Chapter 6 Hi step sister

Kain was half-dressed when the doorbell rang, an unusual event in itself. Very few people knew where he lived. Fewer still dared to show up. Those who did usually fell into two categories: desperate allies or suicidal enemies.

Without hesitation, he reached for the handgun tucked under his pillow. He hated surprises. Werewolf or not, it was always easier with a weapon. Cleaner, too.

The bell rang again, this time faster, more urgent.

If only the security camera hadn't glitched out last week. The repair crew had promised to fix it, then came back with one excuse after another. Typical. Now he was blind.

He moved toward the old-fashioned-door-without-a peep-hole silently, every muscle tight, his skin prickling with awareness. Too many had tried to kill him-humans, werewolves, witches, the list went on.

First rule: sniff the door.

He did.

Werewolf.

His face twisted instantly.

He knew that scent.

Knew it too well. So well, in fact, he also knew that if he opened the door, really opened it, his day was going to spiral straight into hell.

But he opened it anyway.

And instantly regretted it.

The moment he saw her, his heart stuttered, then stumbled into a rhythm it hadn't followed in years.

"Hi, stepsister," he said, voice tight.

"Half-sister," Veronica snapped, brushing past him like a storm in heels, her scent hitting him in a wave, familiar, dizzying, cruel.

She made him feel vulnerable. Weak. Completely thrown off balance.

That's what happened when your father married the mother of your crush. A crush you'd kissed once-more than once-done enough with to make it feel like fate. Until fate laughed in your face and made her family, not just family, but the secret daughter of your father.

Her scent haunted him, thick and floral, a ghost that lingered long after she was gone. Now, she was back. In his house. Polluting his air.

And his instincts screamed that whatever brought her here... wasn't good.

"What are you doing here?" Kain asked, arms folded tightly across his chest, feet planted like roots into the floor. He couldn't let himself move, couldn't even shut the door behind her. Not yet. She needed to feel the boundary. Needed to know she wasn't welcome in his life anymore, even if he'd trade the world to take her right there on the couch.

"The Elders are fucking monsters...!" she burst out, pacing the room like a woman unhinged.

Kain raised a brow. That's why she came here? After decades of silence, she storms into his house to rant?

"Okay. So?" he said, flat.

"So rip their heads off!" she snapped. "You're the only one strong enough. You know no one can stand up to you. You're-"

"What exactly are you doing here, Veronica?" he cut in, voice rising, frustration threading through each word. "Really. Why are you here?"

He knew why. She didn't come for the pack. She came to test him, because she was jealous. Though he had pretended not to see her the day before, and had given her a show to last for a lifetime, yet he knew she would reach out to him somehow, and here she was.

Veronica dropped onto the only couch in the room and let out a deep, exhausted sigh. Her shoulders sagged. For a moment, the rage was gone.

"I miss you."

The words hit the air like a gunshot. The silence that followed was deafening.

Kain's jaw tightened. His lips thinned. He didn't let the words come, not the ones he felt, not the ones he'd buried. He couldn't afford to bleed where she could see.

"I was preparing for work," he said coolly, walking toward his room. "I have an early class today. If you don't mind, I'd like to leave as soon as possible."

Veronica stared at him, stunned. Her face paled. She couldn't believe what she was hearing from him of all people. Kain, the man who once looked at her like she hung the moon, now sounded like he barely knew her.

"You don't... miss me?" she asked, voice trembling with disbelief. "You have a girlfriend. Is that it?"

He raised a brow. Smiled. Shrugged.

"You didn't expect me to still be single, did you?" he said. "Come on, Veronica. Get over us. You're about to become Luna of the Gold Fur pack. Their Alpha, your fiancé, is your mate, isn't he?"

Each word cut his own heart like glass. But he held his ground, refusing to flinch. If she cried-if she looked at him the way she used to, he'd lose it all. He'd fold.

"All I said was that I missed you!" she snapped, standing up now, arms flailing. "Jeez, get over yourself. I should've just gone to Kyle. He would understand my report about the pack."

And there it was.

Insult.

Comparison.

She brought Kyle into it.

"Right," Kain said, his voice turning to ice. "Go to him, then. You've forgotten-I'm not your Alpha. He is."

Veronica rolled her eyes, scoffing like he was being dramatic. "Seriously? They worship you like a god. They think you're dangerous-that's why they call you the Mad-"

"Don't!" he barked, and the word cracked like thunder. "Don't you dare. You know nothing!"

She jumped, instinctively stepping back like he'd struck her. He hadn't-but the fury in his voice left no question that he could.

"Get out of my house."

But he knew her. Knew she wouldn't scare. Not really. She knew too much, about his habits, his tells, his triggers. She believed what she wanted, but she knew him.

"You're strong... maybe a little crazy and aggressive," she said softly now, voice edging toward something gentler, "but you're also my lover..."

"Were." He didn't blink. "I'm no longer the man you knew. And I'm way too old for you."

She smiled like he just made a century old joke.

"Seriously? You're going to talk about our ages right now? I mean you look younger than I am. And don't forget-I'm immortal too," she said with a playful smirk, and for the first time in what felt like a century, Kain let the corner of his mouth lift into a smile.

"Whatever," he muttered, brushing it off. Then-out of nowhere-he asked, "How's... how's Father?"

The shift in tone was sharp. Acid laced his voice, though he tried to hide it. But it was there, in his jaw, his eyes, his clenched fists. If there was one thing he wanted more than his brother's silence, it was news that their so-called father had finally dropped dead.

But no.

Veronica smiled, shook her head. "Still leading the Elders. And still the root of the insanity unraveling the pack."

The tension in the air began to thin. Even the ever-present charge between them cooled. Finally, Kain shut the door and sat beside her, this time with the calm of someone ready for war.

"Tell me everything," he said, face hardening into a mask of focus. If there was anyone who deserved to rot more than Kyle...

It was the man who sired them both. The man who started the whisper-"Kain is mad." A lie, twisted into a legend. A legend that broke him.

"More girls are missing," she said quietly. "And now-they're making werewolves sell their wolves for money."

Kain blinked. "Sell their... wolves? What the hell does that even mean?"

"Yeah it's unimaginable. And I still can't figure it out, but a quarter of the pack has lost their wolves, some happy with it, and others claiming they woke up like that. Kain..." she hesitated, eyes narrowing, "I'm scared."

He didn't want to care. He'd promised himself he was done with the pack. But the more she spoke, the more the beast inside him stirred. And when she looked at him like that-like he was the only one left who could fix the rot-it was hard to keep the promise.

"Right," he muttered, standing up. "You really should contact Kyle. I'm late for work."

She grabbed his wrist.

"Kain," she said, firm and low, "stop it."

"Stop what?"

She didn't answer.

Instead, without warning, her lips crashed into his. Soft, searching, seductive. The world narrowed to the press of her mouth, the scent of her skin. He froze for half a second-then melted into it, his hand finding the back of her head, deepening the kiss like he'd been waiting a lifetime to breathe again.

And then-

His alarm.

Blasting. Jarring. Unforgiving.

The moment shattered.

He pulled away with fire in his eyes. Not the kind she wanted.

"Get the hell out of my house," he growled, voice low, dangerous. "And never come back."

His wolf was close-too close. The way his hands trembled, the way his body shook with barely restrained rage... she knew what it meant.

She didn't argue. Not this time.

She grabbed her bag and ran.

And the moment the door slammed behind her, Kain let out a roar-deep, primal, and filled with pain.

He had fallen again.

And he hated her for it. Almost as much as he hated himself.