Chapter 66

Gavin’s POV

It was obvious now; the whole reason that Bane wanted Erin for himself. The only reason why he knew about her in the first place was that he was being controlled by the Slayers.

The darkness circled around his eyes and the small tint of gold outlining his pupils told Gavin everything he needed to know.

Bane was talking about something that Gavin had tuned out long ago; he no longer wished to entertain the Slayers.

Gavin was incredibly powerful and able to get the old Bane back; not that the old Bane was any better. He was still an arrogant prick. But at least he was a harmless prick.

He grabbed onto both of Bane’s shoulders, keeping him steady. Bane’s eyes widened, shocked by the quick motion and force that Gavin had used. He was about to fight back, thinking he was being attacked again, but his eyes locked onto Gavin’s, and his entire body froze.

Gavin channeled his inner powers to meddle with Bane’s mind. Unlinking all the ties that the Slayers had on Bane’s brain. Bane’s breathing became shallow, and his body relaxed slightly. His dark eyes began to lighten and turn back into their normal green color and the traces of gold were completely gone.

Bane stood, still frozen, as Gavin released his hold on his mind and dropped his hands from Bane’s shoulders.

After a brief silence, Bane finally registered his vision on Gavin’s face.

“What the hell was that?” He asked, narrowing his cold green eyes at Gavin. “What did you do to me, you freak?”

“You should return to your pack, Bane,” Gavin said, keeping his tone even and his eyes locked on his enemy. “You aren’t welcome here.”

Bane glanced around, seemingly confused.

“How did I get here? Where am I?”

“You’ve caused quite a lot of trouble,” Gavin explained. “But it’s over now. Just get back to your pack and forget you were here.”

“I don’t even know where ‘here’ is,” Bane went on to say, but Gavin was already turning away.

“Let’s keep it that way,” Gavin said over his shoulder.

“Hey, wait! I’m not done talking to you!!” Bane hissed, fury clearly rising through him; but Gavin wasn’t worried about it.

He knew that Bane’s growl was louder than his bite. He continued walking away while Bane shouted things behind him until no sound was left.

…

Erin’s POV

The woman in the red cloak…

I stared at my notes on my computer blankly. I had no idea how I was going to investigate this any further. Seth and Gavin weren’t giving me any information because they both wanted me to stay out of it.

It was infuriating.

If only they knew what I was and what I could truly do.

What I have done.

“Do you still believe that there’s a tie between the woman of fire and Bane?” Emily asked in wonder.

“Yes,” I answered. “There’s no coincidence that they both appeared at the same time.”

That much I knew.

“So, maybe the person we should be talking to is Bane. He’s the Alpha of the Darkmoon pack, right? He should be easy to locate.”

“Emily, you’re a genius,” I said, standing to my feet.

I hadn’t spoken to Bane yet and I could find out everything I needed to know. I had a way of getting information from people. It was one of my many talents at the Moonshadow organization.

She chuckled in my mind.

“I know,” she agreed teasingly.

I closed my laptop quickly and grabbed my backpack. Seth was no longer watching me like a hawk; he was off doing other things. I had promised that I wouldn’t take off anymore, but this was too important.

Even though Seth was no longer watching me, there were still guards all over the palace making sure that I didn’t leave, so I needed to be smart about my escape.

The window was always a good option, and I was good at sliding down the side of the building. Thankfully, nobody was outside watching, so I managed to slide out of the window and to the ground with ease.

Once I was in my wolf form, it was easy to gain some distance between the packhouse and me. I ran into the surrounding forest, allowing the dark vines to engulf me and swallow me whole.

I knew where the Darkmoon pack was already; there were always issues in that pack that I needed to take care of during my time at the Moonshadow organization.

It was about an hour away from Gavin’s pack. But seeming I was in my wolf form; I could make it in less than 30 minutes.

His pack was in a rural area just outside of the city district. It was smaller than the other packs, but they were always fierce and angry. Being near the Darkmoon pack has always been chilling.

As soon as I neared the clearing, I picked up Bane’s scent. He was close by; perhaps he was hunting.

“You shouldn’t be out here, little wolf,” I heard a dark and threatening tone coming from nearby.

I turned and saw a pitch-black wolf with dark green eyes approaching me.

Bane.

I took an unsteady step backward, unable to predict his moves but wanting to be prepared for anything.

“I’ve come to talk to you,” I said in return, proud that my voice didn’t come out nervous.

“You should leave,” he started to turn away; I was surprised by this. I thought he would try to capture me because that’s what he’s been wanting this entire time. I made myself available to him and he’s just dismissing me.

“Wait,” I said, a little too loudly and desperately. But it worked; he paused his movements. “I thought you wanted me to join your pack.”

His wolf’s head turned back in my direction, narrowing its eyes at me. Even in his wolf form, I could see the utter confusion on his face, but it turned into a sly smirk.

“Is that what you want?” Bane asked, a venomous sneer leaving his lips.

“I’ve come for information.”

“What kind of information?

“The woman in the red cloak. Who is she?”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Bane asked, narrowing his cold eyes at me.

“I know that you know who she is. Just tell me what I need to know, and I’ll leave you alone.”

“I don’t know a thing about anyone in a red cloak. Do you have any idea whom you are speaking to, young wolf?”

“It’s not a coincidence that you both appear at the same time,” I say to him in return. “My question is, why?”

“I didn’t appear anywhere. I’ve been here this whole time,” Bane said; and for a moment, it was like he actually believed his own words.

“You came to my place of work and harassed me for hours,” I nearly growled; I tried hard to contain my emotions.

“That’s tasteless… even for me,” Bane said. “You had me for a minute.”

He began to turn away, but I stopped him again.

“Do you really not remember?”

“Remember what exactly?”

“Anything…” I said, searching the face of his wolf with curiosity. I was beginning to think he really didn’t remember anything. “You left me this note at my job,” I added, pulling the note out of my backpack and holding it up for him to see.

He looked at the note with a frown,

“I know who you are, and I know what you can do…” He read the note out loud.

I knew from the way that he was reading it that it was like he’s never seen that note before.

“How did you forge a note like that so perfectly? It really looks like my handwriting.”

“Because you wrote it,” I nearly hissed.

Something wasn’t adding up here… something was seriously wrong.

Why couldn’t he remember writing this note? Why couldn’t he remember anything?

“You don’t remember…” I said, my voice becoming smaller. It wasn’t a question; now, it was an observation.

“I told you, I don’t know what you are talking about. Are we done here?”