Verena's Whistle: Varangian Descendants Book I by K. Panikian (essential reading txt) 📗

“That’s our happy couple,” Theo said. “Ready, Owen?”

Owen nodded and sauntered off the ice, heading in the direction of the new arrivals. Theo, Julian, and I went to the SUV and grabbed the tarps out of the cargo area. Underneath, our weapons waited.

The other car pulled out of the lot and Owen walked back over to our group.

“How’d you get rid of them so fast?” I asked.

He grinned at me. “I told them we were filming a movie and it was a closed set.”

“Nice,” I said admiringly. “That covers a lot of contingencies if they sneak back, or if anyone else comes.”

“I know, right?”

I smiled at him and his eyes blazed and went to my mouth. I turned quickly and snatched my saber. Theo smirked at me and readied his sovnya in one hand and his shortsword in the other. Julian picked up his pernach and a crossbow. Then, Theo handed Owen a long knife from the pile.

“Just in case,” he said with a wink.

“Right, quick reminder,” I said to the group. “These weapons are all illegal for us to have in this country. Thanks to Owen, we have a superficial excuse to carry them tonight, but for future reference, we need to be sneaky when we’re armed.” Everyone nodded. “Okay, good luck, guys.”

I heaved my tarp up and turned to head back to the edge of the lake. Julian and Theo stepped away as well, but I stopped when a hand touched my arm.

“Be careful, Very,” Owen said to me. I couldn’t see the expression in his eyes in the waning light but his voice was gruff.

Later, under my tarp in the biting cold, I relived that tone. It made my insides squirm. Gah. Focus, Very, I told myself. I peered out through the tear I’d created in the tarp, watching the patch of open water. I had Julian on my right and Theo on my left. No one was making a sound.

The moon was directly overhead now. It gleamed off the frozen lake and lit the landscape around us. It should be easy to see any movement on the ice under that glow, I reassured myself. We’d been lying still for at least an hour and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could control my shivers.

In the parking lot, I heard Owen start to talk to himself. I knew he was making himself into the bait, but still, the sudden noise startled me.

I kept my attention on the ice and then, finally, I saw movement. Out of the water slithered the bukavac. Its eyes glowed a sickly green as it crept slowly across the ice. It moved like a chameleon, I decided, lifting and placing each leg carefully onto the ice, cocking its head this way and that way. The head was shaped more like a snapping turtle though; its eyes were high up on the side and it had a large beak-like mouth. The tail slithered behind it. I wondered if the tail was more for swimming, or if it was prehensile.

It didn’t seem to be aware of us under the tarps; it focused solely on the parking lot and what I assumed was Owen’s figure, pacing around enticingly. I felt a quick surge of fear. He was alone there with only a knife. If we failed to stop the bukavac, it would kill him easily. I took a deep, quiet breath to calm myself. We wouldn’t fail.

Finally, the creature was off the ice. It started to move more quickly and I crept out from under my tarp. I pulled on my helmet and I saw Theo and Julian do the same out of the corner of my eye as I walked silently until I was between the bukavac and the lake. Theo was a few yards away. When Julian got to his place in front of the woods, I let out a sharp whistle and called it.

The bukavac turned back to me, its eyes flaring as it took in the three of us ranged around it. It didn’t step closer in response to my call. I tried again, even more piercingly. It ignored me and turned back to the parking lot. Owen stepped forward, his long knife gleaming under the moonlight and his helmet hiding his face. The bukavac screamed and the SUV’s windows shattered.

Despite the helmet, I felt my ears pop. I knew that without it, I would have collapsed. Julian fired his crossbow and the bolt bounced off the creature’s head. He hit too close to the base of the horns, I guessed.

It snapped its mouth at us and rows of sharp teeth flashed in the moonlight.

In a sudden movement, it lunged toward the woods. Julian stood firm and fired his crossbow again. This time the bolt hit the bukavac near the base of its left, foremost leg and it separated from its body with an audible popping noise. The bukavac staggered but then continued forward. I ran toward it as Julian engaged.

The bukavac reared up onto its back two legs and whipped its tail to the side. Julian dodged the tail and swung out with his mace, hitting the creature’s body with an audible crunch. The pernach flayed open its torso, spaying blood, and the bukavac screamed again. Julian staggered just as I reached them.

The bukavac lowered its horns at me and darted forward. I bent low under the horns and slashed at its throat before rolling away. My sword glanced off its thick skin and Theo stepped in from the side. The bladed end of his spear bit into one of the rear legs and the bukavac dropped back onto its remaining four legs. It lashed its tail forward again and caught me in the chest. I flew back through the air and crashed into the snow, stunned.

When I got back to my feet, I saw the bukavac sprouting another crossbow bolt, this one in its lower abdomen. Theo was limping, drawing the bukavac away from the lake edge. When