Page 120 of Court of Evil

“Let’s hope we get there first. Deal with the hunter then the monster.” I shrug. “Shamus, you’re with me. I want silence from the rest of you. Close in, leave no room for escape.”

They nod and fade into the wilderness.

“Let’s go,” I murmur to Shamus.

“You’re hot when you’re hunting,” he responds quietly.

“No flirting on hunts,” I murmur, but a smile curves my lips.

“Whose dumb rule is that?” He winks as I roll my eyes, but he falls into silence then, moving away so we create a net. We walk in sync, not even breaking branches under our weight.

Ten minutes later, I hold up my hand, and he stops. I point at the ground, seeing the trail, and he nods as we search the area. They seem to disappear, and I glance up, realising why. I jerk my thumb up in explanation, and he nods in understanding. He holds a knife between his teeth as he starts to scale a nearby tree, and I do the same. We need to see him before we act. I have to trust the others to follow my orders and focus on George.

The tree is wide, but it’s easy to climb, and just below the canopy, I inch along a branch. I perch there and scan the area. The trees open up slightly, and I only see him because of my training.

He’s in all green and brown, pressed against the trunk of the tree, holding a sniper rifle in his hand. It’s aimed at the clearing in the woods below, where moss and fallen trees seem to create a natural break in the foliage.

That’s where I see his trap and bait.

The women are tied to a tree stump with deep cuts across their necks. The scent of their blood fills the air, no doubt to lure the wendigo. He must have tracked its den to around here and hoped that would be enough. Even now, filled with fear and hopelessness, they hold hands, their heads pressed together and eyes closed as their mouths move, speaking just for them.

They must know death is coming, yet they face it together.

My gaze goes back to George before I find Shamus. I point at the women and back to him. He nods in understanding. He’s going to save them. George is mine.

Creeping across the branch, I leap over the short distance to the next tree. The branch trembles under my weight, so I quickly cross to the trunk and scale around it before moving down the next branch and over to the subsequent tree. I repeat it three times more before I’m behind George on a tree. I need to get across without him hearing me, so I head down a few branches and leap. The tree sways, and I press to the trunk, waiting. He either doesn’t notice, which means he’s not as good of a hunter as he thinks, or he ignores it. Either way, it means he’s getting old and his hearing isn’t good. It’s a trait with hunters from too many explosions or weapons firing near our ears. We don’t have long shelf lives.

When I’m sure he’s not heard me, I silently make my way up to the branch he’s lying across. There are a few bundled together,creating a perfect arch for his body, which is probably why he chose it. It also allows me to creep up behind him and perch directly next to him. I expect him to turn, sensing me, but he’s so focused on the scope, he doesn’t even move.

I follow his gaze to the clearing below in time to see Shamus emerge from the trees.

He moves into the clearing brazenly, trusting me to take care of the issue. His back is to the sniper rifle as he crouches in front of the now struggling women, their eyes wide with terror at the sight he makes.

George snarls and swears, his finger tightening on the trigger as he takes aim.

He will not get to pull it. “Hey, George,” I whisper behind him, tapping his shoulder with my blade. He whirls, and I slam my hand into the rifle so it’s pointed at the sky just as it goes off. I snatch it from his grip and toss it away as he stares at me in shock. “Remember me?” I grin.

“Havelock,” he hisses. Despite the fact that the last time he saw me was over ten years ago, he clearly remembers my face. “You look more and more like that bastard who did this to me, but now I get to return the favour. It’s a shame he died before I could.” I see the flash of silver before he jerks his arm up, and I knock it away.

“You’re getting slow in your old age.” I grab the branch above me and kick him from his perch. He flies backwards, a yelp escaping his lips, and I hear the moment he hits the ground with a grunt.

Swinging down the branches, I roll when I hit the ground and stop before him where he’s sprawled in the clearing.

Crouching, I tap his leg. “Don’t tell me you’re already dead. I came all this way. It would be such a disappointment.”

He blinks and slowly lifts his head before he seems to realise what happened and scrambles to his knees. “You bitch.”

“Really? I expected something much wittier.” I sigh. “Oh well, I guess I could give you the spiel I gave the other hunters, but the truth is, you’re not worth wasting my breath. George Brown, I sentence you to death for your crimes.” I reach for my blade, but he’s already coming for me faster than I expected.

I lift my arm to block the blow, and his blade pierces it. The pain is sharp, but I don’t let it show. He laughs as he falls backwards, but I arch my brow, grip the slippery handle with my blood, and pull it free, holding it in my other hand. There’s a huge wound, a through and through, but it’s bleeding a lot. I hold it up, however, trusting them to understand, and with my eyes on George, I feel the magic move across my skin and heal it like it never happened.

“How?” he exclaims, his eyes wide. “You’re fucking one of them! You’re a monster!” he roars.

“Not quite, though I guess maybe I am half monster, but would you like to meet some true monsters?” I tease. I whistle, and then I feel them appear behind me. He tries to grab a weapon that isn’t there. Zeev dances out of reach with a laugh as he tosses his blade into the forest.

George spins, taking in my monsters surrounding him. “What is this?”

“The new elite team,” Shamus says as he steps from the forest. “Specifically created to hunt scum like you—those who betray the code of hunters, flaunt the laws, and hurt innocents. I’m sure you remember Tate Havelock. Well, she’s their commander.”

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