Somewhere on the outskirts of the city - 8:47 AM
Derek's hands were still shaking when he finally got his phone back.
They'd left him in an alley behind a closed factory—bruised, terrified, and very much alive. That last part surprised him most of all. He'd been certain Malachi King would kill him. The way the man had looked at him in that warehouse, the cold precision of every word, every threat—Derek had been sure he was a dead man.
But he wasn't dead.
He was just broken.
His ribs screamed with every breath. His face was swollen where Malachi's right hand man fist had connected—once, twice, enough to make a point without leaving permanent damage. Sean had gotten worse. Derek had heard him screaming in the next room.
But they were alive.
And that meant Malachi King wanted them aliv
