The Beast's Possession
157: Bloodlines curse.

**Bane

pov**

Ever since the nurse left, which had to be at least three hours ago, her words still replayed in my mind, as if I couldn't get rid of the powerful impact they left behind. No matter how hard I tried, they didn't fade. If anything, her words rang louder in my mind, more powerful, more meaningful. She was a wise woman, that much was a fact.

Maybe I really needed someone to hit me where it hurt. Perhaps without her telling me those things, I wouldn't have come to that conclusion.

Now, I know one thing. I had to fight it. I had to fight my curse if I wanted to be the man Aife deserved and wanted. And if I couldn't, well, that would mean that I truly was unworthy of her to begin with.

*"I would love to see you try, fool. You are too weak, too small to ever face me."* The voice rang out in my mind, silencing the raging thoughts.

It was truly admirable how crazy my thoughts could go and as soon as he appeared again, it was like nothing could stand against him, not even my own mind.

"Oh, but you will see me try. And when I fail, I will start the same shit all over again until I succeed. First, I will find out why your sorry ass is rooted in my mind and then I will pluck you out like useless grass," I laughed at him.

My words amused him because the asshole joined in with laughter of his own, this much deeper and darker than mine. Sinister even. *"You will never succeed. None of your ancestors has and neither will you. The entire bloodline is too weak, pathetic, laughable even."*

"You're the one to speak, right? Alone, trapped in a mind that isn't your own, acting like a fucking leech. Sure, you're so damn powerful. Dude, you don't have hands, what are you going to do, choke me with your words?" I kept challenging him, eager to see if I could anger him enough to make him lose control. "Besides, if my bloodline is so damn weak and pathetic, I have all the rights to stop it, don't I? A quick snip and no kids - done. You'd die with me. Exciting, isn't it? No more poor souls to latch on."

I could feel his anger rising with every word I threw at him. And just as it almost erupted, just a second before he lost his cool, the door to the room flew open and the king stepped inside, grinning like some moron.

Why now? Why did he decide to come here and ruin everything I was trying to do? Was it really too much to ask for to get a moment I could use to piss off the leech living inside my body?

"You know, the other people in this pack might think you're going mad, talking and laughing alone in this room," he chuckled as he closed the door and approached me.

While it was clear he was trying to appear amused, there was something off about him - his aura was wildly all over the place.

Raising an eyebrow at him, I sat up in the bed and waited for him to speak up, but he didn't offer any words.

Why would he come here if he didn't intend to talk to me? Sometimes, I didn't get him. This whole mysterious act was so old, I wished he could just drop it.

"I'm okay with that," I stated just to get the conversation going. "I can't claim that their thoughts about me are high in any regard anyway. Since I'm already a lost cause in their eyes, I might as well play the madman. Anyway, why did you come here?"

As he sat on the edge of the bed, he placed his hand over his chest and faked a surprised gasp. "Can't a friend visit his friend when the friend is injured and in pain? What kind of friend would I be if I didn't visit my friend? Don't you see me as your friend? Is it that you don't think I'm worthy of being a friend? Or are you tired of being my friend now?"

Rolling my eyes, I groaned at him. "What is it? What happened?"

His eyes focused on something in the distance the moment he realized he had been caught. "What makes you think something happened?"

"I don't know, maybe the fact that you just said the word friend like seven times?" I offered.

Once he hissed a low 'shit' under his breath, I couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out in laughter. This man was so smart, so powerful and knowledgeable, but sometimes, he did and said the stupidest things.

"Well, sometimes even the brightest minds get a little messed up in their heads under immense amounts of stress. Let this slide, please. For the sake of our friendship, okay?" He laughed as he spoke. "Technically you just said friend again," I added just to annoy him a little.

From there, both of us just laughed at the situation. I had a feeling that he knew how much I didn't want to hear what he had to say. While I was curious about whatever got him this stressed, I was also scared to know. I didn't pay attention to how much time passed with us laughing and when the laughter died down. At one point, both of us became quiet, trapped in our own minds, settling down the storms raging within us. After a while, the silence around us became so deafening, I couldn't take it anymore, so I cleared my throat to get his attention. "You can tell me. Whatever it is."

When he averted his gaze, I knew this was serious. If anything, this man wasn't someone who didn't bother looking into the eyes of the person he spoke to. For as long as I had known him, he never averted his gaze. Until now.. The king sucked in a deep breath and shook his head. "I'm scared to tell you. I know I should as this is connected to you, but you're already so broken, I'm scared to break you even more. You're my friend, Bane. I care for you." Although the words he spoke weren't any louder than a low whisper, I caught each one of them. Shivers instantly traveled down my spine, leaving a tingling, painful sensation behind.

I could feel goosebumps raise on my arms and the rest of my body. It felt as if there wasn't a bit of skin left uncovered.

Reaching out, I placed my hand on his and squeezed it. "I know you care, that's why you're here. No matter how much it might hurt me, you're here because you know I will always stand for the truth. I rather listen to bitter truth than sweet lies. No matter how bad it is, I hope you can tell me."

He quickly nodded his head in agreement. "Of course, I can tell you the truth. Just give me a moment, okay? This isn't an easy thing to say, definitely not the news you would like to break to your friend."

"Whenever you're ready, I am too. The sooner the better. I don't care how painful or unpleasant it gets, I prefer to get over the ugly parts of life as fast as I can," I tried to encourage him.

My words might have sounded like something a brave man was saying, but in reality, I was so scared, I couldn't focus on anything. There was this heavy, odd feeling in the pit of my stomach and my heart was beating so fast, I feared it might break out of my ribcage.

And judging by the look the king was giving me, it seemed like he could hear my heart as well. Shit.

I flashed him a stupid, shit-eating grin and nodded, giving him a silent encouragement to speak up.

Once again, he looked away and sucked in a sharp breath. "Promise you won't freak out."

Now, he had me truly worried. Freak out about what? Honestly, I didn't like to make promises that I didn't know if I could keep, but this time, I gave in. If an empty promise was all he asked for, that much I could offer.

"I won't freak out. Or at least I'll try," I muttered.

"I read some books in the palace library a year or so ago. At first, I didn't pay much attention to details but after we met and he got too aggressive, I remembered there was some mention of bloodlines curse. If yours is the same as that mentioned in the books, this will disappoint you. The only way to break it is if your mate gives birth to a daughter, breaking the list of male firstborns."

Okay, this was a punch to the gut. How was I supposed to break the curse and rid myself of the leech if I couldn't have a mate? The moon Goddess knew no mercy when it came to sinners and her curses.