The gun was black and shiny and steady as a rock, so small yet so dangerous. Kaia reeled back, her heart suddenly slamming against her rib cage. It was hard to breathe like someone had snuck up behind her and fastened an agonizingly tight corset around her middle. "What in the fu-"
"Quiet, Kaia," her dad said, shushing her. Oh, hell no. Kaia was not about to just stand by while her dad held a gun to Kaleb. This was the real world, and in the real world, girls could do more than freeze up while the men fight like in the movies. But...what? Her dad glared at Kaleb, who hadn't said a word. Kaleb just stood there, tensed as if he was fast enough to just dodge the bullet that could come from that gun any second.
God, the situation was so surreal. In what universe would the mild-mannered dad that she knew, the man who hadn't really been the same after her mother's death, whip out a gun and threaten the first guy Kaia brought home? Granted, this was an unusual situation, but really? Was this even happening? When did her dad buy a gun in the first place? "You won't be taking my daughter anywhere, you hear me?"
Kaleb glanced from the gun to Kaia's dad, slowly raising his hands. Despite the gesture of surrender, Kaleb's eyes told Kaia that he had no intention of surrendering any time soon. They were intense and hostile, not the expression that would work wonders in convincing her dad to put the gun down. "I don't want to hurt you, but Kaia has got to come with me," Kaleb said, his voice low. "For her own safety."
"Kaia's safe with me," her dad said, then after a moment, "What Pack are you even from?"
Click. That's what it was like, the realization that the man she'd grown up knew. It was a click, like pieces snapping together after you've been struggling to get them to fit your whole life.
Click. He knew about werewolves, probably for Kaia's entire life. This was his secret, possibly related to why he disappeared all the time. Click. He knew that they could smell her. That's why he was so overprotective. Click. Cole knew, too. He'd lied to her.
Kaia didn't think, she just stepped forward. She positioned her body between the barrel of her dad's little gun and her mate. "You knew?" Kaia demanded.
Her dad's eyes softened for a moment but hardened again half a second later. "Now's not the time, Kaia."
"Now is the time, father," Kaia growled, "You knew about the lycanthrope. Did mom know? And Cole does? Why didn't you tell me?"
"It wasn't safe, Kaia," her dad said. The gun lowered an inch when he met her eyes. They were crazed, far away, "I had to keep you safe. My little girl. After your mom...after they got her...I had to-"
"My mom?" Kaia asked. Her mind was whirling now, spinning in dizzying circles like it was on a carnival ride. Nausea dulled her senses as questions popped up like invasive weeds.
"They killed her," he said, furious. The gun was shaking now where before it was still. "The wolves, Kaia. You don't know how dangerous they are. How dangerous he is!" The gun went up again, this time more terrifying. Before, Kaia hadn't believed that her dad would shoot Kaleb. But now, seeing him like this...he was slipping.
And, honestly, Kaia was, too. So much had clicked. Lycanthrope were responsible for killing her mother. Kaia didn't know how to process that, but she tried not to be aware of the microscopic speck of black fear the bloomed in her heart. Fear of lycanthrope, of the Prowlers. Of Kaleb. She hated that fear, wished she could snuff it out. But so much had happened. Seeing her dad like that...she was afraid.
"Dad, stop," Kaia begged, "You're scaring me."
"Kaia, move," Kaleb said quickly, "You could get hurt."
YOU ARE READING
His Moon
Werewolf|| In his eyes, she glowed. Her pale skin was like a canvas, just waiting for him to paint it with his dark colors. She was his moon and his hope. || { He kissed her tears as he always had and always would. } Kaia's life is a prison. Ever since he...
