Bane of Tenebris (Wolfgods Book 2) by Blaise Ramsay (i love reading books txt) 📕

Kain didn’t reply. He enjoyed the feeling of being touched, of her in a moment where she didn’t appear afraid of him. “Is this something you want to tell me right now?”

Tala shook her head against his back. “It can be later, but it has to be tonight. Please.”

Kain didn’t know whether to feel relieved or concerned at what Tala had to tell him. He promised her they’d speak later and kissed her forehead before leaving on his run.

Kain chose a trail close to Damien’s house known as the “Wood’s Edge” to go for his run. It was a place many lycans knew since they tended to hold their First Moon events there, where pups who learned to shift presented themselves to the alphas of their packs.

The farther Kain ran down the trail, the higher his sense of caution rose. Around him, nothing moved, the lifeless woods reminding him of the day the werewolves arrived at his cabin.

He stopped, closing his eyes to reach his senses into the space around him. A malevolent presence filled the air.

Kain opened his eyes, his brows crunched into a scowl. “You can stop cowering in the shadows.”

A cackle erupted from the branches above Kain, echoing in the emptiness of the forest.

From somewhere above, the lycan from before dropped to the ground in front of him. “After such a long time, your skills are still so impressive. How’ve you been, my old friend?”

Kain’s frown deepened. “We are not friends, Bard. To what do I owe the displeasure of your company?”

Bard shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. He wore blue jeans, black work boots and a shirt with the skull of a dragon on it. His long, dark hair lay drawn back in the middle of his head in a tight ponytail. Five o’clock shadow darkened his face.

“Oh, come on, is that anyway to greet someone who hasn’t seen you in 200 years?”

Kain remained silent.

A deep grimace distorted Bard’s face. “I guess you wouldn’t reply. How could you after what you did to me!”

“You deserved execution for your treachery. Be grateful all you lost was your forearm,” Kain replied without emotion.

Bard laughed a wicked laugh. “You’re still such a self-righteous prick. Enjoy it. You have no idea what’s coming. I can’t wait to see you shatter and fall to your knees. You and that pathetic pup of a Purifier you care so much about.”

Kain moved with a speed so fast, Bard couldn’t respond. He pinned the lycan against the base of a tree. Bard struggled to try and get free. “You will never speak Damien’s name. Someone who lacks loyalty has no right. Now get out of my sight before I tear your throat from your body.”

Bard fell to the ground, snickering between gasps. “Like I said, I can’t wait to see you broken.”

Kain watched Bard shift and flee into the woods.

Concerned, Kain shifted into his full lycan form and sprinted as hard as he could back to Damien’s house.

Kain arrived home to see Tala holding a pup, humming to her as she rocked the porch swing back and forth. The smile on her face made Kain’s heart pound. One side of her neck lay exposed, silently pleading for him to pepper it with kisses.

He glanced at the rose bush, deciding to pick one and sneak around the house to his room so he could shower and put some new clothes on. The last thing he wanted was to gag her with a strong smell of sweat and a foreign lycan.

It took so long to get cleaned to the point it satisfied Kain, he arrived in the hallway in time to see Tala backing slowly out of the pups’ room. In her hand she held a baby monitor.

The timing couldn’t have been more perfect to give her the flower he picked.

He stopped Tala on her way to her room, greeting her warmly and asking if he could join her.

Tala smiled, offering for him to come into her room.

Kain sat on her bed, keeping the flower hidden until the right moment. “You mentioned you had something to tell me?”

Time seemed to slink by while Tala tried to find the perfect words to use. What she had to say could be the end of any chance to be with Kain.

Beside her, Kain waited, his eyes never leaving her. His posture showed he didn’t intend to rush her but was concerned about what she needed to tell him.

“I haven’t been completely honest with you or anyone for that matter,” Tala began, her voice barely above mumbling.

Kain said nothing, remaining emotionless.

“What I told you about my mother was true. She is a lycan but--” Tala sniffled.

“You are a hybrid, aren’t you?” Kain asked, only half-surprised. He’d developed suspicions, but Tala never gave him any direct signs to show the vampire side of her.

Tears began to fall down Tala’s face. She nodded, her stomach sick at what Kain might be thinking. “Not all vampires are blood-thirsty monsters. My father loved my mother. He died protecting us from Anthony.”

Tala turned her body towards Kain. She searched for any sign in his eyes that he might try to kill her. When their eyes met, fear gripped her. She couldn’t see what his emotions were through his eyes.

When Kain reached out his hand, Tala prepared for his claws to tear her to shreds.

Instead she saw a red rose, its thorns removed.

“You have nothing to fear from me,” Kain said in a comforting voice. “Hybrid or not, I do not kill the innocent.”

Relieved, Tala took the rose, cradled it in her hands and sniffed it.

Kain’s fingers guided her face to meet his. His touch light. “I wish to court you, Tala.”

Tala’s eyes widened. She didn’t understand why.

Seeing her confusion, Kain continued, “There’s more to a mate than just strength. I have watched you care for Damien’s children. You are going to be a wonderful mother and a caring mate. That is what I desire