Her revengeful Bastard

The cold bastard

*Kai*

I am torn between being furious with Lea for taking matters into her own hands and applauding her ingenuity. For gaining me the introduction I had desired, she will be insufferable for at least a couple of weeks.

But as I follow the couple leading the way toward the fireworks, I can’t seem to hold on to my irritation with my sister, nor take my gaze away from the woman. She isn’t exactly what I had been expecting. The high ranked women tend to be haughty and unapproachable. They usually look at me as though I am muck to be scraped off the bottom of their shoe.

But Anna doesn’t seem to fit so easily into that mold. Her eyes, the same blue as a summer sky, had reflected curiosity, perhaps something even more provocative: temptation. I intrigue her. From the moment she had become aware of my existence, she has not taken her gaze from me, but has studied me with her fine brow delicately furrowed as though I am a puzzle to be sorted out.

I would wager half my fortune that she has been striving to place me, to wonder from whence she knows me. She is unlikely to make the connection … not until my plans are completed. Then she will know the truth of me, the truth of those she considers family, those whom she loves. Both truths are likely to bring her to tears, fill her with shame and mortification. And certainly kill any desire for me that might have been sparked within her breast.

If I were any other man, I might experience a measure of remorse, but I had learned early on that there is no money found in regrets.

“I have never spoken to someone that highly ranked before”. Lea says quietly. “They seem rather nice actually”.

“Stay away from them after tonight”. I had been reckless to bring her, to let her get even a glimpse of his game.

She looks at him. “Why ?”

“Because he has his eyes on you”. That, too, had been obvious from the start. There had been greed, desire, lust in the man’s eyes, and it had taken every bit of control I possessed not to introduce my fist to that little dent in his chin.

“You told me he is interested in the woman he was with”. She says.

Breathe in, trying to find the right words to explain. “She is the sort he marries. You are the sort he just … beds”.

Her eyes go wide and her cheeks redden. “And Anna, the girl on his arm ? Is she the sort you would wed ?”

“Never in a million years”. I huff.

She stops walking, causing me to do the same. “Yet you’re going to strive to take her away from him. What has he done to earn your wrath ?”

He had been born, protected, loved. Although in truth, he isn’t the one with whom I truly find fault, but he is the means to achieving my satisfaction. Not that I am willing to explain any of my reasons to my sister. She would just scold me and be disappointed in me. Generally I don’t care what people think about me, but from the moment she was born, she had been the only pure thing to ever love me. I will do whatever necessary to ensure nothing ever taints that purity. “Tonight, simply enjoy the fireworks”.

“But I’m part of your scheme now”. She says.

“Not after tonight”. I inform her.

She looks slightly offended. “I got you an introduction. I can do more …”.

“You were correct earlier, Lea. You were merely to serve as part of my disguise. What is going to transpire beyond tonight is not something for a Young woman of your sensibility”. Not for anyone with a shred of kindness or civility, but my education in the streets has ensured I grew up to possess neither of those irritating and limiting qualities. If they linger about at all, I am unable to locate even a remnant of their existence within my character, my soul, my heart.

“I despise the way you discount me so easily with so little care”. She huffs.

I shake my head. “I’m not discounting you, I’m protecting you”.

She opens her mouth, no doubt to protest more, reminding me of a dog I had once owned that never released his hold on a bone once he had it clamped between his jaws. “We can leave now if you prefer”. I say curtly before she can give voice to more objections.

Her face falls, no doubt because she has just realized that arguing with me is a losing battle. Men with far more worldly experience have given up trying to stand up to me, so how could a mere slip of a girl ? “I want to see the fireworks”.

I am impressed she manages not to sound too ill-mannered or petulant. “Then let this go”.

She quickly sticks her tongue out at me before marching forward. Her short legs are no match for my longer ones, and I easily catch up with her. Odd that she doesn't realize that her childish actions proves my point: she is not made for the world in which I survive.

Kyle and Anna are waiting in an open area that will give us a clear view of the sky.

Anna moves over to greet Lea as though they are long lost friends, which leaves Kyle and I standing behind them. I should have used the opportunity to study my foe, but I can’t seem to drag my gaze from Anna’s profile as she smiles and speaks with my sister.

Her features are not perfect. The end of her nose tips up ever so slightly as though she has spent her youth with it pressed up against a shop window, longing for something she had spied on a shelf. A distant light glints off her eyelashes, which are unusually long, and I suspect that when she sleeps, they fan out over her cheeks. Her eyes also tilt up slightly as though the corners near her temples are shoved into place by her overly high cheekbones. Yet each imperfection woven into the fabric of her face to give her the appearance of perfection.

Her alabaster skin is flawless, not a freckle in sight, and I doubt if she ever allows the sun to touch her face while in human form. Nor a man for that matter. Beneath her frilly hat, a few blond tendrils, curling and loose, have broken free of their pins. I suspect they are the most rebellious part of her. Her posture, the way she holds herself stiffly, the lack of animation in her movements, both speak of a woman who understands she is continually on display and must constantly portray control and a proper bearing.

I am quite looking forward to the challenge of destroying that control.

“Have we met before ?” Kyle asks quietly.

I slide my gaze over to the man, who is perhaps an inch shorter than me and much more slender. But then again my half brother has never had to haul rubbish out of the city in order to earn a few coins so his family didn’t go hungry. “No”.

Kyle’s thick dark eyebrows draw together, causing a deep crease to form between them. “You look familiar. I could swear our paths must have crossed at some point”.

“I don’t move about in your circles, sir. And I doubt very much you move about in mine”. I tell him with a knowing smile.

Kyle blanches, and avert his gaze. I am not surprised. I have learned enough about the man during the past few months to have a relatively good idea of the circles he prefers. Before summer draws to a close, they will be his downfall.

“Although it’s quite possible you saw me in passing at the Wild wolf club. It seems to be a crossroad for the various stations in life, a place where the upper and lower ranked don’t mind mingling because their common interests override all else”. I say.

“Hardly likely I’ve seen you there, as I haven’t gotten a membership”. He shakes his head.

I am well aware Kyle has been making inquiries about the club, and know he has never been there. The establishment is merely a lure, the first step in guiding my half brother toward his downfall. “Membership isn’t required. Merely a heavy purse”.

I am acutely aware of the man coming to sharp attention. Disappointment washes through me.

I had anticipated a bit of a challenge, and had hoped Kyle would at least resist being led to s*******r.

Nothing in my life has ever come easy. I don’t want revenge handed to me on a silver platter without having worked for it.

“To be honest”. Kyle says hesitantly. “I wasn’t certain the place truly existed. Not one of my acquaintances has ever admitted to spending time at the club or casino”.

“I’m not surprised. Most of the ranked wolves who frequent the place have been barred from the more respectable clubs. Admitting to frequenting The wild wolf hardly improves one’s reputation”. I chuckle.

He looks at me, offense blooming in his eyes. “You think I’ve been barred ?”

The cutting edge to his voice indicates he has been insulted. Perhaps this wouldn’t be so easy after all.

“No, good sir. I am trying to offer a suggestion for where we might have possibly crossed paths. You strike me as a man with a keen intellect who would have success at the tables, and a bit of an adventurer who might be in search of various types of entertainment. I suspect you bore easily”. I say with a knowing glance.

“You deduced all that from a chance meeting ?” He asks, sounding surprised and impressed.

No, I have deduced it all from months of research, but I need to stifle the man’s suspicions.

“Quite right. Simply because I enjoy the more daring environs doesn’t mean all men do”. Especially those who are spoiled and pampered, who have lived in privilege, a privilege I should have enjoyed, at least partially. A proper school, proper house, proper food, proper clothing. I do not mind making my own way as a man, but as a boy I shouldn’t have had to do the things I had done to survive. However, I don’t allow the seething fury to rise to the surface, to inhabit my stance or my voice. “My apologies for believing we had something in common”.

“I didn’t take offense. I’m merely curious about your knowledge”. Kyle says.

And apparently not very trusting. I wonder why that is. “You come from a long line of Alpha’s. I’ve read accounts in the papers”.

“You pay attention to all Alpha bloodlines ?” He asks curiously.

“I pay attention and remember everything. I’m a businessman. I never know where an idea or opportunity for a new venture might appear. I’m also very skilled at quickly judging a fellow’s worth, so I don’t take on an investor I should not trust”.

He gives me a small nod. “Now, I must be the one to apologize. I have on occasion had men strive to take advantage of my position. It makes one wary”.

“It is always good to approach strangers with caution”. I agree.

Kyle scoffs. “These were friends. Or so I thought. I must admit to being curious about the Wild Wolf Club. But as I understand it, its location is a closely guarded secret”.

I shrug sloppily. “Meet me at the entrance to these gardens tomorrow night at ten and I’ll take you there”.

The man’s mouth slides up into a smile. “I may just do that.”

He will do it. His debt has caused him to lose his membership in one gentlemen’s club, and he is on the brink of losing it in another. My brother has a penchant for gambling when he ought not, for raising the stakes when the odds are not in his favor. Apparently he is an atrocious cardplayer, unable to divine when fortune has turned against him.

An explosion breaks the stillness of the night and only then do I notice the red and green blossoms filling the sky. I hear Lea’s startled gasp. She no doubt doesn’t remember that I had shown her a firework display when she was four. Sitting on my shoulders, she cheered with glee then, her enthusiasm knocking off my cap. Now she claps with a bit more manners but her elation paints her face.

What surprises me most is how delighted Anna appears. I have to shift my stance slightly and inconspicuously in order to still view her profile. With the colored flares dancing over her features and the brightness of her smile, she is beautiful in a way I had overlooked before. Childlike in her joy. I am suddenly struck by how young she appears, not much older than Lea. Innocent. I suspect she has never sinned in her life.

If I was a decent man, I would have cast aside my plans. But having clawed my way out of the sewer into which I had been tossed, Kai Tempest is neither decent nor one to give up simply because he has misjudged certain elements of his scheme. I am known for being a stubborn bastard. That stubborn streak has gained me wealth and a reputation for being ruthless when it comes to acquiring whatever I desire.

Presently I desire an acknowledgment of my place in the world. Without it, I am merely a thug. With it, I would become one of the most powerful men in the country. Doors once slammed in my face would open wide. Those who have previously shunned me will embrace me.

I have been scheming for far too long to cast it all aside now. I have climbed as far as I can up the social ladder. To reach the higher rungs, others have to fall … far and spectacularly, like fireworks burning out on their way down. I will be paid what I am owed. And God’s mercy on anyone who stands in my way.