Iris laughed. “You’d think that, wouldn’t you? I think we’re all still too shaken up about what happened.”
Koios couldn’t blame them. He stood and tried to straighten his back as best he could. It was more difficult with each passing day, something he needed to convey to Dr. Vaughn at his appointment, hopefully without his sister overhearing.
The last thing he wanted was for her and his other siblings to worry more than they already were. Iris slipped his cloak over his shoulders, even though no one was currently in the warehouse. He never knew when a student would stop by, so he continued to remain hypervigilant of his surroundings.
“It’s way too quiet around here,” Iris said as they walked into the kitchen. “Where is everybody?”
“Logan and Gideon are working on a project. Bailey is grocery shopping with Aleron and Taj. Scout and Coal took a few days off to spend time at their place. Spencer’s at his cabin. Joey is?—”
“Whoa there. I didn’t mean I wanted to know everyone’s exact GPS position. It was more a generic, ‘Hey, where is everyone?’ and not a ‘Hey, tell me exact locations of everyone you’ve ever met.’”
Koios scoffed. “If you don’t want the answer, don’t ask the question.”
Her teasing highlighted his nerves, though. It had been too long since the manticore had made a move. Where was he hiding? Who would he come after next? Were his siblings at risk? Someone else in Logan’s pack? What was he trying to accomplish? If only Koios could figure out what the manticore had been building toward with all of his acts so far, he could stop him.
Iris cleared her throat and leaned against the counter. “You’re thinking so hard it’s making my head hurt.”
If she only knew.Koios opened the fridge and found one of the meals Bailey premade for him sitting on the top shelf. The cheerful labels made them easily identifiable. Fighting back a groan, Koios took it out, and then grabbed one of the free-for-all meals Bailey kept around for the rest of the pack to heat up for his sister.
Iris immediately began cackling as he removed the covers and put them in the microwave. He’d tried to turn the label so she couldn’t see it, but of course, she had. He couldn’t be so lucky.
“Shut it.”
“You shut it,Special K.” Iris laughed so hard she snorted.
Koios groaned. He’d known the day would come when his siblings would discover Bailey’s special nickname for him. Why did Bailey have to give him such a ridiculous nickname? And why did he have to plaster it on the meal containers? Couldn’t he have simply color-coded them and saved Koios from a lifetime of teasing?
“Oh, I can’t wait to tell the others about this. It’s perfect.”
No one had ever given him a nickname until he’d met Bailey. The alpha-mate of Logan’s pack had started calling Koios “Special K” from the moment they met.
He’d tried to argue with Bailey about it.
He’d lost.
Koios rarely lost an argument. He still couldn’t believe it. And now his siblings would be in on the horror.
“Don’t—”
“Toooooo late.” Iris singsonged her reply even as Koios’s phone pinged with an incoming message from the group chat he had with his brothers and sisters.
Within seconds, multiple replies came through. He’d never hear the end of it.
“Oracle, we’ve got eyes on the target. The area is clear.”
Logan’s voice through the comm in Koios’s ear was a nice distraction. “Understood,” Koios replied. “Let me know if you have any issues. The twins will be with you until I get back later this afternoon.”
“Ten-four,” Logan replied.
Koios did a quick check on Bailey’s location out of habit. The rest of the pack, along with his siblings, showed up as little dots on his phone’s map. Everyone was exactly where they were supposed to be. He rubbed his hand over his chest again.
Iris once more caught the movement. “Tell me the truth. How bad is it?”
For the sister named after the goddess of rainbows, Iris’s mood could turn stormy in an instant when one of her siblings was in trouble.
Koios leaned against the counter. He’d avoided the truth for long enough. She deserved to hear it from him and not at his doctor’s appointment. “It’s not good.”
Iris hurried to his side, pushing back his cloak to tuck her arm beneath his wings and around his waist. “I thought you were getting better.”
