Chapter 73

[ 1,161 words ]

Hunter tactics

73: 73.

Hunter tactics Liam

“The second group is here,” Marcus calls out.

Barric and I stand from where we’re sitting by one of the fires we set up and rush toward the entrance.

The torches lining the walls every few feet keep the hallways just visible enough for shifter eyes.

To humans, it would be impossible to see without a flashlight.

One of the many safety precautions of our mountain design.

When we reach the single entrance, Kiara and Sebastian are half-dragging, half-carrying Theo between them.

His boots scrape against the stone as we cross the threshold, his head lolling forward unnaturally.

The metallic tang of blood clings to the air around him, sharp enough that my wolf bristles.

His heart beat is too slow, my wolf says nervously, pacing.

The sluggish thud thud thud of his heart gets clearer as I focus on it.

Barric rounds me, his heavy steps echoing as he closes the distance to Liam.

His eyes take in the scene in a single sweep—Theo’s limp form, Kiara’s bloodstained hands, Sebastian’s strained expression.

“What happened?” Barric demands, already moving to take Theo’s weight from Kiara.

“Ambush,” Sebastian grunts.

“They came out of nowhere.”

Kiara’s voice is quieter, tight with something she’s trying very hard to hold together.

“He took a hit meant for me.”

Barric’s grip tightens as he shifts Theo more securely over his shoulder.

“What kind of hit?”

Kiara hesitates, and that hesitation says more than anything else.

“Poison,” she says finally.

“From an arrow.”

An arrow?

What the hell would Assembly wolves be doing using arrows, much less poisoned ones?

Barric swears under his breath.

“What kind of poison?”

“That’s the problem,” she replies.

“I don’t know.”

“Let me take him,” I grab Liam, relieving Kiara, and Marcus does the same with Sebastian.

Barric leads us inside, as a guard closes up the entrance behind us.

We move deep into the mountain, boots striking against stone as the narrow entrance gives way to a labyrinth of tunnels.

The torches cast shadows along the wall, and the cool air of the first gives way to a subtle warmth that grows stronger the further we travel.

“You guys look pretty banged up yourself.”

“Nothing too bad,” Sebastian waves off my concern.

“We’ll call Thomas anyway. Makes no sense having you two wounded when we could need you again.” Barric interjects, his tone brooking no arguments.

When we reach the first corridor opening, the rest of group two join the pack member from group one.

Barric calls out to Thomas, a senior healer, and the older male quickly joins us as we go to the rooms we’ve set aside as an infirmary.

Theo groans faintly.

It’s barely a sound, but it cuts through the noise of movement and voices.

His head shifts, just slightly, like he’s trying to orient himself, but his eyes don’t open.

I can feel the bonelessness in his body.

A tremor runs through his limbs, causing him to stiffen.

To try to hide it.

I look over at Marcus, and his face tells me all I need to know.

He thinks Liam looks worse for wear, too.

We reach the infirmary and hurry inside to lay Liam down on one of the twelve patient beds inside.

Barric helps to lower Theo onto it carefully, and Kiara and Thomas immediately move to his side.

Now that I’m not holding him, I have a chance to get an up close look.

It’s worse than I thought.

Much worse.

“Shit,” I breathe.

Theo’s skin has taken on a sickly yellow tint, spreading outward from the wound in jagged veins.

The arrow wound itself is all wrong.

The edges are dark, almost black, and something thick and discolored oozes from it, not quite blood, not quite anything natural.

It looks like it’s rotting, my wolf snarls.

“What do you need?” Barric asks, his voice tight but controlled.

Kiara and Thomas don’t look up as they work.

Thomas prods at the injury while Kiara focuses on stopping the bleeding and oozing pus that’s began to fall.

Her hands move quickly and efficiently, but her mouth is turned down.

She and Thomas look at each other, and I see a flash of something cross between them.

“I need to talk to the other healers,” Thomas says.

“Kiara’s right.

Something like this hasn’t been seen in my lifetime.

We need to consult with the elders.”

“You can just leave him like this,” Barric’s jaw clenches, and he strokes a gentle hand across Theo’s forehead.

The action takes me by surprise, but I school my expression.

I wasn’t sure what to expect out of a band pairing, but it wasn’t this heightened affection between the males as well.

My wolf snorts like he knows something I don’t.

“We’re not leaving him. We’ll be back, but if we do the wrong thing, we could make things worse instead of better,” Kiara assures him.

“I’ll stabilize him first.”

From a pouch at her side, she pulls out a small vial and carefully lifts Theo’s head just enough to get the liquid past his lips.

He doesn’t react much—just a faint swallow, more reflex than anything.

“It’ll make him sleep,” she says.

“If his system slows down, the poison should too.

At least in theory.”

“In theory?” Sebastian echoes.

Kiara shoots him a look.

“As much as I hate to admit it, we’re going in blind here. But the body’s natural process would determine this as the logical solution.”

He raises his hands.

“Point taken.”

I step closer to Theo, crouching beside the table.

For a second, I just look at him, really look.

Theo has always been solid.

Unshakable.

The one you don’t worry about because he’s the one doing the worrying for everyone else.

Seeing him like this, broken down, barely holding on, it twists something sharp in my chest.

Those assembly bastards have to have the answer to this somewhere, and I’m going to find it.

“Hey,” I mutter, low enough that it’s just for him.

He blinks, looking toward rather than at me before his eyes flutter closed again.

“Get some rest,” I add, quieter now.

“We’ll figure it out.”

Kiara steps back, wiping her hands on a cloth.

“Stay with him,” she tells Barric and Sebastian.

“I’ll be back.”

Then she’s gone, disappearing into the tunnels.

I straighten, but my eyes linger on the wounds again, and the question that’s been gnawing at me finally pushes its way out.

“Why arrows?” I ask.

Barric looks over at me.

“What?”

“Why were they using arrows?” I repeat.

“They’ve never used human weapons before. Why now?”

Sebastian frowns.

“From the accuracy of their aim, I think it’s safe to say they were practicing with the for a while.”

“Exactly. Which means this has been a long time in the making.”

Barric frowns, and I know he is thinking the same thing I am.

My wolf shifts uneasily.

“Those are hunter tactics,” I say.

“Not Assembly.”

A heavy silence settles over the room.

Barric exhales slowly.

“Which means they are evolving their tactics because they are aware that coming at us the honorable way won’t end well for them.

They’re trying to gain an advantage over us.”

“That would make more sense if the sheer number of packs allying with them wasn’t an advantage enough,” Sebastian states.

“Bash has a point. This is something else, something we need an answer to,” I add.

“Agreed.”

But right now, we’ve got a more immediate problem.

I glance back at Theo one last time, then turn.

“I’m going to find Felix. Once Ronan gets here, we need to speak with you.”

Barric nods.

“Go.”

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