Betrayed by Blood-
Cain moved deeper into the woods, hearing the unmistakable sound of movement. from behind–a rustle of leaves, the snap of twigs. His body went rigid, his senses sharpening once again. He wasn’t alone.
But this time, it wasn’t Xander.
“Show yourself,” Cain growled into the air, his body stiffened as the smell of Bloodrost filled the air.
Cain’s eyes narrowed as the sickeningly rotten scent of Bloodroot filled the air, his muscles tensed up, veins straining against his skin. It was the unmistakable smell of death, a toxin that burned the skin and poisoned the blood. Just one contact with an open injury and it meant instant death. It was mostly used on pack alphas, alphas like Cain himself.
His wolf growled inside him, thrashing internally to be let loose and show his wrath.
“Show yourself,” Cain said again, his voice low and dangerous, his eyes flickering around, highly alert.
A sudden movement to his left, a snap in that direction. His instincts kicked in
instantly. Three figures stepped out from behind the trees, each one of them clad in nothing but black, their faces hidden
with dark hoods and masks.
Cain looked at them, his blood boiling with anger. Avery was right. There was a plan to
kill him.
The first hooded figure lunged at him, their movements fluid, almost like shadows themselves, they were so smooth with it. From the corner of his eyes, Cain saw a glint of steel shining in the light.
He tensed, his wolf demanding release and this time he didn’t hold back. These weren’t just any kind of assassins. They were here just for him.
Before he could react, the second figure lunged at him, aiming the blade right at his
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throat, precise and quick with it.
Cain moved, swerving the attack.
He swerved it, his body reacting faster than his mind. His claws slashed through the air, catching one of the masked figures in the chest, the force of it sent them tumbling backward, a thin trail of blood followed through.
Cain didn’t stop, just as the other two closed in on him before he could recover his stance. Their daggers slashed through the air, catching Cain’s side. It was barely at graze, but the impact burned like fire.
The Bloodroot rushed into his body like a dam, the Bloodroot laced into the knife seeped into his flesh, sending a searing pain coursing through his body. Cain staggered back, his hand instinctively clutching his side. An animalistic growl tore from his lips.
With a deadly snarl, Cain yanked the dagger out instantly, slamming the third figure roughly against a tree. He could feel his strength waning but he wasn’t done yet. Not until he got that damned deer.
The first attacker lunged again, this time bringing a serrated blade to his throat. But Cain wasn’t backing down. He met the attack with a snarl, his fangs bared. He blocked the strike with his forearm, his claws coming down brutally. The figure’s mask shattered, revealing a half–burnt face twisted in anger.
Before Cain could finish the man once and for all, the second figure came from behind with yet another dagger.
Cain turned just in time, grabbing the attacker’s wrist and slamming them into the tree. The masked figure groaned, their blade falling to the forest floor. Cain didn’t give them a chance to recover. He drove his claws into their shoulder, pinning them against the tree roughly.
“Is this all you’ve got?” he growled at them.
The first attacker, still pinned to the tree, twisted their free hand to reach for something in their pocket–a vial of liquid. Cain didn’t hesitate the second he saw it. He dug his claws deep into them, slashing their arm, sending the vial crashing to the ground where it shattered, the liquid hissing as it touched the soil. It even more Bloodroot.
“You’re not walking out of here alive,” Cain snarled, his voice low. He grabbed the knife
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they’d tried to kill him with, watching as they tried running but Cain gave them not chance. He slammed the longer deep into their chest, watching as root seeped into their body instantly, its poison working in their body. The figure gasped, their body convulsing as the Bloodroot worked its way through their veins, Cain didn’t. flinch as the life drained from their eyes, he pulled the blade free and let the body fall limply to the ground.
The second attacker moved quickly, thinking they could catch him off guard, but Cain was ready. He swerved their swing, catching their arm mid–strike and twisting it until a sickening crack popped off. The masked figure cried out, dropping their weapon. “Who sent you?” He snarled but the figure only cried out in pain.
Cain drove his claws into their stomach, lifting them slightly off the ground before slamming them down. “You picked the wrong Alpha,” Cain snarled
The last one of them hesitated, the way they trembled didn’t pass Cain. He stalked toward them, his wolf surging to the surface. His fangs slipped out, his eyes were stark
black now.
“Run,” he growled lowly.
The masked man turned and bolted, but Cain didn’t let them go far. He lunged forward, faster, grabbing them by the back of their shirt and dragged them down. The assassin thrashed and kicked, but Cain pinned them effortlessly.
“I don’t let traitors walk away,” he said coldly. With one swift motion, he snapped their neck. Cain straightened, his chest heaying, blood dripping from his side where the knife had grazed him. The scent of Bloodroot lingered, the poison dulling his senses for a second.
He looked around, his sharp eyes catching the faint tracks of the deer he was meant to hunt. His mission wasn’t over… not yet.
Cain wiped his hands on the body of one of the dead assassins and turned toward the tracks. He needed to find the deer. He needed to end this hunt. And then he’d deal with the bigger question, who sent them?!
