Page 87 of Prodigal Son

Rivulets of salty sweat trickled into his vision, burning his eyes. He never felt like this before. Terrible pressure built in his groin, and his legs trembled as if he’d run a hundred miles. He squinted over the fields. They were almost home. If he could just run there and rest for a moment…

But Vito was mortal and that meant Cain had to keep a mortal pace. “Damnit,” he cursed, stumbling off balance.

“Dude…?”

Cain held up an unsteady hand, determined to beat whatever this was. “Let’s walk,” he rasped, blocking out the pressure.

A sharp jolt of pain shot up his spine and he faltered. Another pinch and then something excruciating happened to his insides. He screamed as he never screamed before.

Legs buckling, he fell to his knees.

“Holy fuck! What should I do?” Vito held his phone then cursed, realizing there was no one to call. “Help! Somebody!”

“Don’t—” Cain’s fingers dug into the dry earth, claws distending as his pupils dilated and saliva filled his mouth. He couldn’t transition in front of Vito, but he was in so much pain he couldn’t find the strength to fight back his instinct. His body was under attack.

His fangs punched through his gums as another wave of agony stabbed from the inside out. He panted, keeping his head down, as he snarled through the pain.

Vito placed a hand on his back. “Dude, should I get—”

“Don’t touch me!”

The man scrambled back and fell onto the grass. “What the fuck?”

Breath bellowed in and out of Cain’s lungs as he panted through his clenched teeth. Was he dying? No ill blood or tainted meat could cause this much pain.

He tried to stand but collapsed to the ground. Sweat drenched his clothing.

“Yo, man, something fucked up is happening to your face. I think you need a doctor!”

Self-preservation disappeared as Cain tried to escape the onslaught of pain. He curled into a ball, gripping his stomach, but there was no relief. He needed to get inside so he could suffer in private.

Attempting to crawl toward his house, he roared as sheer agony, greater than anything he had felt thus far, took hold of him. A blood-curdling scream ripped from his lungs. Surely someone would hear him and come to his aid. Even Grace couldn’t be that cold.

“That’s it, man, just breathe through the pain,” Vito coached from a safe distance as he paced and frantically searched for help.

Cain grit his teeth and roared. It was getting worse. “Make it stop!”

Vito nervously extended an arm and patted Cain’s head, awkwardly. “You’re doing great.”

His body bowed as a wave of pressure rolled through him, pushing and pulling on his insides until he was certain he would die. Whatever was inside of him, needed to get the hell out. Bearing down, he breathed hard and pushed, clenching against the pain and screaming through his teeth.

The pain subsided for a few moments, and Cain collapsed to his back, panting and staring up at the clouds. Death seemed like a glorious option. He was too exhausted to do anything more than breathe.

“Do you want me to carry you back to the house?”

There was no way in hell Cain was letting another man carry him because of a stomachache. He shook his head. “I just need…a minute.”

“Has anything like this ever happened before?”

Why was he asking so many questions? “Stop. Talking.” The pressure inside of him built once again and he clenched his teeth. “No,” he whimpered, turning his face toward the earth and bracing himself, but this time, once the pain started, it didn’t stop.

Sharp pressure stabbed through him, building like a hurricane. Wind whistled through the trees as clouds rolled overhead and thunder crashed. Cain bore down, growling as waves of pain ripped through him, relentlessly jerking his body to the ground and whipping him about.

Rain released from the sky and pelted the earth.

“Breathe, man, breathe!” Vito encouraged. “It has to be over soon. Just breathe through it.”

The wind kicked up and black shadows covered the wet land as the sun disappeared. Every sharp lash of pain that ripped through him sent a tear of lightning webbing through the sky. Cain became the pain, heavy and hot, all-consuming, shredding through the trees and blowing wildly over the land.

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