Chapter 256 Kane Unleashed

Chapter 256 Kane Unleashed
Mason's body slammed against the cave wall with a sickening thud. Despite the obvious pain, he struggled back to his feet, his shoulders hunched but determination evident in his eyes.

"You're persistent, I'll give you that," Hawk sneered, watching Mason stagger toward him again. "But ultimately useless."

I wanted to scream at Mason to stay down. Each time he rose, Hawk struck him down harder. Blood trickled from Mason's split lip, but the youngest Sterling brother refused to yield.

"You won't... touch her," Mason panted, throwing a punch that Hawk easily dodged.

With lightning speed, Hawk grabbed Mason by the throat and slammed him against the wall again. "Enough of this nonsense." He flicked his wrist, and silver chains materialized from nowhere, wrapping around Mason's limbs and binding him to the wall.

I backed away as Hawk turned his attention to me, his eyes gleaming with malicious intent. "Now for you, Elena Williams."

"What do you want from me?" I tried to keep my voice steady, but fear made it waver.

"Your energy is... fascinating." Hawk circled me like a predator. "Bear blood from your mother's side, wolf blood from your father's. And that recently reunited wolf spirit inside you..." His fingers traced the air near my throat, not touching but close enough that I could feel their heat. "I'm going to enjoy extracting every ounce of that power."

I closed my eyes, desperately trying to reach Nora, my inner wolf. I could feel her presence, but she was weakened from our recent battles. We were both exhausted, our connection strained. I needed more time to recover, time we didn't have.

"Leave her alone!" Mason shouted, struggling against his restraints.

Hawk laughed. "Or what? Your brothers aren't coming to save—"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

The deep, menacing voice came from the shadows. My heart skipped several beats as Kane stepped into the dim light of the cave. His usually immaculate suit was rumpled, his tie missing, but he'd never looked more dangerous—or more beautiful.

"Touch her again," Kane said, his voice deadly quiet, "and it will be the last thing you ever do."

Hawk's expression flickered between surprise and amusement. "The eldest Sterling prince comes to rescue his lost love. How predictable."

Kane didn't respond with words. Instead, his body began to change. Not into full wolf form, but something between—muscles expanding beneath his shirt, fingers extending into lethal claws, eyes shifting to that brilliant gold-green that I remembered so well. Half-man, half-wolf—the rare form that only the strongest Alphas could achieve.

"Holy shit," Mason whispered from his position against the wall.

Before Hawk could react, Kane launched himself forward with impossible speed. His claws tore through Hawk's shoulder, drawing a howl of pain and rage. Blood sprayed across the cave floor as Hawk stumbled backward.

"You can't—" Hawk began, his body starting to shimmer as he attempted to activate his teleportation magic.

Kane grabbed him mid-shimmer, his clawed hand wrapping around Hawk's throat. "Alpha blocking," Kane growled, his voice deeper, rougher. "You're not going anywhere."

Hawk's eyes widened in genuine fear as his teleportation magic fizzled out. He clawed at Kane's arm, drawing blood, but Kane didn't even flinch.

"For Katherine," Kane snarled. "For Elena. For my family."

With one swift, terrible motion, Kane twisted. The crack of Hawk's neck breaking echoed through the cave, followed by absolute silence.

Kane released the body, letting it crumple to the ground. He stood there for a moment, breathing heavily, before his features slowly shifted back to human form. Despite the violence I'd just witnessed, all I felt was relief.

Kane immediately rushed to my side, his expression softening as he cupped my face in his hands. "Elena. Are you hurt?"

I couldn't speak. The emotions were too overwhelming—fear, relief, and beneath it all, crushing grief. "Katherine," I finally managed, my voice breaking. "She's dead. My sister is dead."

Kane pulled me against his chest, and I broke down completely. His heartbeat thundered beneath my ear—strong, steady, alive.

"Isadora tracked the energy signatures," he explained softly, his hand stroking my hair. "It took several attempts because your wolf's energy was still stabilizing after your reunion, but the connection between us—between our wolves—was enough for her to lock onto."

I clutched at his shirt, breathing in his familiar scent. For just a moment, the world fell away, and I could feel the echo of what we once had—that unique resonance between wolf mates.

Our moment was shattered by a blaring alarm. The cave began to shake, dust and small rocks raining down from the ceiling.

"We need to move." Kane quickly moved to Mason, using his claws to slice through the magical chains. Mason slumped forward, and Kane caught him, supporting his weight.

"Can you walk?" Kane asked his brother.

Mason nodded weakly. "I'm okay. Just... bruised ego mostly."

We rushed through the shaking corridors, the alarm piercing my ears like knives, debris raining down from the ceiling.

As we turned a dark corner, I stopped abruptly, my heart seized by an invisible hand. There, in the shadows against the wall, Katherine's body lay still, discarded like a broken doll. Her chest was stained crimson with blood, her once lively eyes staring emptily into nothingness. That face—identical to mine—now pale as paper, drained of all life.

"Kat!" I screamed, breaking free from Kane's support and stumbling to her side. My knees hit the cold stone floor hard, but the pain was nothing compared to the tearing agony in my heart.

I trembled as I gathered her cold body into my arms, my fingers touching her damp, cold skin sent ice through my veins. Her blood stuck to my palms, the contrast of warmth and cold making me nearly suffocate.

I lowered my head close to her face, desperately searching for a breath, for any sign of life, but found only silence. Her hair was disheveled, covered in dust and blood, and I gently stroked it, memories flooding back of us braiding each other's hair as children—back when her smile was as bright as sunshine.

"No... no... you can't leave me like this!" My voice broke, my throat feeling scraped raw, each word tasting of blood. Tears streamed uncontrollably down my face, falling onto her pale cheeks as if they could wake her, but she would never open her eyes to look at me again. The twin bond that once connected our minds now left me with nothing but an endless void—she was gone, half my soul violently torn away.

I held her, my body shaking violently, my chest crushed under an invisible weight, struggling to breathe. Anger, guilt, and despair wove a net around me, trapping me completely.

Through some lingering connection—perhaps twin intuition, perhaps through Nora's heightened senses—flashes of images crossed my mind: Hawk using our blood connection to track me, Katherine awakening to the truth in her final moments, realizing she had been nothing but a pawn. Her final pain and regret cut into my heart like knives.

"She was his puppet... she only understood at the end..." My voice was so choked it was barely audible.

"Elena, we have to go. This place is coming down," Kane's voice came from behind me, deep and gentle, his hand resting lightly on my shoulder, trying to pull me up. But I couldn't move, clinging to Katherine's body like a drowning person to their last lifeline.

I pressed my forehead against hers, tears blurring my vision, choking out a promise: "I'll come back for you, Kat. I won't leave you here alone."

Each word tore my heart again, but I had to say them—she was my twin, my other half, and despite everything she had done, I had never stopped loving her.

The cave shook violently again, and Kane forcibly pulled me to my feet. I took one last look at Katherine's face—identical to mine—and felt a cold fire ignite deep inside me—to avenge her, to bring justice for her.