In the Arms of the Beast (Kings of Hell MC 5)

Laurent couldn’t stop stroking the tiny cheek, even more so when coping with such shocking revelations. .“You plan to raise the child on your own?”

Lana shrugged. “Not having a partner won’t mean I’m ‘alone’. I make friends easily.”

Laurent pondered that in context of the clubhouse. It always burst with people, and he’d made friends here who would undoubtedly support him if needed. The idea of raising Marcel alone was so fresh it still throbbed in his head, causing him pain, but Laurent would do what needed to be done. He always did.

Even if Beast resented him.

Chapter 15 - Beast

Beast didn’t want to do this.

After witnessing what had happened to Nick, cutting the tree again was the last thing he was willing to do, but Magpie insisted he needed a sample of the corrosive sap, so there Beast was, facing the monster again. After discussing it all with Vars, who’d grown back his fingers, as well as Shadow, their resident specialist on the Other Side, and Gray, without whom Shadow wouldn’t have gone anywhere, they decided to target the smallest of the demonic creations.

It happened to be the one closest to the club, on a hill just off the public road, but despite the tree’s average size, and the bright sunlight raining on them as if there were no cares in the world, Beast’s mood remained somber. Magpie did send them a couple of containers that, according to him, should withstand the burning substance, but Beast was sceptical, and Vars didn’t seem keen to suffer either. Since Vars needed blood to recuperate and speed up his regeneration, they’d brought along a live chicken in a cage, and the prospect of seeing his friend drink from it freaked Beast out even more than having to interact with the tree.

At least Shadow remained his usual sunny self, even though his presence made the tree trunk lean their way ever so slightly. That, or it was a product of Beast’s imagination going crazy from all the stress that had recently plagued his life.

As if he didn’t have enough on his plate already, Laurent had decided to move out following their spat in the garage, and Beast had to go out for a long walk in the forest to not wreck his own apartment in fury. Why now? Why did everything have to get out of hand on that front as well?

Beast’s heart was continuously bleeding because of this bullshit, but he needed to be a man about it and grit his teeth until it could be dealt with. If Laurent wished to spite him by moving into a spare bedroom on the other side of the clubhouse, then that was his right. He wasn’t in danger, and Marcel wasn’t yet hatching, so all that stuff could wait while Beast took care of what mattered.

It still hurt to see Laurent ignore his presence and go the other way whenever they spotted one another in the corridors, but Beast was a big boy, and he’d had his fair share of rejection to build up a thick skin.

They would eventually make up once Laurent took his head out of his ass, but maybe it was for the better that he stopped inquiring about the trees and trying to push further ideas how to improve their situation. Beast didn’t want Laurent anywhere near those ugly creations.

Nick was recovering well physically, but Fox had told him the boy woke up screaming each night, plagued by vivid nightmares. The sole thought that Laurent might have done something stupid and gotten hurt in a misguided attempt at helping Beast out, made Beast’s breakfast rise in his throat.

If Beast’s pain was the price for Laurent’s safety then so be it. With Laurent’s attitude to family and marriage, it wasn’t like he’d file for a divorce. They would get back together eventually. Or was it just blind hope Beast clung to out of desperation?

“How are we going to do this? You know Shadow’s body doesn’t regenerate. He only has the one,” Gray said, holding onto his lover’s hand as if this was a romantic picnic in the park, not work. Beast could swear those two were even worse with their PDA than Knight and Elliot. Especially now that it all reminded him of what his life was lacking.

Shadow gave him a brilliant smile and tossed his black hair over his shoulder. “I’ll just leave my body with you. You know I trust you with it.”

Vars cleared his throat. “How do we know the sap won’t hurt his shadow form either? Maybe I should be one to deal with it? I mean, whatever gets burnt will eventually grow back,” he said, staring at the grass with a tense expression.

Self-sacrifice. Beast couldn’t deny it made sense, but it still irked him that they had to go through with something this dangerous again. Magpie should have come to collect the samples himself.