“I wish I could... I just – I don’t know,” he stammered. “I feel like if I don’t get to know you, I’ll be robbing myself of something I never knew I could have. I feel better – less on edge – when you’re close. Ever since I met you, the wolf has been easier to control. Just... don’t push me away. Please.”
I took a deep, shuttering breath. He would wreck me. This male. He could destroy everything I’d worked so hard for.
“Aella,” my mother’s voice snapped me back to reality. She sounded tense. “We need to talk.”
Wilder released me immediately as I set my plate down and moved to follow her into her office on the second floor. Little race cars and barbie dolls littered the hall, but they all stopped just before my mothers’ quarters. Everyone respected Alpha Kay.
We swept into the room, a massive office with a sturdy working desk, accommodating sofa, and a hearth with a fire going. For a room where most of the pack business was done, it wasn’t stuffy or uptight. Just like the rest of the house, the office was full of pictures of the pack, our family. On her desk sat a photo of my mother and me when I was thirteen, after my graduating ceremony from my first shift. Her nose was in my hair as she kissed my head and I beamed like a madwoman at the camera.
This is what Wilder should have had, I thought. He’d been robbed of the simple joys of childhood as a lycan.
The alpha paced in front of the fire, and I took up residence behind the couch, gripping the back of it as if it could shield me from whatever she was about to say.
“Two more bodies were found this morning,” she ran a hand through her short blonde hair, her hazel eyes growing dark. “Mutilated like the others. And this time... drained.”
I blinked at her. I couldn’t understand... “Drained?”
“Of blood,” she nodded. “They were drained of blood.”
The blood leached from my limbs until it felt like fire ants were crawling up my hands and feet. “Then it had to be a vampire.”
But I knew that wasn’t true. Not if it was our rogue. I’d seen the bodies she’d left behind. They’d been mauled by an animal, a lycan out of control.
“Or both,” a deep voice said behind me.
I looked over my shoulder at Wilder. I hadn’t even realized he’d followed us in here. My mother... she never let others in on our meetings.
But the alpha simply nodded her head. “I believe so.”
“But that’s impossible,” I demanded.
There had never been a hybrid before. If a vampire extracted its venom into a lycan, the lycan would die. And lycans didn’t carry venom at all. Our fangs were just that, bone to shred and tear and bite. It was inexecutable.
“Wilder, what do you remember about the girl who attacked you?” mom asked.
He shifted on his feet, recalling the night to memory. “It happened so fast but... She was in her skin. And her eyes, they were glowing.”
“Gold? Like one of us?”
He shook his head, his mouth drawing to a pursed line. “No. No, they were silver, lined with red at the irises. I’ll never forget them.”
Even my blood froze in my veins. Silver, just like his... A lycan, vampire hybrid. How in God’s name?
“We have to stop her,” my mother looked up at me. “At all costs.”
I was already a step ahead. There was no telling what an unchecked monster like that could do. If she contained the full potential of both species...
I shivered.
It was unnatural. This is what William and his hoard were trying to make in that dungeon. Hybrids for the war. And if they could make one... then they could make more of them.
“We leave tomorrow,” I said.
“We?” Wilder asked.
I spun toward him, holding that steel-blue gaze. “You’re coming with me. I’ll need all the help I can get.”
But first, I needed to make a call.
11
Ryn
“So, how’s progress on your end?” Aella asked over the phone.
I sighed and leaned back into the cushioned porch chair, tucking my legs up underneath me. I wanted to lie to her – to give her more hope than I could realistically offer. But the truth was, progress was bad. Everyone in their right mind was too terrified to go against William and Loraine while they had the clave’s backing. While others outright believed that vampires should rule the rest of the supernatural world. The elitists were the ones who made my stomach churn.
“It’s going,” I toed around the truth. “What about you? Any luck with your hunt?”
“The rogue is elusive. She’s smart. But she’ll slip up eventually. I’m heading out again tomorrow to track her. I’m going to catch her this time. I can feel it.”
Sometimes, I wished I had Aella’s confidence. She was always so sure of herself and her goals. And I believed her now more than ever. She would catch up to the rogue. It was only a matter of time.
“But there’s been a stilt in my plans,” she added.
I quirked an eyebrow. “Oh? What’s up?”
“I found someone.” I blinked at the way her voice shook. Aella wasn’t the type to scare. Like ever. “He’s a rogue as well. She created him.”
“What?” I blurted. “How? How is that even possible?”
Sweat immediately started to bead up on my skin. If she could create more... Was she creating an army just like William wanted?
“It shouldn’t be,” she sighed. “He was human.”
My gut churned. “I didn’t think lycans could even turn people that way.”
“We can’t. But it looks like she’s not all lycan. Her last two victims were both completely drained of blood.”
My brain short-circuited. For a moment, I just couldn’t put two and two together. But when it finally clicked, my heart started galloping. “You think she’s part vampire?”
“Yes. And I think the one she changed is too. He’s faster than me. Stronger. He doesn’t seem to realize how powerful he is yet.”
I paused. Was that... affection in her voice? Who was this guy?
“Wait, so he’s not an evil murder machine like the one you’re after?”
I could practically feel her flinch on the other end of the line. Maybe I should have chosen my words a little more carefully.
“No. That seemed to have skipped him. He’s struggled to control his wolf a little bit, but he hasn’t had any overtly aggressive tendencies. Other than the advanced abilities, he seems all lycan.”
“And you like him,” I said point-blank.
The line went quiet for a full thirty seconds. Which was a clear enough answer for me.
“He’s my mate,” her voice shuddered.
The phone fell right out of my hand, and I scrambled to pick it back up. “Sorry! Aella, are you still there?”
“I’m here.”
“Good. You said what now?”
“I never even wanted a mate.”
Well, that made two of us, but fate was a fickle bitch like that sometimes. Plus, as it turned out, mates aren’t so bad.
“How do you know? How do lycans even figure that out?”
With vampires, the blood-bond that bound mates together was obvious and irresistible. I had no clue how a lycan found its mate.
“I just know,” she exhaled. “He’s a complete stranger and yet, my soul knows him. My wolf knows him.”
Hmmm. Interesting.
“I mean, is he like, not nice or something?”
A sharp laugh burst through the speaker. “Oh, he’s nice. And tall. And gorgeous. And an overall pain in my ass.”
I was confused. She didn’t sound overly cheerful about any of those things.
“So, what’s the problem?”
“I don’t want a mate, Ryn!” She practically hissed.
“Okay, okay!” I conceded. “So, can you reject the bond?”
“I’m trying. He hasn’t exactly made it easy. He follows me everywhere.”
I looked in through the glass French doors a
s Luke folded our laundry inside. This sounded too familiar.
When Luke and I discovered that we were blood-sworn, I’d done everything I could to avoid him. I wanted nothing to do with a mate. Especially when it meant a commitment for the rest of my immortal life. But now, things were different. Aside from the all-out shit storm brewing in the supernatural world, I’d never been happier. For once, I was extremely glad to be wrong about something.
I bit my lip, positive that Aella would want to rip my head off after what I was about to say. “Maybe you should give him a chance.”
There was another long pause, followed by a slow breath. “How did you know that Luke was the right guy for you?”
I watched him inside. There were worry lines crinkling the skin between his eyebrows. His strong, broad shoulders had been tensed for days. His blonde hair was tousled from the endless times he’d run his hand through it today. And still, just looking at him made my heart race. He was beyond handsome. He was protective, loving, and kind. He was mine.
“He feels like home,” I finally answered.
She was so quiet, I had to double-check my screen to make sure she was still even on the line.
“Aella?”
“Yeah?”
“Whatever you do, be careful with the rogue you’re chasing. If she’s both, then she’s bound to be even more dangerous than we imagined.”
“I will. Keep me updated on the progress on your end.”
“Will do.”
The line went dead, and I took a deep breath, preparing myself for the conversation to come. It appeared I had a lot to inform Luke about.
12
Aella
I sat straight up in bed, my chest heaving as I sucked in a sharp breath.
A howl. A howl had woken me up.
More howls answered its call, ringing in my ears. The hair on my arms stood on end.
It was the patrol. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.
Throwing my comforter off, I ran to my closet, yanking on some clothes and shoes faster than I ever had before. The pack house... I had to get to the pack house. The children were there tonight. And my mother.
I grabbed two long fighting knives as I threw the front door of my cabin open, and what I found before me chilled my blood.
A woman stood in the woods outside my house, her eyes glowing in the dark. Not gold. Red.
Vampires had infiltrated the pack.
My senses narrowed in on the woman. She was blonde and petite, but I wouldn’t let that fool me. Vampires were strong. If you let them get their arms around you, there was little chance of making it out alive.
“Will the big-bad wolf come out and play?” she giggled.
I gripped my knives in each hand and stepped out onto the front steps. “With pleasure.”
We raced toward each other in a blur. She was fast. Incredibly fast. But so was I.
This vampire had the wrong idea when she’d scented a lone female inside my cabin. I was trained for this. Relished in it. I would enjoy the sight and smell of her blood in the snow.
She flew at me legs first, trying to wrap them around my waist, but I spun away from her, slashing with my knife. I heard the metal hiss against her skin, and her gasp of pain as I sliced a thin line across her ribs.
“Naughty dog,” she growled, flashing her fangs.
I snarled at her, and she had enough of a brain to look somewhat afraid.
“This will be over soon,” I assured her.
“Very,” she agreed.
She moved past me, catching me off guard. Her hand snaked out, yanking a tuft of my hair until my head fell back. She jumped on me from behind, hooking her legs around my waist.
My throat was exposed to her. It would take one bite, just one drop of venom to end me.
Her fangs extended farther as she opened her mouth wide... And I laughed.
She froze.
“All you vampires can think about is blood.”
I bounced off the balls of my feet, flipping forward with her still on my back. Her breath wheezed out as I landed on top of her, and in one swift motion, I was up, both of my knives sinking into her neck.
Her eyes widened in shock for a moment, and then I yanked my knives apart and her head rolled through the snow, stopping to rest against my front porch step.
I didn’t waste any time. My blood was rushing, adrenaline pumping through my veins.
Not the kids. Not the kids. Not the kids.
The pack house loomed ahead, and all seemed eerily quiet. The lights were out except for the big Christmas tree inside, and I hoped, prayed that the blood I smelled was from the vampire I’d just killed.
I bounded up the front steps and slammed through the door.
A knife was instantly at my throat, a roar tearing through the foyer.
My eyes adjusted to the dark almost instantly as I stared at my mother. Her hand was sturdy on the knife, claws extended from her fingers. I saw the gleam in her eye, the death glow.
Above, a few of the children were sneaking glimpses of the commotion.
“What’s happening?” I made the mistake of asking.
The slide of my throat nicked against my mother’s steel blade and a trickle of blood rolled down to my heaving chest. She pulled the knife away.
“I heard the call. I smell them but they haven’t shown up here yet.”
I nodded. “I killed one on the way here, but I haven’t seen any more.”
Commotion at the back door had us both spinning.
“Bar the doors!” My mother yelled up to the second floor where some of the pack females, mostly teachers, gathered the young ones up and fled to a safe room. “Stay behind me.”
I looked at my mother, surprised even though I shouldn’t be. I was her only child, and she was alpha. It was in her blood to protect the pack. Still, I wasn’t one to cower.
I stepped up beside her, readying my knives as Tara and Seraphim rushed through the back door.
I let out a deep breath, just as a massive body picked me up and pinned me against the wall.
My heart hammered in my chest. If it weren’t for that tether, or the electricity coursing through my body, I would have thought he was a vampire, but it was Wilder staring down at me. His jaw flexed as his fingers ran over me, checking, testing for injuries. He looked feral at the sight of the thin trail of blood at my throat.
“I almost stabbed you, you idiot,” I hissed at him.
His thumb glided over the small cut, and I winced. His eyes guttered.
“Are you alright?” he rasped.
“I’m fine,” I swatted his hand away. “Let me go.”
But he didn’t. His hands settled on my hips, holding me close. He was shivering.
“I saw the vampire at your cabin and I...” he shook his head. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Not to break up the lovefest,” Seraphim interrupted. “But do we have a report? How many were there? Are they still on the property? How many casualties?”
“There were thirteen of them,” Warren grunted as he stumbled through the door.
I could smell the blood on him before I saw his limp. He was injured. Badly.
“It was an ambush. They struck from every side.”
My mother rushed toward him, supporting his weight as she led him toward the kitchen. “Jamie, get the first aid kit.”
I looked over at the petite redhead girl as she darted out of the room. Jamie was a friend of mine, younger by about eight years and as close to a baby sister as I’d ever gotten. She was so fast and quiet sometimes, I barely noticed that she was around.
Wilder relaxed his posture enough that we could follow my mother and the others into the massive kitchen, but he kept his hand on my back. Heat seared right through my shirt, burning me from the inside out.
Jamie came back with the kit, and Tara went to work on Warren as he spoke. She’d sewn enough stitches in her lifetime to be a certified nurse.
“We were able to contain it as much a
s we could. Only a few broke away. I did a headcount before coming here. They’re all accounted for.”
“Any survivors?” My mom was all business now, the voice of the alpha.
Warren just shook his head. “A few injured on our side. One of the Richard boys took a beating to the head. He’ll probably be down for a few days, but he’ll live. He was protecting Quinn, the pregnant girl from the dungeon. I think they came here looking for her.”
The blood leeched from my face as I looked to Wilder. His eyes were that haunting silver color, which told me that his wolf was close to the surface. Quinn’s baby... they’d experimented on it as well. Would it end up like the rogue? Would Wilder?
“Is Quinn okay?” Seraphim asked.
Warren nodded. “Poor girl can’t catch a break with these leeches, but she’ll live.”
My mom laid her hand on Warren’s shoulder. “You did good, Warren. The pack is lucky to have you.”
The older man’s cheeks went an odd plum color, and I glanced away.
“This means they know it was us who infiltrated the dungeon,” Tara said as she worked the needle. “Our pack hasn’t had qualms with the vampires for centuries, so that must be why they attacked tonight. They were looking to get their experiments back.”
The alpha’s eyebrows narrowed; a look of pure wrath written all over her face. “We’re on high alert from here on out.”
“This changes things,” I interrupted.
All eyes turned to me.
“We can’t go after the rogue now. Not with the vampires waging war on our pack specifically.”
My mother shook her head, her blonde waves bouncing. “You leave that to me. Your mission is still the rogue. I’ll handle this.”
“But–” I started to protest.
“But nothing,” she cut me off. “We have allies on call if the need arises, and strong lycans ready to defend our pack. We’ll be fine here. Just as we’ve always been.”
I felt uneasy about it, that was clear enough. But I wouldn’t fight her judgment. The rogue was a problem that needed to be taken care of now, and if she was truly a hybrid... she might have some answers to this vampire problem.
Marked By A Rogue: The Rogue Hybrid Book Three Page 6
