We Are Monsters 🌕 Book 1 || gxg

Bad Blood

The crunching stopped abruptly. Sam swiped hair from the counter into the bin and then made a sharp U-turn, bursting into the adjacent room. Aidan started, wrenching off his headphones and setting his laptop on the bed. His expression was somewhere between shocked and perplexed. Adrenaline was making her fingers shake and threw her thoughts into a blender.

"Chase is here," she relayed and shut the door silently. Car doors slammed outside.

Aidan scrambled off the bed. "Are you serious?"

Sam didn't answer, it wasn't a real question. Aidan scooted past her in the narrow space and pressed his ear to the door. Pursing her lips, she sank into the desk chair, heart assaulting her ribcage.

She hadn't been in Aidan's room before; the room was cozy and dark, with ultramarine walls, a silver area rug, and a handful of oil paintings depicting exotic animals. His twin bed took up one entire wall, a dresser and desk from the same dark wood the other.

Cain's distant voice drew her attention back. "I wasn't expecting you."

She couldn't quite catch the response, but the colour drained from Aidan's face. His throat bobbed. Sweat beaded along his brow and lip, catching light from the window. The front door closed, shutting out the voices, and Aidan straightened stiffly.

"He's definitely here, and I think he brought Anders and Helena—their siblings. Holy shit, why is this happening?" Aidan hissed. He sank onto the bed and pushed back his curls.

"Could it have something to do with their conversation the other day?" She knew right away she must have forgotten to bring it up when it happened, and she mentally kicked herself.

"What conversation?"

"I only heard Cain's side, but he called to formally leave the pack, or something like that."

Aidan groaned. "What the fuck was he thinking? It didn't work last time, I can't believe he thought it would now."

"Last time?"

Aidan glanced at the door, his voice a rushed whisper. "It was a long time ago, but Cain got married to a human and left the pack. My father didn't take it well and sent my great uncle to bring him home when he figured out where they were living. Cain was out, and Marcus wasn't exactly stable. He literally scared her to death; it turned out she had a heart condition no one knew about. He wasn't sent there to kill her, I think everyone thought Cain must have told her the truth already, but she had no idea. Cain went back for a few years, then left for good when I was thirteen. That time, though, he agreed to remain a pack member if no one bothered him but for emergencies."

Sam covered her gaping mouth. "That's ..."

"Horrible, I know, one seco-"

The front door slammed open, and they both jumped to their feet. A commanding voice demanded, "Where is he?"

Aidan gulped. She squeezed his arm as he passed and whispered, "Deep breath, shoulders back."

Aidan did both, mask settling into place like it should. He opened the door just wide enough to slip through, and Sam rose and scooted back so as not to be spotted through the opening. Inside, she had no trouble hearing the row.

"How dare you?" spat Chase, she assumed. "Betraying your own blood again? Was my lesson not good enough?"

The silence stretched, and with each passing second she feared he wouldn't be able to respond. "I'm doing what is necessary to preserve the anonymity of our people."

Aidan took a page from Cain's book with a good mix of confidence, calm, and authority. She grinned supportively even though he couldn't see her. The silence on the other side of the door extended.