Miles found on their last visit. He stuffs it into his pocket before anyone can see, straightening up.

The energy changes, everyone suddenly anticipatory, the bloodlust practically palpable in the air.

Seconds later, a buzzer sounds, and everyone is off. Some sprint down paths, others walk more casually, but Kieran doesn"t pause to think.

Apparently, they"re free to start the chase, and he needs to get to Miles. He can hardly see in the dark, dashing through the trails and silently thanking the fact that he and Miles explored so much of the forest together. Blackwood will be searching for Miles too, and Kieran knows he"s already at a disadvantage. Any ground he can make up might be the difference between Miles living or dying.

Miles dying isn"t an option.

His heart stutters in his chest as screams start to sound around him in the forest, followed by triumphant cackling. He pushes the thoughts of what"s going to happen to everyone else out of his mind, focusing on finding Miles. Ignoring the guilt that wells in his chest at the thought of leaving everyone else to the whims of these monsters, Kieran reminds himself firmly that has to focus on what matters right now.

Miles is the only thing that can matter right now.

After nearly half an hour, desperation starts to get the best of Kieran. He pauses, panting, terror mounting as he stares around at the seemingly endless woods. An idea suddenly crashes into him when he catches sight of a metal sign half devoured by the brush.

He turns tail and sprints toward the trail they were on the first time they came out here, hoping to hell that Miles had a similar idea. It"s more than a long shot, but Kieran doesn't know what else to do, and he sprints toward the low rock wall and the no trespassing sign they"d gotten caught at. It feels like so long ago now.

"Please, Miles," he prays, desperate and terrified.

He runs through the brush, veering off the trails and trampling shrubs as he dashes back toward the sign. When he finally reaches it, he skids to a stop, terror flooding him when he finds no sign of Miles. Tears well in his eyes, and he rips his mask off, crumpling to the ground in despair.

He doesn"t know what else to do, doesn"t know where else to go. Blackwood could already have Miles by now.

Kieran wants to throw up at the thought.

"Kieran?" a voice whispers.

Kieran"s head whips up, hope battling with fear, and he scrambles to turn toward the voice. He can do absolutely nothing to stop himself from sobbing in relief when he meets Miles" eyes. They both lurch toward each other, Kieran yanking Miles into a crushing hug as soon as he"s close enough.

"Miles," he chokes, tucking the man"s head beneath his chin and holding him close.

He"s shaking, every muscle in his body trembling as relief slams into him like a tidal wave.

"Kieran," Miles sobs, clutching onto him, crying in his arms. "What are you doing out here? How did you find me?"

Kieran laughs, pulling back and smoothing Miles" hair away from his eyes, offering him a shaky smile, studying every line of Miles" face and doing his best to burn it into his memory. He"s never seen anyone look so perfect as Miles does right now.

"Blackwood made me play to find you," he answers, his voice shaky. "I just had a feeling you"d be here. We need to get out of here. The FBI are on their way, they"ll be here in a few hours, but Blackwood is looking for you."

Miles lets Kieran tug him a few steps down the trail, but then he digs his heels in, and Kieran feels himself yanked to a stop.

Miles stares at him, shaking his head and glancing back toward the forest.

"We can"t leave yet," Miles says, his eyes wide, terrified, but Kieran can see that stubborn light in them. "We have to get everyone out of here, we can"t just leave them all behind."

Kieran almost wants to cry, because he knows he can"t say no to Miles, but the thought of going back into all of it is so far past terrifying that there"s not a word even close to what it feels like. He steps closer and grips Miles by his shoulders.

"I can"t let you get hurt," he whispers.

He hopes Miles can see how much he means it in his face, how desperate he is to see Miles safe and sound and smiling again. He"d do anything to see that smile again.

"I won"t get hurt," Miles says, and Kieran almost curses when he smiles, the corners wobbling. "I"ve got my sidekick."

Kieran"s breath stalls in his chest, and he stares at Miles for a long moment, feeling like breaking their eye contact would mean the end of the entire world. It feels like everything around them is holding its breath along with Kieran, but then Miles glances away, takes a step back, and the moment is over.

"How do we do this?" Miles asks, glancing around the forest around them.

Kieran huffs out something in between a laugh and a sigh. His heart can"t take this, but he"ll do anything Miles asks. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the spare Lizard mask, holding it out to Miles.

"I thought it would be easier to get you out if you wore one, too," Kieran sighs. "I should"ve known you"d be too stubborn to just leave."

Miles takes it, his jaw ticking in disgust, but then he nods, pulling it over his head.

"Good idea," he says, his voice muffled behind the leather. "Thank you."

Kieran pulls his own mask back on and takes a deep breath.

"Follow me," he whispers. "There were a bunch more masks in the trunks. If we can get everyone in a mask, they should be able to escape."

Miles follows beside him, both of them moving slowly, scanning the trees around them to ensure they don"t run into anyone. One of the other Lizards stalks by them as they make their way down one of the paths, a massive machete in his hand, and Kieran only barely manages to pull Miles into the trees to hide before the guy rounds the corner.

Finally, they manage to make it back to the clearing, picking their way around the edges and stuffing masks into their pockets, Kieran keeping an eye out to make sure no one crept up on them. They clear the last trunk, Miles handing Kieran the final mask so he can slip it into his waistband. Miles straightens out his own pockets, looking up at Kieran and nodding.

"Let"s go," he whispers, and then they"re off.

Time to start a hunt of their own.