Kain nodded, sitting in the lounge chair next to the fireplace.
“Well, that’s who he’s dating. From what he says, they’re pretty serious.”
“From what I remember, Sarah’s a nice girl. She came into the bowling alley with her daughter a few times,” Kain said.
A brief silence overtook the room.
“You don’t look like you’re feeling well at all. I’ve never seen it this bad. What’s going on?” Damien shook his finger at his friend. His eyes held a sense of warning. “Oh and don’t try to tell me not to be concerned.”
“I just finished setting up for dinner. Would you like some?” Kain said, changing the subject.
“No thanks, I hunted before I got here. Wouldn’t mind troubling you for some hot tea, though.”
Kain departed to the kitchen, returning with a steaming cup of steeped tea. He handed it to Damien and made himself a plate of food before going upstairs to retrieve a leather book. His hand roamed over the cover, his brow creased at the memories it held.
It was time he told Damien about the cause of his scars. The reason he chose to seclude himself and why he looked so pitiful.
Inhaling a deep breath, Kain returned to the living room, setting the book down in front of Damien.
Damien looked at the book, then at Kain, his brow raising.
Kain exhaled through his nose. “Open it.”
The pages cracked, their surface worn and yellowed. Words scrawled in ink lay coupled with etchings.
Kain watched while Damien looked through the pages. “My family is unlike any other of our people. We carry a heavy burden placed upon us countless centuries ago.”
The tightening in Kain’s chest forced him to stand. He stared into the fire. Ghosts of his past danced in the orange flames flickering in his emerald eyes. “It began long before my time. Vampires out-numbered us on almost every battlefield. Our royal line staggered on the brink of extinction. My ancestor knew if the genocide did not stop, we would lose our direct link to Tenebris.
“My father told me my ancestor cried out to the Night Father amongst the decay and rot of the battlefield. Tenebris met Velkin and despite his desire not to, struck a bargain with him.” Kain’s voice lowered. “My fate was sealed that day.”
He grew silent, his thoughts drifting to a forlorn past.
“You’re doing it again,” Damien said, closing the book.
“Doing what?”
“Not telling me what you’re thinking. You started this, now tell me everything.”
Kain shook his head, trying not to snicker. “On my eighteenth birthday, my father told me what our family expected of me. We argued, and I ran from him. Truth is, I thought of ending my life. Dreamed of trying to run away. In the end, I decided to make the most of the life I was given.”
Kain looked over his shoulder at Damien, eyes stern and emotionless. “I would fight until my time came. Not only to protect my chosen, but for my people. I became a mentor to many, adopted father to others.”
“You’re protecting someone? Is that why you have so many scars?” Damien asked.
“Yes. As long as I live, Barghast cannot attack the one I am protecting. I cannot say who. It is forbidden according to the terms of the bargain. What I can say is I want to live out the rest of the short time I have in peace.”
Damien jumped from his seat and shouted, “You left to die alone! How the hell can you think I’d be okay with this? You disappeared for a fucking year without as much as a phone call!”
“I did. I knew you would be upset. That is why I left without letting anyone know.”
Damien threw a fist only to have it caught right before it hit Kain’s face. Kain shoved it aside. He grunted when Damien followed up with another hit at impressive speed, connecting with Kain’s jaw making him stumble.
“You’re a piece of work. You really are. You bastard,” Damien said.
Kain wiped the back of his hand across his jaw. “Glad you think so.” He laughed, embracing Damien. “It’s good to see you, brother. Your skills have improved.”
“Thank you.” Damien held Kain tight. “Is there no way to stop it?”
Kain pulled away, shaking his head. “Only through my death can the chain be broken. I am sorry, Damien. Believe me, I wish there was another way.”
Damien turned his back. His shoulders trembled, his knuckles popping the tighter he clenched his fists. “I’m not giving up. I’ll keep looking for a way to fix this until you draw your last breath.”
Kain sat back down in the chair and took a bite of his dinner. “How’s Gabriel? Does he have any plans to restore his gym?”
Damien grumbled as he paced the floor, his hand on his hip. The other ran the length of his short, dark hair to the back of his neck. “Gabriel and I don’t really talk. I’m not sure he actually likes me.”
Kain stood and started collecting dishes. “Really? He seemed grateful to you following the battle with Lilith.”
“Yeah, well, old habits die hard, I guess,” Damien snapped, jerking his head to glare at the elder lycan.
Understanding the underlying meaning, Kain retired to the kitchen to place the dishes in the sink.
In the kitchen, the onset of a searing pain in his chest sent Kain to his knee. He squeezed his eyes closed as he reached to grip his chest. His lungs burned with each attempt to take in a breath.
“Kain!” Damien yelled and rushed into the kitchen. He fell to his knee next to his friend.
“I’m fine,” Kain said, using the counter edge and Damien’s body to stand.
“What the hell, Kain?” Damien asked, helping Kain sit down in one of the wooden chairs next to the round table in the kitchen.
Kain waved Damien off, cradling his forehead with his hand. “Damien, please. Do not push this. I need you to trust me.”
Damien threw up his arms. “It’s not you I don’t trust, you idiot.”
Kain looked up
