Chapter 4 My Bloodline

The lock clicked shut, leaving me in total silence. I ran to the door and pulled on the handle, but it wouldn’t budge.

I was trapped.

Outside, rain poured against the glass windows of the bedroom.

My heart hammered wildly inside my ribs. Marcus was at the border.

If Kane handed me over or if Marcus broke through I would never live to clear my name.

Unable to sit still, I paced across the room.

The blankets on Kane’s bed still carried the faint trace of his heat.

Every time I looked at the bed, my face flushed bright red, remembering the way his gold eyes had dragged over my body, the way his dark, filthy words had made my core tighten with a sudden, shameful ache.

I should be grieving Declan, I told myself, clutching my raw, markless wrist.

My mate bond was destroyed just hours ago.

Yet every time I closed my eyes, it wasn't Declan's face I saw.

It was Kane's smile.

An hour dragged by. Then two.

Just as the first light of dawn began to seep through the window, slow footsteps echoed down the corridor.

The lock turned with a sharp click, and the door swung open.

Kane stood in the doorway.

My breath hitched. His coat was soaked through with rain, and fresh blood was splattered across his jaw and the collar of his shirt.

He looked completely exhausted. But his eyes were burning a wild, unstable gold.

The Blood Rage.

He stepped inside and slammed the door shut behind him.

His chest heaved up and down in shallow breaths.

A low growl vibrated in his throat, a sound so deep and primal it made the glass in the windows vibrate.

"Kane?" I whispered, taking a cautious step back.

He didn't answer.

He stared at me like a predator cornering its prey. His hands curled into tight fists, his sharp knuckles white.

He took a unstable step towards me, his hair dripping rainwater onto the stone floor.

"Did... did Marcus attack?" I asked, my voice trembling.

"Kane, speak to me!"

"He's gone," Kane choked out, his voice rough, barely sounding human.

"Pushed them... back to the river."

He took another step, but his knees buckled slightly. He gripped the edge of a table to steady himself.

The golden glow in his eyes flared brighter, The curse was tearing through his mind, stripping away his control bit by bit.

"Get... away from me, Elara," he growled through gritted teeth, his jaw tight as he fought the storm inside his head.

"I can't... hold it back."

Instead of running, my feet moved on their own. I was a healer.

I had spent my life tending to broken bodies and suffering wolves, and right now, the terrifying Alpha of Blood Fang looked like a man drowning in his own skin.

I closed the distance between us and stepped right into his space.

"Look at me, Kane," I commanded softly.

He snapped his head down, his glowing eyes locking onto mine with terrifying heat.

His heavy breath blew hot against my skin, smelling of fresh blood.

I reached up on my tiptoes and placed both of my bare hands against his cold, wet cheeks.

The moment my skin met his, an intense, blinding shockwave ripped through the air between us.

Kane let out a shar gasp. His body shuddered violently under my touch.

The growl in his throat died instantly.

I felt the electric pulse of magic rush through my fingertips, deep into his veins, cooling the feverish heat beneath his skin.

My core tightened a hot, sweet throb pulsing straight down between my thighs at the sudden, intense closeness.

A deep, helpless blush burned across my face as my own breath caught in my throat.

Kane’s hands came up, wrapping tightly around my waist.

He pulled me flush against his rock hard body, tucking me so close there wasn't a single inch of space left between us.

I could feel every hard muscle of his thighs, the heat coming his chest, and the dangerous length of him pressed right against my stomach.

"gods, Elara," Kane groaned, his voice dropping into a dark, filthy against my ear that sent a violent shiver down my spine.

"You feel so fucking good."

"Kane..." I stammered, my head spinning, my hands trembling where they rested on his cheeks.

"Your eyes..."

He tilted his head back slightly. The wild gold in his eyes was fading.

His ragged breathing slowly evened out as my presence smothered the crazy edge of his curse.

"You quiet the voice in my head," he murmured, his long fingers digging into the soft flesh of my hips, holding me tight against him.

"It’s been roaring for six months, and your touch just killed it."

"I... I told you I'm a healer," I whispered, trying to ignore the way my body flushed against his, the way my heart beat like a wild drum inside my chest.

Kane let out a low chuckle that vibrated straight into my core.

He leaned down, his lips brushing against the sensitive curve where my neck met my shoulder.

"You're not just a healer, little girl," he purred, his tongue flicking out to taste the warm skin of my pulse point, making me gasp aloud.

"You're a drug. And I think I'm going to take a very long time tasting you."

"Kane, stop," I whimpered, though my hands tightened in his hair instead of pushing him away.

"We can't... you don't even like me. I'm a Silver Moon wolf."

He pulled back just enough to look down into my eyes, a possessive smirk curving his dark lips.

"I don't give a damn about your pack," Kane growled softly, his thumb rubbing a slow circle over my hip bone, making my knees feel like water.

"All I care about is the fact that your sweet little body calms my rage.

And the fact that every time I talk dirty to you, your tiny core clamps down tight enough to drive me insane."

My face burned hotter than fire. "You... you shouldn't say things like that!"

"Why?" Kane whispered, his face inches from mine, his eyes staring at me with pure sin.

"It's the truth. Look at you. Blushing like a little virgin, dripping wet just from the sound of my voice."

"I am not!" I snapped, trying to pull away, but his grip on my waist was like an iron.

"Lie all you want, sweetheart," Kane murmured, his hand sliding slowly up my spine, sending waves of liquid heat straight down to my toes.

"Your body doesn't lie to me."

Before I could hurl another insult at him, a soft knock sounded on the bedroom door.

Kane didn't let go of me immediately. He took his sweet time, his eyes holding mine captive for three long seconds before he slowly slid his hands off my waist, letting his fingers brush over my skin as he stepped back.

I stumbled back against the table, fanning my hot face, my chest heaving as I tried to regain my sanity.

"Enter," Kane called out, his voice instantly returning to its cold, dominant Alpha tone.

The door creaked open, and a tiny, elderly woman stepped into the room.

She wore a simple dress, her silver hair pulled back into a tight braid. Her eyes were bright, and filled with a strange, ancient wisdom as they moved from Kane to me.

Elder Ruth.

I froze. She was the oldest living healer in the valley, a woman who rarely left her secluded cottage near the neutral border.

What was she doing inside Fangrock Keep?

"Alpha Kane," Ruth said, her voice dry as she bowed her head slightly.

"I see you survived the night."

"Barely," Kane replied, leaning back against his desk, his arms crossed over his chest.

"What are you doing here, Ruth?"

Ruth didn't answer him directly. Instead, she walked straight past Kane and stopped right in front of me.

She reached out her thin, wrinkled hand and gently grasped my right wrist the one where my mate mark used to be.

I flinched, but Ruth didn't let go. She traced the red skin with her thumb a sad frown carving into her face.

"The Silver Moon mark is gone," Ruth whispered softly. "Just as the moon foretold."

"Elder Ruth, I didn't betray the pack," I pleaded, my voice cracking.

"Marcus framed me!"

"I know child," Ruth said quietly, looking up to meet my eyes.

"Marcus Hale has been weaving his web for a long time. But you must listen to me very carefully, Elara. You are in far greater danger than you realize."

Kane straightened up, his eyes narrowing sharply. "Explain."

Ruth pulled a folded piece of yellowed parchment from inside her cloak and pressed it firmly into my hands.

"Your mother, Lena, did not abandon you when you were five years old, Elara," Ruth revealed,

"She was taken. Because she carried the ancient Moonborn bloodline, the only bloodline capable of breaking the Hollow Moon Curse."

My heart stopped in my chest. "My mother... was Moonborn?"

"And so are you," Ruth said sternly, her sharp eyes locking onto mine.

"You are the last of the Moonborn blood, Elara.

That is why your scent calms Kane's Blood Rage.

And that is why Marcus Hale will burn this entire valley to the ground until he catches you."