Fangs of Corruption

Chapter 10

I stand in a crowded corridor with Christian and Raven. "That was depressing, at least the memorial service is over." Raven says as she lights a cigarette. I gulp. "Yeah." I say. I was stupid, I was rash. I shouldn't have told Zayne that I suspect him of murdering Ben, but it just came out in the heat of the moment. I was angry and scared, I should've stayed silent. Now that he knows I know, he'll try and stop me from proving that he killed Ben. "How about we go back to the dorm and watch a movie." Raven says. I sigh. "Actually, Cain asked me to go with him to the wake. It's some sort of small party I guess, to celebrate Cain's life." I say. Christian frowns. "I know you want to be there for Cain, but if it's too hard you shouldn't go." He says. I shake my head. "No, I'm going. I'll be just fine." I say. Christian sighs. "If you say so." He says. I ignore the judgement and doubt in Christian's voice. This is killing Cain, if going to a wake at his childhood home will help, I'll do it. This isn't about my feelings.
My eyes meet with Cain's as he approaches. "Hey, you ready to go?" He asks. I smile softly. "Yeah, I'm all set." I say. Cain and I drive through the forest in his old car for about an hour or so. Eventually we reach a clearing in the forest where a tall gate stands. It opens as soon as we approach, like clockwork. I gasp softly when I see his house. A beautiful white home stands proudly. A sophisticated wrap-around porch with grand columns. "You grew up here?" I ask. "Yep, my whole pack lived here. Now it's just my dad and the other elders." Cain explains. I nod. I didn't know werewolves lived in such luxury, where I grew up as a fairy is primitive in comparison. "Are any other students going to be here?" I ask. "Id say so, anyone who was close to Ben was welcomed by my Dad." Cain says. Cain pulls the car in beside the house. I step out of the car.
There are some people on the porch with drinks in hand, conversing softly. The French double-doors are wide open, waiters coming in and out with trays of food. Cain sucks in a deep breath, I look up at him and nod encouragingly. I take his hand and we walk inside together. We walk through the hallway, my heels clack against the old wooden floor. We enter a light and spacious kitchen, white panels and old wood everywhere, the light from the plentitude of windows flowing in. People in black are all over the room, champagne flutes in hand. I see a few students here and there, but the majority of the guests are adults. There's werewolves all over, they all have the same golden-complexion and jet-black hair as Cain.
They must be his relatives. Cain stiffens, his grip on my hand tightening. I look up at him with concern. A tall and sophisticatedly-dressed man approaches. He's middle-aged, somewhat withered looking. He looks exactly like Cain. The only differences his wrinkled skin, dark facial hair and his cold eyes. "Dad." Cain grunts. "Cain, didn't I tell you your presence here today wasn't necessary?" Cain's father asks. Cain scoffs. "He's my brother. Of course I came." Cain replies angrily. Cain's father sighs. "Well, I hoped you'd stay at school and tend to your studies." He says coldly. Cain looks at him with disgust. "My brother is more important than my school work." Cain says. "Well, this whole situation has been a hinderance to your studies, I assumed you'd have been smart enough to catch up on some work." Cain's father says condescendingly. I look back and forth anxiously. This man may look like Cain, but he is completely different when he opens his mouth. He's scary, unfeeling and heartless. Now I know why Cain doesn't speak of him much.
"This isn't some small inconvenience Dad, your son is-!" Cain's father cuts him off, his attention diverts to me dismissively. "And who might this be?" He asks. Cain is shaking with anger, I rub his hand soothingly. "I'm Ivy Thorne, sir. It's nice to meet you." I say nervously. Cain's father raises an eyebrow. "It's a pleasure to meet you too . Now I must get going, I have other guests to greet." He says with disinterest. He then slips away into the hallway. A storm is brewing in Cain's eyes. "Hey, are you-?" Cain cuts me off mid-sentence. "I need a drink." He says bluntly. Then he storms away, out of the kitchen. I'm worried about Cain, it's clear that his relationship with his father is rocky. I can't imagine how that must feel when you're trying to grieve. I figure I should give him some space, maybe he wants to blow off some steam with his friends. That's okay. I don't want to force my presence on him, but that doesn't mean I'm not there for him. I talk to different faculty members and members of Cain's pack for about an hour. My eyes search for Cain wherever I am, but there's no sign of him. I walk out onto the porch. It's dark outside now, and I've given Cain enough space. My eyes widen. Cain holds a bottle of old liquor, his friends laughing encouragingly. They all take a drink, but Cain snatches it back, chugging the whiskey. I touch the back of Cain's arm. "Maybe we should head back to the school." I urge gently. Cain laughs. "The party's only starting, I felt the occasion was right to steal from my Dad's whiskey stash." He says. I look up at him with concern. "Cain, I think you've had enough." I say. He grins. "Here, have some." He says. I shake my head. "Cain, no." I say sternly. He rolls his eyes. I grab the bottle from his hand. "Fun's over. Let's go." I say frustratedly. He smiles. "Alright, let's go." He says. Suddenly he grabs my waist, lifting me up. He pulls me to his chest. "Cain!" I shriek. He laughs. "You want to go, so we're going." He says.
His friends chatter and laugh as he whisks me out of the room. Once we're in the corridor he doesn't turn towards the doorway. He walks up the stairs quickly, I'm still in his arms. "Cain, what are you doing?" I yelp. He opens a door upstairs leading to a dark bedroom. He closes the door behind him and lays me on the bed gently. He leans over me, caging me in with his arms. He's grinning widely. I can smell the alcohol on his breath. His eyes don't match his face, there's a swarm of emotions brewing in those eyes. I can feel the anger he's masking. He kisses me softly. I take in a sharp breath. "Cain, we shouldn't-." He kisses me again, but harder. I push against his chest, but to no avail. "Cain, stop." I whisper through heavy breathes. The music from the party downstairs blasting. He keeps kissing me. He slips his hand under my dress, he pulls it up older my shoulders. "Cain, no!" I yell. He kisses me roughly, ignoring my pleas. Then I hear myself scream, I feel a dark force rushing out of my body. I see red. When I open my eyes Cain's been flung onto the other side of the room, his back slams against the wall. He grunts. "What the hell!" He yells. I gasp. Tears are streaming down my face, they won't stop flowing. Did I do that? Cain gets up quickly, he takes fast steps towards me. His eyes pleading and desperate. He's on the bed, I scramble away from him fear fully. "Ivy I'm so sorry I-." Then the door flings open, Zayne bursts in. He sees me. A flash of emotion rushes over his face when he looks at me. I quickly rush to pull my dress back on frantically, my dignity shattered. Zayne stares at Cain. "Ivy, go wait outside." He orders. His face terrifyingly calm.
Cain gets up quickly. "What the hell are you doing, Ambrose!" Cain yells. He's shaking with emotion. He punches Zayne hard. Zayne remains emotionless. Zayne grabs him by the collar and punches him hard. "Stop!" I scream. Zayne turns, disaster in his eyes. I'm crying even more now. I can't be here. This is too much. I can hear the muffled sound of voices from the party. I run down the stairs, wiping the tears from my face. I fling open the front door, running down the porch steps. Suddenly a wave of weakness washes over me. A drop of blood runs from my nose. I grip the pillar of the entrance. Whatever powers came out of me up there, it drained my energy. I feel steel arms grip around my waist, keeping me upright. Zayne stands over me, a glint of concern in his cold eyes. "Get away from me." I mutter. "I felt you're energy all the way from downstairs, I don't know what power you released up there but it took it out of you." He says with monotony. I claw at his arms. "You're a murderer, don't touch me." I say with disgust. His grip loosens and I storm away. I hear his footsteps closely behind me. I try to wipe the amalgam of mascara and blood from my face. "You know I didn't kill him." He says casually. "Just leave me alone." I spit. Then I feel more energy draining from my body. My knees weaken, I'm losing my balance. Then I feel iron hands scoop me up. He carries me bridal-style. I want to fight him but I feel so tired. He walks through the woods briskly, my vision foggy. All I can see is the stars and the outline of the trees. "Nobody's good anymore, not Cain. Not you." I mutter. My eyelids are so heavy. I close my eyes, I drift into the darkness.