Page 79 of An Invocation of Monsters

I looked up and found Toth gazing steadily back at me, as though he already knew what I was about to say.

“No more hiding for my sake. Look at this.” I gestured at Kiraxis’s new scars. “He almost died. Next time we might not be this lucky.”

The Mlul’dra growled, but Toth held up a hand and nodded at me to continue.

I clenched my free hand, my nails biting into my palm. “Who the hell is the Hunter, and how do we kill them?”

25

Elle

Toth exhaled slowly, then reached out to grip my clenched fist. He pried his way between my fingers, forcing me to unclench, and laced his claws through them.

“Elle, please believe me when I say we do not play games with you,” he said quietly, and I felt a brief rush of shame.

I trusted these monsters with my life. Surely that had to count for something.

I didn’t truly believe deep down that they would hide the identity of the Hunter from me, especially since I was living in the Hunter’s house.

“We will tell you all we know, of which there is little.” His voice was bitter as he admitted to it. “But we must bring Kiraxis to the lake. It is a terrible idea to stay here in a place reeking of blood.”

My blood ran cold. Of course it was a terrible idea. Even now the creature could be stalking us, lured by the scent.

I got to my feet, taking Kiraxis’s arm. “Come on, big guy.”

With the precariousness of a landslide, the massive Mlul’dra got to his feet. He swayed a little, all of his eyes blinking out of order.

“I am drunk,” he announced.

“We can see that,” Toth muttered, looking like he regretted pouring a full handle of Johnnie Walker down Kiraxis’s throat.

“There are two Elles,” Kiraxis continued, squinting at me. “Alas, I have but one cock.”

“Next time, maybe we should just try aspirin?” I suggested, draping the Mlul’dra’s top arm over my shoulders.

Kiraxis took a step, staggered, and nearly took both of us down. It was only Toth’s quick movements that saved me from being crushed to death.

“This way, love.” I managed a few steps forward, dragging the monster with me. “The lake is over here.”

For a mere distance of fifty yards, it was truly a fraught and perilous journey.

We all eventually collapsed on the lake’s shore, panting for breath in my case, groaning about the world spinning from Kiraxis, and mumbles of ‘never again’ and ‘clearly I was not thinking’ from Toth.

When I caught my breath, I began pushing Kiraxis towards the water. “Budge up,” I groaned, both of my hands braced against his back as I pushed.

Kiraxis made an unidentifiable noise, rolling sideways instead of forward.

“Do you want to be eaten?” I demanded. “The thing in the woods is gonna turn you into ground beef if she catches a whiff of this.”

The blood had dried his fur into clumps. He was absolutely splattered with it from head to toe.

“I’m less concerned about the anomaly than I am about… others,” Toth said. His wings flicked with anxiety as he gazed down at the drunk Mlul’dra.

“Other… anomalies?”

His gaze moved to me briefly, then slid up to the forest. “Other monsters.”

Oh.

---