Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Chapter
12
Silke watched in horror as Benedek sifted through his childhood memories. She knew some parents were distant from their children. Some in the village might even be considered harsh. But she had never seen such abuse in her life. The forced killings were an abomination of parenting. It wasn’t just the father or mother; it was the older brother as well.
As the years unfolded and the punishments became even more extreme, bile rose. Benedek had been forced to go along with his father, brothers and four other men to the village, where they raped the women and tortured the men. His father lived like a feudal lord. He believed anything he wanted was his just due, his right to take. His eldest son and the four others believed it as well.
Benedek questioned everything. Refused to participate, even if his brother and father beat him sadistically. He was called a spineless coward nightly. His mother slapped and taunted him. It took a long time for Silke to get past the horrific deeds of his family and home in on him. It became clear to her that Benedek was nothing like the rest of his family.
In those early days, he felt compassion for the people his father targeted. He put his life on the line several times to stop his father and the others from harming the villagers. He soaked up every fighting technique he came across. He watched the others when they had no idea he was anywhere near them.
He was perfecting his skills, and she saw all the work he put in when he was alone to become stronger and faster. He learned to disappear into shadows and rock, in the forest and rivers. He worked with nature, not against it. His father had a brilliant son yet didn’t seem to recognize it. If anything, he became crueler and much more vicious toward Benedek.
The betrayal by his mother was like watching something out of a horror film. She wanted to yell to young Benedek not to trust her. Just by looking at the woman’s face and hearing her sly voice, Silke knew something terrible was going to happen and Benedek’s own mother was a party to it.
When the attack came in the dark of the woods, her breath caught in her lungs and refused to allow her to breathe.
“Silke, that’s enough. You’re crying for me.”
His fingertips touched her face where her tears made wet tracks. She could feel his shock. His bewilderment. No one had ever cried for him. No one had ever cared enough to cry for him.
“Don’t stop. I want to see how this happened.” She raised her face up and brushed her mouth against the thickest part of that white scar marring the skin around his throat. She couldn’t stop herself from trying to soothe him. Centuries had gone by, centuries allowing him to distance himself from the horrific trauma of his childhood. “I need to see how you managed to stay alive.”
Because really? She couldn’t imagine even the strongest Carpathian hunter surviving the ordeal he’d gone through.
Benedek sighed and drew her closer. Ordinarily she would never have allowed such an intimacy, but she knew they both needed it while he revealed the rest of the scenario to her.
Silke became aware of the wind. It ran across the tall blades of grass, pulling them upward around his body as if seeking to hide it. “Agony” wasn’t the right word to describe the pain crashing through the young Carpathian lying in pools of blood in the meadow. The pain was far, far worse than mere agony. In the distance, she heard screams of fear and the taunting laughter of men coming from the direction of the village. The sounds sent fear rolling through her, but she refused to turn away. If Benedek had lived this, she could observe it.
He shifted to the balls of his feet, surrounded her with his arms and pulled her back tight against his front. And she let him. For the first time in her life, she felt safe. His arms were thick with muscle and felt as if he’d wrapped steel fencing around her, securing her against him. Anchoring her during the worst horror movie imaginable. It had everything. The worst kind of betrayal. Depraved monsters preying on innocents.
Silke was aware Benedek was not only holding her physically, he was holding her mind distant so she could touch on what he felt, but it couldn’t consume her. While she appreciated his protection, she felt she should experience some of what he’d gone through. At least at first she felt that way, until she crept close and saw him, or what was left of him.
He must have been stabbed ten or fifteen times before his brother cut his throat. She didn’t understand how Benedek could be alive, let alone aware. Not only was he aware, but she felt the energy around him expand. He was sending his energy to the surrounding area, calling for aid. Looking for something. Someone. She’d never felt so much determination radiating from another being in her life. Not just determination. Not hatred exactly, but the burning need for justice.