Page 25 of Naughty

"He killed my brother, Dasher. He's poisoned my mate against me. He must die."

"I agree."

A soft hand skims the back of my neck. In an instant, everything becomes calm and tranquil. Sagging into Dasher and Blitzen, I let Dancer's influence seep into me, clearing my brain.

"Ein Hexenmeister has been a plague on the North Pole for long enough, but you cannot take his life."

Wrapping her arm about my waist, she motions for Dasher and Blitzen to pick Marcus up. They haul him to his feet and start to carry him up the stairs. Pausing, Dasher turns to me, a sympathetic smile on his lips.

"Come, Kris," Dancer whispers in my ear. "Let's watch him meet his demise."

Marcus struggles between the two, but he's no match for either other them. Clenching my fist, I ball the pocket square up into my hands. Dancer won't let me feel the anger, but the grief washes over me, threatening to swamp me. I lean on her as we all make our way out into the open air.

"I'm going to let go of you, but if I sense that you're about to lose yourself, I won't hesitate to get you back under control."

Nodding, I push away and follow after the trio. Smatterings of whispers reach my ears, and I notice all the elves standing outside their houses, watching the morbid parade with wide eyes. With a grimace, Dancer heads towards them, quietly urging them back to their houses. I suppose I'll have to convene a summit after this.

We all walk in silence towards the edge of town. The closer we get, the more Marcus struggles. Shaking my head, I once more regret not taking an active part in the town. I know nothing about the man that's now condemned to die. I didn't even realize he was part of this community. What else have I missed by being so narrow-minded and self-centered? Glancing up at Northport, my heart strains towards Noel. Does she even want me? Is it possible for a mate to not want the other? I rub a weary hand across my face. I won't force the bond on her. If she doesn't want me, I'll have to let her go.

"This is it."

Pausing at the edge, Dasher and Blitzen turn towards me. Their mouths are set in a firm line.

"Do you want to pronounce sentencing?"

I stare at them for a moment. Father never once mentioned executions. At least, if he did, it never registered. Sighing, I search through my brain. None of the books I read ever talked about it either. No one did anything this bad here.

Crossing my arms, I stare at Marcus. I dig deep to suss out what is revenge and what is vengeance. Nickolas is definitely vengeance. Harming any denizen of the North Pole, especially the line of Claus, is worthy of execution. I look him up and down. Nothing in his demeanor even hints at remorse. That just won't do. It would be different if it were truly an accident, or if there was some sort of penance he could make. But no, judging by his actions, he'd do the same given another chance.

Redemption is a tricky thing, but looking at the man before me - he has gone way past the line. He needs to be cut out before his sedition affects the rest of the North Pole. Clearing my throat, I approach the trio. I have a vague sense of movement behind me. Asmon approaches and stands a few steps behind, arms crossed. Good. This will be closure for both of us. For this part of our history, at least.

"Marcus Dreher. You hereby stand accused of at least one count of murder, notwithstanding the murder of a prominent member of the Claus line. You are accused of drugging no less than three people that are provable, with countless others as circumstances. Those will not be added to your tally. By your own admission, you murdered one Nickolas Claus. You would force a sacred bonding between those who are not mates. I will not ask you how you plead. These are from your own lips.

"Added to these charges are my own grievances. Though not provable at this moment, you used your power and authority to lay hands on my mate. You willfully abused and drugged her to cause a dangerous rift. You used her as bait to lure me to you."

I lean down and snarl into his face. "You thought me weak and ineffectual. That was your downfall. I sentence you to death. Not by my hand but enacted by one of the shifter squad."

Marcus spits out some blood into the snow, barely missing my shoe. Sneering, I take a step back and allow the shifters to do their thing. As Dasher pulls out his knife, Asmon jumps into action and stays his hand.

"No blood has to be shed tonight."

"But Asmon, what he did to Caitlin; what he did to you."

He cuts me off with a glare.

"Oh, I didn't say the bastard doesn't need to die."

His eyes glint in the lights as he looks back over at Marcus. A chilly grin crosses his face.

"Once Caitlin found out that you were keeping the hacker occupied, she decided to pilfer your library. Interestingly enough, she found an ancient journal from the Santa before Kringle. Seems our friend here is a human. The only thing keeping him alive is being protected by this dome. Put him out in the snow, and he should die."

Marcus struggles in earnest. Perhaps Asmon is right. He certainly seems a lot leerier of death than he did earlier. Nodding to the shifters, we watch as they take him past the border. Just in case Asmon is wrong, they keep a tight grip on his arms.

Painful screeches erupt from his throat as his skin starts to shrivel and tighten. Both Dasher and Blitzen pull back as far as they can, a horrified expression mirrored on their faces. The whole ordeal takes several minutes as his body ages until he's just a husk.

"Be sure to burn him. He may not be an elf, but he was a part of the North Pole. Maybe amongst the stars, he'll finally find peace."

I gulp in a cleansing lungful of air as I watch them drag the body away. Turning to Asmon, I watch as he tips his head back and also breathes in deep. He cracks an eye open and smiles.