The Doctor looked over at Kol, “You were the one who helped me find the shifters at my old facility. Aside from the first two that is. But now you grow a conscience? I think not.”
Kol hung his head, “I only helped you because I had no other choice. You held something over my head and I thought I was doing the right thing. That doesn’t mean I was okay with any of it. I lived with putting those people in harm's way. In your way. I have punished myself for it, but I will not let you experiment on Cage.”
The Doctor walked over to Kol and laughed in his face, and held Kol’s face in his hands, “You should have thought about that when you gave him blood and changed him. You told me that you have never met a hybrid.”
Kol shook his head, “I didn’t know he was. I had no idea it would change his animal. I was only helping him to survive. Don’t do this. You have your research still. I know you had it somewhere else. Not just in the facility that I burned to the ground. Please. He doesn’t deserve this.”
The Doctor laughed again, “You will have tonight. That is all I will give you, to say goodbye. To let go of your guilt. This is happening.”
Kol snarled and the Doctor shoved a syringe into Kol’s neck and Kol slumped deeper into the chair, his eyes closing.
Cage fought against his bonds, and the Doctor walked up to him, pulling another syringe out of his pocket, and sticking him in the neck also.
Cage felt the medicine flow into his veins and he shut his eyes, pretending to sleep.
He didn’t feel the medicine work like it had with Kol, and while it made his muscles feel heavy like it had before, he wasn’t asleep. Only pretended to be.
He kept his eyes shut and his body lax like he was out though.
They should have used the taser on him again. But because they believed the medicine worked they left him be and he heard everyone file from the room, and the door shut.
He could hear the men talking in the next room.
“You need to destroy him. He shouldn’t be alive. He is a freak amongst our kind. An anomaly. He shouldn’t be allowed to live or reproduce. If he finds a mate who knows how tainted our line will be then?”
Another voice said, “We should have killed his grandmother when we had the chance. The second it was confirmed that her mate was a wolf she should have been destroyed. She is the one who tainted our perfect blood lines with that mutt. And now look? That man is an abomination.”
He knew that he was different, but he never thought he was an abomination.
Well, maybe he had. Before he mated Wren, he thought he was strange. A monster.
His vampire growled in his head, *We are not an abomination. They just don’t understand us.*
Cage knew his vampire was right and listened as they went on, “How can we in good faith let him live? No man can be both things. I heard his animal is a monster. One not to be tested.”
Another voice said, “We only need Kol. He is the rightful King as the eldest Vampire, but he too is an anomaly. He has never wanted the throne. But someone has to take it. I’m sure we can find his mate in one of the courtiers in the courts. We just have to get rid of this problem of the hybrid and get Kol on our side.”
Someone sounded like they shook their head, “I don’t think that killing the hybrid will make Kol happy or willing to come to our side.”
The voices all blended together and Cage finally opened his eyes a tiny bit, and looked over at Kol.
The room was empty of everyone, but Cage had a feeling they were being watched and he hated it.
Kol’s form was still slumped in the chair, but he was slowly waking.
Kol let out a groan and Cage said, *Keep your eyes shut. If they know how quickly you wake after giving you that sedative we will be in a world of hurt. We are being watched.*
Kol went still, and Cage could see him force his body to go back lax again.
*Did you get hurt at all? I’m sorry Cage. I didn’t know that they would come for you. Or me.*
Cage knew that. *I know Kol. You aren’t accountable for their actions. They seem to think you are their King.*
Kol went stiff for a second and then lax again, *I will never be their king. Ever. I am not like them.*
*What does that mean? And why am I an abomination in their eyes?*
Kol opened his eyes slightly, *You aren’t an abomination Cage. You are a miracle. Never again will you say that. You could never be an abomination.*
Cage gave a small smile, *Tell me why they want you as their king.*
Kol opened his eyes fully, *They want me as their king because I’m the oldest vampire. That they know of. They haven’t been able to find one older than me. Not even my sire survived much longer after I was made. But I have never wanted that mantle. I have only wished to live my life. I have lived many lives trying to hide from that coven of so called ‘all-powerful’ vampires. They don’t really want me; just want what I can do for them. That I can create more powerful vampire lines with my seed. With the mate they want to try to force on me. But you know good and well that mates are not our choice and that you can’t force a pairing between anyone. Hell, the Doctor tried to take my seed and wasn’t able to do so. Was only able to take the seed from Rogan. Because he was mated. And they were only able to take it forcefully. But none of the other shifters had seed to give them. It made the Doctor angry and took it out on many of them. Poor Knox was the bearer of much of the Doctor’s anger because he always fought against his imprisonment.*
Kol shook his head slightly, *I hate that they went through what they did. Knox won’t acknowledge me now. Is still angry that I told the Doctor where to find him in the first place. Rogan and Rosalina never had a reason to be upset. The Doctor found those two on his own, but everyone else? That was my making. My doing. I was able to read their thoughts and knew who was a shifter. And it brings me shame. I work hard to keep those thoughts at bay, but it does no good.*
He shook his head again, *We are getting off subject.*
He let out a tiny breath, *When I was created, I was in my early twenties. And I was one of the sons of our Jarl in our village. The Eldest son and the next Jarl in line. We were called Vikings by many of the other people we came across in the world. And we weren’t afraid of war. Of pain and hurt. We took what we wanted and that was our life. But our mother taught us to respect those in our tribe. To treat women with respect and with love. I hadn’t yet found the girl I wanted in our tribe, or any of the other places we had raided and while I was lonely and wished for more, I was content. I was a fierce warrior and my father was proud of me. I was set to take over as Jarl when my father died one day. He was a good leader. Wasn’t scared of going to new lands and fighting for the goods we found there. But, one day a friend of my father’s came to visit. With tales of a new land that was ruled by strange men that were fast, evil and drank the blood of their enemies. He told us all that these men wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone who landed on their shores, and that there was a few men lucky to leave with their lives after trying to raid their lands.*
Kol shook his head in sadness, *My father, Ulrik, wasn’t afraid of a challenge and wanted to take over these lands. Though my brother Kai, and I told him it was foolish. That we didn’t want to send our men to their deaths unnecessarily. That there were other lands that called to us. That were not full of men that would kill anyone who landed on their shores. We tried our best to change his mind. To turn his sights elsewhere.*
Kol sighed, *He did not listen. And we went. Took our boats, our strongest warriors and our best weapons and readied ourselves for battle. Like we did whenever we raided a new village. We had our thickest leathers and had painted our faces. We were ready. Prepared for anything. We were ready for the fight the men would give us. But we weren’t ready. Not really. Not for that.*
Cage felt sick to his stomach, afraid of what was going to happen next.
And Kol went on, *When our boats landed, it was still day. And as we trekked into the forests, without being attacked
by anyone, my father boasted that he was right and that it was all lies. All tales to keep men away from a prosperous land and the men started to believe him. Kai and I kept our guard up, as night quickly fell. And it was as if the very bowels of hell opened up. Men came at our warriors from all sides. Men with red eyes, and huge teeth, that were faster than men should be. They tore into our warriors. Ripped men I knew from when I was a young child into shreds in seconds. Warriors that had seen battles from when they were small and survived every one that they faced were taken down in those seconds. The evil men drank from others, sinking massive fangs into their throats from behind and draining them dry.*
Chapter Seventeen
Cage
Hearing about Kol’s past wasn’t something Cage was expecting and he let Kol go on.
Kol shuddered as he did, *We tried to run, to get back to our boat and sail away, to leave the cursed place and warn anyone to never go near it, but we were overwhelmed. And I watched as my father faced off against one of the men there, only to be torn down seconds later, his blood arcing across the ground in a bright wave of red. Kai and I were in shock and we stood back to back, swinging out with our axes, trying to get back to the ship. I knew that Kai had a woman he was courting back at home and shouldn’t die for this. The second we could, I faced off against the men there and held them off so Kai could get back on the boat along with a few of the others, and sail off. I knew Kai didn’t want to leave, but I didn’t want to see my brother die. He didn’t deserve that. I should have stopped it before we sailed to the island, but I didn’t fight hard enough with my father and I failed them all.*
Kol shut his eyes tighter, *When one of the men saw my strength, my bravery in standing alone against all of them to let my men escape, he took pity on me.*
Cage raised his eyebrow, and Kol went on, *He walked up to me, his eyes fading back to a normal color, and asked if I wanted to live. To find out what immortality was like. I told him that there was no such thing, and that if I died, that Thor and Odin would welcome me in Valhalla. The man nodded, ‘So be it.’ He said and faster than I could defend, he shoved me against a tree, and sank his fangs into my throat, draining my blood from me, but as he did so, I clawed at him, fighting for my life and scratched him on his face, making him bleed. The droplets of his blood hit me in the face and ran into my mouth and I swallowed them down in my last show of strength. And then it all went black as I passed out, feeling cold and numb all over. Knowing death was beckoning me into its embrace. But, instead of death, and being welcomed to Valhalla, I woke up in that forest. With the men of my village all around me. All dead, and all drained of blood. The scents were stronger, my sight was sharper than it had been before, and I could smell that the men from earlier had left long ago. I could feel my strength return swifter than I was expecting. And I took one look at the men I knew my entire life, my father, all ripped to shreds and drained of their blood, and I knew I was the one to avenge them. So, I grabbed my axe from the ground, and my father’s sword, and hunted them all down. I killed each one of the men who killed my family and when the man who tried to kill me saw that I was alive, he just smiled as I took his life.*
Cage sucked in a breath, and Kol looked him dead in the eye, *Most believed that my Sire died of old age. That he found some secluded place to live out his life, but the truth was that I took his head from his body myself right after I was made. And then I left that island after burning the corpses in the way of my people. Just because I now craved blood, didn’t mean I wasn’t a Viking, and didn’t give them the respect they deserved. I could only pray that my father and the rest of the men of my tribe made it to Valhalla. As soon as the fire was burned out, I left that cursed land. I knew I was a danger to the people of my village, even though I wanted to see if my brother made it out alive. I left it be and let them believe I died on that island.*
Kol looked at him out of the corner of his eye, *I made a boat and sailed as far as I could away, drinking the blood of sharks and whales and other sea life when they came near my boat. I didn’t die when I was sailing. I no longer needed what most men did to survive, not water, not air. I wanted to die, to finally be welcomed to Valhalla with my family, but I knew the Gods had a reason to give me this gift. That Loki must have cursed me with this. So when my boat hit dry land, I found the first animal I could, and drained it of its blood and lived that way for many years. In solitude. Only drinking the blood of animals. I never went anywhere near humans unless I had to, and I never took blood from anyone unless they were my enemies, and even then, I would only take enough to stun them. I never took any life that didn’t deserve it. But as the world changed around me, I found that living in solitude wasn’t something I could do for long. I was a warrior. Through and through. And I fought for kings, for countries and for continents. I lived all over Europe, Asia and Africa. I know over thirty different languages, some old and some new. And I have seen more than most men could ever see. Have done more in the name of God, the country and the king than I care to admit. And when I could, I left all that behind and came here. Lived my life in seclusion while the world changed again and again, and moved as civilization crept closer to my home. I have more money than I could ever use all over the world. I have homes and castles and land all over it too. But I have never wanted any of it. I just have it because of the many lives I have led trying to be left in peace. And when the ruling coven of vampires came for me after they hunted me down for years, to ask me to be their king, I refused them. I didn’t want that. I had seen too many kings, too much war and I wanted to be left alone.*
Cage’s eyes were wide and Kol sighed, *They didn’t like that I told them no. And they kept asking, and I refused each time. They had no leverage on me. Nothing to give them power to hold over my head to get me to do what they want, and now they seem to think they do. You are the closest thing I have to a family since I lost my father and my brother that fateful day all those years ago. You are so important to me, as is your mate and I will do all I can to get you back to her. Even if it means making a deal with the Devil himself.*
Cage shook his head frantically, *No. I won’t allow it Kol. You belong here. With me. With our crew. Not being their king. And being made to be unhappy for the rest of your life. I won’t let you. I’m okay. Wren will find me. I know it. We will get free and we can live our lives together. You are my Sire. The man who gave me life again. I need you with me Kol.*
Kol shut his eyes, and put his head down, *I don’t know what to do. How to save you. I hate that I put you in this position in the first place. That if I hadn’t reached out to them to ask about your vampire they wouldn’t have found me. Or if I hadn’t given you my blood you wouldn’t be here. It’s all from my choices that you have had a hard life. That you were afraid to claim your mate because I made you a monster.*
Cage sat back, *Kol,*
Kol shook his head, *You know what I say is truth. You know it. I did all of this to save you and I ruined your life instead. I made you something you never asked to be and now? Now I gift wrapped you to the man I hoped to never see again. I’m sorry Cage. I’m so sorry.*
Cage wanted to reach out to Kol, *If you didn’t give me your blood, I would have died. And Wren would have also. She would have gotten sick and slowly wasted away from the mate sickness. Yes, you changed me, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. My monster is part of me. He is strong, fast and capable of keeping my mate safe. My vampire has always known that we were different and I fought against it at first, now all I want to do is embrace those differences. And I will from here on out. I’m not a freak or an abomination. I am Cage Langston Torstein. I am a hybrid. I have a vampire and a wolf inside me. And my life is fucking perfect thanks to you.*
Kol’s eyes went wide, *Do you really mean that?*
Cage nodded, *I absolutely mean that. After the fire, I woke up in the hospital knowing my parents were dead and that I wasn’t going to recover. The doctors whispered that over and over to each other that I was goin
g to die. And they were just waiting for it. But then someone came in, that was calm, and collected. Someone that changed me to my core, but gave me the vampire that took care of me. That loved me and protected me. I didn’t know how lucky I was, but I do now. You made me live and I have a perfect mate and a good life Kol. It wasn’t chance that made you come into my room. It was Fate. It was meant to be. And I wouldn’t change it. Yes, I did have my struggles and was unsure, but once you came into my life, I gained the confidence to finally claim my girl. You helped me with that. You have done all you can to show our crew that you are this amazing person. Don’t doubt yourself. Don’t give in. And don’t sell yourself to the Devil. I don’t want that. I need you. We need you.*
Kol put his head down, *I will do all I can to get us out of here. I want to live my life in my cabin, with my crew. And someday find my mate. I will show them who they are messing with.*
He looked at Cage and Cage nodded, *You don’t fuck with a Torstein.*
Kol’s eyes flashed red, *Exactly. We will show them the way of the Viking.*
Cage felt his fangs drop and his muscles expand and when he went to break his bonds, he heard a massive roar. A dragon’s roar.
And then another. They both froze and looked up at the ceiling, *Is that Ryke?*
Cage looked at Kol, *I don’t know. We haven’t been gone long enough for anyone to notice us gone. Tegan was hurt too badly to follow. If he didn’t die.*
He had to swallow hard at that and push the thought away.
They heard another roar and men filed into the room, with the Doctor in the lead, “Grab the hybrid. Make sure he is sedated and ready to go. How the fuck did they find us so soon?”
Cage snarled at the man that came over to put a needle in him and the man backhanded him in the face.
Cage’s face didn’t move, but looked at the man and let his animal flash in his eyes and felt his fangs lower further, showing him exactly who he was messing with.
Cage Page 13
