Kaden
had lain there, too afraid to move but reluctant to hurt the dog if it came to that. It had been painfully obvious that the mutt was half-starved and more afraid of losing its chance at a few sparse scraps than it was of
Kaden
. Its ribs were sticking out of its sides and its belly was sucked in so tight from its emptiness that
Kaden
couldn’t even see it from his lower position on the ground.
They’d remained there, locked in their positions, neither one willing to back off, until
Kaden
had involuntarily sent his emotions into the dog, wanting it to know that he wasn’t a threat.
He’d never forget the shock he’d felt when the mutt whined plaintively, then lowered its head to his palm to lick it. After that, it seemed like the more wonder and joy
Kaden
began to feel and project at being able to reach out to the lonely creature, the more the dog began to relax in his presence. It had been liberating and humbling at the same time. He had never been able to project his own emotions before then. It had always been others who projected their emotions through him.
He’d immediately thought of all the ways he could abuse his ability to communicate with animals, just as
Kaden’s
former owner had abused his gift to take advantage of humans and the
weres
in his owner’s clan. But he’d quickly abandoned that thought. This was different.
He
was different.
It had still taken him several days to realise that it wasn’t his gift that was evil—it was the way in which he had used it, or had been forced to use it by others. For the first time in his life, he had begun to feel confident in his ability to bring about good with his power.
It wasn’t until he had stumbled upon Henry’s farm, however, that he’d been able to put it to use for his own personal gain and to afford to support his sister. Starved and sleep-deprived due to the harshness of the cold spring nights,
Kaden
had been heading for the barn in hopes of finding warm shelter for the night. Before he’d made it inside, he’d become entranced by the elegant form of a young stallion in a paddock, a stallion he later learnt Henry had recently purchased to train for racing.
Kaden
had reached out to him, projecting feelings of peace and joy, just as he had been practicing with other, domesticated animals. The horse was different, however. Instead of being filled with fear and trepidation, it was filled with anger and restlessness.
Kaden
perched himself against the gate fencing the stallion in and lost himself in his concentration of sending his feelings to the massive, quivering creature.
The stallion had continued to prance about the large enclosure, wary of his presence. After endless minutes passed, he had opened his eyes to the large head of the horse butting him on the shoulder. Suddenly, the emotions of the stallion were flung back at him, enveloping him in a shroud of anticipation, curiosity and warmth.
It had been the most thrilling moment of
Kaden’s
life.
Feeling another creature as eager to accept him as he was to accept it.
Before long, he’d crawled under the gate to join the horse and they had chased each other around the paddock until
Kaden
had become too tired to continue.
He almost fainted from expending energy he didn’t have due to lack of food, but it had been well worth it. Only when the stallion had reared back and run full speed to the other side of the paddock had
Kaden
noticed the tall man approaching the fence. He’d been about to imitate the actions of the horse and bolt, when he’d heard the first kind words out of Henry’s mouth.
“Son, you must have some shiny, brass balls between those scrawny legs of yours. I
ain’t
never seen a man gentle a wild stallion the way you just did Lightning here. I’m in need of a horse whisperer with your talent. The job’s yours if you want.”
Since then,
Kaden
had been able to use his gift in a way that gave him freedom and happiness like nothing else ever had in his life.
The money and generosity Henry had bestowed upon him had allowed him to collect his sister from the old friend of his mom’s and bring her out to live on the ranch with him. It was like a dream come true. But it was also one he was constantly putting in jeopardy with the attention he drew, no matter how much he tried to make himself invisible.
Kaden
saddled up Mockingbird and took her through her paces, then turned his attention to the other horses he was preparing for a show they were scheduled to perform for in a month’s time. The day was long, and
Kaden
wasn’t able to end it until several hours after sundown, but he was satisfied with his progress and felt safer than he could remember feeling in a long time.
The farm-hand that had stood up first at the breakfast table that morning and punched Jim in the nose had come to him at midday to talk.
Kaden
had shied away at first, but the man had seemed to sense his wariness and stayed a respectful distance away.
Kaden
tried desperately to remember his name—
Tam? Tim?—
before the man spoke, saying, “I don’t exactly know what went on between you and that asshole yesterday, and I didn’t come here expecting to find out. A man’s business is his own. But I want you to know that you can come to me if anyone gives you any more trouble.
Me
and the boys here have seen the miracles you work with these horses, and we’re not inclined to lose you.”
Kaden
, who had always avoided the company of the men he worked around, had stood there in shock, not knowing how to treat this gesture of goodwill. The man—
Tim, yes that was it
—had simply tipped his hat and walked on as if he offered that kind of sentiment on a daily basis.
Well after dark,
Kaden
entered the main house through the back door of the kitchen and grabbed an apple before retreating to the small side apartment he shared with Missy. After finding her fast asleep in her bed, and giving her a light kiss on the cheek, he showered and scrubbed off the layer of dirt and sweat from the day’s hard labour.
Donning a pair of long johns, he crept soundlessly to the living room and opened the window before arranging his blanket on the couch he used as a bed. The bungalow only had a single bedroom, and once he’d brought his sister down, there had been no question as to who would occupy that room. A teenage girl needed her privacy.
He lay there awake, as was his habit, and enjoyed the night’s cool breeze as it wafted over his bare chest, and tried to empty his mind of the painful memories that always plagued him in the silence.
Chapter Two
Kaden
had just started to doze off when he heard odd sounds drifting in through the open window in the living room. He glanced sleepily at the alarm clock on the end table and saw that it was past two in the morning. He contemplated going back to sleep as the noise persisted, but his curiosity got the better of him.
The ranch was usually quiet except for the sounds of insects from midnight to five in the morning, when everyone started to wake for the day. So the fact that he was hearing sounds at this time of the night told him that something was definitely wrong.
Kaden
knew that if it was an intruder, he wouldn’t be able to stop him, but he could at least find out what was going on and report it to Henry if need be.
He changed into a pair of work jeans and a black shirt, leaving his boots off to better traverse the outside area in silence, then slipped out of the house and down the path leading to the barn. The entrance to the building was about thirty yards away and he paused to make sure that the noises were coming from that direction.
He heard what sounded like fierce growls coming from inside and instantly started heading that way, fearing that a pack of wild dogs might have gained entrance and were trying to get at the horses stabled within. He crept up to the sliding doors and noticed that they were cracked open slightly, which meant that someone had to have opened them from the outside.
As he squeezed his slender body through the crack and slid immediately to the side of the doors to remain unnoticed, the sounds of fighting and growling grew louder and
Kaden
was struck by the familiarity of them. He’d heard sounds like these before and, for a
moment,
he was rendered immobile by memories of the past. They swept through him like a tidal wave, threatening to steal his sanity, but he managed to tamp them down before they could consume him.
A sharp, piercing wail broke through the noise of the scuffle, propelling
Kaden
forward. He knew he should run and wake Henry to alert him to the possibility of danger. But, again, curiosity won out and he felt compelled to inch his way forward, staying hidden in the shadows provided by the stall walls.
By this time, the horses had begun to react to the violence occurring so near to them.
Kaden
tried to reach out and project feelings of calmness, but their minds were in a haze, too confused to heed his attempts to bring them peace. When he finally reached the last barrier between him and the figures, the fighting had begun to slow and the growls had lessened in volume.
A sense of dread settled in the pit of
Kaden’s
stomach and the urge to run as far and as fast as possible was almost too much to deny. But he forced himself to
peek
his head out from around the wall he was hiding behind and sucked in a disbelieving breath at the sight before him.
Terror gripped his entire being as, one by
one,
the wolves turned at the noise of his sharp intake of breath and stared at him with eyes that glowed in the moonlight. That’s when their scents hit him. All rational thought left his mind as their identities became clear to
him,
just as he was sure his own identity was recognised by them.
The blood that coated their muzzles, the disembowelled body that now lay lifeless upon the hard-packed earthen floor, the tone of their growls, which had gone from menacing to
excited
upon sight of him—none of this bothered him. He’d seen it all countless times with these very wolves in the past. What had his heart trying to beat its way out of his chest was the fact that they had found him.
Kaden
wanted to scream, cry, shout at them to go away, but he could do none of those things. They had found him, and they would take him back to their Alpha. The thought of the punishment he would receive for running caused a small groan to escape his lips.
The largest wolf, in the middle, whom he knew to be Thomas, shifted to his human form, confirming
Kaden’s
suspicions. He stalked towards
Kaden
slowly, as if he had all the time in the world after committing murder.
Kaden
felt his gaze lower to the man’s waist and his body cower before him, assuming the position of submission that had been beaten into him for years.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding, little half-breed. Alpha Gregory will be so pleased to have you back again. In fact—” he spared a glance for the wolves flanking either side of him—“I think we should remind you of your duties before we take you back. Gregory always was selfish when it came to you.”
Kaden
could feel the acid from his stomach burning its way up to his throat and his body start to shake uncontrollably as Thomas lunged at him, bringing the back of his hand across
Kaden’s
face. Blood burst from his lower lip and nose but he barely felt the blow before his body was tackled to the ground. The oppressive weight of the man on top of him crushed him into the hay and dirt on the floor.
Suddenly, one of the wolves let out a low warning growl, which pulled Thomas’s attention away from
Kaden
and had him sniffing the air to determine the threat that the other wolf had sensed.
Kaden’s
head was still reeling from the strike dealt to him, but he managed to open his eyes just in time to see Thomas shift back to his wolf form and herd the others out through the front entrance.
They retreated in a haste that left
Kaden
confused and more than a little scared as to what could possibly have caused them to run away. Blood was pooling in his mouth and he turned to spit it out but couldn’t get his limbs back under control enough to rise.
Fear was still coursing through his body unchecked a few minutes later when he heard another sound. Thinking the trio had eliminated whatever threat they had perceived and come back for him, he curled into a ball, knowing that he stood no chance against their superior weight and strength.
Kaden
desperately tried to keep himself from hyperventilating as the sound of paws padding along the earthen floor drew closer. It was the scent of the wolf that reached him first, well before he could make out its form in the dark interior of the barn. The smell of musk, evergreens, and the cloying aroma of rich, damp earth hit his nostrils and recognition slammed into him with a force that made him gasp.
It’s him!
Michael. The one were he’d never thought to see again in his life. The one who had rejected him so many years ago was stalking towards him in a slow, purposeful gait. The wolf crossed the distance between them in one leap, shifting swiftly to his human form so that when he landed, he was hovering above
Kaden
on his hands and knees.