Page 19

19

KAIDEN

M y fingernails are stabbing so fiercely into my palms that the skin is splitting open. I don’t care, though. I hardly feel the pain. I welcome pain usually. Right now, I want to unleash pain on someone else. I want to torture. Hurt. Make whoever tried to kill my heart pay. This is why I was trained to rein in on my emotions—because the shadows that live inside me are bloodthirsty for death.

I couldn’t even calm down if I wanted to.

I bottled it down until I got out of Wylder’s house because if any of them saw me like this, they’d stop me. And I don’t want to be stopped.

I want to kill .

Bring death.

Taste it.

I storm into the Silver Fang bar, throwing open the door with so much force the wood cracks. Then I enter, allowing my magic to rise off my flesh, taunting every creature sitting in the barstools and at the table.

And it works, some of them bailing out the back door. A few remain, unbothered by the threat of actual death being in their dingy, windowless bar that reeks of wet dog.

Every creature in here is a werewolf. This is the place where they hang out and the place to go to seek answers about their kind. Or, in my guess, torture it out of them if necessary.

I stride toward the bar where the bartender is wiping down a glass. He’s older, around fifty, with thick gray hair and a beard. He’s about twice my size in weight but a few inches shorter than me.

“I need answers about an attempted werewolf venom poisoning,” I growl out, my vision darkening.

“Sorry. Don’t have a clue what you’re referring to.” He balances the glass on a shelf. “Maybe you should ask your council. Don’t they have all the answers? At least they act like they do.” He smirks, flashing me his yellow teeth.

I cock my head to the side and let my grayish wisps of magic snake out from my hands. “Do you have any clue what I am? Or what can I do?” I lean closer, more tendrils of smoke reaching out of me. “Or what an army of the undead can do?”

The flash of fear in his eyes gives me a twisted, sick sensation of gratification.

He backs away. “ That’s forbidden.”

“Do I look like I care?” My vision is so dark that my surroundings are nothing more than shadows.

The ground begins to quake, a warning that the undead are about to rise from their graves. It’s my signal to stop, but I don’t.

The bartender gulps as glasses tumble from the shelves and shatter against the floor. “Look, kid. I don’t know anything about an attempted werewolf venom poisoning. I swear I don’t. But I have heard rumors that a mysterious buyer recently bought a large quantity of it on the black market. I don’t know anything else. If you want more answers, you have to speak to the werewolf society, and they’re currently on a mission. They’ll be back after the next full moon.”

I study him, reading through any lies he might be showing. From what I can tell, he’s being truthful.

Spinning on my heel, I turn and storm out of the bar. My magic is still out, creating madness in the streets as the entire town quakes. I need to regain control, but I can’t. My willpower is slipping away as darkness creeps through the crevasses in my mind.

“Kaiden, stop,” my father commands as he rounds the corner of a building across the street. He marches toward me, his thick boots stomping loudly against the cobblestone street. His dark hair and eyes are a mirror of mine but, unlike me, he has a semblance of control. “Stop, now.” He smacks me across the face so hard my ears ring .

The world goes quiet as my magic skitters back inside my veins.

“You’re coming with me,” he hisses through his teeth as he steals a glance around at all the creatures gawking at me in horror.

I have no choice but to follow him across the street and to the woods that lead to our home. When we arrive, he’ll lock me in the basement and torture me, just like he has every time I’ve lost control over my ability.

And I’ll let him.

Because he’s stronger than me

Right before we enter the house, though, I sneak my phone out to send a text to Wylder.

Me: Talk with the werewolf society when they return. I’ll be MIA for at least a few days.