Chapter 42

[ 1,131 words ]

Trap

42: 42.

Trap Barric

The moment we cross into Nightbane territory, I know this isn’t going to be clean.

The forest shifts.

Not physically—but you feel it.

Like stepping into foreign soil that doesn’t want you there.

The air thickens, heavy with a strange scent and something darker underneath.

My wolf lifts its head, alert.

Too still.

It is.

I refuse to believe Evertte hasn’t thought of the possibility that we would come for him.

I watch the trees more carefully, ready for any signs of an ambush.

Ahead of me, Ronan moves without hesitation, cutting through the trees as if he owns them.

Theo stays close, coiled tight, every step controlled but ready to snap.

The rest fan out behind us, silent, lethal.

We don’t speak.

We don’t need to.

The compound appears through the trees like a wound carved into the land—rotting wood, rusted fencing, a sagging structure that still somehow stands.

But it’s not abandoned.

It’s watching us.

My jaw tightens.

Trap, my wolf growls.

Yeah.

I think grimly.

But Liam’s inside, and we’re not just going to leave him.

And that’s all that matters.

Ronan lifts a hand, and we freeze instantly.

Two guards at the entrance.

Too exposed.

Too easy.

I don’t like it.

Theo glances at me briefly.

He’s thinking the same thing.

Ronan signals anyway.

We move.

Fast.

Silent.

Efficient.

The guards don’t even get a sound out.

Kiara takes one, Sebastian the other—both down before their bodies hit the ground.

Still no alarm.

That’s worse.

We slip through the broken gate, boots barely making a sound against the dirt.

The closer we get to the building, the stronger the scent gets.

Blood.

Fresh.

My wolf snarls low.

Liam.

“Hold it together,” I mutter.

But it surges anyway, pushing heat through my veins.

We reach the door.

Ronan pauses, head tilting slightly.

Then I hear it.

A voice.

Weak.

Strained.

Liam.

And another voice—cold, mocking.

“…thought you’d last longer than this.”

Something inside me snaps tight.

Ronan doesn’t wait.

He drives his foot into the door.

It explodes inward.

We flood the room.

Everything happens at once.

Liam is chained to a chair in the center—head down, blood dripping from his chin, chest barely rising.

Then he moves in a burst of speed and strength he shouldn’t possess.

The chains snap, and Everett moves back before Liam’s large, curved claws catch him.

The Nightbane wolves surrounding barely have time to react.

Theo moves first—no hesitation, no control.

He slams into the closest one, driving him straight into the wall with bone-crushing force.

Liam goes for Everett with unrelenting focus.

Ronan takes the second Nightbane wolf.

I take the third.

He comes at me with a snarl, claws already breaking through skin as he half-shifts.

Good.

So do I.

Power floods my limbs as my wolf surges forward, claws slicing through the air as we collide.

The impact sends us crashing into a table that splinters beneath us.

He’s strong.

But he’s not stronger than me.

He swings—I block, counter, drive my fist into his ribs.

I feel them give.

He chokes, tries to recover, but I don’t give him space.

My hand wraps around his throat.

I slam him down.

Hard.

The ground cracks beneath him.

Finish it, my wolf urges.

I raise my fist—

—and stop.

We’re not here for bodies.

I knock him out instead.

Across the room, Ronan’s already done.

His opponent lies still at his feet.

Theo—

Theo’s a problem.

He’s still hitting his.

Over and over.

The Nightbane wolf under him is barely conscious, blood pooling beneath his head.

“Theo,” I snap.

Nothing.

He’s gone, my wolf says.

Yeah.

I step forward.

“THEO.”

He freezes mid-strike.

Slowly, he looks up at me.

His eyes—

Too bright.

For a second, I think he might ignore me.

Then he shoves back, chest heaving, dragging a hand across his mouth like he’s trying to wipe away the rage.

The sound of glass shatters, and Everett’s wolf escapes through the opening.

Liam’s beast makes a move to follow him.

“Liam, that’s enough,” Ronan says.

Liam stops shifting back to his human form, swaying on his feet.

“Boys,” Kiara calls from outside, “We’ve got company.”

“Get him secured,” Ronan tells me.

I turn to Liam.

Up close, his body is worse than I thought.

Bruises, cuts, dried blood everywhere.

His scent is weak—too weak.

“Flirting again,” I say, grabbing his arm and hooking it over my shoulder.

His lips bleed as his mouth splits in a grin.

“You know I can’t say no to a little pain.”

Relief hits harder than I expect.

If he was fine enough to give me shit, he wasn’t worked over that badly.

“Need a hand?” Kiara asks, already at his other side.

“That would help,” I mutter, eyes trained on the door as we make our way through it.

Kade, Ronan, Sebastian, and Marcus take the lead.

I guide Laim to the side, laying him down by a tree truck giving Kiara a chance to work.

Wolves charge at us.

At least twenty.

Fuck.

I glance back at Kiara, and she’s on her knees next to Liam healing him.

It was rare to find a healer who was also an enforcer, but damn if her ability didn’t come in handy.

She shoots me a look.

“I’m going to need five minutes.”

Ronan and the others clash with the opposing force.

“You’re going to have to make do with two,” I call, settling in my stance and ready to defend the pair until Kiara is done.

“We’ll need less than one,” Liam says roughly.

Two Nightbane wolves come at me from each side….

The wolf grins through blood.

“You really don’t know?”

“Enlighten me.”

A low chuckle.

“This isn’t about him.”

My shoulders tense.

He’s telling the truth.

I don’t like that.

“Then what is it about?” Sebastian presses.

The wolf’s gaze flicks across all of us.

“You’ve stirred something up. Something bigger than your little pack.”

Ronan’s expression doesn’t change.

“Last chance.”

The wolf leans back as much as his restraints allow.

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

Wrong answer.

Ronan grabs him—

And the wall behind us explodes inward.

Wood, dust, and splinters fill the air as Nightbane wolves pour into the room.

“Contact!” Dex shouts.

No kidding.

“Get Liam free!” I bark.

Kiara’s already working on the restraints.

Theo moves without being told, putting himself between her and the incoming wolves.

Ronan steps forward, meeting the charge head-on.

I follow.

The first wolf lunges—I sidestep, grab his arm, and use his momentum to slam him into another.

They go down together.

Another comes from the side—claws rake across my shoulder.

Pain flares, sharp and hot.

I don’t slow.

I turn, drive my fist into his jaw, and feel it shatter.

The room devolves into chaos.

Snarls.

Crashes.

Blood.

“They’re not holding back!” Sebastian calls.

“Neither are we!” Theo snaps back, already taking down another.

Kiara’s voice cuts through it all.

“Almost free!”

“Make it fast!” I shout.

More wolves pour in.

Too many.

We’re surrounded.

“Not for long,” I growl.

I grab the nearest attacker and throw him into the doorway, blocking two more from getting in.

It buys us seconds.

Seconds we need.

“Done!” Kiara calls.

I turn.

Liam slumps forward as the restraints fall away.

He can’t stand.

Of course, he can’t.

I push through the fight, reaching them just as another wolf lunges.

Theo intercepts, slamming him into the ground so hard the floor cracks.

“I’ve got him,” I say.

I haul Liam up, throwing his arm over my shoulders.

He’s dead weight, but I adjust, locking him in place.

His head lolls against me.

Still breathing.

Still alive.

That’s enough.

“Time to go!” Ronan orders.

No argument.

We start moving.

Tight formation.

Defensive.

Step by step toward the door.

They press harder now.

Desperate.

That’s new.

They don’t want us leaving, my wolf notes.

“Too bad.”

A wolf dives for Liam—I shift my weight, but Theo gets there first, tearing him off me and sending him crashing into

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