Weaken the Knees (The Immortal World Book 6)

by Shannon A. Hiner

He was nearly to Estrada’s side when he noticed the young woman who stood next to her. Two things struck him at once. She was human. And she was oddly familiar. It wasn’t unheard of for a human to be at the Gathering; there were always pets dragged to these functions no matter how dangerous it was for them. He hoped whomever had brought her was keeping a close eye. She was probably safe with Estrada, but the minute the more conservative vampire turned her back, any number of guests might swoop in and make off with her.

  She was attractive enough, they might even try it while Estrada was watching. His gaze lingered on her dark auburn hair. What was it about that color that tickled his memory?

  “Estrada.” He inclined his head, still watching the human out of the corner of his eye.

  Angela Estrada was wrapped in a sapphire blue cheongsam dress. Her dark hair must have been held up off her neck by magic, because there was no way those sticks poking up from it were up to the task. “Aubri, may I introduce William Rynquist, of my clan the Risqueen. William, this is Aubrianna Pennington. She’s a Seer, and a guest of Hadrian’s. You may speak plainly in front of her.”

  He met her eyes and it struck him again how familiar she seemed. Those dark gray eyes niggled at his memory. He wasn’t on speaking terms with any humans, even—no, especially not Seers.

  “You have heard,” he said to Estrada, “of course, that Abandon was attacked?”

  Estrada nodded and made a hurrying notion. Likely the entirety of the immortal world had heard by now.

  “They came in droves, Estrada, I’ve never seen such a large pack.” He glanced at the human, then back quickly. “It was a nightmare. They attacked before dawn, everyone was scattered, bedding down for the day. It must have been like shooting fish in a barrel. There were too many.”

  “How many?”

  “Twenty? Thirty?” He shook his head, trying to think back, count them in his head. “Maybe more.”

  “What else?”

  She knew. He could see a pitying light in her dark eyes, so uncharacteristic for her. It nearly broke him. His fingers twitched at his sides, wanting to curl into fists. He forced them to still and said through his tight throat, “They took Rene Kaplan.”

  “Is that why it took you so long to come back?”

  “We searched and searched. We found a wolf pack.” That was it—that was it. Auburn hair, gray eyes. “A few hundred miles west of Abandon. They were about the right size, but she wasn’t there.” He sniffed slowly, carefully not looking at the human for a moment.

  Damon Reine Lucus Risqueen approached from behind Estrada. He nodded briefly at Will. “Ange, Hadrian wants us to check in on Faolán.” He clapped Will on the shoulder and squeezed before they moved off as one through the crowd. “Will, I’m glad to see you’re still with us.”

  As soon as his leaders were out of earshot, Will swung toward the human. Ice speared his veins as he glared down at her. “Who are you really, and what are you doing here?”

  She paled and took a step back. “Excuse me?”

  He didn’t let her have any room, following her until she was trapped between him and gallery banister. “I saw a werewolf not two nights ago with your precise coloring. The eyes might be a coincidence, but hair that exact color? You even smell similar.”

  “A werewolf?” She appeared genuinely shocked. “I’m human.”

  He snorted. “Of course you are. That doesn’t mean you aren’t closely related to a werewolf.”

  A heavy, stone-like grip rested on his shoulder, digging in even as it pulled him away from the human. “Is there a problem here, Rynquist?” That overly smooth, polite voice made him freeze. Hadrian Catane wasn’t taller than him, but he was broader, hundreds of years more powerful, and if Will wasn’t entirely mistaken, livid.

  It was hard to tell with Hadrian, the vampire had the best poker face the world had ever seen. But instead of his normal firmness of gaze, there was a dangerous edge. Something like murder burgeoned in his eerie green-gold eyes.

  “Elliot told you we attacked a pack of wolves, did he not?” Will replied quickly. “While we were there, I saw a male werewolf with the exact coloring of this human, same hair, same eyes. I can smell him on her. I tracked him for miles until an older werewolf stepped in and saved him.”

  Hadrian’s eyes narrowed on him further and Will prepared to meet either his maker or his tormentor. Then, Hadrian turned that gaze to the human and asked, “Is there anyone in your family that greatly resembles you, but is male?”

  Clearly the human wanted to deny it. William expected her to spout lies and try to cover the truth. She glanced between the two of them and sighed finally. “People have mistaken my brother and me for twins.”

  Hadrian Catane closed his eyes. If William hadn’t known the leader of the immortal world better, he would have described it as a look of defeat. Nothing defeated Hadrian though. Nothing could. Right?

  The human continued in a rush, “But it’s not possible. I’ve lived with him my entire life. I would know if he was a werewolf.”

  “He was a young wolf,” Will said. “Weak. Probably hasn’t seen his first moon yet.”

  “He will tonight.” There it was again. Defeat. Will looked between Hadrian and the human and felt a suspicion sneaking up on him. She was a Seer, true. But was she also a pet? Was she Hadrian’s?

  “No. No it’s not possible.” The human’s piteous decree woke even his own conscience. “It’s not Kael.”

  “William,” Hadrian asked. “Where were you? Where was the pack?”

  He thought a moment, sifting through his memories. “Maybe a few hundred miles off the West Coast. I would guess the Sierra Nevada Mountains.”

  A muffled cry escaped the human’s throat. A damning sound.

  “Thank you, William,” Hadrian said. A more insincere thank you had likely never been issued. “Go home, clean yourself up. Elliot told me about Rene. We will convene tomorrow night to discuss a plan.”

  It was a polite, but firm dismissal. Will bowed his head and turned heel. It was Hadrian to a T, but Will found himself dreading the next night. Whatever that human meant to Hadrian—and it was clear she meant something—Will feared that as the messenger of such dreadful news he would be punished in some unforeseen way.

  “Leaving already, Will?” Serena caught up to him as he was nearly out the front door.

  “I think I’ve overstayed my welcome.”

  “Lucky,” she muttered. “I would kill if it meant I could go home and clean up.”

  Except home was gone. She seemed to realize it at the same instant he did.

  “If you need somewhere to stay—”

  “It’s fine, really. Wade booked us all rooms at Suther’s until Abandon is rebuilt. Don’t mind my whining.” She reached over to squeeze his arm. “And thank you for the offer.”

  He nodded and turned to go again before hesitating. ”Serena? Are we going to get her back?”

  “Yes.”

  He chose to ignore the doubt that flickered in her eyes.

  Hadrian would help. He had to.

  ∞∞∞

  The morning before the blood moon, just as the sun began to slide up the backs of the mountains and caress the treetops, Rene heard it. Rather, she felt it. Scented it. Moaned as her mouth filled with saliva and her fangs ached unmercifully.

  Strong, fresh, wholly alive, human. A shiver of anticipation rolled over her shoulders as her eyes rolled back in her head. So hungry. The human smelled incredible. Bursting. The scent rushed in the opened door of the prison, swelled through the hall and pooled in front of her cell. The coming sun couldn’t stop her. Rene was at the door of her cell in a fraction of a second. Pressed to the bars, mouth open wide. Hungry. Starving. She would do anything to get her fangs into that human.

  The bars of the cell next to her creaked open and something soft and awkward hit the floor with an angry sound. The bars shut again and Rene caught sight of Silas’ bare back ascending the stairs once more. Something in Rene’s chest shifte
d, shriveled. She’d never had a broken heart, but she was suddenly sure she knew what it felt like.

  The human wasn’t for her. She closed her eyes, gripping the bars of the cell and leaning her head back. The scent of her prey was overwhelming. It made her want to cry and rage and throw herself on the floor sobbing. So hungry.

  Muffled sounds, sniffling, a hiccup, came from the cell next to hers.

  The human’s weakness called to her, tempted her. She groaned softly and peeled her hands back from the bars. Stupid Rene. Fucking idiot. She should have known they wouldn’t give her something so full of life. She bit clean into her lip as she forced her stiff legs back to the corner of her cell. The incision barely bled and she licked it clean before any of the blood could be wasted.

  Whatever minuscule amount of strength left in her was going to be needed. Sleep would be impossible as long as the human was present.

  Chapter 21

  Daylight kept Rene on the far side of her cell, not close enough to the human next door, but too close all the same. Her mouth hadn’t stopped watering, fangs aching. Her head spun.

  She’d never been so hungry in all her life.

  The wolves were still leading tours through the prison. Now Big Red—as Rene liked to call him in her head—got to explain the presence of the human too. He called her a fang-lover, leech-groupie. It helped explain the familiar scent that came off the human, though in her hunger Rene hadn’t been able to place the exact vampire she belonged to. Distantly, in the part of her mind not overwhelmed by the thirst, she felt sorry for the human.

  Would her plight be worse than Rene’s? What was a greater sin in the eyes of a werewolf? To be a leech? Or to love one? Moot point. Both of them would end up dead for their sins.

  On the third tour of the day, the human’s heart rate spiked. Her flesh warmed and pulse skittered in excitement. Rene groaned and turned toward that wall. Afternoon was setting in and sunlight crept closer and closer to her. Big Red and his followers were strutting past her cell. She didn’t look at the werewolves. If she did, they would distract her from the blood—the clean, fresh blood—next door and the human might escape. No, it wasn’t rational, but her instincts weren’t granting any reprieve.

  A whispered conversation started next door. Rene couldn’t stop the lazy grin that lifted one side of her mouth. Really? Whispers? She hoped they weren’t trying to keep her out of their conversation. She could hear them more clearly than the human’s heart. The same heart she had counted every beat of for the last twelve hours.

  They were siblings. Interesting. A vampire pet was related to a werewolf. Evidently, neither had known where the other one was. She only refrained from chuckling out loud because of sheer exhaustion. A miniature soap opera was playing out next door. She shook her head and listened intently.

  The human’s next words wiped the grin right off Rene’s face.

  “Go to Hadrian. He’ll come for me.”

  Hadrian? What the fuck? Hadrian didn’t keep pets. She was fairly certain he only tolerated humans when he was hunting. Hell, he didn’t even have close associations with other immortals. What was the human on about? Had Rene heard the name wrong?

  “He’s in Genocide. Right in the center of town, big gold building. You can’t miss it.”

  Rene sat up. She felt the truth of the human’s words. Heard her thoughts. All centered on a vampire that Rene knew cared for no one and nothing but retaining order. Yet, through the human’s memories Rene could see how wrong that assumption was. Hope sprouted in her chest, poking through bone, muscle, and sinew, burrowing up through her skin to burst forth painfully.

  If the human’s memories were even half true, Hadrian would come for her. And when he did, he could get Rene the hell out of there too. If the dumb werewolf brother would only go for him. Rene listened to the human try to convince him, but when he left, neither of them were sure he would do it. He likely thought he could reason with his Alphas. He sounded young. His vernacular and hot-blooded temper made Rene shake her head. He didn’t understand yet the fight between their species, the ire. It ran too deep for one creature to ever hope to overcome. Many had tried over the centuries, all had failed.

  Vampires and werewolves hated each other. The fact was as well-known as the reasoning—the actual start of the hostilities—was shrouded in mystery. All anyone knew was the hate. They were reared to it in their young immortal lives, and those who didn’t learn it from their makers discovered it when their loved ones died at the hands of the other species.

  The werewolf left soon after. Rene shifted closer to the wall, further from the creeping sunlight, as she listened to the human settle back on her stone bench. Her thoughts were spinning and they gave Rene a headache. Concentrating on her steady heartbeat, the rush of her blood, Rene swallowed a mouthful of cold saliva and tried to filter out the human’s mind. Only her body. Her living, breathing, blood-pumping body.

  If they were both lucky, Hadrian would come before they were killed. And before Rene had the opportunity to kill the human. Because even knowing what she did, the fact that it would be a sure death sentence, Rene would bite and kill that human given the opportunity. No hesitation.

  ∞∞∞

  If she survived this, Rene was going to eat every human that crossed her path for a month. The wolf hadn’t brought her food in nearly four days. Added to her already dangerously low supply and the fact that something fresh and mouth-watering was one cell over . . . Rene couldn’t concentrate. She hadn’t slept since the human was delivered. When she closed her eyes, she could hear the human’s pulse pounding in her own ears. Could feel the rush of her hot blood beneath her skin. Tasted the salt of her near silent tears.

  Night was upon the prison again. Rene pressed tight against the shared wall. She couldn’t move from it. Her body refused to believe that the sheer force of her will wouldn’t crumble the wall. Wouldn’t let her spring on that delicious creature.

  The wolves had been very active that day. It sounded as if they were moving tons of heavy equipment outside. Whenever they spoke to each other, it was with loud, excited voices. Rene kept hearing talk of the blood moon and the White Lady. It was all code to her. Obviously she knew what a blood moon was, but the way they said it, it was something more. Something . . . sacred. And whoever this White Lady person was, they spoke of her as if she were their deity and mother all rolled into one. Did wolves have leadership above and beyond the Alphas? If anyone had asked her before her imprisonment, Rene would have scoffed at the idea. But the way even Silas and Lionakis spoke of the White Lady, Rene was forced to reconsider what she thought she knew.

  The length of her stay combined with the lack of blood in her system had made night and day meaningless. The only difference became where she lay in the cell. Daytime had her up against the corner, tight and uncomfortable. Nighttime had her at the shared wall, hungry and uncomfortable.

  She slept on and off for a few hours at a time. Desperate, tired, and miserable. She missed music, missed home, missed Serena. Sometimes, when she was halfway asleep, she thought even of Will. And his warm chestnut eyes. And that day in the refrigerator. She could almost taste him still. Almost smell him.

  Then she would wake up and berate herself. It was just the imprisonment, the lack of blood in her system. She did not miss Will. Ridiculous thought. It was pure desperation.

  She was woken from one of her impromptu naps by the sound of the cell next door opening. Rene smelled Silas in the hall. Night had fallen moments before, and the camp outside the prison was eerily quiet. For the first time in days, she didn’t hear the crowds milling about, wolves racing to and fro.

  Next door, Silas growled under his breath and entered the cell. The human yelped. Rene was on her feet in seconds, at the bars of her own cell, her face pressed against them. She couldn’t fight it, the thirst controlled every move she made. A keening moan started in her throat as the smell of the human and her rushing, fresh blood was carried farther and farther away. Out of t
he prison, out of the camp, out of reach.

  Rene collapsed against the wall, sliding slowly down to the ground. Her entire body ached and she wanted to cry. She didn’t cry. Hadn’t in over two hundred years. But oh, she was so hungry. And so tired. And nothing made her feel whole or rested anymore. Nothing made the pain go away. Her shoulders shook and heaved on dry sobs. She curled up in the corner once more and willed herself unconscious.

  ∞∞∞

  Something woke her too soon, but she was groggy and unfocused. The sound of voices in the hall. They weren’t familiar, but the wolf scent was on at least one of them. No scent of blood or human accompanied them, much to her great disappointment. Too out of it to care, Rene tried to ignore them. Roll back over. Go to sleep. They lingered outside the cell next door only a few moments.

  Then a deep, even, cool voice said, “Come.” And they walked back up the stairs and out of the prison.

  The voice stuck with her. Resonated. Echoed and clanged inside her head. Why? How did she know it? In her hazy stupor, a memory flashed behind her eyes.

  A meeting in Genocide. Tall oak double doors. The voice within calling.

  Suddenly she was wide awake.

  Rene bounded up from her fetal position only to stumble and crack her knees open on the stone floor. “Dammit all to bloody fucking hell!” she growled and righted herself. Her vision swam. Using the bars of her cell to pull herself up, she desperately looked down the hall. “Hadrian!” she yelled. “Hadrian!”

  It had to be him. Even the human had said he would come for her. Miracle of miracles, he did. Who would have thought? The mighty Hadrian Catane coming to the seventh circle of hell to retrieve a human. And her. Please God, let him take her as well.

  He wasn’t in the prison any longer, though. How long had she been pondering that memory? Half asleep and whole dumb. Too long. Too damned long. Rushing to the other side of her cell, she climbed half way up the wall and got her face as close to the barred window as she could.