Moon Bound

36

Highway to hell
~
Cadence
~

"There's no way—no fucking way," Tristan laughed, slapping his thigh and close to falling off his chair.

Cadence's face was deadpan, not understanding the humour in all of this and not caring to. "It is. All of it."

Resurfacing every moment that has led her here had Tristan choking for air, disbelief marring his hard features as he fought to control his laughter. At least, she made the point to gloss over Accalia's and Lycus's budding relationship, he may die of laughter.

"Vampires exist? Fuckin' hell ..." Tristan said with a huff and choked back on his can of beer.

Cadence rolled her eyes and said, "Yes, you idiot. I've already told you this, Franklin Jaeger even told me. Urgh, I'm not going over this with you again, will you come with me or not?"

Time was withering away and Cadence's patience hang on a thread. If her cousin couldn't offer his help, he can piss off. She didn't come here for anything, didn't trek it through the woods and catch two buses to get here for a family reunion.

But sitting here now, she was positive she'd leave with crushed pride.

Cadence came here, to her home because she knew only one person would truly be by her side without a hint of distrust but throughout this month, weeks draining on without any contact, she wasn't so sure.

Cadence slapped her hand on the table, a shake rumbling through the kitchen. "Answer me!"

"Cadence," Tristan groaned, shaking his head and fitting her with a dark glower, "just let me finish my beer first and then we'll go."

Cadence shot up to her feet, a roguish smile teasing at her lips and she slapped him on the shoulder. "Thanks, bud."

"Only if we take Erisa and Frankie with us though ..."

Cadence's smile fell and soured into a scowl. "No!"

Tristan downed the rest of his beer and got up, his hair almost brushing along the roof. "Don't be stupid, from what you've told me about this bloodsucker, she seems worse than the Alpha of Alphas. We don't know this threat and it's best we go with a bunch of us."

Cadence leered up at him, still not budging. "I told them I wanted them out of this. You realise the vampire threatened to kill not only you but them too, right?"

Tristan gave a careless shrug and tossed on a white fitted t-shirt. "You have something she wants, she'll cooperate."

Cadence rolled her eyes again and stifled a sneer. "They can't come, it would be—"

Cadence froze, her sentence cutting into silence like ice as she spotted a tall and burly man in the doorway. Grouchy and grim as ever.

"Hello uncle," Cadence acknowledged with a short nod and crossed her arms, eyes narrowing.

William stepped forward into the light and Cadence grimaced. His gaunt face had sunken eyes, purple bags dancing beneath them and a long unkempt beard, with streaks of grey. With that gnarly expression, he looked like an absolute mess.

And rightfully so, Cadence couldn't help but think.

He didn't even acknowledge Cadence, nothing out of the usual for her and headed over to the counter to light up a cigarette.

Smoke brushed along Cadence's nostrils and she coughed. "Wanna take that outside, old man." Cadence spat with disgust.

William's yellow teeth showed and sneered, "Don't disrespect me in my house, Cadence Athena Larren. Piss off if you don't like it."