Bane of Tenebris (Wolfgods Book 2), page 10
Thoughts of his own nightmare came to the forefront of his mind. He’d fallen into Barghast’s plane but the god wasn’t there.
The idea unnerved Kain. Barghast never gave up a chance to torture him.
Where are you? Kain thought, disturbed he even wanted to know. At least if the dark god was torturing Kain, he wasn’t hurting anyone else.
The sudden arrival of Tala’s hands on his back relaxed Kain.
“Good morning,” Tala said, her voice tired.
“Good morning. Did I wake you?”
Tala rubbed Kain’s back before wrapping her arms around his waist. “You could say that. Your body is like a furnace. Things got a bit drafty once you left.”
Kain chuckled. He turned and took his mate into his arms. “I have something I want to ask you.”
Tala’s brow raised.
“Have you ever been to a First Moon event?”
The confused look in her eyes answered his question.
He laughed, inviting her to go with him and explaining the intricacies of how it worked. Something he probably had to teach Damien since the young alpha likely hadn’t done one yet.
Intrigued, Tala agreed.
When he started to wash his hair, Tala took the shampoo bottle from him and began washing it for him. “Are you still going to the dinner?”
“We are,” Kain replied.
Tala bit her lower lip. The idea of Kain going to the vampire coven made her nervous despite how strong he was. “Alex, I know about your scars. I know what they mean and how you got them.”
Kain proceeded to rinse his hair. He didn’t respond but fought the frustration building inside of him.
Tala didn’t continue her thought. She knew the subject of his scars made Kain agitated.
“I have to meet Damien,” Kain said, petting Tala’s face to show he wasn’t mad at her. “I want you to get some more sleep if you can. You will need it for tonight.” He placed a soft kiss on Tala’s lips then got out of the shower.
Kain went downstairs to find Damien pacing the floor and muttering to himself. The alpha appeared frustrated, confused and pissed off all at once.
“Damien, what in Tenebris’ name has you so wound up?” Kain leaned against the door, trying not to laugh.
Damien didn’t stop pacing. “I’ve never done a First Moon event, Kain! Not sure if you’ve noticed but my pack’s grown. They’re all expecting me to welcome their pups like an alpha should. You never trained me on those customs.”
“The first step is to calm down. All you need to do is change into your wolf skin and greet and welcome the shifting pups into your pack. It’s not hard and you have seen it before.”
Kain’s words didn’t seem to help Damien calm down. He actually looked more wound up. “Come spar with me, Damien. It has been a while and you seem to need to vent some energy.”
The pacing stopped. Damien’s eyes almost appeared to light up at the idea of sparring with his old mentor. “Just make sure I don’t kick your ass, old man. I’ve been practicing since you’ve been gone.”
Kain grinned a coy, mischievous grin. If he remembered correctly, every time Damien said those words, he wound up on his back. He offered his friend to go outside first and followed him onto the front lawn.
Chapter Eleven
Later that afternoon, Jill arrived with Tala to find Damien holding an ice pack over his eye while Kain leaned against the marble counter enjoying a cup of coffee.
Tala glanced at Kain. In her mind, she heard him explain what happened.
“Damien, tell me you didn’t. Not the old man comments again,” Jill sighed, examining Damien’s eye.
Damien huffed, changing the subject. “How’s your hand, Kain? Didn’t get the chance to ask between landing on my ass and getting up.”
“The burns have healed for the most part. The damage has left me with limited use, but I can still throw a decent punch.” Kain smirked at Damien’s sarcastic eye roll.
Tala took Kain’s hand, her fingers tracing the distorted scar, wondering why she hadn’t seen it when they made love. She looked up at Kain concerned.
Kain responded with a gentle, reassuring smile and whispered he was alright.
The smell of blood took Kain’s attention from the conversation. He glanced at Damien. “Do you smell that?”
Damien nodded. “Yeah. We better go see what’s going on.”
Kain told Tala to stay in the house while he, Jill and Damien went out to the front lawn. Vincent limped up the gravel walkway, his body dripping with blood and reeking of silver. His tongue hung loosely from his mouth. One of his eyes had been gouged from his skull.
The stinging in Kain’s scars and hand revealed to him who the culprit was. He ran forward, catching Vincent just as he shifted and started to fall.
Vincent coughed up blood, choking as he tried to speak.
“No, do not try to speak, my friend,” Kain said, taking off his jacket and covering Vincent’s shivering form.
It took everything he had to keep from dropping the injured lycan due to the burn of the silver in his wounds.
Kain lay Vincent down in the soft grass. His eyes were a mix of sadness and great anger at how badly a condition Vincent was in.
“Gone …” Vincent gagged from the one word.
Damien knelt next to Vincent and asked what happened.
Kain could tell Damien was trying not to sound angry to keep Vincent comfortable.
“He need not speak, Damien,” Kain replied.
Vincent coughed again. “Need to know … Galek … Channon … Dead …”
Gasps erupted from Jill, Damien and Kain.
“Galeck is … dead?” Damien’s fists clenched on his thighs. He dropped his head, drawing up his shoulders.
“Vampires … werewolves … too many …” Vincent choked. “Nathaniel … captured.” Vincent’s breath grew shallow. A single tear mixed with the blood on Vincent’s face as it met Kain’s.
“Forgive me …” Vincent’s body stilled, his breath ceasing.
Kain pushed Vincent’s blood-soaked hair away from his face, closing his friend’s eye and raising the jacket over his head. He uttered a peaceful prayer to the gods to take the soul of another fallen brother before rising to his feet.
“Dammit!” Damien got to his feet and threw a fist into the nearest tree.
“Kain,” Jill said, her voice void of emotion.
“They are trying to cut us off. Stoker must have mentioned who our allies were in the battle against Lilith. It would be difficult for Anthony to fight so many.” Kain’s brow creased, his fangs clenched against what he saw as cowardice. He held onto the calm reserve despite his anger.
“We need to pull our remaining allies closer. We can’t risk Yuna or Gabriel falling prey to the same thing,” Jill commented.
Damien picked up Vincent’s body and carried him around the house. Kain and Jill joined him.
Tala came out of the back door and covered her mouth. She ran to Kain’s side, wondering what happened.
Kain stared at her with sadness in his eyes then back at Damien who proceeded to shift and dig a hole.
Once Damien finished, the four of them shifted and let out a mournful howl which echoed across the mountainsides. All along the ridges, howls joined theirs in a song sending off another soul to the arms of the gods.
Following Vincent’s burial, Kain contacted Gabriel over the phone to let him know the tragedy that had occurred. Gabriel responded with a line of cursing and after some calming words from Kain, gave his word he’d be at the First Moon event later that night.
Kain hung up his phone and set it down on the bedside table. He’d been spending the greater part of the afternoon helping Tala move into his room. He stared out of the paned window down at the fresh mound of earth covering Vincent’s body.
Tala’s arms around his waist helped ease the tension. She didn’t say anything but snuggled into his chest, wrapping his arm around her.
They stayed that way until the late afternoon hours faded into the gentler colors of the twilight hours.
The First Moon event would start at moonrise.
Kain instructed Tala to get dressed in something warm and to put a change of clothes in the backpack he set on their bed.
Tala kissed Kain then went to do as he asked of her. She’d never been to a First Moon but was always curious about them. She’d only heard about them from the older lycans in her pack. Her pack lacked leadership like alphas and betas, so it all felt new to her.
After she finished packing, Kain took the backpack and the two of them went downstairs to find Damien and Jill waiting with their pups. Maggie stood next to her mother, smiling wide upon seeing Tala and Kain. She ran to Tala and begged her to pick her up.
Tala obliged, earning a hug around the neck. Such a sight brought a hint of warmth to Kain’s heart despite the day’s earlier events. He wondered if he would live long enough to see his pups reach Maggie’s age.
“We’ll be taking Jill’s car, Kain. It has the girls’ seats in it. Meet you at the Woods Edge.” The moment that should be something to be proud of did little to lighten Damien’s mood.
After agreeing to meet there, Kain took Damien aside. “I know your heart is troubled, brother, but let this moment be one of great pride. Maggie is advancing fast. Do not let her see her father so broken. There will be time to grieve.”
Damien let out a deep breath. “You’re right. Thanks, Kain.”
Kain smiled and let his friend go out with his family. Tala put Maggie down and went with her mate to his car.
During the drive to the Woods Edge, Kain’s thoughts circulated through all that happened starting with his cabin. The way Anthony went about his strategy baffled the lycan soldier in some ways but made sense and impressed Kain in others.
If Desdemona wanted to extend aid, then she had to have known about the storm on the way. The question remained as to why she wouldn’t openly help against Anthony. It had to have something to do with her being a pacifist. She’d refused to get involved with Lilith as well and appeared to make sure the damage to the coven was minimal and could be repaired.
Kain’s thoughts went to Zane. Something about him seemed familiar, but Kain couldn’t put his finger on it. The vampire was clearly younger than even Jared but the way he carried himself and the color of his hair and eyes were different than any of the vampires Kain knew.
“Pheasant for your thoughts?” Tala asked in a jovial tone.
Kain snickered. “That actually sounds wonderful. I was thinking about everything going on. Your father, Christian was killed by Anthony. Why is that?”
Tala scowled. “He worked for Anthony as a hit man. During one of his jobs, he met my mother who was nothing more than a pleasure slave for his mark. After he killed the vampire Anthony wanted killed, my father took my mother away and nurtured a love affair with her. He managed to keep it a secret until I was old enough to know who he was and then--”
Kain took Tala’s hand with his. “It’s alright. Your father risked a lot to be with your family, Tala.”
“I hate Anthony so much! I don’t understand why he suddenly decided to go insane.”
Kain understood what caused the problem. Bard’s arrival, the interest in the talon. Barghast orchestrated it all. The thought unnerved Kain.
Once they arrived at the Wood’s Edge, Kain parked his car next to Damien’s and got out.
The stillness of the woods perturbed Kain. A familiar smell lingered in the air. Its rotten, putrid scent brought back memories of Kain’s encounter with Bard.
Oh no. “Damien! Hurry!” Kain shouted, shifting into his lycan form and sprinting into the woods.
The sounds of gnashing teeth and growls echoed in the clearing. Kain slid to a halt in the sacred space overlooked by three huge boulders used by the alphas during the First Moon events. Gabriel, Lune, Cade and a few others Kain didn’t recognize battled werewolves while trying not to trample the frightened pups whose mothers either lost them or died.
The scene reminded Kain of times he’d arrived too late to save anyone when the Blood Wars raged at their worst. Snarling, he grabbed the nearest werewolf and threw it yowling across the sky. It landed on one of the boulders the alphas stood upon when greeting pups.
Gabriel grinned a fanged grin and sank his teeth into the throat of another werewolf, lashing his head from side to side. Kain heard Gabriel reach out to him telepathically to tell him what went on before he arrived.
The werewolves arrived not long before the lycans and began killing whoever they found. Thankfully, not many had gotten there yet so the carnage wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been.
A howl like the call of a loon rang out in the clearing. The werewolves froze when Damien leapt through the trees, landing on two muscular legs. Runes glowed a bright blue on his white fur.
“Finally.” A voice rumbled from beyond the platform of boulders. Bard stepped up in his full lycan form, his fangs drawn back over his lips in a wicked grin.
The presence of the dark god’s power made the scars on Kain’s body burn. It threatened to force him to his knees, but he stood fast, ready to protect his fellow lycans.
“I was wondering when you’d arrive, Kain. Have you decided to surrender what we want yet?” Bard spat.
Kain stepped forward, growling. “I do not barter with cowards. Leave now or I will kill you, Bard. What you have done is beyond my contempt.”
Bard leapt from the rock, landing mere feet from where Damien stood, his fangs snapped in obvious frustration. His eyes radiated a deep hate as he drew closer to Kain only to be intercepted by Damien.
“Back off. I don’t know who you are personally, but I’m beyond pissed,” Damien snarled.
Bard glared at him, smirking.
Seeing what was about to happen. Kain pushed Damien aside, receiving a hit by Bard’s foot. The proximity to the claw dazed Kain as he pushed Bard’s kick away. “Damien, you are not ready. Stand down!”
Bard threw another punch which Kain met with his own. The sound of the collision emulated a crash of thunder when bone met bone.
The demented lycan’s eyes met Damien’s. “Listen to your boyfriend, kid. Who do you think trained me?”
Damien’s eyes widened. He watched as the two fought. The way they moved matched perfectly except for the fact Kain seemed to be taking more hits.
Kain felt sick to his stomach. The claw’s darkness threatened to sap every last drop of strength from him, but he was determined to keep Bard from attacking Damien or Gabriel.
A stray hit from Bard forced Kain to his knee. All around the fighting between the werewolves and the lycans continued. The whimpering of pups and the cries of desperate mothers filled Kain’s ears.
The only difference was the intense light out of his peripheral vision. Damien lunged at Bard, his body so bright, Kain had to avert his eyes. He’d seen this before during the fight with Lilith, only it radiated the same crushing power Kain felt from the woman he met in the celestial plane.
When he could focus, Kain saw Damien gripping the demented claw, its flesh writhing and screaming beneath his silver nails. Bard yowled in pain, struggling to get free.
With his free hand, Bard slashed at Damien’s face, his claws raking across the white lycan’s flesh, leaving no marks.
“What the hell?!” Bard screamed.
“I said back the fuck off. I won’t let you hurt Kain or any of my people anymore. If I see you again, I’ll kick your blood loving ass.” Damien shoved Bard away.
The black lycan stepped away, holding his injured claw. Gabriel, Lune and Cade all formed up behind Damien. Kain rose to his feet, careful to keep his face hidden but still ready to back his fellow lycans.
Bard snarled, ordering what remained of his werewolves to back down. His eyes met Kain before laughing and fleeing into the woods.
Kain watched Damien turn to face him. The light around him faded to a manageable level so Kain could stare at him.
Damien shifted back, his eyes locked on the fresh wounds on Kain’s face.
The look in the lycan alpha’s eyes was unmistakable. Damien wanted to talk.
Due to the night’s events, the First Moon event had to be canceled. The lycans spent hours taking care of the remaining visitors from neighboring packs. Not many had been killed or injured in the scuffle.
“Damien, that was incredible,” Gabriel said, while the lycans walked back to the Woods Edge.
Damien didn’t reply. His fists at his side told Kain he was clearly upset.
Tala ran up to Kain and reached up to touch his face.
He stopped her, shaking his head and asked for a gauze pad from the first aid kit in his car.
Damien met Jill and hugged his pups. He motioned to Kain to follow him.
Kain took the gauze Tala handed him and followed his friend until they were out of listening distance.
“Talk,” Damien demanded.
Kain sighed, leaning against a nearby tree, holding the gauze to his face. “It is true. I trained Bard, but it was many moons ago.”
