My Human (Kane and Tessa) novel Chapter 135

Kane’s POV

Rico led us down a wide corridor and toward a heavy oak door at the far end of the hallway.

It stood slightly ajar, the low hum of conversation drifting through from inside already.

He opened it fully with a casual flick of his wrist and gestured us inside. I wasn’t sure what I expected from his office, but it certainly wasn’t the polished, fortress–like room we stepped into light spilling in from the full size windows.

Three of Rico’s men were already scattered around. Their eyes flicked to me the moment we entered, and then over to Tessa at my side, their postures straightening subtly. Not hostile. But alert.

What I hadn’t expected was to see Seth, Kion, and Erin already inside, seated casually around the long rectangular table at the centre of the room.

Seth was leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression unreadable but relaxed. Kion stood behind him, ever the silent observer, while Erin sat beside him, her fingers laced in her lap, her eyes scanning the room cautiously.

Rico stepped forward, his gaze sweeping across the room with sharp curiosity. His eyes stopped on Seth and Kion, narrowing slightly.

“So,” he said, exhaling a small cloud of smoke from the cigar pinched between his fingers, “these two… Who are they to you?”

Seth rose from his seat immediately, offering his hand forward without hesitation. “Seth,” he said, voice even, calm. “Beta. Kane’s second–in–command.”

Rico paused for a beat before clasping his hand with a firm grip, his face cracking into something like approval. “A Beta who knows how to stand tall. Good. The kind I like.”

Then his eyes flicked to Kion, whose cold expression hadn’t changed since we stepped in. The tension in the room shifted slightly, like a silent ripple of awareness. Rico looked him up and down slowly, as though measuring something invisible.

“And you? What’s your role in this little cross–continental circus?”

Kion took his time answering. He didn’t offer a handshake. Just stepped forward a little and said, flatly, “Alpha Kion. Russian Alpha. Ally to Kane. I coordinated this mission- got us here under the radar.”

Rico tilted his head, a smirk playing at the corners of his mouth as he thought. “Kion…” he echoed. “I’ve heard that name before.”

Kion didn’t react, just waited.

Rico leaned back, drawing on his cigar again before letting out a low whistle. “You’re the brother, aren’t you? Dimitri’s kin. That skitso lunatic. I’ve heard stories- awful ones. Kidnapping. Torture rings. Black–market auctions.”

He grimaced like the taste of Dimitri’s name had soured his cigar. “That man has lost his damn mind. He’s a fucking rat.”

I could feel Kion stiffen, his jaw tightening as Rico spoke to carelessly. But when Kion eventually spoke, his voice was deadly calm.

“Yes, he’s dead.” He stated bluntly.

Rico blinked, caught mid–breath.

Kion took a step forward, dark eyes unwavering. killed him. Took down his empire. All with Kane’s help of course,”

A silence fell over the room. Even the guards near the windows shifted slightly, glancing between each other.

Rico’s brows lifted, clearly not expecting that kind of blunt confession.

“Well then,” he said after a long pause, the amusement returning to his voice slowly. “So not a close brother of yours, then?” His teeth flashed as he chuckled and waved a dismissive hand. “You’re forgiven – we will get along just fine.”

I didn’t miss the shift in him. The way he pivoted from disdain to charm in the span of a heartbeat.

His mood, I noted, was a flickering candle- quick to flare, quick to calm. Dangerous, if not watched closely. But I wasn’t here to judge.

He’d offered his aid, his protection. That counted for more right now than anything else.

Without missing another beat, Rico turned and moved toward the far wall. He tugged down a rolled map from a mounted rack, securing its corners on the table with metal weights.

“We move at sunrise tomorrow,” he said, voice suddenly all business. “The longer we linger, the more likely the Council is to catch wind of your presence here.”

We stepped closer to examine the map- an aged but clearly well–used representation of the southern border. Sections were marked in red, blue, and green ink. Some with faded notes, others with fresh ones.

“This is the route we’ll use.” Rico pointed to a winding path marked in pale green, cutting through a dense section of forestland on the Mexican side before slipping across into a lesser–patrolled stretch of territory just shy of the U.S. border.

“Most of the tech the Council uses to monitor travel is aimed at commercial paths- airports, highways, and legal crossings. But this…” Rico dragged his finger along the path. “This is old school. Smuggler’s route. Built before drones and satellites ever came into play. My ancestors carved it out through generations.”

He glanced at me. “It’s been used for weapon trades, relocation of rogue wolves, even extraction of threatened Alpha bloodlines. Never once has it failed.”

Seth leaned in, eyes narrowing slightly. “How confident are you it’ll still work for a group of our size?”

Rico smirked. “I wouldn’t risk my name if I had doubts. We’ve had packs bigger than yours cross with zero detection- hell, one time I moved sixty wolves through that pass during the border riots. Didn’t lose a single one.”

He let his words hang in the air before moving around the table again, puffing on his cigar.

“There’ll be checkpoints- man–made, not tech–based. Old watchers, loyal to us. Wolves and humans alike. Each station clears you and signals to the next. You won’t stop moving. If you stop, you risk being seen.”

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