carried across 80

 

80 Snapped 

Sera 

Fenris took a slow breath in through his nose. His massive fists clenched at his sides. 

“The alliance between Ironmaw and Valdris was supposed to be simple,” Kael continued. He pushed his luck. He pushed right against the blade. “Dimitri understood that well enough. If Dimitri were here right now, he certainly wouldn’t allow a southern princess to disrespect his elders. He wouldn’t parade her in the council chamber like a trophy. This is a profound disrespect to everything this pack built.” 

Kael let out another dry, bitter chuckle. 

“But I can see the problem,” Kael said. He looked back at Fenris, his eyes flashing with mocking pity.” The princess finally has your balls in her hands.” 

Everything went silent. I could hear my own heart beat. 

Fenris swung his right arm. 

The blow landed straight on Kael’s face. The impact sounded like a heavy iron mallet hitting wet meat. 

Kael’s feet left the stone floor entirely. He flew backward and slammed directly into the heavy wooden door. The thick oak cracked violently under his weight, splitting right down the center. 

The damaged door flung open. 

Two Ironmaw guards standing in the corridor immediately looked inside. Their eyes went wide at the sheer chaos. 

They looked down. 

J 

Kael lay crumpled on the stone floor. He was wheezing. The sound was a wet, horrific gurgle. His neck was twisted at a completely unnatural, crooked angle. His head rested against his own shoulder. 

I stood up from my chair. I looked at the floor. 

A jagged, white piece of bone was sticking directly out of the torn flesh of Kael’s throat. Dark, thick blood pulsed out around the bone, rapidly pooling on the grey stone. 

“Fuck,” I cursed out loud. 

Fenris just drew first blood. Against an elder. In the middle of the keep. 

And more importantly, I wasn’t spooked by the violence. 

Yvara jumped forward. She sprinted across the room and dropped to her knees right beside Kael. She pressed her hands against the torn flesh of his neck, trying to stem the massive flow of blood. 

Fenris didn’t move. He just stood there, his knuckles completely covered in Kael’s blood. He stared down at the elder, watching him drown in his own fluid. 

1/2 

BO Snapped 

+25 Bonus 

I walked around the table. My boots felt heavy. I stopped right beside Fenris. 

I reached out and placed my hand firmly on his massive forearm. The muscles in his arm were still completely rigid. 

He slowly turned his head. He looked down at me. His grey eyes were totally blank. The rage was gone, replaced by a cold, empty void. 

I shook my head. 

“You gave him exactly what he wanted,” I said quietly. 

Yvara looked up at me from the floor. Her hands were slick with red. She looked at Fenris. She shook her head in grim agreement. 

Kael had baited him. He pushed every single button. He used Viktor, he used Dimitri, and he used me. He wanted Fenris to snap. He wanted Fenris to attack him unprovoked so the rest of the council would have a legitimate, legal reason to challenge the Alpha’s sanity and his rule. 

One of the guards in the corridor turned and sprinted away. He came back less than a minute later, dragging a pack healer behind him. 

The healer rushed into the room. He dropped a heavy leather bag onto the stone floor and fell to his knees beside Yvara. 

**