Chapter 17 - Kane

It was a huge relief to Kane for Miley to agree to return to Nightstar, and yet all the way home, his anxiety grew.

The only thing that kept him anywhere close to calm was Miley leaning against his back, her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. The only woman he"d ever had on the back of his bike before was Bonnie, and that had been a matter of life or death; Quinn was the woman in his life, and she deserved to be respected. He wouldn"t just let anyone ride her.

And yet, here he was, with Miley cozying up to him. It felt strange. It also felt right.

It made him all that more determined to make Jack see sense when they returned. What if the alpha rejected Miley from entering the pack?

It didn't bear thinking about, and so he forced the thought away, refusing to think about it again until he finally stood in the woods outside the manor with his men around him.

It had been a long ride back from Grandma Peters"s farm to Nightstar, and he left Miley resting in his room at the manor, but this meeting with the most senior members of his pack couldn"t wait.

"How is she?" Jack asked, sitting on a boulder with one knee up to rest his chin upon it.

"Troubled," Kane shrugged as the others approached through the trees, taking seats on fallen logs or perching against tree trunks all around him in the clearing that had become their meeting place.

"Who wouldn"t be, having to marry you?" Will scoffed and Kane threw him a glower, growling low in his throat.

"That"s not the reason I brought you all here," Kane said, glancing around the men who had laughed at Will"s jest. "It"s far more serious than a marriage arrangement now."

Jack"s foot dropped to the ground, and he growled, "What is it?"

Kane closed his eyes and sucked in a breath.

"The night before she went missing…" he began, eyes still closed. "The night I reported seeing those three werewolves on our territory…"

"Kane, spill it," Jack growled again.

Guilt clawed at Kane"s insides. He had reported seeing the three werewolves, leaving out the fact that Miley had been there in the hopes of saving her a little trouble. Yet it appeared he had only made things worse.

"I didn't just kill the one and chase the others off," Kane admitted, barely daring to open his eyes. "I rescued Miley from them. I thought they had been attempting to…to kill her."

Silence fell. It stretched out until it was deafening. Even the trees seemed to be holding their breath.

"I was wrong," he said, shaking his head. "They weren"t trying to kill her. They were turning her."

There were gasps all around the clearing.

"Why didn"t you say anything before?" Zander demanded, jumping up from where he had been sitting on a log opposite Kane.

"I didn"t realize she had been bitten until last night at the farm, when she was beginning the transition," Kane said, his hands tightening into fists. The way Zander squared up to him made him aggressive on instinct, and it took all he had in him not to return the body language.

"Didn't you see the wound?" Eddie asked, still perched on the fallen tree where Zander had been sitting beside him previously. He leaned his elbows on his knees and rubbed his hands together.

"It must have already healed by the time I made it to the farm," Kane said, meeting the man"s gaze. "I never saw it."

"Then how do you know for sure?" Hanson spoke up where he was leaning against a tree trunk, looking over his fingernails as if only half-interested in the conversation.

"How many humans do you know who sprout fangs and claws under the full moon?" Kane demanded, his hackles rising.

Jack"s hand landed on his shoulder then, and he forced himself to relax. "Has she fully shifted yet?"

Kane shook his head.

"Then we will do all we can to help her and see her through this," Jack said. His gaze was thoughtful. "Is she aware of what is happening to her? Does she know what we are?"

Kane"s stomach twisted. "I haven"t told her everything yet, but she knows enough. She knows she"ll likely die if she isn"t here in Nightstar."

Kane gulped, looking at Jack pleadingly.

He was surprised when Jack squeezed his shoulder and said, "Not to worry. She will be safe here. We will get her through this. She is a member of this pack now."

Kane blinked in surprise. He hadn"t at all expected it to be quite that easy. He almost slapped himself. Of course, Jack wasn"t like most alphas, and his friends weren"t like most werewolves. Even Hanson, who hadn"t been with them very long but had earned their trust a thousand times over, seemed unperturbed.

"In the meantime," Jack said, turning to the others. "We need to figure out whether this attack on Miley was a one-off. If it was, why? If not, why is someone turning humans? It"s against wolf law without consulting other packs in the area and the higher authorities."

The others bounced up and off their perches, standing to attention as if awaiting their orders.

"We stick to the dawn, noon and dusk patrols," Jack instructed, glancing around at them. "Every wolf in the pack old enough to shift will have a patrol duty. No less than three members per patrol. Nobody goes out into the woods alone."

Jack looked at Kane as he said those final words.

"Until we know exactly what is going on and why, Nightstar is on lockdown."

"Yes, Alpha!" the men called loudly.

"Off you all go then. The patrols are already set," Jack said. "Hanson, you have the next, don"t you?"

Hanson nodded, his blonde hair falling forward. He stroked it back with his fingers. "I had intended to take a couple of the newly shifted out to show them the ropes, but I"m thinking now maybe another, more experienced wolf should join me?"

Jack nodded. "Take the newbies, but Will or Eddie will go with you."

"I"ll go," Kane spoke up before either Eddie or Will could say a word.

Jack stepped in front of him and shook his head. "You are staying here. I need to talk to you. And once we"re finished, you"re going back to the manor to rest."

Kane gritted his teeth. How was he supposed to rest with the wolves who had attacked and bitten Miley still on the loose?

Before Kane could argue, Jack turned to the others and ordered, "Go. And be safe."

The others dipped their heads and started to disappear through the trees, back toward the manor.

Kane felt an odd need to follow them. They were headed in Miley"s direction. Though he had left her safe and sound in his room, he didn"t like the thought of any other wolf near her right now.

"Kane?"

It was only when he heard his name that he realized Jack was staring at him with concern.

"Sorry," he said, rubbing his eyes. "It"s been a long few days."

Jack clapped him on the back. "I can see that. What I don"t see is why you were so shocked when I said we"d help Miley?"

Jack looked at him as if he were trying to reach inside him and pull out the truth with his eyes. It made Kane more than a little uncomfortable.

He averted his gaze and kicked the dusty floor with his boot.

"Most packs frown on the bitten," he said, shivering as he remembered all the beatings he had received from previous packs when they had learned the truth about him. "I"ve seen how many werewolves treat mongrels, and I didn't want that for Miley."

Jack took hold of both Kane"s shoulders then, forcing him to look him in the eye as he said, "Bitten werewolves are still werewolves, and they have it the hardest of all. Why should we make things any harder for them?"

A lump formed in Kane"s throat. He had always loved and respected his friend and alpha since the day he had the opportunity to join his pack after their first black ops mission together, but never in a million years had he expected to feel for him what he felt now.

The bond of brotherhood had always been deep, but now it felt bottomless.

With a lump in his throat and a tear in his eye, Kane pulled Jack into a tight, brotherly embrace.

"Thank you, Jack. You have no idea how good it is to hear you say that."

When he pulled back, Jack's expression was a mixture of surprise and even a little suspicion.

"Are you alright, brother?" Jack asked, holding Kane"s arms.

Kane smiled. "Yes. In fact, I don"t think I"ve ever been better."

Jack scoffed at that, rolling his eyes. "With everything going on, only you could find happiness in it all."

Kane laughed at that. It was about time he found some, no matter where it came from.

Jack released him and stepped out of the way. "Go on, off to the manor with you. Go and check on Miley. She shouldn"t be left alone too long."

Kane"s stomach twisted. The alpha was right. He dipped his head and started to make his way across the clearing, only stopping when he realized Jack wasn"t following.

He paused and looked back over his shoulder. "I thought you said nobody is to be in the woods alone?"

Jack bared his teeth at him, though the gesture wasn"t entirely unfriendly.

Kane laughed when the alpha began to follow.

They walked in silence back to the manor and parted with only a dip of their heads before Kane hurried inside to check on Miley.

It was only when he turned the corner in the upstairs hallway and caught sight of his bedroom door that his heart sank. It was open. And inside, Miley"s scent was fading.