Bonus Chapter 6 — Mikhail and Rowan meet Kell and Carrick

Mikhail:

“You suck at this!” I tell Rowan as he clicks a couple of buttons in his console controller.

Rowan scowls in reply. “It’s only because you're cheating, bro.”

I roll my eyes and press a button to finally annihilate him.

“What the hell, Khail!” He cries out grumpily. “I would have had you.”

I shake my head and open my lips to respond, but before I can, Alex steps into the living room and looks at both of us. “Are you two done here? Because I have some good news.”

Rowan and I settle our controllers on the table and face Alex. We’ve been living with Alex for a while, and it’s been great. We each got our own rooms, televisions, computers, and cell phones. We’ve kind of established a routine with Alex. Hell, we even have a game night. It’s seriously domesticated.

“What’s up?” Rowan sits up from his perch on the couch and faces Alex.

I give Rowan an imperceptible nod and join him.

Alex claps his hands gleefully and looks back and forth between us. “Well, it seems that you two are doing so well that the Council has allowed me to foster two other boys.”

Rowan and I groan in unison. I don’t know how I feel about sharing our house with two other boys. We’ve all become so comfortable, and adding two more people to the mix feels like it would be more trouble than it’s worth.

“Oh, come on, boys, it’ll be fun. Carrick and Kell are a year younger than you, and they’ve also lost people they loved. Have some compassion.”

I look at Rowan, who shrugs his shoulders. “What are they?” I ask Alex.

Alex smiles. “Kell is a Nephilim. Unfortunately, his parents were hunted down and killed months ago. His mother was run through with a sacred sword after being run off the road, and his father was killed after the crash. Poor Kell was found wandering down the road. And Carrick is a werewolf. His pack was slaughtered years ago, and he’s been living in homes since. I’m sure they’d like a nice stable home.” He says with a pleading expression.

Rowan scoffs, but I know it’s all for show. I, however, remain silent. I know what it’s like to never have a family. Maybe it’s not a bad idea.

“When are they supposed to arrive?” I ask.

Alex gives me a grateful smile. “Actually, we’re picking them up at the DSC, Department of Supernatural Children, in an hour.”

Rowan rises from his seat with a huff. “They won’t try to steal my shit, will they?”

Alex rolls his eyes. “It’s stuff…say stuff, and no, they won’t steal anything. This house is pretty big. They’ll have their own room just like you two do.”

Rowan shrugs. “Okay, then let me put my shoes on.” While Rowan rushes off, I stare blankly into the television.

“Are you okay with this, Khail?” Alex asks with a note of concern.

I shrug my shoulders. “Sure, why not.” I hope my nervousness doesn’t show through my response. The truth is, I am nervous. Since I’ve learned that I’m a hybrid, I’ve also learned that our world is prejudiced toward creatures like me. Pretty much every supernatural we’ve met has sneered as soon as they found out what I was. It’s a pretty hard pill to swallow, knowing that I’m hated for something I have no control over. It’s not like I asked to be born.

Alex must pick up on my vibe because he places his hand on my shoulder and rocks me. “Look, Khail, I know you haven’t had it easy. Or that our world hasn’t been the most inviting, but not everyone is like that. There are actually people in this world who actually judge you by your actions rather than what you are. I’m sure these boys will be alright with it—Trust me.”

I give him a half-hearted smile and rise from my seat as Rowan rushes back down the stairs. “I’m ready.” He mutters with mock enthusiasm.

I keep my cool through the drive, and as soon as we get to the DSC. It’s strange to be on the other end of things this time around, considering the last time we were here, it was when Alex came to collect Rowan and me.

Alex gives everyone a cordial smile as we make our way into the building. Rowan and I do not interact, opting to keep our heads down.

We’re about to walk to the holding room when a loud commotion beyond the doors catches our attention.

“Let go of me, assholes!” A young male voice resounds behind the door. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

Several officials run past us and rush inside of the room. Alex places a hand on each of our shoulders and pulls us to the side. “Stay here.” He mutters warily.

Rowan and I stay where we are but keep our ears open as the commotion begins to unravel.

“Calm down, Kell!” A reprimanding female voice calls out. “No one is going to hurt you.”

Another voice joins in the conversation, but it’s too low for us to hear. It must be the sound dampening walls. Considering supernatural beings have superhearing, most of the walls were probably built to cancel out sounds.

“I said, I’m not going! You can’t make me!” The voice booms before a crashing sound echoes through the hallway, followed by the sound of grunts and growls.

Just then, the door crashes open, and a young boy rushes out. His golden hair is messy, and his body is thin. I have to give it to him; he puts up a pretty good fight when the officials try to stop him. His wings spread around him as he tries to fly away. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get far. Two officials tackle him to the ground and hold his wings tightly in order to keep him from flying. “Let me go!” He screams out.

I look at his feathered wings with awe. My wings are a little different because they’re not completely made of feathers, which is why the Council knew I was a Hybrid.

Alex tries to approach the boy, but the boy is unreasonable to the point of being rabid.

It’s only when he tries to take a swipe out of Alex that Rowan and I get involved. Alex has been really good to us and has treated us with respect. That’s why there’s no way we’d let some little douchebag abuse him.

“Cut it out, asshat!” Rowan yells at the boy. “Can’t you see he’s only here to help you?”

I nod my head. “Yeah, chill kid. None of us are going to hurt you.”

The boy seizes his struggles and gives us both a glare. “Who the fuck are you?”

I move in front of Rowan protectively and face him down. My demon eyes begin to glow, and my claws descend. “We’re you’re new brothers, fucker. And if you would calm the fuck down, you’d let us explain how great your life is going to be now that you’re going home with us.”

The boy sniffs incredulously. However, I can tell that he’s intrigued. I guess it’s easier to accept the information from other kids than from adults.

“So, listen and listen well. This is Rowan and Alex.” I point to them, then to myself. “And I’m Mikhail. I know that you’re a little scared right now, but there’s no reason to be. Alex is a great foster dad, and you’ll have a better time in our house than you will in a group home. Trust me, we know.” I point to a nodding Rowan.

“Yeah, trust me, you’ll like us if you give us a chance.”

The boy looks at both of us as if gauging our honesty. After a moment, he relaxes his stance and mutters to the men restraining him. “You can let me go now. I won’t fight them.”

The men give him a dubious glare, then slowly back off.

Kell approaches both of us and gives us an appraising look. “You’re not a demon, but you’re also not an angel.” He tells me.

I shrug my shoulders. “No, I’m both.”

To my surprise, he nods his head. “Yeah, I feel you, man. I’m part human and part angel. It really sucks.”

At his words, I find myself genuinely smiling. “Yeah, it does.”

His eyes home in on Rowan. “You smell like a vampire.”

Rowan quirks a brow. “I hope that by my smell, you mean my scent is so alluring that you’re considering switching sexual preferences. I have to warn you, though, I’m not into dudes.”

Kell rolls his eyes. “You’re not my type, douche.”

Everyone laughs as the tension drains in the air.

After a moment, a woman comes out of another room with another boy following behind him. Unlike Kell, this boy is not fighting. In fact, his head is bowed, and his shoulders are slumped.

“Gentlemen, I’d like to introduce you to Carrick.”

Everyone greets him, but all Carrick does is wave shyly.

“Wow, for a werewolf, you sure are a shy little wuss,” Kell mutters.

Carrick’s head snaps up. “That’s because I’m not a jerkoff!” He mumbles heatedly.

Rowan and I laugh.

“They kind of remind us of us,” I tell Rowan.

Rowan nods. “Except, you and I weren’t as ugly.”

Both boys glare as they retort in unison. “You’re the ugly one, asshole.”

And that, as the humans say, was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

“Let’s go home,” Alex stated as he led us out the door.

It took some time for all of us to adjust to being a family, but somehow, we did.

For years, we laughed and fought together, becoming the family we never thought we’d have again.