Page 84 of Hunted By the Headless Horseman
“Thaddeus won’t wait much longer,” Mrs. Kravitson continues before I can do more, her tone grave. “He’s planned a blood ritual to “redeem” Belle in the eyes of the Brothers. It’s… It’s twisted. They see her as tainted, and he means to purify her through violence and his…masculinity.”
My jaw clenches, fury rising like bile in my throat. “What kind of ritual?”
Mrs. Kravitson’s lips press into a thin line. “He’ll brandher with his circle and crest, claim her as his in front of them all. Rape her, Jack. It’s a perverse show of power, of ownership. He means to degrade her before taking her.”
The rage inside me roars to life, and I grip the pumpkin head tighter. I can barely hear anything over the pounding of my blood. “Over my dead body,” I snarl, my voice thick with venom.
“He will break her down in a trial by fire. I’ve seen it done once—by Thaddeus’s father—but their purpose that night was death. Their victim, a woman who tried to escape the Covenant…she did not last the night. No, that is not Belle’s fate, but her heart…”
She doesn’t need to finish. I grip my cane handle harder, cracking the leather of my gloves.
“I’ll give my soul before I let her heart die.”
Mrs. Kravitson looks at me, her eyes shadowed with concern. “You’ll be outnumbered, Jack. There are more of them than you can fight off alone. The Covenant is well-armed, and you know they won’t hesitate to kill you.”
I grit my teeth, my breath coming in ragged bursts. The thought of Belle, defenseless, branded by that monster in front of those beasts…it’s more than I can bear. I have to save her, even if it means burning the entire Covenant to the ground.
“I’ll do what I can,” she says softly, a hint of something deeper in her voice. “But I need you to let me go first.”
I turn to her, disbelief and anger bubbling up. “No. I won’t have you walking into that lion’s den alone. How can you guarantee they won’t kill you as well?”
She squares her shoulders, meeting my gaze head-on. “I need to do this, Jackson. I’ll be the diversion. They won’t expect an old woman like me to cause trouble. I will claim I am advocating on behalf of the Council, which is not wholly untrue. And…” A resolute expression forms as she finishes, “It’s time I right a wrong.”
A cold knot forms in my gut. “What wrong?”
Something dark and old crosses her eyes. “You’ll know soon enough,” she says, her voice tight. “Everyone will.”
I stare at her, the weight of her words hanging between us likea noose. What the hell is she talking about? How is she tied to this nightmare?
She picks up the lantern and glances down the tunnel, her face unreadable. “Let me do this. It’s the only way to buy you time.”
I want to argue, to stop her, but it would be futile. She’s not asking for my permission—she’s telling me her plan, and she’s going through with it no matter what I say.
Finally, I nod, my jaw clenched. “Just…don’t get yourself killed.”
She gives me a faint, bitter smile. “I’ll try my best.”
As we near the end of the tunnel, the air turns colder, the faint glow of the bonfire is visible in the distance beyond the thin gaps of the thick trees. Mrs. Kravitson halts, her voice a whisper as she motions for me to stop.
“We’ll be to the west of the bonfire,” she says, pointing to the faint light flickering in the distance. “There’s a few old crypts, half-buried under rubble, just past the exit. Use them as cover. The Covenant will be too busy with their ritual to be watching it closely; they think no one knows about it anymore. It’s the perfect place to hide while I create a distraction.”
She turns to me, her eyes determined. “I’ll approach from the east, draw their attention. Then you move in. Target Thaddeus.”
I nod, formulating the plan.
“Make no mistake, Jack,” Mrs. Kravitson adds with a glance over her shoulder, “they’ll be expecting blood tonight. Just make sure it’s not yours.”
Without another word, she moves forward, the soft glow of her lantern fading as she disappears into the dark tunnel ahead.
My jaw turns to stone. No matter what happens to her, I’ll make damn sure that Thaddeus pays for every second Belle has suffered. For every mark he plans to leave on her, I’ll carve ten into him.
And when I get my hands on him, there will be no coffin. Because there will nothing left to bury.
33
No matter what, I have to see him. One last time
BELLE
