CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE – THE DEVIL’S DEN

The following night found them slipping through the shadows of the projects, their footsteps muffled by the eerie silence that blanketed the neighborhood. "This way," Gordon murmured, leading them down a narrow alleyway that opened onto a deserted courtyard. Jasmine's breath caught in her throat as they approached a nondescript doorway, its battered frame belying the secrets that lay within. Gordon tried the handle, and to their surprise, it swung open with a rusty creak. They exchanged a wary glance before descending a dimly lit stairwell that seemed to plunge into the very bowels of the earth. The sounds of raucous laughter and clinking glasses grew louder with each step, and Jasmine felt her heart rate quicken with a mixture of trepidation and anticipation. Finally, they reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped through an archway, emerging into a cavernous space that defied all expectations. The Devil's Den was a veritable den of iniquity, a sprawling underground lair puls