Cade (Society Book 2)

by Mason Sabre

  Gemma was standing in the hallway at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for him. Stephen had gone out into the forest to run and enjoy a hunt. Cade was sure it would be hours before they saw him again. He watched Gemma as he walked down the stairs.

  “Still nothing?” she asked as he reached the bottom.

  He shook his head and sighed. “I fucked up.” He sat down on one of the steps, and Gemma touched him gently on the shoulder.

  “No, you didn’t. He’s just afraid, that’s all. We’ll show him it’s okay.”

  “What if we can't?”

  “What if we can?”

  Cade buried his face in his hands and just breathed. It was all he could do.

  “He’ll come out when he is ready. He’ll shift when he is ready, too. He’s made it this far,” Gemma said.

  “He has the burn, though,” Cade said, thinking about the scratching he was doing at the kerb.

  “There's nothing we can do about that, either. You can't make him shift unless you want to go back up there and drag him from his room. You’re just going to have to let him deal with this on his own.”

  “It’s fucking hard.” He worried about how far Phoenix would dig. How much damage could he do to himself? There was so much self-hate the boy had for himself—it tore at Cade’s heart.

  Gemma knelt down in front of him, resting her knees on the edge of the bottom step and forcing Cade to part his legs to make room for her. She wasn’t helping the matter. Her words were all true, and she was right that he couldn’t do anything, but with her kneeling between his legs right now, he really couldn’t think. She had the ability to turn his mind to mush.

  “I know you're right,” he said. “I …” He struggled to find the words, but with her so close, it was hard to think at all. The fight inside his mind between his feelings for Gemma and everything happening with Phoenix was almost more than he could cope with. “It’ll be fine,” he finally said. “I know.”

  Gemma smiled. “Yes, it will. He will, and so will you.” She pushed herself up to him. “You’ve got this,” she said, and went to place a kiss on his cheek. Without even thinking about it, Cade turned his head and caught her mouth with his before she realised what was happening. He hadn't meant to, hadn’t planned it. But now that he had, there was absolutely no way to stop it—he had no control. He swallowed her shocked little gasp and revelled in the way she moaned into his mouth.

  His hands went to her waist and he rose with her, turning her and pushing her up against the wall. His body pinned her there while his hands came up to cup her face, their mouths locked together as he kissed her with bruising force. Opening her mouth to him, her response was ardent. Her lips were soft under the firmness of his. He couldn’t seem to get enough of her. Like the kiss they had shared a few nights back, there was a hunger inside him that just couldn’t be sated. He needed more. He deepened the kiss, pouring all the pent-up desire, all the longing into it. Need surged through him, straight to his groin. He wedged a knee between her legs, forcing them apart. He could feel her heat through his jeans, hear her gasp as he pressed a muscular thigh intimately against her. She moaned into his mouth, her hips undulating and her nails digging into his shoulders.

  Breathing raggedly, he tore his mouth from hers, trying to get a grip on his sanity. “This is wrong,” he groaned against her mouth, then growled deep in his throat when she slid her hands under his shirt and raked her nails down his strong back, all thoughts of stopping dissipating. He pressed against her harder, hoping to alleviate the ache in his groin, then nipped along the edge of her jaw, down to the sensitive curve between her neck and shoulder. He bit down and she cried out, her nails sinking deeper into his back.

  “Cade,” she moaned breathlessly.

  Fuck, he had to stop. But even as the thought crossed his mind, he was sliding her top down and exposing more of her silky skin. He nipped and kissed his way down, the soft swell of her breasts against his hard chest doing crazy things to him. The need to be inside her was unbearable. Sliding a hand under one of her thighs, he lifted her leg and hooked it around his waist, loving the little sounds she made as he thrust his hips forward and ground against her very core. He groaned as he pressed closer, her small gasps of pleasure driving him wild. He cursed the clothing between them that kept him from burying himself deep inside her. He ran his tongue along her shoulder, up her neck, his hands slipping just under her breasts, his knuckles pressing into the luscious firmness. Just one pull, one rip and her top would be off. He fisted the material, unable to think of any good reason in that moment not to do it. His wolf was urging him to take what was theirs—this was right. Gemma was his. His erection ached in his jeans. Take, take … she’s yours.

  “Cade, yes.” Gemma’s breathless whisper brought with it the edges of rationality. His head snapped back up, his breath heavy as he tried to get himself under control once more. When he looked down into her face, her eyes were gold, and he knew his had gone wolf on him, too. Her tiger was there, waiting for his possession, just as his wolf was desperate to possess. As if having realised his intention, Gemma pushed closer, her fingers tightening on his back. “Don’t, Cade. Don’t stop,” she moaned.

  His head fell back, a growl tearing from him, so deep and so feral that it surprised even him. Slamming his fist into the wall, he swore violently.

  “I’m sorry,” he said and pushed away from her.

  “Please,” she whimpered, grabbing his arm and trying to keep him there. “Don’t, Cade.” She held on as he moved away from her, her fingers slipping down his skin as she tried to stop him backing away.

  “I’m sorry.”

  It was so damn hard to move away from her, so hard it felt that his heart was being ripped from his chest with every step he took back. Gemma grasped onto him until the very last moment, her hand eventually falling limply to her side, her chest rising and falling rapidly in time to the crazy rhythm of her heart—and his.

  He turned and left his heart lying in pieces around her feet.

  Chapter Twenty

  Cade rolled onto his stomach and stretched out in the empty bed. He had no idea what time it was really, nor did he care. He hoped he had slept for a long time. His body had needed it, and his shift had certainly done the trick to ease out some of the kinks. The sun was shining in through his open curtains—he hadn't bothered to close them the night before—not that he tended to anyway. They made him feel closed in when his wolf craved freedom and the outdoors. The room smelt of morning and sunshine, and Cade took in a great lungful of it, welcoming it into his body. Everything was silent, all except for the sound of the birds chirping outside.

  Cade sat up abruptly, the sheet pooling around his bare waist. His wolf had gone predatory still. Something was wrong. He glanced around his empty room. The house was too silent. He reached out with his senses but he couldn’t hear or feel the boy.

  Phoenix wasn’t there.

  Cade sprang up from the bed and grabbed his jeans from the chair. Pulling them on almost whilst running, he darted from his room and into the sunlit hallway. The bowl Cade had left outside Phoenix’s door the night before, with fox that Stephen had brought back with him, was there, empty and licked clean. The relief that Phoenix had at least eaten was fleeting, Cade’s rising panic overwhelming any other feeling.

  Cade didn’t bother to move quietly as he approached the room. He tried the door but it was locked. Frowning, he peeked through the lock and saw no key on the other side. The door had been locked from the outside. Even while sensing that the room was completely empty, Cade still knocked first and called his name, even though he didn’t expect any answer. “Phoenix?”

  When absolute silence greeted him, Cade swore and backed up from the door. “Shit.” He should have done this last night. Fucking idiot. Instead, he’d gone to bed, passed out, and now Phoenix was gone. The kid was already scared and that made him a danger to himself. So much went through Cade’s mind in the milliseconds he stood there. Most of them ended wit
h Phoenix dead and some fucking Human holding his head like a prize. What had he done?

  It took two attempts for Cade to kick the door in. It crashed open, the wood splintering in the frame from the effort. Cade wasn’t surprised to find the room empty. He sniffed the air—the smell of Phoenix was still strong in the air. He can’t have been gone long. Cade gave a quick glance around the room. On the chair was Phoenix’s bag and his notebook. That had to mean he had to be coming back. He’d not leave those things behind—the notebook had seemed to mean a lot to him from what Cade had realised. He had the door key, too, so that meant he hadn't left the room as his wolf. He was in human form, and he was on foot.

  Cade did a quick check of all the rooms he passed, even though he knew it was pointless. He ran down the stairs to his kitchen, his heart thumping in his chest. He wasn’t in there, either. Shit, shit, shit.

  The key dangled in the lock of the back door—Cade always kept that hung up. The door was unlocked when he tried it, and he yanked it open and burst out of the house. Dropping to the grass, he breathed in deeply, trying to pick up Phoenix’s scent. It intermingled with Gemma and Stephen’s scents from the night before, making it harder to deduce which way the boy had gone.

  He tried desperately to think like the boy; to put his mind into that of Phoenix’s. What would it be like if he was him? Which way would he go? Maybe down through the overgrowth? It was covered and easier to hide … Cade stopped himself. Phoenix had Human thoughts, not wolf. It wasn’t in his world to think about stalking and hunting and keeping himself hidden.

  But still, that way felt right. It called to Cade. “Shit,” he muttered to himself as he launched himself barefoot through the grass. He raced to the bottom, almost at the overgrowth when a sharp pain shot up through him from his foot. He staggered then stumbled to the ground, blood gushing from his foot. He swore as he tossed the broken piece of mirror he had just stood on away. It hit the dilapidated greenhouse and smashed into tiny little pieces, its sounds echoing and mingling with the sounds of something else. He felt it more than heard it—a screaming echo in his mind. The hackles on his neck stood up. He caught a flash of movement and his heart stopped. He knew that it was Phoenix. And he knew he was in trouble.

  Phoenix woke to the sun streaming in through his window and caressing his face. He squinted and tried to rise, but every part of his body was aching. He didn’t remember falling to sleep the night before. His mind was dark and foggy, which usually meant that he had a migraine coming—he felt no pain, though. He listened to the sounds in the house, any indication that Cade was up and about, but everything was quiet. He hadn't heard Cade since the night before. He lay back with a sigh—he would have to apologise for ignoring Cade the night before. He had fallen asleep thinking about everything that had happened. So much of what he saw happen to Stephen scared him, but then he thought back to the wolf in the road—to Cade. He had been such a magnificent wolf. It caused excitement to bubble in Phoenix’s chest. Imagine if he could shift into such an impressive animal. Even Gemma and Stephen—after all that ugly deformity—they had emerged such beautiful creatures.

  Phoenix rolled onto his side and slid out of the bed. Cade was still sleeping, he was sure of that. He had no clue why, but it was like he could sense his presence in the next room. He knew he wasn’t alone in the house. He had heard Cade come upstairs before he went to bed, after Stephen and Gemma had left. Cade had tried the door again, but he hadn't called his name this time. He had placed a dish outside and Phoenix had salivated just from the smell. All his senses were so acute now, it still amazed him. He had waited for Cade to go to his room, and then gave him enough time to have fallen asleep before he dared to unlock the door to sit on the floor and eat. It wasn’t rabbit, he was sure of that. It tasted different, richer, but whatever it was, it had sated the itch enough that he could rest. Phoenix had tried not to think too much about what it was. He had chewed and swallowed each juicy mouthful and had disgraced himself by licking the plate clean afterwards. It was like there was a separate part of him—actions that weren’t his. He had eaten the meat as if it was the best feast he had ever sat down to. He couldn’t get enough of it, but his mind still fought with it because it wasn’t right. Yet, when he tried to cast his mind back to normal food—burgers and chips, pizza—he had almost retched. He couldn’t even remember why he had eaten so many of them before. Just the thought of them disgusted him now. However, the thought of raw meat and how it tasted made him salivate.

  Making a firm decision right there, he decided that he was going to show Cade. He wasn’t going to disappoint him like he had everyone else. He unlocked the door and crept out of his room as silently as he could, locking the door behind him again. He paused and listened, but there was no movement from anywhere in the house. He crept along the edges of the hallway and hesitated at Cade’s door. He could feel him in there—it was so strange, but in his mind, it was as if he could even visualise how he was lying on the bed. He didn’t understand how, but he just knew.

  Phoenix tiptoed down the stairs to the kitchen. Once there, it was easy enough to get out of the house. Cade kept his keys hanging on the wall on some joke key holder. Phoenix found the back door key and let himself out into the fresh morning. It was so clear outside, like life hadn't yet polluted the day. Phoenix breathed in the fresh air and let the warmth of the morning sun touch his skin. It felt like forever since he had found any joy in anything, even in its smallest measurement. He closed his eyes. “I miss you, mum,” he whispered quietly into nothing. He didn’t let himself dwell on it, though. He had done a lot of thinking and he could either run from this situation or he could embrace it. He was hoping to do the latter. He just had to learn how to shift—and he was going to learn to do that now. Maybe he could show Cade later. His heart warmed with the promises he made to himself, and the way he imagined Cade might be pleased when he managed it. It was so strange. He didn’t really know Cade at all, but yet he felt like he had known him all of his life. He didn’t even know his surname. It was madness.

  Phoenix went around the side of the house and came upon a small stream he hadn't noticed the night before. There was a small bridge that went over the water and Phoenix wondered if Cade had made that. The path down the side of the house led to the front garden, which was really just a patch of neatly trimmed grass surrounded by a stone wall. The house really was isolated. Now that it was day, he could see just how much. There wasn’t another house in sight. Everything was trees and fields and hedges. Phoenix stepped out from the safety of Cade’s property and onto the road he had raced down the night before. It was never-ending even now as he looked down it, both ways. He realised then that he could just leave, just walk and Cade would never know. Maybe it would save him a lot of bother. He had killed a boy—the mere thought caused an ache in Phoenix’s chest. He had killed two people with his actions. What if Cade found out what he had done? Would he throw him away, too, the same way his father had? Would he beat him as well and wish him dead?

  Maybe if he managed to shift, he could be like them and then they would want him ... Cade would want him. He hadn't meant to get afraid the night before and disappoint him. He would shift and show Cade and then he’d be proud.

  Maybe he would let him stay.

  He turned, glancing around—he needed some place close to shift, but not too close. He didn’t want Cade to wake and find him. He knew he’d look for him the moment he realised he was gone; he was sure of that. But he wanted this to be a surprise.

  The itch had begun again under his skin. It was like tiny claws this morning, scratching and nipping away under his skin. He rubbed at his arm with the flat of his hand, and while it relieved it a little, it wasn’t that much. He began to walk, determined to find the right spot to do this. His mind was so full of everything that Phoenix almost didn’t notice the big, blue car that was coming down the road. He stopped dead in his tracks, his heart starting to thud loudly in his ears. As the car got closer, it began to slow. Pho
enix didn’t know much about cars, but this one looked big and posh. Bikes were his thing—his and his father’s—another thing he had destroyed. They had been building one together and were going to take it out onto the dunes and race it. Phoenix pushed away the pain of the memory.

  The car rolled to a stop just in front of him, and Phoenix had no idea what to do. Did he carry on forward? If he turned and headed back, they’d know he was running away. He started to regret his decision to come so far from home. He took slow, tentative steps forward, walking close to the hedges. Two men sat in the front of the car—one old, like his dad, and one maybe as old as Cade. The older man wound his window down and smiled at Phoenix. He had a perfect smile, big white teeth, and perfect black hair. He wore an expensive-looking suit, like the kind his father used to wear. The man was Other, Phoenix could tell. He didn’t know how he knew, but he did. He could … sense it.

  “Excuse me,” the man said. Phoenix stopped, but said nothing. His heart was pounding so loudly, he wondered if the man could hear it. “Do you live around here?” He had a deep accent, something northern. Phoenix didn’t know what it was exactly, but the man’s words were clear and well-spoken.

  “I live just there,” he muttered, pointing to Cade’s house and making sure the man knew he had a safe place to run to.