Page 109 of The Delta’s Rogue (Crescent Lake #4)

Zeus’s face falls as he realizes his mistake—his overconfidence, his underestimation.

For what are lycans and werewolves if not weapons? Weapons created by a god.

No. By a goddess .

How like a sadistic, overly cocky male to think he’d get out of this scot-free.

His certainty was almost cute.

It’s only a split second of a reaction. We don’t give him time for more than that. Selene’s remark is a starting pistol for our attack.

I’m the first one on him, like we agreed I would be. I straddle his stomach, and with one claw dragged across his chest, I carve “2.5 million” into his skin.

The amount of Sebastian’s winning bid.

Zeus’s bellowing screams shake the room, but they don’t deter me.

If anything, they drive me to attack harder.

His blood—ichor—oozes from the brand I gave him.

It travels across the ridges and grooves of his absurdly defined muscles before it drips onto the finely woven bed sheets.

The drops leave stains that will never wash away, just like the scars on my body will never disappear.

Satisfied with my artistry, I straighten.

Before I can leap off Zeus on my own, Sebastian’s arm wraps around my waist. He plucks me from the bed and places me gently on the floor, his stare locked on my handiwork.

The briefest twitch of his lips is the only reaction he gives.

He’s too focused on what he has planned for Zeus.

Sebastian raises his fist, and his movement launches the other four into motion. They join him, tearing into Zeus with no mercy and no restraint .

Brenna keeps Zeus pinned in place for the entirety of our assault on him. The only “action” she allows him are the screams that tear from his throat, screams that grow coarser and wilder as the attack wears on.

Reid is the fastest, slicing Zeus’s right arm off with one smooth swipe of his claw. Then he darts away, turning his back to the others so he doesn’t have to watch.

Maddie takes the remaining arm, and Nolan and Wesley attack Zeus’s legs. They start at his digits and slash into him all the way up his limbs. Then, like Reid, they each detach the limb from his body with one clean slice.

Sebastian takes his time. He traces lines across Zeus’s neck. Back and forth he zigzags, drawing a web of lacerations that matches the silver burn scars on my neck.

Then he cuts clean through it, removing Zeus’s head from his body.

Sebastian’s gaze slams into mine. His eyes—usually a rainy-day gray—are darker than violent thunderclouds. The amusement in them from seeing what I carved into Zeus’s skin is gone as if it was never there in the first place. They flash with the gold of his royal lycan.

My lycan howls in appreciation, and heat pools in my veins—a deep, ferocious fire that only he can tame.

He grabs a fistful of Zeus’s hair and carries the head over to me, where he drops it on the floor at my feet.

A prize. An offering. From a male to his female. From a king to his queen.

“Now none of them will ever hurt you again.”

Relief floods me.

It’s over. All of it is over.

Nuncio is gone. Amara is gone. Lyall is gone. And now Zeus is gone.

I’m free.

Tears fill my eyes, and I throw myself at Sebastian, smashing my lips into his. He grabs me, holds me tight, and kisses me back like nothing else matters, like there’s no one else in the world but the two of us.

We’re covered in Zeus’s blood, with his severed body parts scattered all over the room. But Sebastian tangles his fingers into my hair and tugs me closer until there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that I belong to him.

As has been our luck lately, our moment is cut short .

A trickle of liquid softly splashes on the ground. Sebastian glances down then jumps back, twisting so I’m furthest away from Zeus’s detached head.

I stand on tiptoe, peering over his shoulder, where Reid stands in wolf form, a hind leg lifted over Zeus’s face and a stream of urine flowing into Zeus’s wide-open mouth.

He then prances around the head like a show pony before shifting back into his human form, with his hands covering his junk and a beaming grin on his face.

“Did you just… Did you just pee on him?” I ask, eyes wide.

Reid nods. “In wolf form. Yes.”

Nolan gapes at him. “But you’ve never—”

“Peed in wolf form?” Reid finishes for him. “I know. But it felt like the right thing to do.”

“How long have you been planning that?” Wesley removes his shirt and hands it to Reid so he can cover himself better.

“Since I learned Zeus was Lyall’s benefactor.”

Sebastian stares at him, and with absolute sincerity and sympathy says, “I am so sorry you lost your wolf-form peeing virginity.”

Reid turns serious as well, sighing and closing his eyes. “It was a noble sacrifice for a noble cause.”

Wesley coughs into his hand, Nolan snickers, and then all four of them burst into laughter.

“I should have bet someone you’d eventually do it,” Sebastian says.

Wesley, Nolan, and Reid laugh harder, and even Maddie cracks a half-smile, although she stays quiet. She’s said nothing to anyone since the battle at Crescent Lake ended. The last word I heard her say was Sebastian’s name.

I know she’ll be okay, though. Her brothers—blood related and not—will make sure she is. It may take some time and a lot of love, but she’ll get there.

“Is this”—I nudge the decapitated head with my toe as the boys continue to laugh and enjoy their much needed moment of levity—“going to cause problems? With the other gods? He was your king, right?”

Selene glares down at Zeus. “Self-imposed king, but yes.”

“Won’t someone need to take over? ”

“You needn’t concern yourselves with our affairs. It will work out. Don’t stress over the fallout of this.”

“They’ll ask questions, though, about what happened to him. There were no witnesses to his confession.”

“The crystals recorded everything.” Brenna holds hers out to Selene.

“I plan on playing it back for the other gods, so they know the truth of all that Zeus did.” Selene nods at Wesley as they finally stop their incessant laughter. “You can keep the one Brenna gave you. I’m sure there are people in your realm who would like to hear what it contains.”

“You could speak to those people yourself,” Wesley replies.

“I will, eventually. I have business to finish here first, and you have things to take care of at home. People who are waiting for you, and people to say goodbye to.”

“The body parts?” I ask. “What will you do with them?”

“The pieces will need to stay separated so he’ll remain like this indefinitely. I will take one to the moon, and we will give one to the oracles, one to Cerberus, and we’ll feed one to Cronus.”

“We?” Sebastian asks.

“Another god and I,” Selene replies.

Sebastian nods and then chuckles. “Ironic.”

“What’s ironic?” Selene asks.

“Feeding Zeus to Cronus? When he was the only one Cronus didn’t eat?”

Her eyes sparkle, but she feigns innocence. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.”

“There are six pieces, though,” Reid points out. “What will you do with the other two?”

“I’d like to keep a piece,” Sebastian and I say in unison.

My lycan gives a wolfish grin of satisfaction in my mind as Sebastian smiles at me in amusement.

I love how perfect we are for each other. How our dark urges align.

“I’d like one as well,” Wesley growls. “To keep at the packhouse.”

Reid grimaces. “I regret asking.”

“I’m sure I can arrange that,” Selene laughs .

The mood shifts in the room. The adrenaline fades, and the remnants of humor leave all of us. I slide into Sebastian’s embrace again.

He kisses my temple, glances around at the others, and then turns back to Selene. “Thank you. For everything.”

“I wish I could have done more.” Her eyes shimmer with remorse. “I should send you home now.”

Before any of us can say goodbye, we’re back in Crescent Lake, standing on the shore beneath the tiniest sliver of the moon.

My parents and Micah wait for us there. They stare at us expectantly, taking in our ichor-soaked bodies and our solemn faces.

“It’s done,” Wesley says. “He’s gone.” He leaves before he’s finished speaking, heading around the lake and towards his home hidden in the depths of the forest.

The others leave too, making their way back to their mates and their families, until it’s only Sebastian, my family, Brenna, and me at the edge of the lake.

“I know there is much to do back home,” I say to my parents. “I know Sebastian and I will need to step into our roles officially sooner rather than later. But we’d like to stay here with his family until after his dad’s funeral.”

Sebastian dips his forehead against my temple—a silent offering of gratitude.

“Of course,” my dad replies. “We’ll act on your behalf until you return.”

“Thank you.”

I glance at Brenna, who stares across the lake at the spot where Dominic disappeared. Sebastian nudges me forward, already knowing what I wish to do before I can speak it into existence. He crosses to my parents, and I stroll to Brenna’s side, gazing at that spot with her.

“He tried to save me, and I got him killed,” she whispers.

“He was a member of the royal guard, a warrior. He knew what he was getting himself into.”

Brenna’s eyes glisten under the stars. She hugs herself tightly and bites her lip to keep whatever thoughts race through her mind from escaping her.

“There’s a place for you at the royal pack if you want it,” I say.

“A place as what?”

“An ambassador. An advisor. A friend.” I swallow. “A sister. ”

Her eyes slide to my family. They skate over my parents, Sebastian, and my brother, and then back to me.

“Thank you, but I think I need to find myself first,” she says.

“I was so young when I first arrived at the compound, and I was a prisoner there the entire time. And my magic. It’s so volatile right now.

If I had better control over it, I could have…

” She shakes her head and tightens her arms around herself.

“I need better training. Proper training. From someone who doesn’t have ulterior motives. ”

“From the crones?” I ask.

She nods. Tears fall from my eyes, and she pulls her hands into her long sleeves so our skin doesn’t touch before wrapping me in a hug.

“I’ll miss you,” I murmur.

“I’ll visit.”

“You better.”

She releases me from her embrace, and another, larger body envelopes me in one from behind. Brenna smiles sadly at Sebastian and me as a soft, warbling birdsong floats around the lake.

“My offer still stands.” I lean back into Sebastian’s warmth. “You’ll always be welcome in our home.”

“I’ll remember that,” she whispers. “Goodbye, Sarina.”

She heads into the packhouse, and I fall further into Sebastian’s arms.

“It’s over.” He scoops me against his chest. “It’s all over.”

“It may be over, but my memories…” I shake my head. “I’ll always have the memories, Sebastián . They’ll always stalk me and haunt me, waiting to strike when I least expect it.”

“And I’ll be right by your side through it all, reminding you of what’s real.”

“ ?Para siempre? ”

His lips tilt into a tired smile, and he brushes his lips against my forehead. “Forever, mi reina .”