I stare at Adrian’s headless body until my stomach churns. My hands weren’t the ones that killed him, but I’m still responsible. And even though I try to think of the sins Krampus listed, of the scars on Anna’s back and all those names crossed out in the book before hers appeared, I can’t fight the pit of guilt in my stomach.
Someone is dead because of me.
I’ve done a lot of terrible things in my life, I’ve lied and stolen and used people, but I’ve never killed anyone before.
I look down at my trembling, bloody hands, clench them into fists, and raise my gaze to Krampus again. My guilt will have to wait. My punishment is coming before the night is through, anyway—a thought that, oddly enough, steadies my emotions. I’ll pay my dues later. “What’s next?” I ask.
The corners of Krampus’s lips rise. But then a gust of wind swirls through the snow around me. I brace my shoulders, and Krampus pauses, sniffing. A chill goes through me as I realize the wind has carried my scent to him.
“Your smell,” he murmurs. His tail flicks, new tension bracing his shoulders.
I hug myself, both against the cold air and the reminder of what awaits me at the end of this. “I know. But the rest of the family first?—”
“It’s getting worse,” he finishes, silencing me.
“Worse?” I repeat.
“Your sins have grown more severe.”
I follow his gaze to Adrian’s corpse and swallow hard as I understand. Krampus just killed him, and I… I helped. I deceived Adrian and led him to his death. A new addition to the list of things I deserve to be punished for. How many sins will it take until I, too, deserve death? Have I already crossed that line?
If I haven’t, this path will probably lead me there. Can I carry on with the knowledge that I’m making things worse for myself? With the knowledge that Krampus might kill the rest of the Kohlers, too?
Will he killLouis?
I falter at the thought. I don’t know if I ever really loved Louis, but I was willing to spend my life with him. I did care for him. I still do, in part, despite his betrayal.
But at the end of the day, it isn’t me deciding his fate.
I look up at Krampus to find him studying me with those piercing red eyes. “I understand,” I say. “I know revenge will have a price. I’m willing to pay it.”
He dips his chin in a nod. But he’s still staring at me, pupils fixated on my face, chest rising and falling with deep breaths as he continues to breathe in my scent.
“You are… distracting,” he says.
I’m not sure what to say to that. Nor how to deal with the fact his attention makes heat bloom in my lower belly despite the cold all around me. The way he looks at me, it’s almost like…
I swallow. “Let’s go inside before someone realizes we’re missing.”
The back dooris still unlocked. I let out the breath I was holding as the door slides open, revealing the warm and inviting interior of the cabin. I step inside and hold the door open for Krampus to follow me, placing a finger to my lips.
He hesitates on the threshold, his expression unreadable, and then plants one hoof on the nice hardwood floor. He has to duck to fit through the doorway.
I shut and lock the door behind us. It’ll slow down anyone looking for a quick escape route.
When I turn back to Krampus, he’s standing frozen just a few feet inside the door, gazing around at the cabin interior. He’s been dreaming of this moment for decades, I realize. Generations of the Kohler family have hidden from him here. Now, he’s finally infiltrated their little fortress, with my help.
He glances over his shoulder at me. His expression is difficult to read, but he inclines his head in a small, grateful nod.
I return it, lips quirking into a smile. I’m about to speak, to ask him what comes next, when a voice calls out.
“Adrian?”
I freeze at the sound of Anna’s impatient voice calling. My eyes dart to Krampus, but he’s looking in her direction rather than at me. His pupils are dilating, his nostrils flaring as he sniffs the air.
“Wait,” I call out, before I can think better of it. “We’re coming, just one second!”
The clack of her heels grows faster. “Adrian, if you’re fucking your brother’s fiancée, I swear to God?—”
