Fangs and All

by Stormy Glenn

Fangs & All

  97

  Samuel’s eyes widened when he glanced behind Jared to see several of his brother’s friends standing right behind Jared. Samuel shuddered as he remembered exactly what had happened to him the last time he saw his brother and his pals. He had barely walked away.

  “You can’t be here,” Samuel said quickly, praying that his voice didn’t start to shake as much as his insides were.

  “It’s a public bar, little brother. You can’t keep us out.”

  “No, but I can.”

  Samuel’s head snapped around. Kane was standing a few feet away, his arms crossed over his chest. The challenge on Kane’s face made Samuel’s heart sink. He knew his lover had no idea how big the shit storm that he had just unleashed was going to be. Jared hated being contradicted, and he hated it even more when the person disagreeing with him was human.

  “This is a private establishment, not a public one. And it belongs to me. I get to say who comes and who goes.” Kane smirked. “And I say you go.”

  Samuel’s pounding heart climbed into his throat when Jared walked over to stand in front of Kane. He could just see the bloodshed coming.

  “You can’t keep us out,” Jared snapped. “Human.”

  “This isn’t your territory, which means that you are in the wrong place to be throwing your weight around, buddy. Fallon won’t like the fact that you’ve come into his territory and are threatening his coven members.”

  The look that came over Jared’s face could only be described as fully evil. Samuel had always known that his older brother had a violent, perverse streak in him. He just hadn’t realized until this very moment how evil his brother actually was.

  The signs were all there. Jared’s aura had been gray their entire lives, but over time, it had started to darken. Now, it was just as black as their father’s. The pure joy Jared seemed to take in torturing Samuel should have been a clue, too. Samuel just hadn’t wanted to

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  see it. He didn’t want to acknowledge how malicious his entire family had become.

  “Oh.” Jared grinned, his white canines flashing in the low bar light. “My boys and I took care of that little problem earlier. In fact”—Jared slammed a hand into Kane’s chest, causing him to stumble back several steps—“you should probably address me as alpha now that Fallon is dead. And just so you know, I don’t allow humans in my coven, and since you’ll have to leave my territory, I’m confiscating your bar.”

  Kane’s eyebrows shot up in what was clearly shock, and then he began to laugh so loud that several people turned to stare at him.

  Samuel knew this wasn’t going to be good. He gestured to Toby to help him get the innocent humans out of the way and hopefully out the back door.

  He knew that Toby wouldn’t understand why the humans needed to go beyond avoiding injured patrons, but at least he’d do it without question. Toby knew a bar fight was coming just as much as Samuel did.

  Samuel started to pass his brother to help Toby when he was suddenly grabbed by his collar and slammed into a nearby wall.

  Samuel grunted as his nose smashed into the wall. He felt blood start trickling down his face and hoped his nose wasn’t broken.

  But that was the least of his worries.

  Samuel cringed when he heard Kane snarl, and then all he heard were the sounds of fists hitting flesh. By the time he stood back up and shook off the daze from slamming into the wall, the fight was well under way.

  Samuel desperately searched the throng of fighters, looking for Kane. He spotted him on the far side of the room in the middle of a struggle with Jared. Samuel had been beaten by his brother enough times to know Jared was just playing with Kane. He hadn’t even extended his claws yet. Once he did, Kane would have no chance at all.

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  Samuel started pushing his way through people, dodging the occasional fist or body that flew in his direction as he tried to make his way to Kane’s side. He was glad to see that Fallon’s men had joined the fight. Kane just might have a chance of surviving this fight with them there.

  Samuel reached Kane and his brother just as Kane got in a lucky shot, splitting Jared’s lip. Samuel could see the rage come over Jared’s face like a curtain dropping. Jared snarled and his claws came out. He raised his hand in the air, no doubt intending to rip through Kane’s soft flesh and kill him with one blow.

  Samuel jumped between the two men before the blow could land, shoving Kane back as hard as he could. He knew Kane had been missed when he heard the man swearing as he crashed into a table.

  He, however, hadn’t been so lucky. Cold seemed flow through Samuel’s body as he grabbed his stomach and tried to stanch the flow of blood gushing from the claw marks Jared had ripped in his abdomen.

  Oh man, Kane was going to be so pissed.

  Jared stared at Samuel for a moment. Samuel almost thought he saw a shimmer of regret on his brother’s face before an angry growl filled the air and Jared turned his gaze on Kane.

  “You’re going to die for that, human,” Jared barked out.

  Samuel grabbed at his brother as the man lunged toward Kane. He was fast enough to keep Jared off of Kane but not fast enough to keep one of Jared’s clawed hands from raking across Kane’s chest.

  Samuel saw red. His mind slipped free of the submissive bonds he had always functioned under, even when faced with the threats from his father and brother. All he could see was the threat to his bondmate. And he didn’t care that that threat came from his very own brother.

  Jared had to die.

  Samuel shifted his hands into razor sharp claws. His fangs dropped down. He tipped his head back and let out a howl that made

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  the windows shake so hard that glass shattered all over the floor. He could hear the careful whispers around him as the room fell silent. He just didn’t care.

  Someone was threatening his bondmate.

  Jared stiffened and then slowly turned to look at him. “Sammy?”

  “You tried to hurt my bondmate.” Samuel growled. “Now, you’re going to die.”

  The feral animal inside of Samuel that Jared had unleashed reveled in the fear he could see take hold of the man. Samuel could smell Jared’s terror in the air. It was the putrid scent of a man that knew he faced his own execution.

  “Now, look, Sammy,” Jared started, raising his hands in the air like that would stop Samuel. Nothing would.

  Jared was going to die.

  “Look, I didn’t know he was your bondmate, Sammy.”

  “You’re lying,” Samuel snapped.

  “No, seriously, Sammy. I didn’t even know that two men could bond. I never would have attacked him if I had known. You have to believe that.”

  “I told you that I had found my bondmate when I came home.”

  “I thought you were just trying to get out of your punishment for leaving the coven. I never thought you were telling the truth.”

  Samuel’s eyes narrowed, and he took a threatening step toward Jared. “My punishment for leaving the coven?” He snarled. “I never left, Jared. I was kicked out of the coven because I wouldn’t fuck any female that twitched her tail at me.”

  “It was an order from your alpha!”

  “It was wrong!”

  “You betrayed your alpha and everything your coven stands for.”

  “Then it’s a good thing Samuel is joining my coven, now isn’t it?”

  Samuel felt some of his anger leave him when he heard the loud, rough voice coming from behind him. He turned to see Fallon standing there, his arms crossed over his chest like Kane often did.

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  Maybe the gesture was an alpha challenge thing?

  “Fallon,” Samuel said in surprise. He could see that the man’s face was a little pale and his lips were pinched, but other than that, he didn’t look like he was on death’s door. He looked like an a
lpha in complete control of his territory.

  “He can’t join your coven!” Jared snapped, gaining Samuel’s attention once again. “I’ll kill him before I let him join your coven.”

  Samuel always knew that his brother hated him. He just didn’t know how much until he turned and saw Jared holding Kane in front of him, his claws wrapped around Kane’s throat. Samuel started growling deep in his throat, all sense of reason leaving him. Only the hand that clamped down on the back of his neck kept him from attacking his brother.

  “Your life is already forfeit for attacking me, Jared Harden,”

  Fallon said as he stepped up beside Samuel. “How you die is up to you. It can be slow and painful if you cause one drop of my coven member’s blood to be spilled. Or, it can be quick and painless if you let Kane go.”

  Jared’s lips curled up as if he was disgusted by Fallon’s words.

  “You really accepted a human into your coven?”

  “I did.”

  “That’s sickening. Humans are revolting, nasty creatures. They are cattle, meant to feed us. How could you dilute your bloodline like that?”

  Jared wasn’t saying anything that Samuel hadn’t heard a thousand times from his own father. It came as no surprise to him that his brother felt the very same way. He was a carbon copy of Terence Harden.

  “Well, considering that Samuel’s chances of getting pregnant with Kane’s child are pretty slim, I would say that the question is pointless.” Fallon cast Samuel a quick glance, smirking. “Although, they certainly seem to try hard enough to get Samuel knocked up.”

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  Samuel wanted to roll his eyes at Fallon. He really did. The chances of him getting pregnant from Kane didn’t even exist. He didn’t have the right plumbing. But the gesture would have taken his eyes off of Jared, and that just wasn’t happening. He needed to watch carefully because the first chance he got, he was going to kill his brother.

  No one harmed Kane.

  No one!

  “If I let the human go, Samuel has to agree to come back to our coven with me.”

  “Done,” Samuel answered immediately.

  “Samuel, no!” Kane croaked, wincing when Jared tightened his grip.

  Samuel started to growl as he watched Kane’s face turn red. “Let Kane go, unharmed, and I’ll go wherever you want.”

  “Samuel!” Fallon snapped. “You will let me handle this.”

  Samuel could see the sick glee in his brother’s face. Jared wasn’t going to let Kane go no matter what Fallon said. He’d kill Kane before anyone could reach him. He was facing a room full of angry coven members, and yet he thought he had the upper hand. Samuel had to do something to get Kane out of Jared’s grasp.

  Samuel prayed that Fallon understood what he was saying when he turned to face the larger man. Kane’s life had to come before his own, and Fallon needed to understand that. He knew what his brother was capable of. Fallon did not.

  “You’re not my alpha yet, Fallon. Until you are, I don’t take orders from you.”

  One of Fallon’s dark eyebrows arched as if he had never had anyone speak to him in such a manner. Samuel grimaced. He probably was never going to be accepted into Fallon’s coven now. As long as Kane survived, he didn’t care.

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  “Very well, Samuel,” Fallon said. “While I believe that this is a bad decision, it is still your decision to make. How do you want to play this?”

  Samuel glanced over at Kane and Jared, swallowing hard at the anger in Kane’s face. His bondmate was pissed. But he was still alive.

  “I’ll take Kane’s place and then you have to let Jared take me out of here.”

  “Is this truly what you want, Samuel?” The words were spoken so low that Samuel almost missed them.

  He shook his head as he turned back to Fallon. “It’s what I have to do, Alpha. I can’t let Jared hurt Kane.”

  The seconds seemed to turn into years as Fallon stared down at him. The man’s gaze was so intent that Samuel vaguely wondered if Fallon could see right down into his soul. Finally, Fallon leaned closer to Samuel, a mere breath away.

  “I will keep Kane safe until you return, Samuel,” Fallon said so softly that Samuel knew only he had heard the words.

  He felt tears spring to his eyes because he knew once he returned to his father’s coven, he’d never return. “Thank you, Alpha.”

  “Right here and right now, do you swear fidelity to me and mine of your own free will, Samuel Harden?”

  Samuel blinked. He had no idea why the alpha was asking him that now, considering he was about to return to his father’s coven, but he nodded anyway. “Yes, sir.”

  Samuel inhaled sharply when he felt the bonds between him and his birth coven snap as if someone had broken them in half. The sudden lack of connection to a coven almost took Samuel to his knees. Just when he thought he couldn’t stand the aching loneliness a second longer, he felt a large hand land on his shoulder.

  A glowing warmth unlike anything he had ever felt suddenly filled Samuel from head to toe. It was so overwhelming that Samuel cried out softly. The bond he felt suddenly connecting him to Fallon

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  and his new coven was nothing like the thin bond he had felt with his former coven. It was warm and welcoming, not cold and disgusting.

  Fallon smiled and patted his shoulder. “Then go, Samuel, and know that you will be back with us soon enough. I will not abandon you.”

  Samuel knew something fundamental had changed when he could do nothing except what Fallon had ordered him to do. He had always been under the impression that the accepting of a coven member was a huge elaborate ritual. It always had been in his birth coven. How Fallon could accept him with a few simple words bewildered Samuel.

  But a new purpose filled Samuel as he turned to face Kane and his brother. He suddenly knew that if Fallon said he would be back soon, he would be. While he didn’t look forward to the separation from Kane, he knew it wouldn’t last forever.

  Samuel started taking slow, measured steps toward Jared. He didn’t want to spook Jared in any way. One flick of his wrist and Jared could end Samuel’s reason for existing. When he was just a step away from Jared, Samuel stopped.

  “How do you want to do this?”

  “Make them get back,” Jared said, gesturing with his chin to the group of men standing behind Fallon. “And I want a path cleared to the door.”

  Samuel didn’t even have to look to know that it was being done.

  He could hear the footsteps of Fallon’s coven as they all moved to the sides of the room. “Now what?”

  “Shift back.”

  Samuel drew in a deep breath and tried to suppress the violent creature inside of him. It wasn’t easy when his bondmate was in danger. He wanted to maim and kill, to destroy the threat to Kane.

  Only by sheer will was Samuel able to make the creature retreat and shift fully back into his human form.

  “Step over here but keep your hands where I can see them.”

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  Samuel raised his hands into the air and slowly stepped over to his brother. He felt the moment Jared released Kane like a jarring in his chest. Jared pushed Kane, and he stumbled forward. Fallon caught him before he could hit the floor, pushing Kane behind him.

  Before Samuel could even take a breath of relief, he felt Jared’s claws dig into his flesh as the man wrapped them around his throat.

  One wrong move and Jared would rip his throat out. Samuel had seen the man do it before. It was like his signature move or something. He truly enjoyed ripping people’s throats out and listening to them gurgle as they slowly drowned in their own blood.

  “Now, you let us walk right on out of here,” Jared said as he started forcing Samuel forward. “If anyone makes a move, Samuel dies.”

  Fallon stepped back, taking Kane with him. Samuel could see Kane struggling a
gainst the hold Fallon had on him out of the corner of his eye. He wished he could be given just a moment with Kane, to either tell him good-bye or tell him he would be back soon. He wasn’t sure which yet. But he did want one last word with his lover.

  “Jared—”

  Samuel blanched when Jared’s grip tightened painfully.

  “Not a word, Sammy. You’ve caused enough trouble.”

  He had caused enough trouble? Since when? He wasn’t the one that had attacked Fallon or come into the man’s territory uninvited.

  He had left the coven when ordered to. He hadn’t done shit. And he was being blamed for this situation?

  Jared really was the carbon copy of their father. Neither man could take responsibility for their actions. They always blamed other people, the coven members, or even each other. They never understood that their despicable actions were the ones that got them into trouble time and time again.

  Samuel heard Kane start shouting as he was pushed through the front door, and prayed that Fallon told the truth when he said he would look after Kane until Samuel returned. Kane wasn’t going to

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  accept this easily. He was going to be pissed beyond words. Samuel hoped that Fallon took that into consideration when dealing with Kane.

  Or his bondmate was going to be in a shitload of trouble.

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  Chapter 9

  The second the door shut behind Jared and Samuel, and he was released, Kane swung his fist and planted it right in Fallon’s face. His hand throbbed like he had smashed it into a brick wall, and he cradled it to his chest.

  But at least Fallon’s lip was bleeding. That brought Kane some measure of satisfaction. Right up until the man just raised his eyes and stared at him as he wiped the blood from his lips. And then Kane’s bravado left him as fast as it had taken over.

  His shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry, Fallon. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have,” Fallon replied. “But I understand why you did.”

  Kane pushed his hand through his hair, feeling the need to pull on it but stopping himself before that could happen. Samuel liked his hair. “We have to get him back, Fallon. I can’t—I can’t—” Kane didn’t know how to describe what he was feeling. He just knew he couldn’t be without Samuel. He’d curl up in a ball and die.