by Jayme Morse
Complicated was my new normal, and I wasn’t sure if I would have wanted it any other way.
“What are you even going to do here all day when we’re off at Werewolf Academy?” Theo asked Kane the night before it was time for us all to return to Werewolf Academy.
“Well, I thought I might take up knitting,” Kane replied with a shrug.
I just stared at him, unsure if he was being serious.
“Of course I’m not being serious.” He shook his head. “Eventually, you’ll catch onto my sarcasm.” He paused. “The real answer is that I am going to be plotting.”
“Plotting what?” Rhys asked.
“A novel. I’m writing a novel,” Kane replied. He rolled his eyes. “Our next moves as a pack. Where we’ll be in a year from now or five years from now.”
“We’re going to be at war,” I murmured quietly.
“Yeah, yeah, I know. Since we formed the Triangle, it means a war is coming.” He didn’t look entirely convinced.
“Yes, that’s how it’s supposed to work. Haven’t you heard about the prophecy?”
“Of course I’ve heard about it, just from listening in on your thoughts,” Kane replied. “Is there ever a moment that you’re not thinking about the prophecy or the fires or war that the Triangle is going to ignite?”
I rolled my eyes. “At least some of us are taking it seriously. I’m not really sure why you’re not.”
“Do you see me starting a war?” Kane asked.
“No.”
“How is this war going to start? You can’t tell me it’s going to begin just because the Triangle was formed. Wars don’t just happen on all their own. Something has to trigger it all.”
Even though he had a point, one that I had given a lot of consideration to myself, I wasn’t so willing to believe that a war wouldn’t happen, either.
“I don’t know what’s going to cause it. The only thing I do know is that there’s a very good chance it could happen, and we need to be ready.”
It’s not my fault he kissed me and became the third part of the Triangle, I thought to myself.
Of course, Kane had overheard my thought. “So, let me guess. You regret kissing me now.”
“I never said that,” I replied quietly.
Kane didn’t look even the slightest bit convinced by my words.
I thought about it for a moment. Kissing Kane had been one of the best experiences of my life. But would I have done it, even if I had known then that it would cause the Triangle to form?
Yes, I would have. When it came down to it, I would have much rather have died than not known what it would be like to kiss Kane.
I watched as a smile tugged at his lips. He liked that thought, clearly.
“Raven, did you remember to put your blood out for Javier?” Rhys asked me.
“Oh shit. I completely forgot. Would you mind drawing it for me?” I asked.
“Who the hell is Javier?” Kane asked, his green eyes meeting mine from across the kitchen island.
“Javier is my blood mate,” I replied.
“Wait, what? You actually kissed a vampire?” Kane wrinkled his nose.
“Well, yes.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding me. I’ve waited hundreds of years for our mate bond to actually take effect, and now I learn that you kissed a vampire.”
He looked and sounded completely disgusted. It honestly left me feeling a little offended.
“First of all, he’s only half-vampire,” I informed him. “He’s also half-werewolf. I didn’t even know that until after I kissed him. But, second of all, I didn’t actually choose to kiss him. He compelled me. So now, I leave my blood out on the stoop for him every month.”
I watched as Rhys fumbled with the vials and the syringe to draw my blood.
“Is he affiliated with the Winston Coven?” Kane asked.
“Not to my knowledge.” I paused. “We still aren’t entirely sure who tipped off the Winston Coven. It could have been Javier, but it might have been Sarah, who was my lady’s maid back when I was Princess Fallyn. She goes by the name Lydia now.”
“You seem to have a lot of drama. And a lot of enemies in high places,” Kane pieced together.
“That’s one way to put it. What can I say? I am Princess Fallyn, after all.”
“Okay, first order of business. We need to get rid of this Javier.” Kane sighed. “So, while you guys all go to school, I guess I have to figure out how to do this.”
“You’re going to just kill Javier?” I asked with raised eyebrows.
“You sound disappointed by that.” He studied my face.
I shrugged. To be honest, I wasn’t really sure how I felt about the idea of killing Javier. Even though Aiden had wanted us to get rid of him ever since I became his blood mate, I actually didn’t think our situation was that bad.
No, Javier wasn’t my favorite werewolf/vampire hybrid in the world, but I wasn’t sure if I really thought he deserved to die, either.
“As long as Javier gets to drink my blood at least once a month, every month, it doesn’t seem like this whole blood mate thing has actually hurt anyone.”
“You are joking, right?” Kane asked.
“Why would I joke about that?” I asked.
“Are you really so foolish as to believe that this arrangement is hurting no one?” He studied my face for a long moment before sighing. “You are that foolish. This arrangement is hurting me. I’m your mate, and I don’t like it. I’m going to get rid of him.” He watched as Rhys drew my blood from my arm. “I don’t like that he’s put you through this. Look at what you have to do every month just so he can survive—so you can both survive.” He pointed his chin at my arm. “I also don’t like the idea of you having a connection to anyone but me, so I need to get rid of him.”
“She has a connection to every single werewolf in this room,” Theo said, glaring at Kane. “Are you going to do something to hurt us?”
“Is that a challenge?” Kane’s eyes locked on Theo’s.
“No, it’s not a challenge,” I told him. “And if you hurt anyone in this room, I will never speak to you again. No one here in this room asked to be my mate. Fate chose that for all of us. You need to just deal with it.”
Kane’s eyes moved around the room, staring at each of the guys. “I would never hurt any of them. They’re all fair game.”
“You can’t honestly be okay with the possibility that Raven might choose one of us who isn’t you,” Theo said. “I know you, Kane, and I know how much you hate losing.”
“You’re right, brother. I don’t like losing. But I also understand that this is something that all of you agreed to before I came into the picture as Raven’s mate. I’m not about to be the party pooper, nor will I allow my own jealousy or beliefs on this rain on anyone’s parade.”
“So, even if she chooses one of us, you’ll just let it be? Or will you try to change the outcome of her decision?” Theo asked him.
“If she doesn’t pick me, which I think we can all agree is a very big if, then I will accept her decision. I’ve already told Raven that her happiness is what matters most to me. That being said, I will do everything in my power to ensure the best possible outcome for myself in this race. I am not going down without a fight. So, may the best man win.” Kane glanced around at each of my mates before glancing over at me again. “But there is something you should know, Raven.”
“What?” I asked, nervous about what he was going to say next.
“I am willing to be a part of this game we’re all playing where the prize is your heart. I’m actually quite intrigued by all of this. I’m sure that you will soon realize that I can be pretty competitive.” He paused. “But the invitation to this game only extends to everyone in this room. If you get any new mates, then I will rip their heads off.”
“I’m not going to kiss anyone else, so I can promise you that there will be no new mates.”
At least, I hoped there wouldn’t be. Five mates were more
than enough. But I also knew that my desire to kiss Kane hadn’t been in my control.
If another mate happened to be out there, I couldn’t guarantee that I wouldn’t kiss him, either.
Chapter 23
The weeks passed by slowly as we all adapted to this new life.
Kane stayed at the house every day, closing himself off in his bedroom, while the rest of us went to school.
One day in mid-April, I got home from school and found that Kane was loading his BMW up with bags.
“Where are you going?” I asked him as he piled his shit into the trunk.
His green eyes locked on mine. “I’ll be back soon.”
“No. Where are you going?” I repeated.
“You seem a little disappointed that I’m leaving,” he noted.
“Disappointed doesn’t even explain half of what I’m feeling right now. When you told me that you’d come back soon back in July, I believed you. I trusted you. I thought you’d be back soon. But then you never came back. For months and months, I waited for you to show your face and you never did. Then you finally showed up at Maddie’s wedding, and you told me you were coming back to fight for me. For the chance with me. And now you’re leaving again? Already?” I knew that the pain was obvious in my voice. I was fighting back the tears, which I hated.
“So, you do care about me.” There was an amused look in Kane’s eyes.
“Of course I care about you, you dumbass. The bigger question is do you care about me?” I asked.
He pressed his lips against mine hard as his hands gripped the back of my neck.
It was a passionate kiss, a hungry kiss.
When he pulled away from me, I stared into his emerald green eyes.
“If you were trying to distract me so you didn’t have to answer the question, it didn’t work,” I managed to whisper.
“I care more about you than you will ever know, Raven. And that’s exactly why I need to leave.” He slammed the trunk shut.
“I don’t understand,” I replied, shaking my head. “You have to leave me again because you care about me? That doesn’t even make sense.”
He pulled his sunglasses on as he climbed into his car. “I have to go take care of a problem.”
“A problem?” I asked.
“Javier. I’ll be back as soon as I’ve killed him.” Glancing up at me, he blew me a kiss before backing the car out of the driveway.
“Call me crazy, but I actually think it’s really freaking adorable that he went to kill Javier for you,” Maddie said as we sat at our usual lunch table.
“Yeah, I agree. It’s so… manly and beastly.” Vince popped a French fry into his mouth. “I would love it if Julie would go kill some girl—or guy—who she was jealous of.”
“This has nothing to do with jealousy, you guys,” I replied with a laugh. “Kane is doing this just because he’s insane.”
“He’s insanely in love. And I agree with Vince. Guy is totally jealous,” Maddie agreed. “Everyone knows that a lot of blood mates end up together. He’s so afraid that you’ll end up choosing Javier.”
“Which is totally understandable, considering he is such a Hottie,” Vince added.
“I never wanted Javier. You really don’t think he’s doing this just because he’s afraid that my arrangement as his blood mate could cause me to die?”
“I mean, that might play a teeny tiny role in all of this,” Vince agreed with a nod. “But I think he just knows that blood mates are supposed to have incredibly good sex and feels insecure and threatened by that.”
“Wow.” I allowed all of this to sink in. I had really thought that Kane had felt the need to go kill Javier because he was afraid for me and concerned about my well-being. Was it possible that he really was doing all of this because he was jealous of Javier?
The idea made me sort of… sad. To think that he could go end his life just because he was jealous.
It also made me hope that he wouldn’t try to do the same to the rest of my mates. They were the bigger threat, as far as I was concerned.
Kane had acted like he would be okay with whatever decision I made, but what if he wasn’t?
What if he didn’t stop killing until he had me to himself completely?
Kane was gone for weeks. The worst part about it was that I didn’t hear from him at all. He had his phone, and he also could have tried to communicate me through mind-speak, but he just didn’t.
It made me sad, and it made me miss him even more. My body had gone deep into withdrawals, but I thought that maybe that was what he wanted.
Maybe he knew that me not hearing from him at all would only make me want him more.
It was a torture that I couldn’t quite describe. I felt hopeless and moody. Desperate to see him or hear from him again.
Normally, I spent a lot of time with my mates, but now?
Well, all I did was sit in my bedroom all day, studying and wondering when I would ever hear from him again… if I would ever hear from him again.
I didn’t like the girl who I had become. I was supposed to be stronger than this, but I felt so weak again.
I wasn’t supposed to need a guy, but it really felt like I needed Kane. And I hated every second of it.
Chapter 24
In the beginning of May, I got home from school one night. The house was dark and empty. All of my mates were at student conferences, which were supposed to run pretty late into the night.
It was the first time four of my mates had left me completely alone since I’d escaped from Milos’s dungeon. And it was a weird feeling. Actually, it was more than just a weird feeling. It was also sort of giving me separation anxiety.
I didn’t like being alone, especially in this huge house at night. I didn’t worry about Iris that much these days, but I found myself worrying that she or Milos were hiding out in the house somewhere.
Of course, none of that was too logical. If Milos and Iris were going to try to kidnap me again, they probably would have done it in a trickier way, the same way they’d gone about it last year. But my PTSD was real, and it clearly wasn’t going away any time soon. I just hated that I was so codependent on my mates in the meantime.
Kane’s voice filled my mind then. “Did you just get home from school? I’m in the back yard.”
He was home. Finally.
“I’ll be right there.”
The excitement that I felt about him being home was ready to boil over. Being away from him had been so hard. It was hard to believe that there was finally an end to all of this. All I felt was relief. And did I mention excitement?
As I headed out the back door, I found him sitting in a lounge chair by the pool. His emerald green eyes, which sparkled underneath the outdoor lighting, locked on mine. “Hey, you.”
“Hey.” I smiled when I saw him. “I’m so happy you’re home.”
“Home. It’s funny that you call it that,” he murmured.
“What’s so funny about that? You do live here,” I reminded him.
“The only thing that feels even remotely like home about this place is you.”
The butterflies swarmed around inside my stomach.
“So, did you get the job done?” I asked quietly, even though I didn’t really want to think about it.
“Yeah, the problem is taken care of.” His eyes didn’t move away from mine as he spoke, and I got the feeling it was because he couldn’t not look at me. It was like I was a magnet for his eyes.
Well, the feeling was mutual.
It was as if being away from him made me see him more clearly or something. My mate was drop dead gorgeous.
His muscles looked way more pronounced underneath the dim lighting, and his facial features just looked so much more masculine. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I had this uncontrollable urge to rip all his clothes off.
Suddenly, I was picturing him sitting there without any clothes on, and… whew. I tried to pull myself out of my own dirty thoughts.
“His body is
over there,” Kane said, pointing his chin at the grass next to the pool.
Moving closer, I got my first glimpse at the body that lay lifelessly just feet away from us.
I knelt down to take a good look at it, and that was when I began to feel sick to my stomach.
Javier looked just like he always did, except for the fact that he was lifeless.
There was a wooden stake still poking out of his heart.
I swallowed hard, a lump forming in the back of my throat.
It was strange to think that Javier had been alive… that my blood had been keeping him alive. And now he was gone. The professor who had once taught me, who had once compelled me to kiss him. My lips had once been on his… and now? Now, his skin was drained of all its color. And I wasn’t sure how to feel about any of that.
“You should be thanking me,” Kane said, his green eyes locking on mine again. “I saved your life.”
“By taking his?” I found myself asking.
Kane rose to his feet and moved closer to me. “It was the best thing for everyone involved, Raven. Now, you’ll never have to worry about donating your blood to him again, and we’ll never have to worry about you dying because he wasn’t able to drink your blood.”
I knew that everything he was saying was true, but I still wasn’t entirely convinced.
“Did you really do this because you were jealous?” I found myself asking the question I had been wondering for months now.
“Is there something wrong with a mate doing whatever he has to do to keep what’s his?” Kane asked, that amusement swirling around inside those green eyes.
“Really? That’s the real reason you killed him? Because you thought I would choose him over you? I can’t believe you would do that.”
“Do you know the real reason I did it, Raven?” Kane asked.
“Yes. Why did you kill him?”