Chapter 30 Into a Trap #2
“They handle the perimeter.” My knuckles popped against the leather-wrapped hilt of my sword. “We handle Claudio.”
The forest stilled three heartbeats later, and Koa’s nostrils flared.
“East ravine.”
As Zane and I nodded agreement, I parsed layers of forest static: Chittering voles, wind through the leaves, the creak of Zane shifting his weight, the wet snap of a twig a mile out.
Ko melted into the spruce shadows. Z vaulted onto the cabin roof, silent as spider silk and crouched like a hellhound ready to spring. I pressed against the north wall, sword angled low.
Claudio stepped into the clearing, his big body silhouetted against the moonlight, and six rogues flanked him, three on either side.
His eyes scanned the area, the motorcycle parked in front of the cabin, and a slow, predatory grin spread across his face.
He touched the scar slashed across his throat as he stood before the cabin.
“Did you miss me, brother? Come on out so we can catch up!”
I gave the signal, and we erupted in blurs of silver blades.
Ko hit the ground rolling, twin daggers slicing hamstrings before his targets reacted. A bearded rogue swung a machete; Zane’s garotte wrapped his throat mid-swing. I stepped into Claudio’s blind spot as his head snapped toward the choking sounds.
“Looking for family reunions?” My boot shattered his kneecap.
He crashed against the porch rail, fangs bursting through bleeding gums.
“Cimmerian! Arabesque says your bitch—”
“Finish that sentence.” My sword hilt smashed his remaining teeth. “I dare you.”
His fist shot out, claws raking my ribs. Pain flared hot, then cold as it healed almost instantly. I let him stagger upright. Let him think he had space to shift. Sure enough, his spine cracked, fur erupting along swelling arms—
My blade sang.
For a heartbeat, the wolf-man stood frozen. Then his head slid free, hitting the forest floor with a wet thud.
Barely winded, I surveyed the clearing. Zane perched on a stump, cleaning blood from his knives, and six bodies lay at Ko’s feet.
Alpha Jace emerged from the pines, shirt askew, but unharmed.
“We took out five. No sign of any others. The pups are dragging off the bodies and will get these next.”
“Now do we get merit badges for playing nice with puppies?” Zane smirked.
“Next full moon run, you’re welcome to find out.” The alpha’s chuckle held real warmth this time. “I’ll have your bike dropped off sometime tomorrow afternoon.”
“We appreciate it,” I told him as I cleaned my sword. “And the backup.”
“Anytime. Reach out if you need us again,” he replied, holding out a hand that I shook before he faded into the treeline as if he were never there.
The stink of iron clung to my tongue as I crouched to retrieve Claudio’s severed head. Zane walked over with the weathered pine box we’d brought along for this purpose, his boot nudging a stray wolf tooth across the dirt.
Ko, though, was a storm barely contained.
He stood a few feet away, silent as shadow.
His favorite blade gleamed in the moonlight, the one with Seraphina etched along the handle.
He pressed his lips to her name, eyes shuttering and lashes sweeping down, in a gesture so tender, it made my chest ache.
For three heartbeats, he stayed like that, a dark saint communing with his relic.
Then he knelt beside Claudio’s severed head.
He moved with his usual purpose and grace, but there was something raw here, something unspoken.
His emotions spilled out in moments like this, when the world had gone quiet after a battle.
He felt things deeper than most people could bear, and this? This was personal.
“Planning to put the ‘fun’ in funeral, Mount Saint Koa?” Z smirked, craning his head to get a better look. His tone was light, but there was an edge to it. Curiosity, maybe, or envy.
Ko didn’t answer. His jaw tightened as he leaned over Claudio’s face, the tip of the dagger hovering just above the forehead. For a moment, he seemed frozen, his eyes burning with an intensity that could have set the world on fire. Then his blade bit into Claudio’s forehead.
He carved in sharp, precise angles, his free hand splayed over the dead wolf’s scalp like a priest delivering last rites. He’d carve the devil’s own heart if it quieted the storm in his chest; anything to bleed out the fury that had been choking him since we found Seri broken on our doorstep.
Let him have this. If this gives him peace, let him have it, I thought. And let everyone see the price of touching what’s ours.
I arranged pine straw in the box while we waited. Didn’t need this mutt’s blood staining the car mats.
Finally, Ko sat back, throat working as he stared at his bloody script. At his nod, I lifted the head by its hair and dropped it into the box, where it landed with a damp thunk.
“Presentation matters.” Zane snapped a purple sprig from a nearby redbud tree, tucking it behind Claudio’s ear. “Garnish says, “We cared enough to mock you.”
Rolling my eyes, I slammed the lid shut, cutting off Zane’s grin. The iron latch clicked like a revolver’s hammer.
“No need for a letter,” I murmured. “The head says it all.”
Z hoisted the box under one arm, humming “Another Bites the Dust.”
Ko rose fluidly, cleaning his blade on Claudio’s sleeve as his gaze snapped to the trees. Hunting for more threats, more carnage, more ways to prove he could shield her.
“She’s safe.” I gripped his shoulder.
“Not yet.” His eyes met mine, fever-bright.
“Relax, doomcloud. By the time this rotted melon hits Arabesque’s mailbox, every scheming bastard between here and Transylvania will know,” Zane mimed slitting his throat, complete with a squelch, “mess with the Cimmerians, you get the fangs.”
Ko’s nostrils flared, but the wildness in his stare dimmed as he came down from the battle rage and the bloodlust faded. After a moment, he nodded once, sharp as his blade’s edge.
I took point heading back to the SUV, Z following with the box. Ko walked backward, guarding our six, dagger still drawn.
“Hey, Cas.” Zane tossed the box into the trunk, then leaned against the bumper, smirk cutting through dried gore on his cheek. “Bet you twenty bucks Seri has given Lucian a nickname by now.”
A bark of laughter escaped before I could choke it down. The sound seemed to calm Ko enough to finally sheath his blade.
“No takers, Z.”