"Yeah," he answered, voice rough. "I'm here, son."
Son.
He called Kai "son."
When he spoke that word, tears slipped out—hidden, but I caught them. He quickly wiped them away, cleared his throat.
"Kai, do you... Do you like that gun from earlier?" He asked, trying to make his voice sound normal.
Kai nodded in my arms.
"Want to hold it?" Kayden asked, awkwardly trying to please. "Really hold it, not just look."
Kai's eyes brightened. He looked at me, then at Kayden, slowly emerging from my embrace.
Kayden took out the pistol, removed the magazine, checked twice to ensure it was safe, then handed it to Kai.
"Careful, it's a bit heavy."
Kai took it with both small hands, nearly dropping it.
"So heavy..." he muttered, but his eyes were full of excitement. "Daddy, what's this?"
"The trigger. That's the sight..." Kayden patiently explained.
Kai listened intently, little hands exploring the gun.
"Daddy's so awesome!" He looked up at Kayden with worship in his eyes. "Earlier, you went bang bang twice, and those monsters just fell!"
"That's because the bullets are special," Kayden said. "Regular bullets don't work on vampires."
"Vampires?" Kai asked curiously. "What are those?"
"A kind of... bad thing." Kayden thought for a moment. "But you don't need to be scared. Daddy will protect you."
"Like the super villains in movies, right?" Kai nodded, making the connection. Then he asked, "Daddy, can you turn into a wolf?"
"Yes."
"Can you show me?"
"Not right now." Kayden exhaled quietly in relief. I knew he'd been worried Kai wouldn't accept him, but clearly that worry was unfounded.
"But later. When we..." Kayden smiled, suddenly looking at me—I had an ominous feeling. "When we're living together, Daddy can shift for you every day."
"Living together?" Kai grew even more excited. He crawled forward two steps on the bed, closer to Kayden. "We're going to live together?"
Kai turned to look at me. I'd never seen him this happy. "Mommy, really? Is it okay?"
He asked twice in a row.
Before I could answer, Kayden had already picked Kai up, holding him close. He looked at me over Kai's head, a triumphant smile playing on his lips, then silently mouthed words at me.
"You're going to refuse us?"
He was using Kai to back me into a corner.
That expression held challenge, cunning, and childish satisfaction.Very un-Blackwood, but... maybe this was the real him. Unrepressed. Belonging to... our Kayden.
