Where Foxes Hunt with Wolves - K.A. Merikan Page 0,16

know we started off on the wrong foot, and I feel so stupid about it now. I came to apologize.” He smiled and held out a bottle of cheap wine left over from the party. He’d be saving Emil’s advocaat for himself.

Yev frowned and stepped back, revealing an interior decorated the traditional way—with wooden furniture and blankets. “But I don’t have a cat, so maybe leave that outside.”

“Hm? Leave what?” Radek looked around, getting hot all over.

“The ziplock bag,” Yev said, as if he could see through fabric.

The thought made Radek’s adrenaline skyrocket. Sure, he could sense the dead mouse and plastic, but no one he’d met could smell things the way he did. Forced to avoid looking as if he’d been caught red handed, he smiled and pulled out the bag with a sinking feeling of failure.

“This? How did you know? My mom has cats, so I always bring them mice from traps.” Didn’t exactly make sense, since outdoor cats could catch their own snacks, but it was good enough.

Yev’s mouth stretched into a smile, revealing large teeth, with very pointy canines. “You can bring it to her later. Come in,” he said and invited Radek to the fire buzzing in the back of the hut and filling the space with the scent of natural wood.

Radek had expected to be kicked out over the mouse, so this was going surprisingly smooth. Only that he now lacked the means for his prank and had to think on his feet. There had to be another way to show Yev he wasn’t all that.

“You’re not… angry at me?” Radek couldn’t pinpoint why, but despite the homely interior and pleasant scent, following Yev in felt like walking into a predator’s den. Maybe because Yev was so big? He wouldn’t try to… hurt Radek, would he?

Radek froze when his host pulled his hair back into the shortest of ponytails, revealing his right ear. The upper half was missing, which left the remaining flesh mangled, more like a scrap than what it had originally been. But he took a deep breath, unwilling to reveal his shock to Yev, who closed the door behind them, turning the lock very loudly, as if he wanted to make sure his guest knew he’d been imprisoned.

“You said you wanted to apologize,” he said and walked past Radek, to a sofa covered with a checkered blanket. There hadn’t been much thought put into the style of the interior, even if the chairs, the coffee table, and all the cabinets were antiques made of natural wood. A carpet hung behind the sofa, its Turkish pattern jarring with the antlers and deer skulls on the wooden walls. The space was cozy despite its outdated look, and smelled of homemade stew, almost as if Radek were visiting someone’s grandma, not his new local arch-enemy.

Yev was being so friendly it bordered on suspicious, but truth hit Radek with its obviousness. Yev had said he didn’t fuck drunks. And Radek wasn’t drunk anymore. He knew exactly how to spite Yev without using the mouse.

“Yep. I overdid it yesterday. The truth is that you saved my life. I could have gotten lost and frozen to death out there in the forest.” He stepped closer, and the hairs on his nape bristled as he took a whiff of his next prey.

Yev’s nostrils flared, and he stood closer to a cabinet full of books and old board games. Was he hungry for his dinner, or did he also wonder what they could do now? Alone in this secluded cabin.

“Yes. You could have. Where were your friends when you went off on your own?” he asked, and his eyes, clear as polished steel, sent Radek a sharp glance.

Another bitter reminder that Jan hadn’t followed him, and had fucked another guy while Radek was gone. “They must have lost sight of me. They’re not… like you.” He dared to take a step closer, and while this was a game with the ultimate goal of bringing Yev down a peg, his heart beat faster at his proximity. Yev was almost a head taller than him, at least six-foot-five, and Radek was no tiny thing, even if slender.

Yev’s lips twitched, and he took the wine out of Radek’s hand before placing it on the table. “Like me?” he asked, glancing at the fireplace decorated with dark brown tiles. The wood behind the glass screen cracked, as if it wanted to warn Yev of the inconspicuous predator who had invaded his home like