Pure Blood (The Pure Blood Series Book 1)

by Katie Dunn

  The rustling and crunching of leaves in the distance brings me to a standstill. I watch as the D'yavol pack comes into sight. "What happened to your human friend?" I ask, noticing Anton is not with them.

  Nikolai's face is dead serious. "Death is what happened to him."

  I hate to say it, but I knew it. Nikolai was originally going to kill the man before leaving town—though, Nikolai obviously killed him earlier on because of my escape.

  Nikolai shakes his head. "It doesn't matter. If he let some weak girl escape, then he wasn't worthy of life. Not to mention, he always thought I was too young to be a leader yet. And no one in this world doubts me." He changes the subject far too easily. "You had a proposal?"

  I nod. "Yes. You want power, and I want to live. So maybe there's a way we can both have what we want."

  Nikolai's green eyes bore into me. "I'm listening."

  Troy steps up. "What if you can have power in a different form? What if Britt and I join your pack? Britt may not be a skinwalker, but she's a witch and a good one at that. If we join your pack, you could have more minions to boss around, and we'll do whatever you want."

  Nikolai glances at me. "And in return?"

  "In return, you leave Brighton forever," I negotiate. "And you let my family be."

  Nikolai smirks. "That's it? I skip town and l leave your family alone?"

  I nod. "That's it."

  Nikolai's smirk becomes a smile. I knew he couldn't give this up. He offers his hand to accept the deal. "I think I can make that work."

  I reach out and take his hand. I shake my head. "Sorry, Nikolai. But no deal."

  Nikolai gives a hum that comes out as more of a growl. The smile disappears from his face and fury burns in his eyes. "You little backstabber."

  Troy grabs my arm and pulls me away from Nikolai. One of the pack members lunges at us and transforms into a wolf. Lenny jumps from the tree, turning into his German Shepherd form in mid-air, and lands on the wolf. The two immediately begin attacking each other.

  War breaks out among us. My dad fights one skinwalker, Troy brawls with the other, I focus on Nikolai, and Derek does what he can from the tree. We all have our own specific duty.

  Nikolai conjures a fireball in his hand and throws it toward me. I imagine the fireball dispersing and block it. I summon a ball of water in hand and fling it in Nikolai's direction. Nikolai swats it away as if it is nothing. He laughs. "You're beautiful, smart, and you can fight. You never cease to amaze me, Britt Thompson."

  My attention on Nikolai ends when Lenny yelps. The wolf drags him across the ground by his ear. Derek supplies a fireball and sends it flying toward the wolf. It makes contact with him, and Lenny takes to opportunity to make his attack.

  Nikolai glances up and spots Derek in the tree behind me. He attempts to strike, but I raise my hand flat to my lips and blow. A gust of wind picks Nikolai up from the forest floor and hurls him twenty feet away. "Yeah, Britt!" Derek cheers me on.

  I glance around and notice that Troy and Lenny have put their assailants down. My dad is left battling the final skinwalker. Once he notices his pack has been destroyed, he steps away from my dad.

  Nikolai stands. "Maksim," he calls to the other skinwalker. Maksim glances at each of us. He understands that he doesn't stand a chance against us. He backs away, and he and Nikolai run off into the woods.

  I know this is not the end. We will be seeing them again. If not tonight, then soon.

  Derek climbs down from the tree. "We did it!"

  "No," I say. "We only won the battle. It's not over until we win the war."

  We decide to head home. There isn't any sense in us sticking around. We might as well go home and rest up for our next big encounter. At least then, Mom, Riley, and the twins will know that we are alive.

  We walk through the front door. Riley and the twins hurry to us. We exchange hugs and acknowledge just how lucky we are.

  Conversation stops when Lenny's eyebrows furrow. I turn to him. "Is everything all right?"

  Lenny's eyes flick to me, then to Troy. "Troy."

  Troy's gaze sweeps wildly around the room. "I feel it, too."

  His gaze stops at Mom. The cat we had found in the barn that night is scooped up into her arms. She strokes the top of his head lightly. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?" she asks Troy.

  "Where did you get the cat?" Troy asks.

  She shrugs and gazes at Riley. "He just showed up on the back porch a few minutes ago. Why?"

  "He's one of the pack members," Lenny breathes.

  Startled, Mom drops the cat. Before landing, he turns into a person—more specifically, Maksim.

  My mom rushes over to us, and Derek steps in front of her to shield her.

  "Where's Nikolai?" My dad asks.

  Maksim smirks. "Nearby."

  "You've got guts, coming here," Troy says.

  "And apparently, stupidity," Lenny adds.

  Maksim glances between Troy and me. "Killing the two of you would be worth it."

  We all glare at him. Everyone around me has pure hatred shining in their eyes. Dad turns to Mom. "Get upstairs. Whatever you hear, don't come down." My mom nods and leads the twins away.

  Maksim shakes his head. "They're not the ones I came for."

  "They don't need to see what happens next," I say.

  Maksim laughs.

  Riley steps forward. "You're sick."

  Maksim raises an eyebrow. "I'm no worse than your father was." Riley grimaces at his words.

  "Enough!" I yell. "Don't—"

  A loud boom roars through the house, when the front door bursts open.

  Nikolai stands in the doorway. He smirks. "Sorry, I'm late."

  "Actually, you're just in time," Derek says. "We're about to introduce your friend to a world of pain."

  "Care to join in on the hurt?" Troy asks.

  Nikolai leans in the doorway since he can't enter anyway. "I'd prefer not to."

  Derek shrugs. "Okay… But we're gonna come for you next."

  Nikolai rolls his eyes. "Get out here, Maksim."

  The skinwalker attempts to follow orders, but I block his way. He tries to step around me, but Riley stops him.

  "You may think you're going somewhere, but I don't." She smiles up at him.

  He glares at her.

  Maksim turns. Troy, Lenny, and Derek complete our little circle around him.

  "What do you guys say?" Lenny starts. "Should we drag out his suffering or make it quick?"

  We all agree on the situation. "We'll make it quick," I say. "That way we don't have to worry about him escaping."

  Maksim gazes nervously at Nikolai. "Nikolai?"

  Nikolai shakes his head. "Are you seriously afraid of a bunch of teenagers?"

  Maksim glances at each of us. "Little bit."

  Troy balls his hand into a fist and turns his wrist like he did with Nikolai. Maksim moans in pain. He drops to his hands and knees. Derek moves forth. He does something to Maksim that makes blood drip from his eyes and mouth.

  Lenny focuses on Maksim's head. Maksim cries out in pain and presses his hands to his head as if he has a bad headache. When my turn approaches, I glance over my shoulder at Dad. He stands behind me, waiting to strike in case Maksim were to escape. I do to Maksim what I swore I would never do again. Maksim begins to cough up water.

  He gazes at Nikolai. When the opportunity arises, he speaks. "Nikolai… Help me. Please."

  Nikolai crosses his arms. "Sorry, but there's only one person I always put first. Me." With that, Nikolai turns and leaves.

  Maksim turns over on his back and groans. We all decide to let Riley deliver the fatal blow. With Lenny compressing Maksim's brain, Riley's strike does it. She kicks him in the face with the bottom of her foot, ending it all.

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  THINGS ARE DIFFERENT TODAY. Today doesn't feel dangerous. For the first time in months, I feel truly safe. Like, I don't have to look over my shoulder every time I leave the house.

>   We don't know where Nikolai has fled, but as long as he's not in Brighton, we won't worry about him. And why should we? He's not here picking off residents. We can be doing what normal people do, living normal lives—at least, as normal as we can make it.

  Riley and I hurry down the stairs, our skirts flapping, as we race to the bottom of the stairs. Everyone waits in the living room for us.

  Troy smiles when he sees me. "Are you ready, now?"

  I glare at him. "Yes, now."

  He smiles and presses a small kiss to my lips.

  "Ew, gross," Derek says, clearly trying to aggravate us.

  Riley elbows him.

  My mom stands from the couch. "We better get going. We don't want to be late for school."

  We head for the door. "Hey, Troy," my dad calls.

  Troy turns to him. "Yes, sir?"

  "You gonna help me at the shop after school?" he asks.

  Troy nods. "Yes, sir. I'll come help."

  Dad nods. "Good. The backyard will also need to be trimmed, when you have the chance."

  "Yes, of course," Troy says. "I'll get to it this evening, if I can."

  Dad smiles. "That's my son. Hey, I think the tires on all of the vehicles will have to be rotated. And the oil and brakes will need to be changed."

  I finally realize what my dad is doing. "Hey! Quit asking him to do all that stuff."

  Dad's smile becomes a smirk. "He may be my new son, but he's dating my daughter. I have to put him to work." Everybody bursts into laughter, but me—I'm the only one rolling my eyes.

  I shove Troy out the door. He continues laughing. "Dad might have me working at the shop full-time in a few weeks, give or take."

  I sigh and finally accept it. "If he does, I'll help."

  Troy smiles. "I love you."

  I smile as well. "I love you, too."

  Troy presses his lips to mine. I don't complain when my family opens the door a minute later and ruins the moment. I simply roll my eyes and take it for what it is.

  My name is Britt Thompson, and my life is anything but normal.

  Coming Soon…

  Pure Faith

  It's Christmas time in Brighton and Britt Thompson's relatives are driving her crazy. Since their last run-in with the D'yavol pack, the Thompson family have been enjoying their calm and quiet new lives. That is until Lenny falls ill and no one knows what's wrong or how to stop it.

  In a race against the clock, Britt, Derek, Riley, and Troy leave town in search of a cure that could save Lenny's life. But when they run into an unexpected acquaintance, they quickly realize things aren't going to go as smoothly as they had hoped.

  About the Author

  Katie Dunn is seventeen years old and lives in Woodruff, South Carolina with her family. She spends her time playing piano, writing novels, and practicing martial arts. Katie's family has two dogs—a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a German Shepherd. Katie will begin attending college in Fall of 2016 and will be majoring in pre-med.