The Brotherhood

17

Kane looked over and saw Finley's face inches away from his. She was lying next to him and every single inch of her was pressed against him. Her eyes were closed and it looked like she was sleeping, but she didn't look peaceful. She must have felt his eyes on her because suddenly those fierce green eyes were on him. It looked like tears were forming in her eyes. He didn't want her to cry. He knew that he was dreaming so he reached up and ran his hands through her hair. For a second, she leaned into the movement, a sigh escaping her lips and brushing against his face gently. Kane started to lean toward her, but before he could she'd jumped up from the couch they'd been lying on and stood over him, her arms wrapped around herself. So he wasn't dreaming then. He was awake. Disappointed, Kane started to sit up and found that he couldn't. 

Finley took a step forward, those tears from earlier making an appearance in her eyes again. She gently put her hand on his shoulder and pushed him so that he would lay back down. He stared up at her, confused. What the hell was going on?

Before he could ask Finley, she disappeared and returned a moment later with Abel, Ethan, and Raynar. The four of them looked at him with sympathy in their eyes. It made Kane's blood boil. He wasn't a damned sick puppy. Someone here needed to tell him what the hell was wrong with him. 

Abel stepped forward and cleared his throat. "You've been injured, Kane. It happened when we went to see the Mother. Do you remember what happened?" 

Abel's words made the events all start to come flooding back to Kane. He saw the white, wintry landscape in front of him. He felt the bone-chilling cold seeping down into his veins. He saw the huge white wolf with the demanding yellow eyes. He remembered words spoken and hissed back and forth. Then all he could remember was blinding, searing pain with no end. Kane remembered. He remembered it all. 

Despite the alarmed looks from his companions, Kane pushed himself up from the couch. He grunted as he stood. Finley lurched forward with a cry like she wanted to wrap her hands around his waist and hold him up. The Supreme stopped her with a hand on her arm. Abel left it there for a beat too long for Kane's liking. That wasn't important right now, though. 

Kane walked over to where he'd seen a mirror sitting on Abel's desk before. His legs weren't working the way that he wished they would. He shuffled forward, arms extended toward the small mirror. He needed to see what the damage was. He held the mirror up and held in his groan at the sight before him. 

Thick white bandages were wrapped all the way around his head. The bandages extended down his right arm. Kane's arm shook as he set the mirror down and reached up to remove the bandages. Finley lurched forward again to stop him, but Abel stopped her again. Kane carefully unwrapped the bandages from around his head. They unwound in a perfect spiral, dried blood stuck to the underside. Kane didn't look at himself again until all of the bandages were gone. 

He heard a gasp come from Finley. Ethan mumbled something beneath his breath that Kane couldn't hear. Raynar swallowed audibly. The only person who remained silent was Abel. Kane knew that he was waiting to see how Kane would react to the mess the Mother had made of him. 

Kane refused to let his hands shake as he slowly lifted the mirror to his face again. The scar was horrible. It started at his right eye and trailed its way down his right arm. It wasn't the kind of scar that you get from a blade either. It looked like lightning had struck him or like he'd been burned from the inside out. In a way, maybe he had been. The scar rippled across his skin like waves in an ocean, perfectly white over his skin. Kane flexed his fist in the mirror, the scar flexing over his knuckles. It was new and would definitely be an adjustment, but he would have to live with it. There was no other way forward. The Mother had permanently marked him for his insubordination and he would have to live with it.