Page 130 of Anatomy of the Immortal Species

Mada’s voice echoed in his mind.It’s a trap, necromancer.

Constantine clenched his fists at his sides. Of course, it was a trap. The sudden appearance of the reptilian in the Righteous’ back room. His insistence on meeting with Mikhail. If Mikhail had gone to that meeting, he would never have made it out alive.

A rustling in the bushes made Constantine whip around. He caught a man’s frame silhouetted in the dark. Before he could react, something heavy descended on him, wrapping around and tightening.

A net of thick ropes.

He grabbed one of the ropes and pulled, but it refused to tear.

“Don’t waste your strength, necromancer. This is the strongest net in the world,” said a male voice.

Constantine attempted to grasp his gun, but the net constrictedhim further, blocking his arms. The ropes glued his legs together and forced him off balance. When he stumbled to the ground, his body tangled in the ropes, the man knelt beside him.

Constantine stopped struggling to survey him. He had dark hair, an expensive suit, and, judging by the air reeking of the same scent from the nightclub, he was also a reptilian.

With a smirk, the man seized the rope and dragged Constantine across the field, to where the Righteous and the woman waited.

“You’re not as clever as you think,” Babyhand said with a smug smile. “You thought this was a trap for Korovin, didn’t you, my friend? And it never occurred to you that the target was you?”

Constantine didn’t respond. The other man loosened the net, while the woman studied Constantine with an indifferent expression.

“Stand up,” she commanded, once the rope, along with his gun, had been neutralised. Constantine had met enough women in his lifetime to understand she was used to giving orders. And expected to be obeyed.

He remained on the ground.

“You hear that?” the man asked, but he wasn’t referring to her words. The click of a gun’s safety being released filled the air, and he aimed the barrel at Constantine.

He got to his feet.

“Not so brave after all, are you?” the Righteous taunted.

“Move.” The man jabbed the gun into Constantine’s back.

The necromancer turned his head to get a closer look at the man’s face. He had sharp features, high cheekbones, and black eyes.

“Where to?” Constantine asked.

“Straight ahead.”

There was nothing ahead.

The woman took out her phone and called someone. “We’re leaving!”

The sound of an approaching vehicle broke the tense silence, moments before the rough grille of a massive BMW SUV sliced through the night. The headlights illuminated the profile of the reptilian woman as she circled to open the back door. “Get in!”

Constantine tilted his head to the Righteous. “Aren’t you coming along,friend?”

Babyhand chuckled. “You still don’t get it, do you, asshole? You’re done! D-O-N-E. You’re disappearing from this world for good. And there won’t be a single witness to tell your lover Korovin what happened to you. Don’t worry about him, though. He won’t suffer for long. He won’t get the chance.”

Constantine smiled and moved forward, the man following close behind.

“You’re free to go,” the woman said to the Righteous.

He bowed. “Always at your service, lovely Kathrine.”

Kathrine.Constantine would remember that name. Ducking his head to enter the back of the SUV, the driver – a small woman in dark sunglasses sized him up. In the passenger seat, a burly man was reloading his weapon.

The driver whistled. “So, the rumours about the necromancer are true, after all.”