The Hollow Gods (The Chaos Cycle #1)

Chapter 19

Chapter

Nineteen

Kai

Life for an injured lone wolf was a sack of shit. Toxic shit that had been bagged in a burlap sack and left to air out under someone’s window. A few cracked ribs he could deal with. A mangled arm wasn’t so bad either. But with injuries from his skull to his ass-crack and beyond, healing was taking far longer than Kai would’ve liked. He was sore enough that he couldn’t even snatch the baby squirrels that routinely got themselves pancaked by cars.

It took Kai nearly ten days to recover enough to walk without needing to sit on a tree stump every ten minutes. On the surface, he looked mostly fine, with only a few nicks and bruises along his torso and left leg. Still, his insides felt like scrambled eggs some mornings. His knee was tender—something between gelatin and baby shit—but his gait was returning to normal.

However, even with his improved condition, he was unable to hunt. That cold bitch Ama hadn’t made a peep since her first appearance, yet he felt her watching, and it pissed him off that she didn’t at least bring him some roadkill or something. Even the damn raven was less chilly than her, dropping dead rodents and scraps of meat he’d plucked from nearby carcasses through the window. Kai had no idea why the bird had taken to him, but he wasn’t about to call him shit-for-brains anytime soon. Then again, pan-seared rat wasn’t exactly a delicacy.

The charity helped, but it wasn’t enough. Kai knew he’d have to go back into town and scavenge, but the thought of it filled him with pants-wetting dread. He was debilitated by the prospect of another attack, another accident, another slip-up that might injure him more, or worse, have him found out. His little trip to the hospital was a close enough call—an excursion he’d rather have skipped. He knew they’d seen his face; one of them had shot a laser into his eyeball while he was still unconscious. That woke him out of his coma. He’d been avoiding doctors for over a decade, and now he had to worry about whether they found anything, whether someone was looking for him or asking questions. At least the damn hospital wasn’t in Black Hollow, so he’d probably be safe showing his face on this side of the river.

He thought back to the girl on the swing set, trying to do that thing where people put chocolate icing on a cake made of rhino shit—positive thinking, was it? It worked, for a little bit, until his heart started to feel funny, and the pit of his stomach grew even more hollow than usual. He was hungry, but it wasn’t that kind of hunger.

Deciding he could still taste the rhino shit under the thin layer of icing, Kai banished all thoughts of the girl—for now, anyway. He could always think about her later, but right now, he needed food, not fucking. Struggling to sit up, he winced at the throbbing in his side, taking a moment to let it fade before standing and dressing. Splashing water on his face, Kai gripped the edges of his bathroom sink and looked into the mirror. His breathing was still a tad laboured, but his heart was strong enough to take the beating. Running a wet hand through his hair and shaking it out like a dog, he grabbed his knife and wallet and left the cabin. He didn’t look great, but not bad enough that anyone might stop and ask if he was okay.

It was already sunset when Kai reached town, but something was different about the human shithole today, and it wasn’t just the glowing backdrop of warm colours. There were banners up in the streets advertising some event…organized by some historical society…sponsored by some fast-food chain. He didn’t understand why a place that sold heart disease and fries would care about local history, but he hoped the event was big enough to have free food.

The event in question—a birthday party for some rotting old farmhouse—was an opportunity for teens to get drunk and smoke weed behind the nearest rock while kids zipped around and drove their parents batty. He didn’t understand why people celebrated the fact that an old building was old. It was like congratulating an eighty-five-year-old for having wrinkles. Nonetheless, pointless public celebrations meant free food, and free food meant survival. Perhaps if he’d been cursed with even a fraction of human pride, he would’ve rather drowned in kittens than degrade himself by living off human scraps—pretending to be one of them, lining up like a trained monkey so he could be rewarded with a cookie and a pat on the head. But Kai wouldn’t let his low opinion of humanity flirt with the sweet indignation of self-righteous pride. Sure, he thought humans were parasites scourging the earth, but the idea of kicking the bucket on the point of principle was so…human.

The smoky aroma of a barbeque wafted closer as Kai followed the human hoards to the picnic at the ranch. The great thing about humans was how dull their senses were; they really had no idea who was among them. They never thought twice about who showed up at the watering hole—a predator grazing with the gazelles. Unfamiliar faces were presumed tourists, relatives, or friends from out of town, and most people were too preoccupied with their own business to give a damn. He got a few odd glances as he joined the queue at the barbeque. He could smell their curiosity, and while it prickled his skin and made his lip curl, he knew that if he acted indifferently, no one would bother speaking to him or asking where he was from.

The volunteers were too swamped to pay attention. The girl putting the hot dogs together didn’t even bother making eye contact as she shoved the padded beef stick his way, yelling for a new bag of buns.

“Can I have another.” It wasn’t a question. Kai’s voice was completely monotone, devoid of any inflection. The girl looked up and blinked at him through rectangular frames.

“Sorry, only one per guest.” She sounded polite enough, but Kai could tell from the subtle movements of her eyebrows, the twitch in her left nostril and the way her chin lifted that she thought he was an idiot.

“It’s for my kid sister,” he said in the same flat tone, tilting his head towards a group of children sitting on the grass. Two ginger boys and one dark-haired girl.

The volunteer glanced over at them, then turned back to Kai and frowned, the creases around her mouth showing through the layers of foundation she had on.

“Okay,” she folded, opening the new bag of buns and preparing another hot dog. Some of the people behind him were glaring, but no one made a sound as he helped himself to seconds. Without thanking her, he wandered off right past the brats.

It took him less than four bites to scarf down each hotdog. Feeling more at ease with a full stomach, Kai took a deep breath and let the multitude of scents wash over him. Something familiar was among them, and he felt it move the thumping mass behind his ribs. Inhaling to relieve the pressure in his chest, he scanned the field for the source of the aroma. Like the remaining bits of sunlight, it was fading fast.

Licking the grease off his fingers, Kai followed the quickly disappearing trail. He was chasing a shadow as it slipped between the cracks, compelled to catch it despite his unease around the townspeople. For once, he was driven by far more than his basic appetites.

It was a hunger to be sure. Just not that kind of hunger.

The whole world melted away as the pursuit became his sole focus. The scent was fleeing, retreating from the crowds in search of a safe and quiet place to hide.

Fine , he thought to himself. I love a good hunt.