Blood King

Chapter Twenty Five

Chapter Twenty Five

Cain waited in silence, the woman Katherine Bethworthy had left a little while ago, saying that there was something she needed to take care of. He didn’t ask what it was, didn’t bother for he felt like what he had said probably frightened her off.  Sure, killing her grandmother who was insane and killing her best friend in vengeance compared to what he did. It was something that he was both not proud of and yet at the same time was, if he hadn’t killed the bastard the man would have gone off and done it to other kids. It was the only time he ever got blood on his hands and it was the reason why he refused his father in taking up the sword.

He wanted no part in battle and in death since he already had his first taste of it and despised every bit of it. It was as if some part of him had died when he took that life, a part he could never get back no matter what he tried. He hadn’t spoken of it since he buried it deep within his mind, but now after mentioning it all those memories of his came flooding back. As if he was being swept up in a strong flood and being pulled down with the currant of his thoughts and memories.

And when that man in the robes returned he knew his thoughts would win as all went dark once more as he began to remember it from the beginning.

Cain never knew if he was truly his father’s son, not that his father thought any the wiser but he knew more of his fair share considering what his mother had been doing while his father was away. Almost always she would be with some man, a knight, a traveling merchant, anyone of high status to share her bed for the night.

It was something that he would always try his best to avoid, but that one night he came home too early and soon found himself dragged into his mother’s room by his hair at the hands of a man who looked absolutely terrifying. His was a large hulking man with one eye closed from a scar that went down his cheek; he gave Cain a putrid grin before turning to look at Victoria who was not only naked but also very drunk.

“It seems we have here a spy, you shouldn’t do that you know it’s rude.”

“B-but I wasn’t…” Cain stammered before the man backhanded him so hard it split Cain’s lip. Scared as tears began to fall from his eyes he looked to his mother who didn’t even so much as look at him, it was as if she was disgusted with him. “Mother…”

“Do what you want with him…” she said while glancing at the man. “I’ve told him time and time again not to come in the house when I’m with a man, teach him to listen to his mother.”

“Please!” Cain begged to his mother. “Don’t let him…” but his pleas went unheard as the man punched him to the ground before tearing at his clothes as the man continued to beat him until Cain fell into unconsciousness.

When he awoke his whole body was covered in bruises as he now lay naked on the floor of his own room. At first part of him thought that what had happened to him was only some horrible nightmare but as he looked down on his body he knew very clearly that it wasn’t.

As he was getting dressed he heard the scornful words of his mother in the hallway, he turned and looked to see his mother looking at him with both anger and for a moment a hint of guilt before it was taken by that anger which showed so clearly on her face.

“If only you weren’t born… why did you have to be born? Why couldn’t you have been a girl? Then you’d at least be of some used to me and not that man who I call husband. I hate you so much, but if it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be where I am now…”  she then entered the room and done up his shirt as if she herself were trying to hide the bruises from sight so no one else would see. Her gip then tightened on the collar of his shirt forcing him to make eye contact with the horrid woman.