“No, ma’am.” Murdock nodded and dipped his hat, the gesture familiar enough to sting. His gaze lingered a moment too long. “Thought I’d stretch my legs.”
Archie’s jaw locked. “I thought I told you to stay in the car,” he snapped at Malachi, never taking his eyes off the harpoon.
Malachi flinched. Just a flicker—shoulders tightening, chin dipping—but Archie saw it.
“Oh, don’t be cross at the lad, Archie,” Murdock grinned and ruffled Malachi’s hair like he’d done a hundred times before. “He nearly jumped out of his skin when I knocked on the glass.”
Archie’s stomach twisted hard. Ina’s words from earlier echoed loud in his head, sharp and clear as a bell struck too close.
“On Latharna, I don’t fully trust anyone who isn’t a Wolfenden.”
The boathouse stank of rot, blood, and old salt. It burned Archie’s eyes, made them water, but he didn’t blink. He didn’t dare lower the crossbow to wipe them. Not now. Not with Murdock holding a weapon.
Murdock had one shot. But, so did he.
Archie would bet good money on having the better aim, but he ran the angles anyway—distance, footing, Ina’s position in his periphery. The calculation was automatic, drilled so deep it didn’t need thought. If he missed, Ina would have Murdock on the ground before his stray bolt struck stone. There would be no clean ending for Captain Robert Murdock in this shed.
The certainty of it settled cold and solid in his chest. He would do it. Without hesitation. If Murdock pulled that trigger, Archie wouldn’t just hunt the Otherworld. He would put a bolt through a man he’d known for decades, a man he’d trusted and considered a friend. He wouldn’t cross that line carefully—he’d tear straight over it to get to his son.
“I suppose his only mistake,” Murdock raised his harpoon gun and aimed at both of them, “was sitting in the car. Like bait.”
Archie exhaled through his nose, slow and controlled.His finger hovered over the trigger, close enough to feel the tension coiled in it.
“Why are you here, Bob?” His voice came out low, roughened by something bitter. “Why betray us?”
Murdock shrugged, careless as ever. “This is my shed.” He gestured around with the harpoon. “Been in the family for generations. Built to give the Selkie somewhere safe to nest.” He clicked his tongue. “But it’s not safe anymore.”
Malachi shifted, instinctively edging away. Murdock’s arm snapped tight, dragging him back.
Malachi sucked in a sharp breath. Pain flashed across his face—shock giving way to fear as his eyes found Archie’s.
Something inside Archie lurched. Not rage.Fear.
The world narrowed to Murdock’s arm across Malachi’s shoulders, to the way Malachi’s shoulders hunched like he was trying to make himself smaller. Archie’s hands shook on the crossbow. He locked his elbows, forced the tremor down, dragging his breathing under control before it broke loose and gave him away.
He’d trusted this man. Shared tables with him. Let him near his children. The hurt cut deep, sharp enough to steal a breath—but then vanished, shoved aside without mercy. There was no room for it now.
“Now what?” Ina’s body coiled, waiting for the perfect moment to attack.
“It ends.” Murdock said.
Then he fired.
Archie didn’t register the sound—just the violent rush of air as the harpoon ripped between him and Ina, close enough to tug his jacket. It struck behind them with a wet, final crack.
They turned together. A Selkie collapsed onto thestone, blood pooling fast beneath it. Its eyes were already glassing over.
Archie stared. His mouth opened and nothing came out. The world lagged, like he had slipped half a second behind it.
“Dad, I didn’t—” Malachi’s voice broke, thin and shaking.
Archie snapped back to reality. He shoved the crossbow into Ina’s hands without breaking stride—boots crunching through old bones and rust. Fury was still there, burning hot, but it snagged on something else. Relief, sharp enough to stab through his chest.
Ina followed beside him, weapon raised, her focus never leaving Murdock.
Murdock released Malachi and lifted his hands, palms up. He nudged the harpoon gun away with his boot. It skidded across the floor and knocked to a stop against a broken crate.
“Now, Ina,” he said quickly. “Let’s not get carried away. You know how you can get.”
