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I’m so focused on my thoughts, on this reasoning that he’s not a monster, that when the feeling of his hair beneath my fingers shifts to something else, it takes me a few moments to notice. Weyland and Kaito both make sounds of surprise, but my eyes widen as the warhorse changes before me, morphing from a giant, deadly horse into a very naked man.
I gasp, trailing my eyes up the chest my hand still rests against to a very handsome face. His skin is as black as his hair had been, and the sheen is still there in his flesh. His eyes are as red as they were before, so it’s easy to realize I haven’t gone insane and this is the same creature. A smaller horn, like the one he had before, rests in the center of his forehead, standing proud and deadly. My eyes trail down and . . .
Realizing I’m still touching him, I wrench my hand back and grimace. “I’m so sorry,” I rasp, forcing my eyes to stay completely focused on his face. “You surprised me.”
He opens his mouth and closes it a few times, as if trying to remember the motions of it. When he speaks, it’s with the same voice I heard in my head, only now it feels more strained with disuse.
“There is no need to apologize, little one,” he croaks and clears his throat. “Forgive me. It has been many centuries since I’ve spoken out loud.”
“I . . .” I glance over at Weyland. “Was this part of the stories?”
Weyland shakes his head. “Not that I’ve ever heard.”
“Right. Well . . .” I worry my bottom lip before glancing at Kaito for permission. When he nods his head just the slightest amount, I gesture toward the cabin. “I believe I promised you stew.” My eyes dip down again and I flush, my face warming as I jerk my gaze back up. “Perhaps we can find you something to cover up with as well.”
The beast, the man, looks down at himself in confusion. “I am wearing my flesh. Is this not suitable?”
“I, uh, umm, I don’t know . . .”
“It is customary for humans to cover their nether regions,” Kaito supplies helpfully. “It will make Kai more comfortable if you cover yourself.”
The man’s eyes widen in alarm. “Of course, little one. I would not want you to be uncomfortable around me.”
And that’s how I find myself in a cabin in the Dead Lands with not one, not two, but three monsters. Despite the change in plans, I’m able to sit down amongst all of them without fear, and although I recognize the pain in the newcomer’s eyes, it does not trigger me.
I will not be afraid. I will not be afraid. Shadows, I don’t want to be afraid.
Chapter
Seventeen
DADE
The human woman is intoxicating. I watch as she, along with the water monster, bustles around the small cabin to prepare a bowl for me. I do not remember the last time I felt kindness. I do not remember the last time I ate anything prepared for me or anything other than raw meat for that matter. The scents in the air make my mouth water almost as much as the sight of the woman does.
Kai.
She’s so achingly small and human. So fragile. As she moves, her body strains as if she’s still gathering strength to do the most basic of things. Though the pain is not flashing in her eyes right now, it lingers in the lines of her body, a sign that she’d been mistreated at some point—not by these monsters but by others. I understand those sorts of monsters all too well. The ones who made me were such beasts, monstrous beings who only cared for themselves and their prosperity. If I learn who harmed her, I’ll slaughter her monsters just as I did my own.
I vow it.
“Luckily for you, Weyland is an excellent hunter,” Kai says as she spoons stew into the bowl. “Kaito is also great at fishing, sowe have plenty of food should this not be enough.” She sets the bowl down in front of me. “I just add the seasoning.”
“Which is a job in itself,” the lycan points out with a smile. “The last time I tried to season the stew, we had to throw it out.”
Kai smiles fondly, and I realize she cares for these two deeply. I want her to look at me like that. I want her to smile so big, the pain no longer echoes in her eyes.
“Yes, well, you can’t dump a whole container of salt into something and expect it to taste good,” she teases, and I like it. I like this little family they’ve created. I desperately want to be a part of it, to feel what such companionship feels like again.
It’s been so long.
And Kai, achingly human Kai, calls to me in ways I’ve never felt.
The blanket wrapped around my waist reminds me that I had made her uncomfortable, but her eyes dipped to look down. It had taken everything in me not to stir, not to grab her in my arms and make her mine right there, but something told me that would have been the wrong thing to do. The pain in her eyes speaks of horrors, and like my own nightmares, they are not so easily conquered.
“Your kindness is appreciated,” I say, a long-ago memory reminding me of manners despite the length of time I’ve only been a beast. “I thank you.”
Her small smile aimed at me feels like a victory, more than any war I’ve won, before she settles in front of me. “What do we call you?” she asks. “You know our names, but just in case, I’m Kai. This is Weyland and Kaito.”
