Soul Avenged (Sons of Wrath, #1) (39 page)

She finally
faced him, her brows lowered.

A crooked
smile danced across his face. “Not even after you knocked the hell
out of me.”

She smiled and
breathed deeply—until images passed through her mind. Fantasies
that just seemed wrong. Contentedness, lying next to him. No more
anger or hatred. All wrong. “Kane, I can’t do this.”

“Do what?”

“Feel …
anything, knowing what you’ll become. And what I have to do.”

“Then, have
someone else do it for you. Or I’ll do it myself. Right now.” Kane
stirred as though to get out of the bed.

She clutched
his arm and squeezed. “No.”

He glanced
back at her and snuggled next to her body again. His hand tangled
in her hair, clenching, as he drew in a long breath. “Ayden, I
would give anything in this world to wake up to your beautiful face
again and again. As selfish as it sounds, I want you to feel
something.”

“Why?”

His grip
loosened. “Because
I
feel something for
you
. And I’d
hate for you not to know how fucking fantastic it feels. Even if I
die today, I’m happier than I’ve ever been.” His hand slipped from
her hair and he tucked his head in the back of her neck. “I don’t
want to hurt you, though,” he said quietly. “If you can’t do it,
I’ll find someone else who will.”

“I’ll do what
I need to do when the time comes.” As if her flat tone would hide
the crack in her voice at the end. “For now, let’s sleep.”

Ayden rested
her head against his chest, listening to his heart beat, its rhythm
in time with her own. She would give him what he wanted—to wake
with a woman in his arms.

Even if her
body cringed with the affection.

Even if she
didn’t consider herself worthy enough to be that woman.

Her eyes
flinched until they remained closed.
Sleep
. That black void
where anything held possibility—even loving someone like Kane—a
place where the shadows hid her true form, and cold steel could
drum a pulse instead of ceasing one. She willed herself there, but
it refused come easy for her. Thoughts raced through her mind until
at last they whittled down to the only solution that made the most
sense.

Dread churned
in her stomach, the answer probing her like a knife to the gut.

It would be
the most selfless thing she’d ever done for someone.

But she would
do it.
For him.

Even at the
risk of her own life.

The
alternative was simply impossible.

Whether real
or fantasy, Kane made her
feel
. As much as that frightened
her, she couldn’t ignore the emotions that his body commanded from
her, summoned in a way to which she couldn’t help but submit.

Tears gathered
in her eyes and a smile drifted across her face.

At last, she’d
come up with a plan to save the halfling’s life.

~

Draven choked
back tears.

Morning
sunlight couldn’t even brighten the cold, damp tomb, as Jacob’s
body lay across from him in a pool of his own blood—cold, pale and
lifeless. The wolf venom had spread through his system, but not
before the wounds had drained him.

Death had
won.

Draven’s own
wounds had healed during the night, thanks to the antibody. Nothing
bared memory of the attacking wolves, the tearing of his flesh, the
burn of the lycan’s venom as it mingled with his own blood. All of
it had dissipated and vanished as if he’d made up the entire scene
in his head.

Except, he
hadn’t.

Jacob was
proof of that, unmoving, eyes closed, still wrapped in the leather
jacket. As if sleeping. Not even the swift shakes to his body could
break him from the world he’d departed to. Heaven? Hell? Did it
matter?

Draven reached
inside the pocket of his jacket beneath Jacob and pulled out the
vial. The only vial remaining. One of the wolves Draven had fought,
the night before, had broken the other.

The cure
could’ve saved Jacob’s life, and had lain beneath him the whole
night as he slowly died.

Sure, Draven
could’ve saved Jacob, but he had more important uses for the
antibody—for weapons, and to barter the avenging of Calla’s
death.

Besides,
administering it to Jacob would have resulted in hours of pain for
the boy, and Draven didn’t have that kind of time to spare.

Part of him
envied the lifeless body. No more suffering. No more pain. Peace.
The mercy that Jacob should have been granted after the first wolf
had ravaged him years before.

Every Alexi,
though, carried around a sick and twisted belief that they’d been
saved.

Not saved.

The mere
presence of a pulse separated them from death. All they’d been
given was another form of suffering—the kind that kept them alive
and tortured them slowly. No memories of what they were, only a
constant state of hatred—an empty void that kept them from trusting
their own survival. They relied on Wade for guidance, no longer
knowing the difference between right and wrong. The wolves murdered
families, making it easy enough to believe they were the enemy. Was
the Alexi any different? Did any of them really live? Or were they
simply prolonging the inevitable?

A resistance
to the venom, nothing more than a false glimmer of hope, exploited
for someone else’s personal crusade.

Draven hadn’t
felt so alone in a long time. Not since he’d met Calla. She’d
transcended him to a world of goodness and purity. When everything
else seemed bleak, she guided him back to what could be—and it had
been Wade who’d made him believe that he could’ve had that life
with her. As long as they destroyed their enemies, Draven and Calla
could be together.

It was too
late, though. She was gone. The light ripped from his very soul by
those sick, monstrous demons.

On top of
that, in leaving Wade, he’d become the prey of the lycans and the
Alexi.

A single speck
of hope still loomed on the horizon, though—the one thing the
lycans wished to destroy that threatened their survival as a
species—a bargaining chip for him, if he could possess it.

He had to get
his hands on Ayden.

Wade wanted
her. The demons wanted her.

If he could
somehow locate her and steal her away from the demons, he might
just find some peace in his life.

~

Propped up on
one elbow, Ayden stared up at Kane as he slept—his square jaw
shadowed with the slightest stubble and the perfect slope of his
nose.

His eyes
shifted beneath his lids.

What do you
dream about?

The curve of
his full lips enticed hers to want to kiss them again—that curious
sensation drawing her closer to his face. What was it about him
that she found so fascinating? Pulses of soft, warm breath fell
against her cheek. Ayden carefully pressed her lips to his,
skimming across to brush her cheek against his morning stubble.
When she drew back, his lids were open, his gaze roaming over her
face as if confused, yet only for a moment.

Kane rolled
her over onto her back, supporting himself above as he smothered
her body and tenderly kissed her neck. His actions held urgency. As
if he believed she’d try to get away from him. “Am I dreaming?” he
murmured, his voice muffled against her skin.

A smile tugged
at the corners of her mouth. “Are you?”

“If I am, how
‘bout you don’t bother to wake me up?”

“Too
late.”

“Then, come
back with me.” He lifted his head.

Heaviness
weighed on her as she stared up at him. “Your dreams would turn to
nightmares.”

“I’m not
scared.” His smile lit up his face. “I’m the big, bad wolf,
remember?”

Ayden chuckled
and rested her hand above her head.

Kane’s gaze
trailed up to her arm. Her stomach clenched.

“What does it
mean?” he asked.

My
scars?
Wasn’t it obvious? “What?”

“The words
tattooed on your wrist. What do they mean?”

Her stomach
eased, yet she still stared past him, uncomfortable making eye
contact with her scars on display. “It’s Latin. The fruit that
feeds the soul is vengeance.”

A flash of
perfect white illuminated his face as his smile widened. “Know what
I think?” His face lowered and his lips found the edge of her jaw.
“I think you need to find a new source of nourishment.”

When he kissed
her, he did so in a way that beckoned surrender. His tongue carved
a sinful path down her neck, where he grazed her with his teeth,
between her breasts, down her stomach, down, down.

Oh,
God.
She inched her knees together in protest.

Kane lodged
his hands between them and spread them aside. “Let me do this.”

***

Her knees
trembled beneath Kane’s touch as Ayden shook her head, yet the
uncertainty in her eyes gave all the answer he needed. Mouth
watering, Kane continued past her stiff muscles.

She tipped her
head back and grabbed the sheets. “No,” she whispered, but her body
writhed against his tongue as it dipped into the delicate petals of
her flesh.

Her scent
messed with his head, rendering him dizzy and hungry at the same
time. The sweet taste of her sent him into a sort of frenzy; so
much so, her heightened cries didn’t immediately register in his
brain, until pulses of climax broke through and shattered his
thoughts.

Mine.

Kane crawled
up her body and sank deep inside of her. It took only a few
plunges, before his body took over, acting on its own will, as if
he watched the scene from a distance.

When at last
orgasm crashed over him, he collapsed beside his female with one
thought still ringing through his mind.

Mine.

***

Ayden lay
caught beneath his strong arm, staring up at the ceiling as his
sleeping breaths warmed her cheek, the mocking joy of Dionysus and
his satyrs smiling down on her.

Had there ever
been a time when the monsters of the world lived so carefree?

She slipped
from beneath Kane’s arm.

He shifted on
the bed, but didn’t wake, and Ayden covered his naked body with the
sheet.

A momentary
feeling of possession gave way to reality. He’d never be hers. Kane
was the enemy. Even once she’d saved him, he’d still be her
enemy.

Feelings were
a weakness she couldn’t afford.

This will save
him in the end.

She trekked
downstairs, searching in each of the rooms along the way, stopping
when she reached the library.

Gavin sat at
his desk, eyes unfocused as though deep in thought.

She entered,
her steps unsure as she studied him. Did he know about what she’d
done with Kane? Why did he look so troubled?

Gavin’s
visions could be so touchy sometimes, coming and going. She
suddenly felt like a teenager not knowing whether or not to confess
to her knowing parent about sneaking out.

“Good
morning.”

“‘Morning,”
Gavin said, his tone flat.

“I have
something to tell you.”

He eased back
into the chair. “So do I.”

“You
first.”

“Ok.” He
entwined his fingers. “I know what you’re planning. Don’t do
it.”

Her eyes
narrowed. “This was your vision all along, wasn’t it?”

“More or
less.”

“Why didn’t
you just tell me then? I might not have—”

“Fallen in
love with him?” Gavin raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not
love.”

His expression
turned grave. “Then, for what would you consider such a stupid
decision?”

“The right
thing to do.” Her voice, for once, sounded so absolute. “I can save
him.”

“At your own
expense.” Gavin took a deep breath and glanced down at his desktop.
“I never told you because I would never force you to choose, Ayden.
And I’d hate for that to be the reason you picked me in the end.
But as you’re standing before me, I’m beginning to regret my
decision.”

Ayden smirked.
“And to think I thought demons were heartless bastards before.”

“Some of us
are.”

She sank into
the seat opposite him, quiet for a moment. “Will you try to stop
me?”

“Is that why
you came to me?” His eyes hardened to an impenetrable stare. “To
ask if I’d stop you?”

“No.”

“Then, why did
you come to me?”

“Because I
need … to know that you won’t try to kill him.” Her eyes shifted as
she spoke the words. Pleading for someone else’s life didn’t come
easy.

“And perhaps I
should let him loose? Unleash him on the world and have him destroy
an entire family?”

“No. I want
you to administer the antibody to him.”

“The
antibody.” Gavin scratched his chin and splayed one arm across the
back of the chair, his other elbow balanced on the desktop. “So,
you intend to turn yourself over to Wade, trade
your
life
for the halfling’s. And you’re asking me to nurse him back to
health while you’re off on some personal crusade to be tortured or
worse?” He waved a dismissal. “Forgive me if I decline. I much
prefer your company.”

“Wade won’t
kill me.”

“Your damn
right he won’t. Because I intend to kill
him
.”

“No.” Ayden
stood. “You can’t do that yet, Gavin. Not yet.”

His eyes
stared straight into hers. “I can and I will.”

“Wade knows
the truth about my past. He can at least give me the name of the
wolf that attacked me.” She slumped back into the chair. “I … I
know this is crazy. But I had a dream. And in my dream, Wade talked
to him. As if he somehow knew who did it. I remember that Wade
saved
me right after they’d attacked. Maybe this is just
nutty.” She placed her balled fists at her temples. “It’s just a
feeling I have. He has the answers that I need.”