Chapter 16 Into the Darkness #2
I found out real quick that Splitter stored kinetic energy from attacks and could release it in shockwaves.
Four rogues had foolishly tried to take it down together, and Splitter had absorbed their blows for nearly a minute before blasting them all.
Two died instantly. One lost an arm. The fourth was still catatonic in the med tent.
And even worse than the monsters themselves?
Their hearts, or what passed for them, still beat.
Arabesque had shown them to me. Three glass display cases arranged on a shelf in her living room.
Not stored in jars or hidden away, but exhibited with pride.
Each one wrapped in black thorns, carved with ancient sigils, sealed with blood wax.
The White Dread’s heart pulsed with faint silver light, Ashmouth’s was a knot of decaying mulch shot through with luminescent mushrooms, and Splitter’s…
I couldn’t even look at Splitter’s heart without feeling tainted.
Some obscene merger of gears, Dark magic, and glistening red flesh.
Arabesque had just smiled like a cat with a mouthful of bloody feathers and explained that the hearts tethered the monsters to her will.
And why did she so graciously share all this information with little ol’ me?
“You’ll train them to hunt as a pack, Foster.”
Not a request. An order. One more burden on my already breaking back, but I did it.
I had no choice. Refusing her would mean a fate worse than death, so I ran them through drills and formations, all while every instinct screamed at me to run, to shift and disappear into the forest and never come back.
My role as both trainer and spy was a delicate balance.
I needed to appear competent enough to maintain Arabesque’s trust, but not so effective that her monsters became any more dangerous than they already were.
I sabotaged as much as I could without raising suspicion.
A training regime here, a tactical suggestion there.
Small things that might eventually add up to weaknesses to be exploited.
I took notes, every scrap of information I could glean. Strengths, habits, anything that might matter later, and the more I learned, the more sickened I became. Arabesque was beyond saving, beyond redemption. What she had done to the unicorn alone was enough to damn her for eternity.
Moon Mother, I hoped she’d burn. I hoped she’d howl and writhe and beg for mercy. And I wanted to be there to watch. To spit on her ashes and curse her name.
Because some things deserve nothing less than total destruction, and Arabesque Harrow was at the top of the list.
#
A twig snapped in the darkness beyond the barn door. I tensed, nostrils flaring to catch the scent. Four distinct forms bled from the tree line, moving in the staggered formation I’d taught them. Dominic in front, Elio and Cosmo flanking Devi in the center.
They paused at the edge of the clearing, scenting the air, checking for traps. A minute ticked by. Then another. Finally satisfied, they darted across the open space toward the barn.
My heart twisted at the sight of them, these lost souls, these cast-off pups, these children caught in a nightmare. They were risking everything, trusting me with their lives.
Moon Mother, don’t let me fail them.
I stepped out of the shadows, my truck keys glinting as I tossed them toward Dominic. He snatched them from the air, his eyes never leaving my face.
“No one followed you?” I kept my voice low.
“Clean.” Dominic’s fingers closed tight around the keys, knuckles white. “Took three different routes, doubled back twice.”
Cosmo hung back, white-blond hair glowing in the moonlight.
Elio stood closest to Dominic, dark hair falling across his face.
I could all but hear his mind working, calculating odds and exits.
Devi was shaking with fear, but when her eyes met mine, they flashed the defiance that had kept her alive these past months.
Good. Battered, but unbroken.
“My truck’s behind the barn.” I jerked my chin toward it.
“Tank’s full. Head east on the county road for six miles, then north at the fork.
Abandoned gas station at the intersection of Route 16 and Perry Mill Road.
King’s contact will be waiting. Money in the glove box.
Five thousand cash, untraceable. Should tide you over until you get set up.
Truck bed’s filled with supplies. Also a tent and sleeping bags in case you need to go to ground. ”
I’d emptied most of my emergency fund for this. Blood money, but at least it might wash some of the red from my ledger.
Dominic nodded, and I recognized the look on his face.
A broken man with nothing left to lose except a responsibility that kept him tethered to life.
I’d seen the signs the moment I took over after Claudio: A wolf going through the motions, waiting for death to find him.
The only thing that had kept him going was his protective instinct toward the three younger wolves.
When I approached him with my deal, he’d agreed with the weary resignation of someone who didn’t expect to live that long.
Not gonna lie, I didn’t think I’d make it this far, either.
Yet here we were. Escape plan in motion, and both of us still standing. Still fighting.
“If something goes wrong, if you miss the rendezvous or the contact doesn’t show, I got a backup plan.” I pulled a folded piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to Dominic. “Directions to Evermere, the Cimmerians estate.”
“The monster hunters?” Cosmo’s head snapped up, wariness in his sky blue eyes.
“My boys agreed to shelter you until things can be worked out. The burner phone in the glove box has Casimir Cimmerian’s number stored in the contacts. Only use it if you have to.”
“They’d do that for us?” Devi’s eyes widened as Dominic tucked the paper into his boot.
“They’re sticking their necks out for you on my word alone. I’ll owe them big for this.”
They all nodded, something like awe in their eyes. I understood. The idea that someone would take a risk like that for a bunch of strays and outcasts? It was humbling.
“Why are you doing this?” Elio looked bewildered, as if kindness had become so foreign, he couldn’t recognize its shape anymore.
I didn’t have a good answer. Or maybe I had too many. Penance. Guilt. A desperate grab for redemption in a life soaked with regret.
“Because none of you belong here,” I said finally. “You’re not rogues. You’re not killers. You’re just kids who got caught in the crossfire.”
Dominic was hardly a kid at twenty-two, but compared to me, he was a newborn.
“What about you?” Devi’s small hand reached out to hold mine. “You don’t belong here, either, Foster. You’re not like them.”
“I can’t leave yet.” I gently squeezed her fingers before letting go. “I have work to do first.”
“What work?” Cosmo’s voice was bitter with suspicion. “More of Arabesque’s dirty deeds?”
“It’s complicated.” I couldn’t explain that I was playing a longer game. That leaving now would cost countless lives when Arabesque finally made her move. “I’ll be fine.”
“How are you going to explain our disappearance? She’ll kill you!” Devi’s eyes filled with worry.
“She’ll try, but I’ve survived worse.” I forced a confidence into my voice I didn’t entirely feel. “Don’t worry. I’ma do something that’ll keep everyone too distracted to notice you’re gone.”
“Like what?” Elio asked.
“Start a fight with one of the Gravewrought.”
Four pairs of eyes widened in alarm.
“You’ll get yourself killed!” Devi whispered, horrified.
“Not if I do it right.” I shrugged, aiming for nonchalance. “I know their weaknesses better than anyone except Arabesque. And I won’t be fighting. I’ve got a few troublemakers I’ve been wanting to eliminate. Two birds, one stone.”
“You’re going to sacrifice other wolves?” Cosmo looked ill.
“I’m gonna offer an opportunity to some of the more ambitious rogues. They’ve been itching for a chance to prove themselves against Arabesque’s pets. Tonight, they’ll have that chance.”
“How much time do we have?” Dominic asked, and I checked my watch.
“Twenty minutes before I start the fight. Should give you a good head start.”
“Let’s go now.” Elio’s voice was stronger now that he had hope again. “Maximum distance before the chaos starts.”
“Smart. Just remember to stick to the route. No detours, no heroics. Get to the rendezvous, meet the contact, and disappear. New identities, new lives.”
“Thank you, Foster.” Dominic took a breath, then extended his hand to me. “For everything.”
I clasped his forearm, wolf to wolf. We were both walking wounded, both fighting to find a reason to keep going. For him, it was these kids. For me? Well, I was still working on that part.
“Just live. All of you. Make it count. Get free and stay free. That’ll be thanks enough.”
Cosmo still looked wary, his trust worn thin, but he gave me a nod. Elio mumbled something that might have been gratitude. Before I could walk away, Devi wrapped her arms around me in a fierce hug. I froze, unused to anything so real anymore.
“Come with us,” she whispered into my chest. “Right now. Just leave.”
“I can’t.” I awkwardly patted her shoulder. “Not just yet, anyway.”
“I can tell you’re a good man pretending to be a bad one, Foster. Don’t let the pretend become real.”
Well, hell.
See, this right here was why I lived alone, took care of number one, stayed out of things, didn’t get involved or go around saving people other than myself.
“Time to go, kid,” I rumbled, stepping back. “Dominic, drive like hell and don’t look back.”
With a nod, he led the pups to where my truck waited. The moment they vanished around the corner, I melted back into the shadows, leaving behind only a silent plea for the Moon Mother to watch over them.
#
Two days.