And that’s when the young girl’s face would rise up from his memories and threaten to overwhelm him. Ten insisted all he needed to do was embrace his inner wolf, and that once he did, everything would be fine. But Quade knew that wasn’t going to happen. He’d lived among his kind for twenty years. He’d seen their savagery firsthand. Hell, he’d taken part in it.
Ten was a child. How could he understand the horrors that Quade had participated in? Yeah, he might be able to get into Quade’s head, but that didn’t mean he would know the thrill of gutting your victim, licking their blood from your fingertips, or the overwhelming urge to devour them. Or the horror once you were in control enough to realize what you’d taken part in.
It was that that drove him to take Alomir to bed that first night. Anything to forget the faces of the people Quade had killed in cold blood, to blot out the cries of victory from his kinsmen. That which had started him on the path to becoming feral in the first place. No, Quade would do his damnedest to keep those thoughts and memories away from Ten, because a little boy didn’t deserve to be part of the monster within Quade.
He got up and jerked open the door. He could smell Ten in the area, which meant he was in Caden’s room. Why couldn’t he have done as he was told? He slammed his door and tore off down the hall. Instead of knocking, he rammed the door with his shoulder, causing it to splinter.
“He’s here,” Ten announced in a singsong voice.
“What the ever-loving fu—heck do you think you’re doing, Caden? I told you to take him back so the doctors could look at him.” He gestured to the table where half-eaten peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and cans of orange soda sat. “What’s this crap?”
Caden shrugged. “We were hungry, so I got us a snack.”
“Get over here, Ten. We’re going back to the infirmary.”
“You can play winner.”
Quade blinked. What the hell was Caden talking about? “What?”
“Winner. You can sit here and play against whoever wins the game—which will be me, by the way.”
The thought of it was ludicrous. Quade didn’t play video games. He sat in his room and brooded until they called him for a mission. On occasion he might go for a jog to keep himself in shape, but those had always been few and far between. Mostly he sat in his room and watched repeats of Angel, because that man knew how to brood.
“I’ll get you a soda.”
He glared at Caden, who didn’t take his gaze away from the wide-screen television, which showed candy-colored cars with mushroom people and lizards and what looked like plumbers zooming around a track.
“But we—”
“One game,” Ten begged, turning around and giving him puppy-dog eyes. “Try it. I bet you’ll like it.”
Quade looked into those silvery orbs and his resistance melted. Ten asked for so few things, and really, would it hurt if he gave in? “One game, but only if you promise you’ll go back to the infirmary right after.”
Ten squirmed in his seat. “I promise.”
Right, Quade totally believed that. Still, he sat down and waited for Ten and Caden to finish the game, which Caden did win, but Quade noticed that at the last second, Ten made a weird turn, which caused him to crash.
“Darn, I lost.” He jumped up. “Sit here—it’s got the best view of the screen. I’ll get the soda.”
Quade knew Ten was playing him, but he wasn’t sure what the end-game was. Best to go along until he figured it out, then let the kid know it wasn’t going to work. He might know stuff, but Ten didn’t control what Quade did.
“One more game,” Quade demanded. “I finally figured it out now.”
Caden held back a chuckle. They’d been playing for three hours, and every time Quade lost, he insisted on just one more game. Of course, Ten’s delight was obvious. He kept Quade plied with soda and snacks, tips on how to control the cars, and more. Quade hadn’t even answered his phone, despite the fact that the calls were coming from the infirmary.
“Quade? Your phone is ringing again.”
Ten scowled at Caden, his eyes narrowed into slits. “Just play the damn game.”
His expression threw Caden. He seemed way too angry. “Excuse me?”
Ten was immediately contrite. “I mean, let’s play the game.”
Quade put the controller on the table, stood, and glared down at Ten. “You’re good, kid, I’ll give you that. C’mon. You made a promise, now let’s go.”
Heaving a much-aggrieved sigh, Ten stood. “Fine. They’re just going to say I’m in good health.”
“Then they can tell me that.” He looked at Caden. “You okay cleaning up?”
“Yeah. Will you let me know what the doctors say?”
Quade gave a slight smile. “Sure.”
As they reached the door, Caden decided he might as well ask what was on his mind. “Does anyone around here sell pizza?”
“Yes!”
Ten’s enthusiasm surprised Caden.
“Dial 0071 on your phone. Brooker’s Pizza has vegan options.”
“You have a pizza parlor here?” That sounded so weird. “Wait. How do you even have phones down here?
“I told you, this is like a city.” Quade’s voice was rough. “We’ve got pretty much anything you’d ever want to find. Tomorrow I’ll take you out exploring… if you want, that is.”
Caden’s cheeks warmed. He recalled that Quade had promised to tell him more of Sanctuary’s history, but to get out and see the place? That sounded great. “Sure, I’d like that.”
“Awesome!” Ten bounced on his heels. “We can come in the morning and make a day of it.”
Quade frowned at Ten. “We?”
“Well, yeah. I mean, you need me along, right?” He grinned. “Comic relief and all. Besides, what do you know about vegan food?”
“That we have a few goat shifters who eat grass.”
“Goat shifters? Really?”
Ten laughed. “They’re fauns, not goats.”
“So wait, fauns are real?”
“Oh, Caden, so many things you never expected are real. Wait until you meet the minotaur.”
Caden’s jaw dropped open. “Minotaur?”
This time it was Quade who barked a laugh. “It’s easy to… uh… get his goat.”
“Oh, that was baaaaaad.”
Caden stood in silence as the two bantered back and forth, each goat pun progressively more groan-worthy than the last.
“Come on, kid. Let’s go.”
Ten turned to Caden and waggled his eyebrows. “Don’t worry, I goat this.”
Pushing him out the door, Quade turned around and gave a cocky grin. “You okay with two of us taking you out to see Sanctuary tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“Great. We’ll pick you up for breakfast. Assuming this little bastard gets a clean bill of health.”
Ten huffed. “I can tell you the scores they’ll give if you want.”
Quade reached out and ruffled Ten’s hair. “No, I’ll wait for the doctor’s report.” He tilted his head in Caden’s direction. “And I’ll let you know what they say.”