Page 36 of Caging Fire
My favorite thing about any book from the old world was that there wasn’t a single mention of omegas, alphas, or betas. It was easy to pretend to be something I wasn’t when I immersed myself in those literary worlds, void of designations.
An enormous shadow looming over me interrupted my dreams of buccaneers and buried gold as I realized I had fallen asleep. I startled, grabbing my chest, as a silent scream gripped me, but realized it was just Cade invading my privacy as usual.
“What the hell, Cade, have you heard of knocking?! You scared me!”
He didn’t apologize,of course,and merely snatched a tucked T-shirt from his waistband, throwing it at me.
“Change into this. You can leave your underwear on,” he said in his usual demanding tone.
“I don’t suppose you plan on leaving or at least turning around so I can have some privacy?”
“No,” he responded definitively as he reached for the copy of Treasure Island, which was lying pages down, parted where I had last been reading and fell asleep. He traced the edges of the pages and flipped through them.
“Don’t lose my place! It was just getting good!” I told him, trying to slip my shirt off somewhat gracefully.
I turned my back to him while I fumbled with the bra clasp and pulled his shirt over my head. It was another oversized T-shirt that smelled like whiskey. These men were so territorial, clothing me in their delicious-smelling shirts.
When I looked over my shoulder, I expected to see Cade eyeing me hungrily, but his view was downcast, fixated on the book. He delicately moved his fingers along the spine, lost in thought.
“Is everything okay?” I asked him.
“It’s just a coincidence that you picked this book out of all the rest. My father actually used to read chapters to Killian and me when we were little. It’s one of the rare memories I have of him when he wasn’t a complete monster. I quite liked the book when I was young.”
Despite hiding and being relatively lonely, I had a happy childhood. My dad had made sure of that, at the expense of his own safety and well-being. I had always known that he loved me unconditionally and had never considered what it would be like to have a parent who didn’t.
The way Cade talked about his dad made me feel pity for Killian and him. Maybe that’s why Cade was such a control freak and Killian was, well, just the way he was.
“I’m sorry about your uh… dad. Sounds like a jerk. Was your mom at least around?” I asked awkwardly.
I was absolutely not prepared to deal with the daddy issues of a grown man who was also my kidnapper. Although I supposed learning more about Killian and Cade wouldn’t hurt in the scheme of things. It might help me discover a weakness that I could exploit to aid my escape.
“She was there physically, yes. Mentally though she was several pills and a bottle of wine away from capable parenting,” he said, eyes still fixed on the book.
Yikes. I couldn’t help wincing.
He continued, “She’s not Killian’s mother; he is actually my half-brother. And my mother is also dead now.”
Okay,so he clearly had mommy issues too.
I could have extended an olive branch, sought connection with Cade and bonded over our dead parents, but talking about my dad to gain his trust felt wrong somehow. I was exhausted and did not feel like revisiting my grief, so I stayed quiet.
“I’m sorry, Cade, that must have been… really hard.”
We just stood there for a moment, until something snapped his attention away from the book and he turned, walking out the door, motioning for me to follow.
“Let’s go, Rowan.”
As usual…good talk.
Chapter 21: Cade
Iwas planning to mark Rowan tonight. I would have to, considering she needed to be transported across base tomorrow. Killian had already bitten her, but an omega's scent didn’t shift completely until their entire pack marked them. With just his mark alone, she still smelled delicious, calling out to every alpha like a fucking siren.
I hoped that the addition of my mark would help to dull her scent, at least until Ryker and Talon could complete our pack-mate. I knew I couldn’t keep her locked up in the dorm forever, and that became even clearer when Dr. Zolkos had summoned her to the Science Department.
I called my father to request he cancel the summons; however; it seemed he had already spoken with Dr. Zolkos and was oddly adamant that we attend the appointment. Anxiety coursed through me. Things that excited my father were nevergood for me or my pack. I didn’t like that he had been in communication with the Chief Science Officer, or that he now seemed to have a vested interest in Rowan. It was better for her to stay off both their radars.
When I saw Rowan sleeping peacefully beside the copy of Treasure Island, it stirred in me memories of my father that I would rather forget. Happy memories, of which there were so few. Those memories seemed to cut me the deepest, because they served as a reminder of what my father could have been to us both. I preferred to focus on his abuse and neglect, hardening my heart for the man who should have been my idol. That focus kept me vigilant in times like these, a constant reminder that his “support” came at too steep a price.
