Wake of the Dead | One

Chapter twenty-two

Forcing himself to look away, Killian felt a deep shudder run down his spine. His brows narrowed together, a frown on his lips. Dominick raised a brow as he helped Killian flip the deer over and sprawl out its legs. "You and Cas really hate each other, don't you?" 

Shooting Dominick a glare Killian muttered, "Whatever gave you that idea?" Rolling his eyes with an exasperated growl, he flipped his skinning knife out from its sheathe at his hip and caught it by the handle. The razor-sharp blade glinted in the silver moonlight. He could have sworn he saw Dominick gulp out of the corner of his vision. 

Straddling one of the deer's legs with his knee, Killian would have much preferred to have a rack to work with for preparing the fresh kill, but knew that luxury was far from realistic. He would have to improvise, as well as be more careful with the animal while gutting it and removing the inside organs. Looking at the short blade of his knife, Killian knew it still wouldn't be enough to hack off the unneeded limbs. "Dominick, see if I can borrow Chris' machete." He said. "But say you need it. If he knows it's me who's going to use it, he won't give it up."

Dominick knit his brows together, tilting his head to the side. "So, I'm just your assistant then?" With a teasing smile playing at the corner of his lips, Killian glared daggers at the other man. "Alright, alright. Fine." Dominick relented, standing up and shaking his head. Killian barely heard Dominick's passing mutter of, "How Jasper managed to get on your good side is beyond me."

Waiting wasn't exactly Killian's game when it came to anything other than stalking or idling for prey. Hunting was something that occupied all of his senses. His peripheral vision, spatial awareness, sense of smell and touch. Every little thing mattered when it came to staying hidden from his prey. Even the snap of a miniscule twig or the rustle of leaves would make a rabbit dart back to the safety of its warren. 

To Killian's relief, Dominick returned with Chris' machete in hand. He immediately noticed that the large blade was sharpened well enough, and Killian got to work immediately. As he went through the process of skinning the animal, hacking off all of the limbs that were unneeded, removing the inside organs and cutting the meat; Dominick had taken a surprising interest in trying to learn everything he could. Killian's chest swelled with a fierce sense of pride whenever the other man would ask about complicated actions, or why certain steps needed to be in order. Perhaps, Killian thought, Dominick might be interested in learning how to hunt. 

Would Killian even be a good teacher, though? He couldn't help but ponder on that. What gave him the right to lecture Dominick on what was the right way to do things and what wasn't? He wasn't as good as Jasper when it came to confidence or giving out orders. So how could he possibly be of use teaching somebody these things? 

The deer was prepared in a little under an hour and a half. It took Killian another half hour of searching for any dry wood to build a nice campfire big enough to cook the meat well enough to eat. The aroma of it made his mouth salivate, his stomach rumble with the desperate promise of enough food that could finally fill his belly. It had been a long, long time since Killian had eaten a hearty meal. He could only hope he got to lead more hunting patrols in the future. 

Killian jumped as Dominick spoke up and startled him out of his thoughts, as well as his hunger-induced stupor. The other man had a barely visible smile on his lips as he said, "Why don't you come and hang out with the rest of us? I mean, you barely know anybody else here and you've with us for almost a week now." Parting his lips to immediately argue, Killian's gaze slowly trailed past Dominick and towards the campfire a few dozen yards away, where the rest of the group was gathered. He could hear Tom's hearty, strong laugh and see Cohen's amused expression. 

As soon as Killian looked over, he saw that Casimir was staring straight at him. Gooseflesh spread across his arms, raising the hairs at the back of his neck. Still, he forced himself to hold Casimir's piercing gaze. His muscles slowly coiled, bristling and ready for a fight. But eventually, Casimir averted his gaze and focused on the animated conversation Tom was having with the others. Dominick had followed the trail of where Killian was looking. "Don't let Casimir stop you from going over there." 

Finally, Killian cleared his hoarse through and lied, "It isn't Casimir that's keeping me away. Somebody's got to watch this so it doesn't get burnt." Dominick held Killian's stare for a long time, long enough to make Killian increasingly uncomfortable. 

In a sing-song voice that made Killian want to punch Dominick across the jaw, the other man replied, "I don't believe you." He noticed the way Killian was clenching his fists and laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean, I kind of don't. So...please? Even just for a few minutes?" A small, impish smile spread across the other man's lips. "I'll carry your next hunt back to base for you." He bargained. 

Knitting his brows together, Killian weighed the benefit of this deal. On one hand, he could spare himself of sore muscles. But on another hand, he'd have to remain awkwardly seated amongst a bunch of possibly aggressive strangers he didn't want to know, or care to know. After a long time of debating Killian said, "No. I'll stay here, thank you very much." A snarl tugged at his lips, "Now leave me alone. I'll tell you all when your second dinner is done."

A small frown tugged at Dominick's lips, and he held Killian's gaze for a few seconds more until he said, "Alright, fine." He paused for a few more seconds, unmoving. Killian gave Dominick an uneasy side-stare in return. Dominick eventually broke the brittle silence and said sharply, "Look, if you're going to be part of this group then you're going to need to learn to get along with everybody when Jasper isn't here." 

Killian parted his lips to deliver a stinging retort, but Dominick interrupted him yet again. "Don't say that isn't what's going on, because we both know it is. Everybody does. Maybe this hunt proved you're useful, but as far as everybody else is concerned you're still an unfriendly asshole." 

Bristling at the other man's comment, Killian slowly began to grit his teeth. He barely held back an angry growl, his hand almost shaking with the urge to punch that smug smile off of Dominick's face and teach the other man a lesson about respect. After a few long moments of contemplation, Killian let out a long sigh. "Fine." He growled, massaging his temples in preparation for an inevitable headache. "But you still owe me."

Dominick grinned, "Great!" He said, beaming. Killian wanted to take his knife and give Dominick another good scare like he'd done a few hours prior, but Jasper's words rang in his ears. Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone, Boy Scout. Those probably hadn't been his exact words, but it was close enough. 

Reluctantly hauling himself to his feet, Killian began his awkward and unenthusiastic shuffle towards socialization.