Page 96 of Wolf's Bane
Luis grabbed a set of handheld axes for himself, the silver blades gleaming in candlelight and mayhem. He nodded to Jase and the two men rushed the weakened beast.
Solenne looked away. Fortunately, the pounding of her heart in her ears drowned that out the sickening crunch of metal against bone.
Chambers fell. Luis hacked at the neck, severing the head. Blood splatter coated everything, his face, his finery, the floor and those unfortunate enough to stand nearby. Luis’ jaw clenched with resolve to finish his gruesome task.
The beast did not get up again.
Chapter 25
Aleksandar
Boxon
Vervain Hall
The silver circlewas a testament to Luis’ ingenuity. Silver forks, spoons, and knives had been hastily arranged around Miles. It was not a perfect circle, but it was unbroken and strong enough to hold a fledgling beast.
“Don’t come any closer,” Miles warned. Caught in a partial shift, cloth hung off him in tatters. Fur covered his arms and chest. Claws flashed. His face retained a human shape, if he had more teeth than usual.
He paced the circle, the claws on his feet tapping the ground.
“You promised, you promised!” Miles threw himself at the circle and bounced off an invisible barricade. He hissed, rubbing his shoulder. “Do it! What are you waiting for?” He slumped to the ground. “Please. You promised.”
Alek clutched the blade. Silver hummed in his hand, insulated with the leather handle. He had stood here before, with a newly shifted beast pleading at his feet. Usually they begged for life or vowed revenge. None had ever begged for release.
The knife clattered to the floor.
“I can’t. That was something I shouldn’t have promised,” Alek said, not sure if he spoke with mercy or cruelty.
Miles’ face crumpled.
Cruelty then.
“Don’t you give up,” Luis said. He stood just outside the circle, the toes of his shoes pressed against the unseen barrier. “Don’t you dare.” He glared over his shoulder at Alek. “And don’t you indulge his melodrama.”
“This is no life—” Miles started.
“Idiot.” Luis stepped over the barrier, into the circle, and pulled Miles forward into a kiss. It looked awkward and unpracticed, and Alek briefly wondered if he looked like he was trying to eat Solenne’s face when he kissed her. “This is a life. Your life now. Ours.”
“No, Luis.”
“I killed one werewolf tonight. Don’t ask me to end another.”
“I’ll hurt you. I hurt your father,” Miles said, more snarl than words.
“Chambers poisoned you with wormwood. Both of you,” Solenne announced. Kneeling next to her father, she tore at the fabric of her dress and pressed the wad against Godwin’s gut. “He wanted you to lose control. He wanted chaos.”
“This was his doing. Not yours,” Luis said.
“No. I heard him in my head. I wanted to please him,” Miles said, anguish plainly written on his face. “I’ll do it again. How can you stand the sight of me?”
A firm expression flickered across Luis’ eyes, not so different from when they sparred and the young man set himself against an impossible challenge. Solenne shared the same look.
“I’m your anchor. I know I am.” Luis tapped his chest. “I’m not letting you go, so you might as well let me help you. Stay with me.”
Miles slumped to the ground. Luis kneeled beside him, wrapping his arms around the blacksmith. “How can you tie yourself to someone like me? Pick someone better. Someone who’s not cursed,” Miles said.
“It doesn’t work like that. I should know,” Alek said. Both men lifted their heads in his direction. “I tried for years to forget Solenne, but I couldn’t. She anchored me. She always had.” Perhaps the connection would have frayed with time—another decade or so—but he doubted it.
