Page 12 of The Red Moon

I glance up at the ceiling, counting each tile free of water damage. There’s fifteen total. “That’s not a bad idea, actually.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. You know how long it took me to build that fucking toy?” he asks, mocking Dimitri and earning another scowl from him. “If I’m going to use it, my baby won’t just be a distraction. It was designed to take out as many of those monsters as I can. No offense, Nikolai.” Alexey waves a dismissive hand in my direction.

Dimitri finishes his apocalypse-proof food and lets his fork rest among the spoils. “You know that property better than either of us, Nikolai. What should we do?”

I finish what’s left of my cigarette and snuff it out in the ashtray. “Alexey?”

He furrows his brow and crosses his arms over the military fatigues, hiding the nametape reading Sarkov. “Da?”

“How much more of that C-4 do you have?”

NINE

NATALIE

Vlad Vostik doesn’t say anything else. No, he secures the oxygen mask to its rightful place and waves me off how one might swat away a gnat. I stand and walk to the doors, keeping my movements slow. The last thing I need is to make a breakaway and accidentally awaken the monster in hibernating within him.

Before I can open the door, the knob twists and it swings open, nearly knocking me over onto the expensive Peruvian rug at my feet. The terror I felt in my stomach shifts into an uncomfortable rage at the sight of him. I arch my head and peer up at the sadistic animal that made sport of kidnapping me and murdering my best friend. And here he is now, casually strutting around his fucking house like it’s just another Tuesday.

Viktor glances down at me and speaks, his voice dripping with venom. “Have a nice chat?”

I narrow my gaze at him, fighting the urge to slap his smug face. “Why bother asking? I know you heard everything.”

He takes a step forward, his barrel-sized chest getting inches from my nose. “My father enjoys his privacy.” Viktor peers around the room. “Soundproof. Even to me. Guess it’ll be your little secret.”

A hiss of air. “Viktor. Stop playing with your food,” Vlad demands, and his words, no matter how rough or choked out they are, make me seethe further. “We have things to discuss.”

Viktor nods, his piercing silver eyes never leaving mine. “Sergei!”

The hallway floorboards creak as he limps forward, stopping behind the animal blocking my path.

“Take my brother’s pet back to her kennel.”

Sergei says nothing and lowers his head. The things this entire pack must put him through, it’s easy to see why he takes orders with the obedience of a cocker spaniel.

Viktor steps to the side, leaving just enough room to squeeze past him. Nikolai was wrong. His brother doesn’t only care about himself. Viktor only cares about tormenting everyone around him. But until the red moon, I’m off-limits. They’ve made that much clear. So if he thinks I’m going to let him taunt me the entire lunar cycle, he’s sadly mistaken.

“There’s a nice portrait of your brother downstairs,” I say, my tone sharper than his teeth. “The one right next to the rest of the alphas.”

Tremendous heat radiates from him, and I don’t have to look up to know my jab landed exactly where I wanted. His fucking ego. A thick growl rumbles in his throat, and when I think he’s going to grab me by my neck and lift me to the ceiling, he pauses. Viktor does something much worse.

Viktor wraps his large hand over Sergei’s head and slams him into the wall. Thumpf. Drywall and debris spit from the cavity, misting the air with a chalky-white powder. A disgusting laugh replaces his snarls and the sound echoes throughout the hallway as Sergei falls to the floor with a hard thud.

“Sergei!” I shout and rush toward him but stop when Sergei lifts his trembling hand in my direction. If they see you helping me they will— I remember what he said on the staircase, how afraid he was to even accept my arm. But there’s something else I remember, too. Weakness is never tolerated, not when the survival of the pack is at stake. Nik’s words fill my head, his voice accompanying it. I turn toward Vlad as Viktor’s laughter reaches a more sinister pitch. He hasn’t moved from his plush chair. No, he’s done little else than stare at the three of us intently. Sergei is already seen as a weakness to the pack. If I help him now, I might as well sign his death certificate while I’m at it.

Sergei manages to get to his feet, slouching over in obvious pain. He cups the side of his head and bright red blood trickles between each finger. This is my fault. One more thing added to the list of horrible things I’ve caused. Him. The dozens of people locked in that cage going another day without water. Courtney …

“Get her in the cage and clean up this fucking blood,” Viktor says.

I wait for Sergei to stand upright, well, as upright as he can, and start walking toward the staircase without another word. The doors close behind us, stifling Viktor’s laughter behind them.

“Are you okay?”

“Da,” Sergei says with a nod and continues. “Can I ask a question?” His accent is thicker than before.

When we reach the staircase, I scan from the hallway to the foyer, ensuring we are alone. I don’t even ask this time. Hooking my arm into his, I help Sergei down the first step, using the guardrail as leverage. “Yes,” I say, my voice waning.

“Your friend in cage. Blond girl. She said same thing you did when she first got here. Nikolai would come for her.”