There was barely enough time to recover his stance before the man's baton came swinging down toward his head. Kade jerked sideways while clutching Max tightly against his chest. The metal weapon smashed into the concrete with a sharp crack that echoed down the hall, sending a tremor through Kade's spine.
Max shrieked in his arms and buried his face against Kade's jacket as Kade struggled to keep his balance.
The man didn't hesitate. He yanked the baton free and turned toward them again with that same strange grin stretched across his blood-smeared face.
Up close, Kade recognized him clearly now.
Mr. Larkin. The quiet neighbor from upstairs who used to complain about the broken elevator and leave old newspapers outside his door. Kade had seen him dozens of times over the years. The man used to nod politely whenever they crossed paths on the stairs. But the thing standing in front of him now barely looked human.
Blood streaked down the side of Larkin's face as if he had smashed his head against something earlier. He definitely had. One of his eyes twitched violently in its socket, and the grin curling across his lips was wide and wrong, like his face had forgotten how to form a normal expression.
"Kade," his mother said sharply behind him.
Before he could answer, Larkin snarled and charged again.
Kade staggered backward, trying to shield Max with his body as the baton swung toward him a second time. The metal whistled through the air and missed his shoulder by inches.
"Mom!" Kade shouted. A loud electric crackle snapped through the air. His mother stepped forward and jammed the shock rod into Larkin's side.
Blue sparks burst from the tip as the current surged through the man's body. Larkin convulsed violently, his muscles locking as a broken scream tore from his throat. For a moment Kade thought the shock would drop him the same way it had dropped Grandma earlier.
But it didn't.
Instead, Larkin's entire body jerked in sharp, unnatural spasms. His back arched violently and his fingers clawed at the air as if he was trying to grab something invisible. A strange shimmer rippled faintly across his skin, like heat waves dancing above hot asphalt.
Kade froze. "What the hell is happening to him?"
The man's head snapped upward. His eyes rolled back into place and locked onto Kade with frightening intensity.
Then he screamed. The sound was raw and animalistic, echoing through the hallway as his body jerked again. The baton slipped from his hand and clattered against the pavement, but instead of collapsing, Larkin slammed both palms against the ground and pushed himself upright again.
His bones twisted unnaturally. Kade felt his stomach twist.
"We have to go," his mother said urgently, grabbing his arm.
Larkin let out another guttural growl and took a staggering step toward them. His muscles twitched violently beneath his shirt as that faint shimmering energy flickered across his skin again.
Kade didn't wait to see what happened next.
"Run!"
He turned and sprinted toward the clearing where his bike was still lying on its side. Max clung to him tightly as they ran. His mother followed close behind as Kade reached the bike and yanked it upright with shaking hands.
"Get on!" he shouted.
His mother climbed onto the back seat while Kade lifted Max in front of him, wrapping one arm securely around the boy's waist before twisting the ignition.
The engine roared to life.
Kade slammed the throttle forward and the bike shot out of the alley just as Larkin staggered into the street behind them.
The Rift had become something out of a nightmare.
People were running everywhere. Some screamed as they fled down the streets, while others staggered blindly across the road like drunk ghosts. Kade swerved around a wrecked car that had slammed halfway into a storefront window, the shattered glass crunching beneath his tires as he sped past.
A man suddenly ran into the middle of the street ahead of them. He was laughing. It was not the kind of laugh someone made when something was funny. This one was high and broken like the sound of someone losing their mind.
Before Kade could react, the man threw himself directly into the path of an oncoming truck. The impact was sickening.
Max gasped and buried his face in Kade's chest. Kade tightened his arm around him instinctively while steering with the other hand. "Don't look," he murmured, even though his own heart was hammering so hard he could barely think.
The streets grew worse the further they rode.
Smoke drifted between the buildings where several fires had already begun spreading. Cars were abandoned in the middle of the road, their doors hanging open while their owners either ran for their lives or lay twitching on the pavement nearby.
One woman knelt in the street clutching her head, rocking back and forth as foam dripped from the corner of her mouth.
Kade swerved around her.
What the hell was happening?
His mother leaned closer behind him. "Just keep driving," she said urgently. "Head toward the industrial sector."
Kade shook but didn't argue. He twisted the throttle again and the bike surged forward as they tore down another street lined with rusted factories and crumbling warehouses.
A low mechanical hum suddenly filled the air above them. Kade glanced up. Three sleek black drones floated silently between the rooftops.
They moved slowly through the smoky sky. Their dark metal bodies reflected faint streaks of sunlight as narrow beams of blue light swept across the streets below.
Kade felt a cold chill crawl across his skin. These drones were from The Scepter. One of the drones paused above an intersection ahead of them.
The scanning beam locked onto a man who was convulsing violently on the pavement.
A sharp flash of light burst from the drone and the man collapsed instantly.
Max gasped in his arms. "They're killing people!"
Kade forced himself to look back at the road. "Just hold on."
He pushed the bike harder, weaving between wreckage and abandoned vehicles as the industrial district finally came into view. Tall metal structures loomed above the streets here. Their massive walls were streaked with rust and soot from decades of pollution.
Kade slowed as they approached a fenced compound surrounded by high steel barriers.
"This is it," his mother said.
Kade glanced back at her. "You've been here before?"
"Yes."
The gate was partially open.
Inside, several figures moved quickly around the courtyard, dragging equipment toward the building while someone hurried to seal the entrance behind them.
Kade rode straight through the gate and cut the engine near the entrance.
One of the men looked up.
His eyes widened immediately as it landed on Kade's Mother.
"Maria?" he sighed in relief.
Kade blinked as his mother jumped off the bike and rushed toward him.
"Collin!"
The man caught her in a tight embrace, his arms wrapping around her shoulders as if he couldn't quite believe she was standing there.
"You made it," he said quietly.
Maria pulled back quickly. Her face was tense with worry. "Where's your wife, Anna? And the kids?"
"They're inside," Collin replied, gesturing toward the building. "They're safe."
Only then did he notice Kade and Max standing behind her.
"And these must be your boys."
Kade didn't answer. His mind was still spinning as Collin opened the door and ushered them inside.
The building looked half-abandoned.
Several computer monitors flickered in a nearby control room while cables and equipment were scattered across the floor as if someone had been trying to shut everything down in a hurry. Only a handful of people remained inside and they were too busy rushing in and out of rooms.
Collin led them through a narrow hallway and pushed open a door at the end. Inside was a small room that had been converted into a temporary shelter. Portable heaters hummed softly beside a row of makeshift beds where two children sat wrapped in thick blankets.
A woman knelt beside them.
The moment she saw Kade's Mother, she jumped to her feet.
"Maria!"
The two women embraced tightly.
Anna's voice trembled slightly as she held her friend. "I was so worried you wouldn't make it."
"We barely did," Maria replied quietly.
Max stepped closer to Kade and clutched his sleeve as he glanced nervously around the unfamiliar room.
Maria knelt beside Max and gently brushed his hair back. "Stay here with Anna for a bit," she said softly. "We just need to talk."
Max hesitated but nodded slowly. Kade watched silently as his mother stood again.
Collin looked very relieved that Maria and her two boys were safe. He motioned toward the hallway. "Let's step outside."
The door closed behind them as they returned to the corridor.
For a moment none of them spoke.
Kade's chest felt tight. The adrenaline from the past hour was finally beginning to settle, leaving behind a wave of exhaustion and confusion that made his head spin. He dragged a hand through his hair, trying to balance his breathing.
Everything felt wrong.
He could still picture his grandmother tied to a chair back at the house, and picture the drones from the Scepter shooting civilians like stray animals.
And somehow his mother already knew exactly where to go, and had said that something was starting. But what?
A tear slipped down his cheek before he could stop it. Kade wiped it away quickly and looked between the two adults standing in front of him.
His voice came out hoarse.
"Alright," he started, his jaw tightening as anger finally broke through the confusion. He pointed between them. "Mom, you and this man need to start talking right now." He took a step closer. "Because I swear to God, someone better tell me what the hell is going on."