Shade and Jade moved like synchronized chaos.
He vaulted over the bar, using the momentum to drive his heel into the nearest thug's throat. The man gurgled, clutching at his crushed windpipe before collapsing.
Jade spun behind Shade, firing two shots that found their mark in another goon's chest. He dropped without a sound.
More of Sable's men poured in.
Shade caught a wild punch aimed at his ribs, twisted the attacker's arm, and broke it with a sickening crack. The man barely had time to scream before Shade slammed his head against a table, knocking him out cold.
Jade ducked beneath a swing from a crowbar-wielding thug, then shoved the barrel of her gun under his chin. "Say goodnight."
The shot rang out, and the man crumpled.
Despite the carnage, Shade felt something he hadn't in a long time.
Adrenaline.
Purpose.
This was what he had become—a force of vengeance, a shadow that criminals feared. And tonight, he was just getting started.
A voice cut through the chaos.
"ENOUGH!"
The gunfire stopped.
A tall, broad-shouldered man stepped onto the dance floor, flanked by two enforcers. His tailored black suit was pristine, unbothered by the violence around him. His slicked-back silver hair and cold, calculating eyes made him look more like a businessman than a criminal.
But Shade knew better.
Sable.
The man who ordered the hit on his family.
"Shade," Sable said, voice calm but laced with menace. "You're making a mess of my establishment."
Shade leveled his gun at him. "You should've left my family alone."
Sable sighed as if bored. "You act like you're the only one who's ever lost something. Grow up, hero."
The words ignited a fire inside Shade. He pulled the trigger—
But Sable was already moving.
One of his enforcers lunged in, knocking Shade's aim off just enough for the bullet to miss. Another enforcer charged Jade.
Shade twisted free, driving his elbow into his attacker's gut, then grabbed the man's own gun and shot him point-blank. Blood sprayed across the polished floor.
Jade wasn't so lucky.
The second enforcer caught her by the throat, slamming her against a pillar. Her gun clattered to the ground. She struggled, kicking wildly, but the man's grip was iron.
Shade took a step toward her—
Then everything went white.
A flashbang detonated.
His vision blurred. His ears rang with a high-pitched screech.
By the time his senses returned, Sable and his men were gone.
And so was Jade.