Page 68 of Endless Anger (Monsters Within #1)

ASHER

Waiting is fucking torture.

But when I tell Alistair about his missing daughter, he insists on coming to Fury Hill himself. Something about being a hunter and not trusting me to keep her safe anymore.

Which is fair, I guess. I certainly failed in that department. I keep failing, it seems, and I’m starting to question my ability in the first place.

Alistair summons everyone—except Ariana and Cash, who never answer the phone at night—for a family meeting while he and Dad get ready. My aunt Violet sits on the dark blue sofa in the Wolfes’ living room, sobbing into her hands as Cora and Mom attempt to offer her comfort.

There’s none to be had though, really. Her son’s missing, and that’s my fault too.

Uncle Grayson won’t let me forget it either.

“You bring my son back to me in one piece, or I take something of equal value from you.”

I don’t know how to break it to him that the two most important things in my life are gone , but it doesn’t matter anyway. All I can focus on is Violet’s crying and Cora’s attempts to pretend she isn’t .

Grayson and Aurora’s dad, Jonas, drink whiskey straight from the bottle. Grayson’s green eyes stay on me through the whole video call, dark and unyielding.

“This is bloody ridiculous,” Jonas says, running a hand through his curly brown hair. “Let the kids go searching on their own, brother. It’s going to take a while for you to get up there, even with Kal’s jet. We could be losing precious time.”

Lenny, Aurora’s mom, comes behind her husband, flicking his nose. “Not sure that’s as encouraging as you think it is.”

“Well, I’m sorry, love. I just hate to think of my niece suffering because her father doesn’t trust the boy she loves.”

“I don’t trust him because of this fucking shit ,” Alistair counters from somewhere off camera.

Shame burns my shoulders, and I run my fingers over Keats’s fur, letting the vibrations from his purring soothe me.

“They’ll get to them in time,” Grayson mutters around his bottle, cocking a dark brown eyebrow at me. “Isn’t that right, Asher?”

It sounds like a threat, and when I see Dad come into view to press a kiss to Mom’s lips, I wait for him to defend me.

He doesn’t.

Anger boils inside my chest even more than usual. My hands curl into fists, and I glance at Aurora, who’s sitting on my bed across the room, biting her nails.

Jonas is right. We are losing time here.

But Grayson is also right.

I will fucking find those two, and I’ll slaughter my way to them if I have to.

Motioning for Aurora to follow, I push Keats from my lap and slip on my shoes, ending the call before someone else tries to guilt-trip me.

I’m not going to sit around like a little kid and wait for my parents to intervene.

They’ve always been backup , not the initial solution.

That hasn’t changed just because of the magnitude of my mistake .

So instead of waiting for Alistair and Dad, I head straight for the dean’s office. Aurora trails close behind me, her arms crossed over her chest as the moon climbs to different heights in the sky.

The light beneath his office door is on, glowing bright. His secretary doesn’t seem to be in this late, so the fact that he is tells me everything I need to know.

Lifting my foot, I aim beside the knob and kick the door open. Dark wood splinters, flying in multiple directions as I step inside.

Dean Bauer leans back in his chair, folding his arms over his stomach and regarding us with a tapered expression.

“Asher,” he greets with a nod before moving to Aurora. “Ms. Primrose-Wolfe. What can I help you two with?”

“Where are they?” I spit through clenched teeth.

He blinks slowly, glancing between us. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean.”

Aurora rolls her eyes. “Can you not play dumb right now? Neither of us has the patience to put up with your bullshit.”

Dean Bauer rocks back and forth, watching us. A slow, insidious smile spreads across his mouth. “Maybe Death’s Teeth got to them. The Delphic Pages says they’ve been itching to spill some more blood. Shame no one knows who they are or where they go though, huh?”

I stalk behind him before he can get to his feet, grabbing the back of his head in my fist. He squeaks, and I revel in the sound for a millisecond before shoving my arm forward and slamming his face into the desk.

His hands come up, trying to pry mine from him, but I add my free one and smash his cheek harder into the wood.

“Tell me where they are,” I demand, pulling the utility knife from my pants pocket.

I flip open the blade and slide the edge beneath his eye, blood beading instantly in the line I carve.

“Or I will slice you open right here and then parade your lifeless body around campus so everyone knows what a spineless, gutless little shit you are.”

“Asher, please, we can talk about this?— ”

I twist his head to the other side, repeating the action with the knife on that cheek so he’s symmetrical. Tears glide down his skin, mixing with the blood and pooling on his desk.

The anger in my heart burns white-hot—too suffocating for me to revel in his misery.

“What did they do with Lucy?”

“I–I don’t know ! I’m only a sponsor in name. They don’t really tell me anything?—”

The blade moves to his throat. I dig in more.

“ Fuck , okay. They’re using her to lure you down to the caves. Something about that godforsaken curse, but I swear that’s all I know.”

“Who’s they?” Aurora asks.

“A group of Curators, I think. I’m not… I don’t really know.

Beckett Dupont, Tiernan O’Beirne, and someone else I can’t remember.

They requested a permit to conduct Curator business meetings in one of the caves through the Tenarus entrance, and I didn’t want to grant it, but the board has final say. I can’t go around what they order.”

I grind the heel of my hand into his skull. “So the board has no issues with them using the caves to kidnap and probably murder?”

Bauer chuckles darkly. “Who the hell do you think encouraged it?”

Later, campus starts to brighten as Aurora and I trudge across it to meet Alistair and my father. They’re both in jeans and coats, arguing quietly when we approach.

Turning, they reveal Muna between them, her hands in her pants pockets.

“Muna Henoke,” Alistair says. “Meet?—”

“We know each other,” I interject, looking at her. “What are you doing here?”

“According to the Avernia website, Muna’s the premier expert on the cave system in these mountains,” Dad replies. “If Lucy and Foxe are indeed beneath them, like the dean claims, we figure it’d be beneficial to have some idea of what we are going into.”

I cock an eyebrow at Muna, and she shrugs. “I like maps, all right? Plus, the Curators kept wanting to do shit in the blocked-off caves, so I was told to read up on them so we didn’t get everyone killed immediately upon entry.”

“As if there aren’t perfectly fine buildings littering this property where they could have their little meetings,” Alistair says, his mouth curling in disgust. His blue eyes pierce mine, and he juts his chin in the direction of the forest. “Let’s get a bloody fucking move on then.”

We trek to where the party was being held last night, looking for footprints. Tracks lead us through more thick foliage and dirt, eventually revealing the first cave entrance, highlighted by broken rocky steps and a hole that doesn’t look big enough to fit any of us.

Rushing water from close by fills the air, disturbing the otherwise tranquil scene of Lake Lerna at this point. Its black surface is almost penetrable with the naked eye under the gently rising run.

Aurora swallows. “Maybe someone should stay out here. Keep watch in case you need help or something.”

Muna hands the three of us a small map she printed on thin copy paper, pointing to a red circle.

“We’re here now.” She drags her finger along a path inside the mountain, demonstrating where the few interior caverns are that the group may have gone to.

“This gets pretty narrow, so you might want to send Asher ahead, since he’s the skinniest of you three. ”

“Also the youngest,” Alistair points out. “If the three of us can’t make it through, then none of us go in. Simple as that.”

Dad rubs the back of his neck, distributing flashlights. “Alistair?—”

Holding up a hand, Alistair shakes his head. “No, Kal. I’m not putting all our children at risk.” He looks at me, his blue eyes making my heart ache. “ We don’t fit, you don’t go. Got it?”

I don’t reply. Like I’d get this close to Lucy and just leave her in there.

He snatches my shirt at the neck, yanking me close. “Do you understand ? ”

A glance at Dad. He just lifts an eyebrow in agreement.

I nod, then shake out of Alistair’s hold.

Dad claps me on the shoulder and turns me toward the cave entrance. He glances at Aurora and then Muna. “If we aren’t back in a few hours, call for help.”

Aurora hesitates. “Help or help ?”

The authorities or her father.

Dad gives her a look and then pushes me forward. Alistair leads the charge, ducking down to fit inside the entrance. All of us have to bend slightly, since the cave maybe clears six feet. I bump my head more than once inside the narrow tunnel.

Without our flashlights, it’d be impossible to see anything. Dad keeps his facing backward, illuminating the path as we leave it, while Alistair focuses straight ahead.

The first cavern we come to is totally empty and only accessible if you crawl. None of us are interested, so we move on.

Unease floods my nervous system. It’s dark and cramped, and for a long time, the only thing we hear is the dripping of a lone water source somewhere farther down.

At one point, Dad clears his throat, sliding closer to me. I pretend not to feel the claustrophobia prickling against my skin.

“Why in the world didn’t you call one of us sooner? I thought your mother and I told you to let us know if things took a turn for the worse at Avernia,” he says in a low voice. “Wasn’t that your stipulation?”