Cage

by Rachelle Stevensen

  Cage shook his head, *No.*

  The voice gave another chuckle, *You are welcome. I know this wasn’t what should have happened. I don’t think the blood you got was supposed to manifest as it did inside you. That it made me. But I’m afraid you will never be back to that child again. I will always be here. At your side. Forevermore.*

  Cage put his hand to his head, *I don’t like it. You shouldn’t be able to talk to me. My wolf has never spoken to me like this. How can I hear you?*

  *I am not a wolf. My Sire was a vampire. You have both of us now. Your wolf and I. We are one and the same. You will have the fur of a wolf but walk upright like a man. And you can talk to me like I can speak to you. I know your thoughts. I also know the thoughts of any person I choose.*

  Cage went still again, *Is that what a vampire can do? Hear people's thoughts?*

  *I can. The only person I cannot hear is our mate.*

  Cage went still, *We can’t hear our mate? Why?*

  The voice went quiet and then, *I don’t know. But you met her already? You are still young.*

  Cage sighed, *I have known her for a year now. Wren.*

  *Wren…* the voice purred, *I cannot wait for us to claim her when we come of age.*

  Cage looked down at himself, *I’m too young to think about that. She is my friend and besides, I’m scarred now. And I just lost my parents. I don’t want to think of anything right now. Not even Wren. It hurts too much.*

  The voice sighed, *Fine. I will let it be for now. Sleep, heal. I will watch over you and keep us safe. Always.*

  Cage shut his eyes. This wasn’t what he was expecting. He had no idea that someone would give him something that would change him so completely.

  That could change his animal. He didn’t know it was possible and he had no one to ask.

  He was all alone in the hospital, with his new monster, and wished he could talk to his mom, or hug his dad.

  He thought of the last time he had seen his parents and it made him start crying.

  His mom was covered in blood, a hole in her chest, and his dad’s body was on fire.

  He didn’t want those memories. He wanted the earlier ones. The ones where they had tucked him in bed and kissed him.

  Had told him a story and let him know that he was loved.

  He didn’t know how long he had been in the hospital before they found his uncle and aunt. It had to have been only days. And the first time they had come in his room, Cage had cried in their arms.

  They were kind and loved him and Cage was grateful that they were there for him.

  He went back to their house after getting released from the hospital.

  It was different from his house. But only because they struggled for a while to adapt. Cage couldn’t speak and was learning to sign, but it was slow going.

  But one day, he shocked himself and his aunt when he spoke to her telepathically. He didn’t even know he could do that until he did the first time.

  Diana had been doing dishes, and he came into the kitchen and asked if he could help.

  She whirled on him, her eyes wide, and had dropped the plate she had been drying and it shattered on the floor, glass spraying everywhere.

  Bobby, -his father’s younger brother- had run in when he heard the glass shatter, had seen it all over the floor, and picked him up and put him on the counter, and did the same for Diana as they both had bare feet.

  Then he swept the floor, and after all the small glass particles were off the floor he turned to ask what happened.

  Diana had gone pale, “He spoke to me.”

  Bobby gave a slow nod, “Okay? He is learning to sign, that isn’t unusual Di.”

  Diana shook her head vehemently. “No, he spoke to me. In my head. I didn’t know wolves could do that. Mine doesn’t. Does yours?”

  Bobby’s eyebrows raised, “He spoke to you in your head?”

  She nodded and Bobby turned to him, “Can you speak to me as well?”

  Cage shrugged, *What do you want me to say?*

  Both of them went still and Bobby’s eyes widened, “Well. Huh, uh. I. Uh, wasn’t expecting that. Why are you talking to me? You have a wolf, like me. Wolves don’t normally communicate like that. Some mates do, yes, but not all. It’s very rare.”

  Cage had a feeling that they didn’t know he had gotten a transfusion of vampire blood. It happened before they had been told of his parent’s deaths and after he had been in the hospital for a day or two.

  It was something he needed to tell them.

  *When I was in the hospital someone came into my room when I was sleeping. It was right after I was brought in, and I heard the doctors say my burns were too bad and that they didn’t think I would survive it.*

  He looked down, and swallowed, *Whoever they were, they put a vial of blood in my arm with a syringe. It was vampire blood. Maybe they thought it was supposed to help heal me, but it changed me and my wolf instead. I can hear most people’s thoughts now and can share my own. But I can speak only with those my vampire deems worthy. He knows you are my new guardians and has deemed you worthy.*

  Bobby’s jaw dropped open, “What does that mean that it changed you? I can smell your wolf still. I didn’t know that vampire blood would affect someone with an animal already.”

  Cage shrugged, *I don’t know. I thought once you have an animal that’s it. But whatever they gave me changed me. My wolf isn’t the same. I’m not the same.*

  Bobby’s eyes were wide, and Diana said, “How did this happen?”

  Cage shook his head, *I don’t know. I was asleep, too drugged to stop them, and then someone put something in my arm and it hurt. My body changed and I know my animal did too.*

  Bobby looked at Diana, “Can we see the change? Have you changed to your wolf since the fire?”

  Cage shook his head, *I couldn’t in the hospital. My wolf went deep in my head. I was too hurt. Too damaged. The fire hurt me too badly. I’m scared to try.*

  Bobby walked over to him and put his hands on his shoulders, “Cage, no matter what we love you. You are my brother’s son and we both love you as our own. Nothing you do will change that. Not your animal, nothing. You will always be loved.”

  Cage cried for a second and Bobby pulled him into his chest, hugging him close.

  Diana put her hand on his head, petting his hair and rubbing his back.

  “You never have to change again and we will still love you. You are so loved. I swear it.”

  Cage looked over at Diana after she said that and he nodded and she kissed his cheek.

  When he was ready, Cage wiped his tears and got off the table.

  Bobby shut the blinds, and he took off his clothes and called on his monster.

  This shift felt different than changing into his wolf had and he knew it would never be the same again.

  His bones broke, shifted, changed and the fur on his skin was a slightly different color, a little darker and his body grew taller, and then it was over.

  He stood almost as tall as Bobby and he looked down at his arms and saw that they weren’t like his wolf arms at all. They were the arms of a man. Not the legs of his wolf.

  And the half of his body that had been scarred was still that way in his monster form.

  His fur didn’t fully cover those spots and it looked mottled.

  He saw his reflection in a mirror, and it made him want to howl.

  His muzzle was massive and long, as were his canines and his eyes had a red haze behind the brown of his wolf’s eyes.

  His vampire knew how he struggled with the new animal and encouraged him to let it be.

  That he would be at his side no matter what.

  Cage finally broke apart to himself again and fell to his knees.

  His body hurt and he curled into a ball and sobbed. He was supposed to be a normal wolf, and live his life until he could finally claim his girl when he came of age.

  Now? Now he was a monster. He could see it in Bobby and Diana’s eyes.

&n
bsp; He tried to get up, to run out the door and away from his pain, but his body locked up and he stayed on the floor, shaking.

  His body hurting and his skin tight and painful.

  He sobbed even harder when he felt soft hands on his skin, and a blanket coming over top of him.

  Then he was lifted from the floor, and into Bobby’s strong arms.

  He was cradled against Bobby’s chest as they sat on the floor and Bobby rocked him back and forth.

  “Cage, it’s okay. You are okay. You don’t have to be afraid of us. Okay? You just took us by surprise. We had no idea that your animal was so different.”

  Cage just turned his face away and cried harder. He could barely breathe, but he couldn’t stop.

  Bobby finally reached in and cupped his face, gently turning his head to look up at him.

  “Cage. You have nothing to be ashamed of or afraid of. We love you no matter what. Even though your animal changed, we don’t love you any less. We love you more. Your parents would be the same. You may be different, but that doesn’t change how we feel about you. You are our boy. And you always will be. Please don’t cry. We were both so shocked to see how changed your animal is.”

  Cage threw his arms around Bobby’s neck, *I’m scared. I don’t want to be a monster. How am I supposed to be normal now? How?*

  Bobby patted his back, “What is normal anyway? Who even thinks that is a thing? I am far from normal and so is Diana. Your parents were too. There is nothing to be ashamed of. You are you. You survived and you are different now, but you should never be ashamed of it. Embrace it. Your animal and your vampire know that you are whole.”

  Cage sat up and looked at Bobby, who had tears swimming in his eyes, and then over at Diana.

  She touched his cheek softly, “We love you, Cage. As you. All of you. You are a miracle. For us and your parents. They struggled to get pregnant, and when your mom had you, we all celebrated with her. Bobby and I have never been able to have pups either. And yet, here we are. With the most perfect one. You have gone through so much in your short life, and you shouldn’t have had to endure what you have. You never have to worry. Your uncle and I are going to love you no matter what. It’s what we are here for.”

  He reached over and hugged her too and they sat like that for a few minutes until Cage pulled back, *Thank you. For wanting me. For loving me, even though I’m different.*

  Bobby smiled at him and chucked him in the chin softly, “Cage. You are such a good kid. You are a blessing and we are grateful you weren’t lost in that fire with your parents. That you survived the burns that would have killed most humans and even some shifters. You are strong. And brave. Braver than I could be.”

  Cage shook his head, *I’m not brave.*

  Bobby lifted his chin again, “I guarantee you are. Don’t question your worth. We will always be here to remind you just how worth it you are.”

  Cage smiled and Bobby helped him get dressed again, they ate dinner together and Cage went to bed, knowing he was safe and loved.

  ---

  He spent the next few weeks at home, with Diana putting lotion on his skin to keep it pliable.

  Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to move as much as normal kids do.

  He was still healing and his wolf did what he could, and his vampire let him know the only way he could really heal is if he drank blood.

  The thought repulsed him so much that he immediately rejected it and pushed the vampire down.

  He wouldn’t drink blood. Not now. Not ever.

  When he was able to go back to school, the kids taunted and teased him.

  Just the first few minutes of the day. Before his friends got there, and then Deacon and Ryke were there, not allowing anyone to speak about him that way.

  They were fierce in the way they defended him. Not letting anyone speak to him in any way except with kindness.

  And then there was Wren.

  She too wouldn’t allow anyone to tease him. She would get in any of the kid’s faces, bigger, taller, it didn’t matter, she would put her little finger in their face and yell at them to leave him be. That he was perfect and they were horrible.

  He would stand by, shocked that she was so fierce in the defense of him.

  And to his surprise, she also wouldn’t let him push her away.

  She learned to sign to speak to him and was better at it than Deacon and Ryke were.

  They didn’t need to sign as much because Cage could speak to them as much as he could before. It was just different now.

  They were shocked at first, but Ryke loved it and Deacon would grin this sly grin when they would talk in class.

  Life was starting to slowly return to normal.

  He finally showed Deacon and Ryke his animal and the two of them were even more excited. Not seeing a monster at all.

  It was rare for Cage to change because he knew how different he was, and he didn’t like to call attention to himself.

  He knew that someday he would have to show Wren.

  This day was not that day though and he was content just watching her play and being her friend.

  It was all he needed.

  Chapter One

  Cage

  A Few Years Later.

  Going into high school wasn’t easy. He struggled with the new scents, and voices every time he stepped through the doors.

  Thankfully their high school wasn’t very big and that he had most of the same classes with Ryke and Deacon.

  Deacon had lost Riley earlier in the year and had spent most of the summer in a bad funk.

  Cage hated it so he and Ryke did their best to keep his mind off the loss of his mate.

  He didn’t know how he would handle it if he weren’t able to see Wren everyday.

  Though by now, he had pushed her away. His body was starting to want things he shouldn’t and he craved her.

  All of her. Her body and her blood. It sang to him with a note of sweetness that he couldn’t find anywhere else in the world.

  It was hell on earth whenever he was near her and he fought daily with his monster to keep him at bay.

  They all knew that she was too young, but Cage’s vampire was anything but.

  For some reason, when he manifested inside Cage, he was already grown. Unlike Cage’s wolf.

  And his vampire was hungry. Always. Cage had slowly started to drink blood from animals and it helped him to heal the rest of his body. But the damage on his skin and the scars were too deep to heal entirely.

  His vampire assured him that someday, they would fade. Scars always did when you had a steady stream of blood.

  Cage was skeptical and didn’t want to try it. He was set with the small animals he caught and would only drink what he needed and nothing more.

  His vampire wasn’t too happy with that, and would always try for more, but Cage had none of it and would push it down deep inside his head, and locked it away until it knew that he was in charge.

  Not the other way around. It was weird. Normally vampires were one and the same with the person, but in his case it was so different.

  He knew that too. He had looked up if there were hybrid wolf/vampire mixes and there was nothing.

  Not a single case. Once a person was infected with vampire blood, they became a vampire.

  Same with a wolf. No one had heard of a wolf and a vampire becoming one.

  Cage wanted to yell. He was so frustrated. All he wanted was answers.

  Yet, none came. He just had to figure it out for himself.

  And as the years slipped by, he was no closer to figuring it out.

  He just went to school, talked to Ryke, Deacon and Tegan. That was it.

  He knew Wren wanted to talk to him, but he avoided her at all costs.

  He didn’t want to get close to her. Even sitting as far away from her as he could.

  He joined the football team with Ryke and Deacon and worked out to get rid of as much tension as he could.

  It wasn’t always a fail safe, b
ut it helped a lot.

  He knew that with the constant movement of football and his work outs, it calmed his monster.

  He tried to keep as busy as he could. It helped. Some.

  He went through the motions most days and Bobby and Diana were worried on these days.

  But he let them know he was trying. They always accepted his word for it.

  When Ryke’s family got attacked, much like his own had, it was like a sense of deja vu. He didn’t like it.

  But Ryke’s parents went missing, not killed. At least that’s what they thought.

  Ryke and Tegan had been out camping, wanting a small get away.

  They were only in the woods behind the house, and Ryke had heard someone break into the house.

  He told Cage that he made Tegan stay hidden and then he ran to the house, but when he made it there, he was too late.

  The people who had taken his parents had already come and taken them.

  They had only made noise as they were leaving. But the damage had been done.

  The house had been torn to shreds and there were drops of blood in their parents bedroom.

  Ryke had fallen to his knees and hated that his parents had been taken and that he couldn’t have helped them.

  He had gone into such a rage that he almost broke the house apart when he changed into his dragon.

  Cage had been out in the woods as his monster when he scented Ryke’s dragon and heard his thoughts.

  He rushed over there and found Tegan, sitting out in his small sleeping bag, shivering and sobbing.

  Cage had gently picked up Tegan and brought him to the house and Ryke had forced himself to change back.

  It wasn’t easy on his friend and when Cage had changed back as well, he hugged Ryke tightly to his chest and let him know he would always be here.

  That he would help with Tegan in any form.

  And that had been that. The state had tried to come after Tegan, but Cage was there and sent them away with his powers.

  Ryke couldn’t handle that. It would have broken him.

  They ended up coming to live with Bobby and Diana until Ryke turned eighteen and wanted to move out and live on his own.