Page 31 of Insatiable Hunger

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Lazarus joked, his voice strained. I could tell he was trying to force a front when, in reality, he was hurting.

“Sure.” Ruby rolled her eyes. “We’re not blind. Jinx and I both had a feeling something was going on between the two of you, but with Cain—” Her voice trailed as thunder boomed. “Forget it. Let’s just get back so we can leave.”

“Let’s go home,” Jinx signed to all of us. We quietly nodded, the four of us staring into the woods ahead. Despite Ruby’s statement of the path being clear, something didn’t feel right.

Chapter

Thirty

CAIN

My skin blistered, small patches of my charred flesh flaking from Ruby’s magic. My fingers picked at the burnt edges of the patches, peeling them off as my skin stretched from my body like melted cheese, tossing the torn pieces aside. “Fucking Ruby,” I snarled, the rain soothing the many burning sores. “I can’t wait to kill you.” Hatred boiled in my chest.

Patience, dear Cain,John whispered behind my eyes.I assure you, you shall have your revenge…after I have mine.

“That wasn’t part of the deal.” I tore my wet shirt from my body and examined my chest for additional burns, picking at my skin. “I kept my end of the bargain.” I held the knife up to my face, staring into my reflection as his eye glowed back at me. “Now it’s time you do the same.” I was frustrated with John. I didn’t mind him using me to seek out his revenge, but we agreed I could do the same, using his power to inflict my own retribution. I didn’t want to wait; I wanted my reward now.

My face dropped as he took control, my brain throbbing, the immense pain increasing with each word he spoke.You will have your time to reign chaos, but do not forget, mortal, aringing pierced my ears,I am in control. Without me, you are nothing. Now, submit. We don’t have much time, and there’s plenty that needs to be accomplished.

John’s power dripped through my veins, seeping into my heart as it slowly took command of my existence. He stepped into my skin, pushing my consciousness to the back of my skull, forcing me to watch helplessly as he assumed control. The feeling of absolute power and a hunger for death consumed my body, my stomach growling with a never-ending starvation. “Now,” he twisted my neck and rotated my shoulders, “time to play.”

Snap.

My eyes moved to the edge of their sockets, searching the darkness for movement. I listened, hearing a faint whistle pitched, followed by whispered steps as they carried in our direction.Someone’s here.

The sounds increased, my adrenaline mixing with John’s power, creating an overwhelmingly unbearable force boiling inside. He swung my arm, my hand beaming with fire as my knife pierced deep inside an unknown man’s neck. Blood spewed from the wound, splattering John’s skull and my skin as the scrawny man’s mud-covered face stared back at us. John smiled, exposing my teeth as he watched the man’s eyes fade away, his soul leaving this world. The man’s body slumped as John yanked the blade back, his warm blood spraying his pale, dirty skin. “It seems your friends are not the only prey frolicking in these woods.” He sounded excited at the added challenge.

Who is he? Where did he come from?I demanded.

John bent down, examining the dead man’s body. He was thin and gangly, dressed in casual clothing beneath a makeshift Gilly suit. John used the knife to cut the front of the man’s attire, exposing his dirty, bony chest closely, as if he were searching for something. His fingers traced an old tattoo, the faded blackink etched across the man’s heart: a large winged skull inside a triangle.

“Interesting,” John purred. He leaned close to the man’s face, gripping it with his hands. “It’s been too long.” He patted the dead man’s cheek, scoffing. John stood, noting the man’s rifle that lay next to his body. “The others stalking you and your friends are no ordinary humans. No, we are being hunted, dear Cain.” John grasped the gun, his hands burning with green fire as he snapped it in half over my knee and tossed it aside.

By who?

John grinned, as if he knew something I didn’t. “The Triad.”

Chapter

Thirty-One

ALASKA

The storm raged above us in the night sky. The heavy downpour broke through the thick canopy of trees that branched overhead, drenching us in cold water, weighing us down as it soaked our clothes, the wind swirling through the thick forest as it scattered dead leaves around our moving frames.

We were taking our time, quietly stalking through the woods, trampling through mud and weaving through the trees, making our way back to the cabin in the hopes of remaining undetected. Alastair led the way, alert and on edge. Ruby and Jinx followed him, the two tightly wrapped around one another, shivering from the drop in temperature. Lazarus leaned on me, pushing through the pain as we moved, slower than the rest. I could feel his strength dissolving and his exhaustion and pain taking control.We just need to reach the cabin, and then everything will be okay. It’s going to be okay.

Darkness thickened, resulting in Ruby and myself having to light the way with our magic. Her maroon flames had taken the shape of moths, fluttering above us whereas my magic simply formed a sky of stars, cast above our heads. The redand blue colors mixed together almost creating a violet hue as they illuminated the path. Even with the colorful light, we still struggled to see the storm as it fought our visions.

“Shouldn’t be too much further,” Ruby shouted over her shoulder to us. “We’re almost out of this nightmar—” Lightning crackled, striking a tree ahead, missing us by only a few feet. The immediate thunder ruptured our ears as we all crouched, the magical light disappearing, our hands covering them from the brazen force. The tree ignited in fire, crumbling as it fell onto our path, burning leaves and soft embers trickling into the air blocking our way. Alastair barked at the fiery tree as Jinx and Ruby ripped their jackets from their shoulders and tried to put the fire out, but to no avail.

“It’s no use!” Lazarus broke from me, stepping towards the two women. “We’re going to have to find another way back.” Jinx stopped, staring at her girlfriend.

Ruby groaned loudly, frustrated by what had happened. “We have to find a new way,” she signed to Jinx.

“But how?” she asked.

Ruby shook her head, raising her hand. “I have no idea.” She turned to face me. “Can Alastair get us out of here?”

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