“We’ll ID the infant later. What caused the nosebleed, Z?”
He went statue-still against me. When he spoke again, each word landed like a coffin nail.
“She was crawling.”
“What?” Ko paused mid-reach for his fifth cookie.
“She wascrawling. Blood smearing the moon-damned ground behind her like some fang-rotted snail trail. And she just… kept… crawling.” He fumbled his beer bottle, and I took it away, set it on the floor on my other side. “Brummy found her. Helped her inside and up the stairs to her room. Left upper arm tore open to the bone. She tied a moon-damnedwashclotharound it to stop the bleeding.”
He turned his face into my chest, all six foot three of him trying to curl into me. I hugged him harder.
“He kept telling her, ‘Brummy here.’ ‘Seri strong.’ Over and over, like he was trying to make her believe it.” He swiped at his face with a furious gesture. “Fuck.Fuck!”
I didn’t know what to say. WhatcouldI say? The image of our beloved, bleeding and crawling through the dirt with only a broken dire wolf pup to help her…
Zane stayed buried in my side, his usual bravado shattered. Koa made a wounded noise as he hugged Zane’s back. And me? I wasdrowning. Emotions I hadn’t touched in years thrashed inside me like caged beasts. I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to breathe.
For five heartbeats, we were small boys again, huddled under one of Mom’s quilts while thunder tried to claw through the walls.
“Anyway, he snuggled up with her when she collapsed in her bed,” Zane wrapped up. “At least, I’m guessing it was her bed. He said the warm Seri den.”
“Brum show you the rogue?” Koa asked after a moment.
“Yeah, I saw the ugly mofo.”
“No name?” I frowned when he shook his head. “Maybe Seri can tell us.”
“I don’t want to ask her,” Ko grumbled.
“None of us do, but a name will get us further than a description. Assuming she can answer.” I scowled as I scratched my fingers through Zane’s mop of hair. “I’d like to ask her a few questions, anyway, just to determine which level of whisperbind it is, or even if itisa whisperbind at all.”
“Only if she’s up for it,” Z muttered into my shirt.
“Name or no name, we’re going to find that rogue, and he will pay,” Ko growled as he sat up.
“Ten times over,” I agreed. “For each drop of her blood spilled. For every second she spent crawling. Arabesque’s day is coming, but first, we’ll take her guard dog’s throat.”
My brothers nodded, and the room fell silent save for a soft whuffle as Brumous peered around the couch edge, one ear swiveling sideways, listening to something. My own ears caught it, too: Seri mumbling in her sleep before quieting again.
“Easy, Brum,” Ko murmured as the pup’s eyes darted between the chicken plate and Zane’s bandaged hand. “Nobody’s mad at you, little warrior. No one will hurt you.”
The wolf hesitated, then slunk forward, like he was testing the air for danger. His gaze again flicked between us and the plate of chicken, his nose twitching uncertainly.
I stared at him. This scrawny, scarred pup who’d been through hell and still managed to love Seri with every fiber of his being. This creature I’d resented and wished away, not only because I was afraid his dire aggression would eventually rise to the surface, but also because he took too much of her time, her attention, her heart. If he were the dire he should have been, he’d have ripped Seri to shreds the moment he first set eyes on her.
Instead, he’d become her baby. Her protector. Her‘ohana. Andnodire had ever shown loyalty like that. Not to anyone.
Guilt burned me, and I welcomed it. Penance for my selfishness, my arrogance. I slid onto my knees, ignoring the glass that bit through my cargo pants, punishment for each tactical error I’d made with him. He retreated half a step, then paused, nose quivering.
“Here.” I held out a chicken chunk, extending my hand slowly. The way you’d approach a trip wire. “You’ve earned this.”
Brumous crept forward, each movement telegraphing readiness to bolt. When he finally took the chicken from my hand, his careful teeth didn’t even graze my skin.
“That’s it.” I fed him another piece. “We’ll fatten you up.”
“Careful, brother. You’ll spoil him.” Koa’s knowing look prickled my neck.
“Spoiling implies he doesn’t deserve it.”
