"You better hope you can take him."
Kane moves his gaze around to the beta wolves who are all still wearing their dark shades and mob attitudes.
"You just focus on the rest of the pack. Wolves don't fight fair unless they're winning. If they try to intervene, fuck em' up."
The wolves all head outside for the duel that is not far from taking place. Personally, I'd rather fight for myself, but I don't know a damn thing apparently. The alpha claims they've gotten stronger. I thought them to be so much weaker than a night stalker.
"Drackus, you can't be serious about lettinghimdo this," Gage growls, joining our small circle of whispers.
Drackus shakes his head while massaging his temples. "As much as I hate to risk it, right now it's our only option. Reese's pride drove him to bargain. Nothing else would have made him back down. If he takes this to the light, Alyssa will be exposed for who she truly is."
Kane tilts his head, looking to me for clarification. I suppose he's wondering which part the light would most disapprove of—the fact Airis Devall is still alive or the fact I'm essentially Freya's chosen chess piece who's destined to destroy the world if I unite with Gage.
"I trust Kane," I insert, feeling like I should havesomeinput on the matter.
Kane pulls me to him and ignores my father's extreme disapproval when his lips find mine in an appreciative kiss. The touch of a vaporizing breeze lets me know Gage couldn't stomach the sight.
When Kane pulls back, Drackus's jaw is clenched shut, but Gage is nowhere to be found—just as I suspected.
"Fine, but don't you dare touch her like that in front of me again," Drackus warns, venom seeping through.
He doesn't know I've told Kane the truth about the dark mystery being my father. If he knew that Kane knew—oh boy. He'd light him up for that little show of disrespect.
As Drackus vaporizes from the room, I slap Kane's arm for his slip. He stifles a grin and offers me an unapologetic shrug in response. We don't speak for fear of being overheard. Instead, we silently make our way out with our fingers interlocked.
"If you see one of them making a move, blast the fuck out of them," he says while snaking his arm around my waist.
"They're that dirty?"
The wolves all let the snarls be heard to show their disapproval for Kane's overheard remark. He doesn't acknowledge their menacing growls or autumn-infused eyes, nor does he answer my question.
He kisses the back of my hand before walking over to stand across from Reese.
The alpha smirks while pulling his shirt off over his head, dropping it to the ground seconds later. When he starts undoing his pants, I look away quickly, avoiding the sight of yet another naked man.
It's frigging freezing out here, and I'm still wearing the sexy bullshit I put on while I was crazy. I shiver noticeably, wishing I hadn't left Kane's jacket in the warm car we abandoned. Right now, I'm wondering how I avoided the chill so easily last night.
In a smooth motion, a leather jacket finds its way around my shoulders, and I look back in time to see Gage walking away. He doesn't meet my eyes as he focuses on the fighters ahead.
His jacket smells just like him, and it brings me the warmth left over from his immortal body. I think I'd rather be freezing.
Kane doesn't seem as ramped up as the adrenaline-buzzing beast who has finished stripping down to nothing. I shouldn't have looked. Damn.
Nudity doesn't bring shame to the Were who are all devoid of any modesty. In a breeze of motion, he shifts, his skin turning to fur before my eyes. A strangled, painful groan turns into a bone-shaking roar. And before he lands to the ground on all fours, the change has completed.
His beastly size is a surprise. He's almost the same size as a lycan, but Were are supposed to be so much smaller. His jet black fur ruffles under the winter wind, and his autumn eyes seem to be even more lively.
The sharp contrast of his onyx fur and the stark white snow draws my attention. I gauge how much larger his paws are than what I expected. They pound each white section with predatory precision as he circles my night stalker.
Kane doesn't waver in his stance when Reese starts growling, baring his intimidating sharp teeth. In a blink, he lunges with a wolf's snarl, and hurls himself toward Kane.
In midair, Kane catches the wolf by the throat and tosses him back with a forcefulthudringing out when Reese's back cracks against a tree. In wolf form, he looks to weigh at least two-hundred pounds, but Kane made throwing him look as easy as tossing a pebble.
Just as Kane suspected, shredding fabric sounds out as the rest of the pack drop to all fours, wolfed out before they hit the snow. Drackus smirks when they yelp from running into the force field they never knew he projected.
My hands are circled by silver orbs, but I extinguish the dark magic when I see my father has it under control. Containing all six of them with effortless ease, Drackus turns his attention back to the fight underway.
I somehow missed the second strike Reese made. Kane is standing up, wiping blood from his arm as he glowers at the alpha jerk. Then something inside both of them snaps as they become a blur of fangs and fury, both fighting for dominance.
