Chapter 71

Kadeem

So much for winning her over.

Kadeem’s hands balled into fists, white-knuckled and trembling. He watched as Ardal sped away, his rage boiling over like a cauldron set to stew. The urge to smash something consumed him, but he resisted.

Instead, he withdrew his phone with a quivering hand and changed that stupid Bon Jovi ringtone. But his thoughts lingered on her safety as he scanned through his phone settings, feeling anxious about his own failures.

How was it that he always managed to mangle things between them so horribly? In the past, they had been in tune with one another and willing to trust. Things had once been so easy. But now she was distant and defensive, flighty and unforgiving.

A guilty knot grew tightly in Kadeem's throat for he knew that he was the cause of these changes - he'd changed her forevermore.

He thought back to that kiss, the feel of her lips burning against his own, and the lingering memory only made things worse. Warmth spread across his chest as he messaged Riley that he was on his way.

Kadeem flung his phone and bag into the trunk of his car and quickly shifted into a towering white wolf. He hurdled towards the nearby clearing. The sun dipped low in the sky - a blaze of fiery red and orange.

As he approached, more than a mile out, the scent of blood hung thick in the air. His beta, eyes sunk in a grim expression, stood waiting. She transformed back into her lupine form and they raced together towards the carnage ahead.

Kadeem stumbled back in horror at the sight of his gamma wolf, Theo. His burly frame was contorted and lifeless on the ground but that wasn't what made Kadeem's stomach churn - it was the sickening smell of copper mixed with the sight death layered all over Theo’s neck from the deep bite marks which spread across it like an infestation.

The blood pooled underneath Theo’s body, soaking his brown fur.

“Why don’t they drink the blood?”

Kadeem looked up to see his gamma, Sara - her eyes wide with horror.

The same question had echoed in Kadeem's head since he heard about the first attack. He felt Riley tense beside him as Miles filled the silence with a solemn voice.

"They want to kill, not to eat.”

Miles’ eyes were wet with tears and rage as he stood over his best friend who lay slaughtered before them.

Kadeem felt his own rage swell and barked his orders at the gammas.

With a silent nod to Riley, they hit the dirt, letting their wolf senses take over, as they began to track down the scent of the attackers.

The sun was setting and the cool night air mingled with the salty smell of sweat as Kadeem and Riley continued following their trail. The darkness seemed to close in on them as they moved further away from civilization. Their sharp eyes could make out small details even in the faint light - broken branches, disturbed stones, and finally a set of tracks that led them right towards their target.

Their prey had stopped in a clearing not too far away; Kadeem could see shadows on the horizon as he focused his gaze ahead. He exchanged a look with Riley before taking off at full speed towards the enemy.

He ran faster than ever before, feeling invigorated by the thrill of the hunt.

He could feel Riley’s presence behind him, and they both raced into the clearing. But once they arrived, the scent trail went suddenly cold - except for a bergamot scent that Kadeem recognized as Rayburn’s.

Kadeem froze and Riley mirrored him. What the hell had Rayburn been doing here? He began sniffing the air around him more intently.

It was then that he noticed something peculiar; the trees around them had been cut down in a patterned circle formation and there were strange symbols and markings carved into them – some of which Kadeem had never seen before. There was a faint hum in the air, like something was powering up, and he could feel an electric charge in his fur.

Kadeem stepped closer to one of the trees with Riley close behind him, and suddenly his vision blurred as though he was looking through a fogged window. The symbols on the tree glowed brighter before disappearing altogether as if being erased from existence.

He stumbled backwards from shock, but his legs betrayed him and he fell onto his bottom with a thud. He shook his head to clear the fog and looked up in awe to see a mysterious figure standing before them – illuminated by a bright white light.

Kadeem squinted, trying to make out the figure’s features.

A loud “oof” echoed beside him, and he looked over just as Riley tumbled to the ground in an unconscious heap.

Fur bristling and fury rising, he leapt to his feet with a surge of adrenaline to charge into action, but something smashed into his temple, sending him crashing down. The world began to spin and the lights faded from his eyes.

Kadeem felt his eyes flutter open, but his vision was blurred, and he couldn’t make out anything in the darkness overhead.

He was lying on the ground, and for a moment, had no recollection of how he got there. He could feel the warmth of Riley’s body next to him.

Familiar scents flooded his nose and whispered voices echoed around them.

His vision finally began to clear, revealing a sea of familiar faces peering down at him - their expressions a mixture of both worry and relief.

Kadeem slowly sat up, but Riley stayed lying next to him, groaning softly in pain.

“What happened,” Embry asked, leaning down, while Miles knelt over to help Riley.

Kadeem shook his head, instantly regretting it when a sharp pain set off in his skull.

“I really didn’t need another head injury,” he grumbled, hoping desperately none of his memories had been knocked out the second time around.

“When you didn’t come back right away, we figured you’d come across some trouble,” Sara said.

Riley moaned, cradling her head as Miles helped her up. “Trouble found us, alright.”

Kadeem’s eyes lingered on his beta. Her head was already bruised and knotted with a swollen lump.

“Let’s get you home,” he said. It hurt him to see her like that, so beaten up.

“Concussion protocol later,” she said, laughing, then wincing in pain from the effort.

Kadeem frowned and suppressed the urge to argue with her.

“Did you get a look at the attacker,” Embry said, glancing around anxiously at the dark woods surrounding them.

“I know his smell,” Kadeem said, his lips forming into a snarl. He met Riley’s dazed eyes. “Rayburn.”

Kadeem turned to his gammas. “He was casting some kind of magic,” he said, pointing to the trees. “These were all lit up with runes.”

Kadeem suddenly thought back to the runes on the vampire stake. He couldn’t be sure they were the same, or even similar, but even his concussed brain thought it was a strange coincidence.

He’d never given runes a thought in his life, and now here they were - jumping out at him at magic shops and carved in fucking light on trees in the middle of the woods the same day his gamma was slayed.

“Day,” Kadeem choked.

Kadeem clambered to his feet. "Day," he repeated, a hint of desperation in his words. "It can't have been more than a few hours since they killed Theo."

"That's right," Sara said quietly, her eyes glazed with tears as her forehead creased with worry. "Theo only replaced me on patrol just a couple hours before..." Her voice trailed off and she wiped her eyes, trying to compose herself.

"What if they're not vampires at all?" someone asked tentatively, the air thickening with unease.

"They sure smell like the undead," Miles said, disdain dripping from his voice.

"Well, this is a lot to take in," Kadeem said, pressing a hand against his pounding forehead. "Embry and Sara, get Riley home immediately."

Riley opened her mouth to protest but he silenced her with a wave of his hand. "And if her pupils keep bouncing around in her eyes like that, you'd better take her to the ER," he added sternly, frowning down at her. She glared back up at him, barely suppressing her fury.

"Jason?"

"Yes sir,” the tall gamma replied, his head sticking out above the crowd.

"Organize an emergency council meeting for tomorrow night."

"Aye-aye captain."

Kadeem eyed the rest of them solemnly and declared: "You're free to go home now".

Nobody questioned his order but disappointment and relief hung thickly in the air. They left one by one, leaving Kadeem and Miles alone among the trees.

"I'll help you take care of the body," he said quietly, sorrow in his voice.

Kadeem gave a somber nod and together they began to walk back towards the clearing where Theo lay dead, their feet crushing the leaves beneath them, the smell of death growing stronger as they went.