“Raith!” October shouted, drove forward, and stilled completely, releasing a torrent of scorching lava into Raith’s convulsing channel. “I feel…”
“Yeah, me too,” Raith mumbled when his mate collapsed on top of him.
He petted October’s hair and closed his eyes, flinching every few seconds as memories began flooding his mind, bombarding him until he felt he was drowning beneath the waves. Yes, he had been named Rastas. He’d also been a cocky, arrogant, selfish piece of shit. The one thing he’d had going for him was October, and gods but he’d loved the man like nothing and no one else.
“I remember.”
“And?” October wiggled around until he was on his side, pressed chest-tochest with Raith. “I feel like I’m on fire. Is that normal?”
Raith chuckled and ducked his head to kiss his lover’s nose. “It’ll pass. I can feel your heart beating.” He pressed a palm over his own chest. “Right here.”
“I feel it,” October agreed. “It’s strange, but kind of nice.” He pressed a little closer. “What do you remember?”
“Everything, I suppose. Though, it’s coming in bits and pieces right now.” Lifting one hand, he cupped the side of the vampire’s face and smiled. “I remember that I would have done anything for you, and it only makes me love you more now. I get it now, babe.”
“Do you remember the last fight we had?”
“You were going to a pack meeting, being very secretive like always. You were refusing to claim me.” Raith sighed and brushed the pad of his thumb across October’s cheek. “That was unacceptable to me. I had an idea of why you were so adamantly against binding us, and I got it in my head that I was going to fix it. We both see how that ended.”
“It doesn’t matter. That was then and this is now. We just have to work harder to make sure that history doesn’t repeat itself.”
“Speaking of history repeating, are you ready to kill me?”
October wrinkled his nose and slapped at his chest. “Don’t say it like that.”
“How would you say it?” Raith asked around his laughter.
His lover regarded him seriously, even pushing up on his elbow so that he could press the endsof their noses together. “I’m saving you.”
* * * * After a prolonged shower that resulted in another mind-blowing orgasm, Raith finally managed to keep his hands off his mate long enough for them to dress and make their way up the stairs.
“Uncle Raith!” Wren jumped up from the sofa and pumped his fists in the air. “I’m kickin’ Uncle Kieran’s butt!”
“Wren!”
His eyes went wide, and he turned guiltily to see Aslan standing just behind him. “Oh, hi, Dad. Uncle Raith is up.”
“I see that, but that doesn’t excuse your language.”
“What?” Wren bounced up into Kieran’s lap. “I just said butt.”
Quiet as a mouse, Kaito rose from the floor and crossed the room to stand right in front of Raith. “I was waiting for you.”
“Oh?” Raith knelt to the floor and folded his hands in his lap. “Did you want to talk about something?”
Kaito bobbed his head. “I gots a question.”
“You have a question,” October corrected gently as he crouched down beside Raith. “What did you want to ask, sweetheart?”
“So, you’re my daddies now.”
Raith exchanged a look with his lover, turned back to Kaito, and nodded. “Yes, if that’s what you want.”
“Soooo…” He dragged the single word out and trailed off as he lifted his thumb to his mouth and began chewing on the nail.
“No one is going to be mad at you,” October said, still speaking softly. He took Kaito’s tiny hand and pulled it away from his mouth. “You can ask anything you want.”
“Can I call you Daddy?” Kaito blurted.
Raith’s heart almost exploded inside his chest, and a look of total amazement washed over October’s face. “I’d like that very much, Kaito.”
Unable to speak past the lump in his throat, Raith just smiled and bobbed hishead in agreement. Kaito’s shy behavior vanished, and he crawled up on Raith’s knee and bounced happily. “Daddy, can I have some mokey cheese?”
“Uh, sure.” Raith frowned and looked to October for help, but his lover looked just as clueless as him. “What exactly is mokey cheese?”
“Macaroni and cheese,” Aslan answered through his giggles. “You really need to learn to speak preschooler.” He motioned Wren and Kaito to him. “C’mon, guys, you can help me make it.”
“Yay!” both boys squealed together as they darted out of the room after Aslan.
“Is that a good idea? Should they be in the kitchen while he’s cooking?”
Raith rolled his eyes and bumped his shoulder to October’s. “Relax, Mr. Overprotective. He’ll be fine.”
The words were barely past his lips when a huge boom shook the windows, and twin screams echoed to them from the kitchen. Lightning flashed outside the windows, followed by another crack of thunder, and huge raindrops pelted the glass as the winds roared just beyond.
“I don’t like it!” Kaito yelled as he ran back into the living room with his hands clapped over his ears. “Make it stop!”
Scooping his son into his arms, Raith held the boy against his chest and stroked his hair. “It’s just a storm, little man. We’re perfectly safe inside.” He walked closer to the window and urged Kaito to look out at the driving rain. “See? It can’t get us in here.”
Lightning struck again, and Kaito yelped as he burrowed in closer and hid his face against Raith’s neck. “I don’t like it!”
His cell phone vibrated in his pocket, and Raith sighed. It was most likely news from Gideon, and he really needed to take it. Passing Kaito off to October, he fished his phone out of his jeans and strode toward the foyer for some privacy.
“Raith.”
“Hey, man, it’s Gideon.”
“Did you find Mikko?”
“Well, we’re guessing it’s your brother. He’s unconscious, and he doesn’t look good, man. He’s hooked up to all kinds of wires and shit. We’re going to have to get a medic in here to move him.”
“Whatever you need, Gid.” It was what Raith had expected, so the news wasn’t shocking to him. “Don’t worry if you can’t wake him up. Just get him to Casper.”
“You got it. It’ll probably be another two days, but I’ll call with an update when the medics get here.”
“I appreciate it, man. Let me know if you need anything.”
“And?” Torren asked as he, Lynk, and Thane gathered around him the second he disconnected the call.
“They found Mikko. They need a medical team to transport him, but it looks like you need to prepare a room.”
“That’s five of us,” Thane said.
“Not even half of us,” Lynk added.
“We’ll find the rest.” That was Torren, always assured no matter the situation. “Let’s go tell everyone the good news.”
“Hey, can you guys keep an eye on Kaito for a couple of hours while we go talk to the faerie?”
“Do you even have to ask?” Lynk glanced over his shoulder to where October was walking Kaito around the room and murmuring softly to him. “He’s a great kid, and he needs you. Congratulations, Raith.”
Raith grinned as he remembered October’s earlier words. “Thanks. He’s special, but I don’t think he needs us nearly as much as we need him.”
Chapter Sixteen
“No, no, hell no, absolutely not!” October ranted when they were in Raith’s truck and driving back toward the Council house. He didn’t give a flying fuck what Camdin or Layke thought they knew. They’d both lost their goddamn minds, and he wasn’t having any part of it.
“Tober, it makes sense,” Raith replied in a coaxing tone. “ It has to be someone I’m close to in order to detach the magic. I’ve heard of this before.”
“No.” “C’mon, babe, how is this any different than poison or a spell or somethi
ng?”
October’s mouth fell open, and he gaped at his lover. “Are you serious? What’s the difference? The difference, my love, is that I wouldn’t be the one that has to drive a dagger through your fucking back!”
“You’re kind of hot when you get angry.”
“You are an ass.”
“It’s not that big of deal. Besides, you wouldn’t be stabbing me in the back.”
“No, just your heart.That’s so much better.” Crossing his arms over his chest, he sagged back in his seat and huffed in agitation.
Raith laughed, actually freaking laughed, and October was beginning to debate his stance on the whole Ican’t-kill-my-mate thing. “I get that, but you’re blowing this out of proportion. We’re bound. You can’t really kill me.”
“That is beside the point.” October shifted around in his seat so he could look at Raith. “Could you do it? Could you kill me?” “If it was to save your life? Yes. I’d do it in a heartbeat.” “Liar.”
Raith shrugged and kept his eyes on the road. “The full moon is in two days. I don’t technically need you. One of my brothers will do. I’ve been an ass to Torren for long enough that I’m sure he’d more than happy to take your place. It just has to be someone I have a connection with.”
“Fuck you, Raith.”
“I love you, too, dear.”
The gods above, was he actually considering this? He had to take a silver dagger, drive it into his mate, whom he loved more than anything, and watch the man bleed out on the ground. Then there was the little part where someone had to bind the dark magic when it detached itself from Raith. October assumed one of the resident witches would handle that, because he didn’t have a clue where to even start.
“Is there something you’re not telling me?” No, he didn’t know squat about magic, but he didn’t see how any of this was magical to begin with. There was no incantation or special potion. No candles or drinking of blood. He was just supposed to kill Raith and hope for the best.
“Nope.”
“Liar. You could at least try to sound believable.”
“Will you do it?”
“Are you going to tell me what you’re hiding?”
“No.”
October sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. What choice did he have? He could badger Raith for the information, but he doubted it would do him any good. He could refuse to go through with it, and Raith would just find someone else.
“Yes, I’ll do it.”
Raith reached over the center console and took his hand. “Thank you.”
“I said I’ll do it, but that doesn’t mean I like it. I also don’t like secrets, Raith. And finally, don’t thank me, not for this.”
* * * *
“Papa, where are yougoing?” It had been three days since Kaito had started calling them “Papa” and “Daddy.” He’d chosen the names himself without any direction from him or Raith. It still made his heart swell, and a goofy smile spread over his face whenever he heard it. October imagined it always would.
He’d never really thought about having a child. When he’d finally admitted to himself that he preferred a more masculine touch, he’d kind of written off ever being a father. Plus, there was the little fact that he knew absolutely nothing about children.
As Torren had explained to him, though, no one really did. He could read books until his eyes bled and ask a thousand different questions about raising a child. At the end of the day, it would come down to his gut instincts, and what he felt was best for his child. No matter how much knowledge he gained, in was inevitable that Kaito would do something—probably on a daily basis—to surprise him.
“ Me and Daddy have something very important to do. You’re going to stay here with your uncles and play with Wren.”
“Okay.” Kaito linked his fingers together behind his back and rocked forward on his toes. “When can we go home?”
“Don’t you like it here?”
“I like it. I just want to go home. I miss Uncle Gideon.”
“I have a secret. Do you want to hear it?”
Kaito nodded eagerly, making his dark hair bounced around his angelic face.
October bent from the waist andkissed his son’s forehead. “Uncle Gideon will be here in about an hour.”
“Really?”
“Yep.”
“Yes!” He threw both hands into the air and danced around in a circle. “Papa?”
“Yes, sweetheart.”
“Can I go with you and Daddy?”
“No, not this time. Besides, I thought you wanted to see Uncle Gideon.”
“I do. I just miss you when you go away.”
Good grief, the kid had an uncanny ability to melt him. “I’ll miss you, too, Kaito. We won’t be gone very long, though, and you’re going to have lots of fun here. I think Uncle Aslan is going to make cookies.”
“Hot damn!”
“Excuse me?” October stepped back and arched an eyebrow. “Where did you hear that?”
“Daddy said it.”
“Uh-huh, well, you shouldn’t repeat everything your daddy says. I don’t want to hear you say that again.”
“Yes, sir.” His dropped his head and scuffed his barefoot across the carpet. “Can I go play?”
This parenting business was hard. October hated feeling like the bad guy, but he also didn’t want Kaito to grow up to be a delinquent. “Yes, you can go play.” He brushed the hair back from the boy’s face and sighed. “I love you very much, Kaito.”
Lifting his head, a smile bright enough to rival the sun lit his face. “I love you, too, Papa.” Then he turned and sprinted down the hallway, yelling Wren’s name the entire way.
“I think you just got played,” Raith said with a chuckle as he sidled up behind him and kissed his nape. “Are you ready to go, babe? It’s almost the witching hour.”
No, he was nowhere close to being ready for the trial ahead of them. “Let’s get this over with.”
They didn’t need to travel far, just a great enough distance to be out of sight in case one of the children happened to peek out the window. “Where are the others?”
Raith pointed toward the tree line they were approaching. “Torren and Lynk are waiting for us in there.”
“And you’re still not going to tell me what you’re hiding?”
“The moon has almost crested,” Raith said, changing the subject as he gazed up at the clear sky overhead. “At least it’s a nice night.”
He’d listened intently when Camdin had laid out the plan for them, but the unfortunate truth was that he just didn’t speak the language. There’d been talk of bindings, harnessing power from the moon, and something about mirrors. Or was it mirroring? None of it made a bit of sense to him, and Raith obviously wasn’t going to volunteer any information.
“When your part is done, Torren will inject you with an Inhibitor to make sure you don’t shift into your werewolf form. It’s just a precaution so you don’t go all psycho overprotective on anyone.”
As a hybrid, the full moon didn’t call to him as much as it did a full-blooded were or shifter. His skin felt a little tight, and his pulse seemed to be a bit quicker than usual, but he’d never really felt that overwhelming pull to run in the moonlight. “Why would that happen? What are they going to do? Raith, damn it, give me someanswers.”
“Look, it’s just better if you don’t know some things. You are in no danger, okay? This will work. I’m not trying to be a douchebag, but I don’t want you to worry.”
“Are you sure about this?” He was already worried, and Raith’s vague statement did little to calm his anxiety.
Stopping just inside the tree line, his lover barred his path and turned to face him. “There is zero chance that I will bite the big one for good. No matter what happens, no matter if we manage to bind the darkness to something else or not, I will come back to you.”
“Then what are you hiding?”
Raith groused and grumbled under his breath for a
moment before he finally met his stare again. “It’s going to hurt. It’s going to hurt like fucking hell. It doesn’t mean anything to me, though. This is the price I have to pay. You might hear me scream. You might hear bones breaking. You might see some stuff that scares the hell out of you.” He grabbed October by the shoulders and shook him roughly. “Whatever you see or hear, do not step foot inside the circle. Do you understand?”
“You can’t ask that of m—”
Raith shook him again. “Do you understand? Promise me, Tober.”
Pain and death hadn’t fazed him much, but this part of the ritual definitely had Raith freaking out. His eyes were huge. October could hear his heart racing. His fingers bit into October’s shoulder, and he was trembling clear down to his toes.
“I promise, but at least tell me why.”
“When I die, the borrowed magic, the magic that isn’t mine, will leave my body and look for another living vessel to bind itself to. No one can be inside that circle but me.”
“But won’t it just attach to you again once you’re revived?”
“That’s the idea, and that’s also why it’s going to hurt.” Raith grinned all cocky and selfassured. “You are about to witness one kickass battle.”
“Move your asses,” Torren called from somewhere deeper in the forest. “We’ve got seven minutes until midnight.”
“That’s us, babe.” Raith pecked his cheek quickly and took off in the direction of his brother’s voice, leaving October to follow behind him.
“I don’t know if I can do this.”
“I love my brothers, and I know they love me. I have the strongest connection to you, though. We share a soul. It doesn’t get much deeper than that. Your blood will give us the best chance ofsuccess.”
“You know, your seventy-two hours were up a while ago. I think I should go back to making the decisions in our relationship.” The very first one would be to toss this plan out the proverbial window and find another, less violent way to rid Raith of his burden.
“How about we just compromise and work together?”
“I can live with that. I won’t kill you, and you won’t die. There, that’s compromise.”
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