“No.”
“How old were you?”
“That’s two.”
“Yep, and you want the answer to your second, don’t you?”
He ground his teeth. “Two weeks shy of my twentieth year.”
Kali looked back out the front window and said, “Zane and I have a theory that Ignatius Chesney is working with the werewolves. Rene was with the Fraccas a long time. Between her and Kendra, we should be able to connect the pieces.”
“Kendra?”
“Sorry, soldier, you’re all out of time.”
From the other rooms, the rest of the group started filtering into the room. Will turned from the window to find everyone decked out for battle, covered in weapons and wearing grim looks on their faces. Everyone except the human, of course. Bree had a sullen look about her as she crossed her arms and stood in sock feet.
A man Will didn’t recognize, but who smelled like shapeshifter and stood with Daniel, noticed and smiled kindly at her. “Cheer up, Bree. You know me and the boys will take care of the doctor.”
“Thanks, Jose.” Smiling half-heartedly, she patted his arm.
“Right,” Aubri said from the doorway. “Is this everyone?” Her auburn hair was tied back in a neat ponytail, a new-looking sword belted at her waist.
As Will stared at her he felt a sort of dread slide over his shoulders. If anything happened to the seer, Hadrian would destroy him. Maybe he could convince her to stay behind, but there were already so few of them, considering how many werewolves they expected to find. “Aubri—”
“Good, let’s get going then. I’m the only vampire here who’s been there, so I’ll shimmer you in two at a time.”
Across the room, Kendra cleared her throat. The room as a whole turned to look at her, though Will noticed Kali and Zane didn’t appear at all surprised at what she said next. “Actually, I can take some in as well.”
Chapter 30
The hours dragged past in a blur, slow and confused. It was daytime, but Rene only knew it by the warmth of her cell. She had lain in the center of her cell where he left her without moving as the sky outside began to lighten and the sun crested the forest. Seeing that she wouldn’t move, Ira had ordered the bars covered, the light sealed out. For the first time in her imprisonment, she was able to lay out as the sun rose, rather than huddle against the wall. Too bad she no longer cared to live. The whole point of laying in the center of the room had been the hope that they wouldn’t notice as the sun took her.
Now, even that option wasn’t left to her.
So Rene lay on her back, staring at the dark rock ceiling, picking apart its crags and points as she pondered life and death. Sarah and Rene. If she really was a different person after Tanner saved her. Or if she’d just been pretending. Faking it.
Fake it till you make it was a human saying she’d heard recently. She loved it. It could be her new motto. Except she wasn’t going to make it. She hadn’t felt so numb in centuries. It should scare her, but she felt nothing.
She might have slept. She wasn’t sure. Her mind drifted in and out of consciousness of its own accord. Sometime after the heat of the day, the sound of the prison door opening filtered down to her ears. Rene paid it no mind. Steps down the corridor. She didn’t look up. The bars groaned as someone opened her cell. She closed her eyes.
“Pouting, are we?” Mint permeated the air making her want to gag. A boot nudged her side. “Well get up, it’s time for you to eat something.”
She didn’t want to eat anything. Or anyone. She wanted to die. And she was going to let herself. It shouldn’t be too hard to resist the ancient bodies they paraded into her cell. They certainly didn’t smell all that appetizing. She had taken them only to keep up some small bit of strength in case there was an opportunity to escape. She knew that window had closed now. So she’d see just how long it took a vampire to die of starvation.
She couldn’t even smell the human he had with him, let alone hear its heartbeat. Had they resorted to bringing her something already dead? She opened one eye and saw only Ira standing over her, looking down with a smirk and raised brows. Rene flinched and turned over on her side, away from him.
He laughed. “We’ll see if you still feel that way in a moment when they bring your dinner in.”
As if summoned by his words, the door above opened again. The air changed, suddenly charged with electricity. A scent like honey and almonds wafted down the stairs, whipped cream and apples. Awareness arced down Rene’s spine. Three sets of footsteps made their way down the hall. Not even the smell of werewolf could over-power that sweet, light, delicious scent that filled her nose and made her moan. She was so hungry. Never in her life had she been so hungry.
Sifting through the scents, Rene recognized Silas, and there was another werewolf with him that she didn’t recognize. The third . . . what a strong, vital heartbeat. It smelled so warm and vibrant. Her gums began to ache miserably. Pressing her tongue against the roof of her mouth, Rene had to swallow a sudden influx of saliva.
She opened her eyes again, she couldn’t help it. In the hall just outside her cell Silas and another wolf stood holding a young human. She couldn’t have been more than sixteen. So alive, so scared and confused. Rene’s growl grew and echoed through the cell. The human girl tried to take a step back, but the werewolves behind her had a firm hold.
Silas looked between the girl and Rene, then at Ira. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“I didn’t request your thoughts, Silas. Must I cover this again?”
The other werewolf, a young-looking pup, appeared almost as nervous as the human. He stared at Rene too long, though she barely noted him. Her eyes were fixed on the human’s neck, the throbbing, pounding pulse that pumped her blood so fast, so much adrenaline through hot veins. She would be bursting with life. She would bring back Rene’s strength.
She would destroy Rene’s soul.
Rene Kaplan had standards. She hadn’t really realized it before this prison sentence. But now she looked back and realized she’d only ever killed bad people. People who deserved it. Perhaps some of them hadn’t, but they weren’t elderly and in need of comfort. They weren’t pristine examples of youth and innocence. She wanted to kill the girl with almost everything in her being. Every cell and molecule of her body strained toward the child, only a year or two younger than Rene when she’d been saved by Tanner. But her mind rejected the idea of killing the girl. That was beneath her. Having standards was clearly a pain in the ass.
It took more strength than she thought she had, but Rene tore her eyes away from the girl and looked at Silas. Begging again—pleading—kill her. Save the poor stupid human, and kill Rene. He saw it, saw the message. He glanced down at the human, over at the other werewolf. The young wolf looked petrified, as if he was finally questioning which side he was on.
“Had enough of sniffing?” Ira asked. “Silas, open the cell, toss her in.”
A mewl of protest left Rene’s throat. At least, she hoped it was a protest. It might have been a hungry desperate sound, too. Ira reached down to hook a hand under Rene’s arm and dragged her up. Her body was so cold and unresponsive, she might as well have been dead for all it heeded her will. She tried to wrench away from him, but all that happened was a pathetic flinch and she was dragged to stumbling feet on legs that couldn’t hold her up.
Silas hadn’t moved to comply yet. He kept staring at Rene’s face, looking back and forth between all the involved parties. Like the pup next to him, it appeared he was realizing he might not be on the most righteous side. The human tried to escape them, but was no match for the werewolves’ tight grips.
“Silas,” Ira barked. “Now. Can’t you see she’s starving?”
Why yes, Rene believed he saw just that. She shook her head quickly, telling him with her eyes she would not be able to resist this temptation. The werewolf continued to hesitate, caught between what he knew was right and what Ira commanded of him.
A growl erup
ted from Ira’s throat. Dragging Rene to the bench against one wall, he dumped her on it and strode back across the cell to wrench open the bars. Grabbing the human by the arm with one hand, and the back of her neck with the other, he forced her through the cell’s door. She started to scream and fight him, stronger at that moment than even Rene.
Rene wished she could tell the girl not to fight Ira—that he liked it. But she couldn’t speak through her raw and bloody throat, and why would the girl listen to her? The young werewolf started after the human, but Silas caught him by the shoulder and shook his head quickly. He motioned for the wolf to follow him out, by way of his inaction sentencing them all.
Pressing her face to the wall beside her head, Rene moaned and made renewed prayers for her escape, for her soul. She was too weak; even now her body was pulling at her, screaming for her to crawl across the floor to that human and drink her dry. Drain every last ounce of hot, fresh blood from her body and then go looking for more.
Ira dragged the poor girl across the cell to Rene. With every step the electric feel of the air intensified, as if the blood itself was reaching out toward her, arcing off the girl’s body, calling for Rene to take it. Another half moan half growl rolled from her throat. Far, far too weak to resist temptation such as this. Ira wrenched Rene up again and this time she didn’t fight him, couldn’t. Her body was moving toward the human of its own will. He forced the human into the corner of the cell, trapped against the stone. She screamed and cried, but the sound didn’t reach Rene. Only the swift thump of her heart, the rush of blood racing through veins, these were a roar and echo in her ears. Everything else was gone.
With the human forced into the corner, Ira shoved Rene after her. The human was staring death in the face, and Rene was staring at herself. Scared, sure of death, and far too young. She saw only red. Dark red. The sweet scent of the human drew her in. Such a warm creature, so full of life. She would absorb that life and be new. Leaning in, she skimmed her nose along the human’s jaw, pressed her lips to a warm, delicious neck. Her fangs ached deeper as she pressed them against skin, they drew a small drop of blood. It was all it took. She bit and lost her mind. The first sips soothed her throat, raced hot and welcome through her cold body, made her head heavy like alcohol. She hadn’t tasted anything so sweet in months, maybe longer. It was everything she needed, everything she craved, everything she dreaded.
Something was behind her, too close, taking up her space and encroaching on her prey. She growled against the prey’s neck without taking her mouth away. Mint wafted around her and seemed to sour the blood. A low laugh, a body pressed up behind hers. Salt touched her mouth and she realized it was the human’s tears.
The human.
Her mind was slowly clearing. How much blood had she taken? Could she even stop? Rene was barely able to slow her intake of blood. Her body fought her, tongue pressing harder to the wound. A shiver worked through her entire body.
“Yes,” a voice whispered in her ear. “Drink up.”
She tore her mouth away. The human was limp but still alive, barely. At some point, Rene’s hand had come up to grip the human’s head, keeping her still and at the right angle. Tears leaked out of the girl’s eyes, slowing as she neared unconsciousness. Ira pressed closer behind Rene, putting a hand on her head to force her back to the girl.
“Finish her.”
Tempting. The life coursing through Rene’s veins wasn’t enough—she’d been so weak, so cold—but it was enough to give her a little clarity. Very little. Something glinted at the girl’s neck, captured her eye. A silver pendant on a short chain, some sort of bird. It was medium sized and had a few sharp ends. A dove.
Rene hesitated only a second, then reaching out, she snapped the necklace chain from the girl’s neck and whirled on Ira.
Please God, let it be real silver.
She wasn’t at full strength, but surprise was on her side. Ira’s eyes widened just as the point of one of the bird’s wings buried itself in his left eye. Rene shoved it in as far as she could. Screaming, he backed away a few steps, stumbling and holding his eye. The scent of burning werewolf flesh filled the cell. Behind Rene, the human sank to the ground in a weakened slump. Her body called to Rene to go back and finish her off, but Rene’s mind was fully concentrated on incapacitating Ira. Permanently.
“You stupid whore, I’m going to kill you!” His depth perception was a little off, however, and he stumbled as he launched himself at her.
Good thing, because she was still weak. Rene searched the cell for any weapons and found nothing, of course. It wasn’t as if there was anything new since she’d first been put in there. That silver bird, stuck deep in his eye, was all she had, and it had been put to good use. All that remained to her was what her maker had equipped her with: teeth and claws.
Unfortunately, Ira had those too. After his initial failed lunge, he dropped to his knees and started the change. He must have been hoping it would dislodge the bird, but thankfully for Rene it remained buried deep in his skull, singeing the skin and burning a hole ever deeper. Eventually it might kill him, but not soon enough.
Time to make good on all those mental threats to rip out throats. If only she’d had more blood. Her eyes caught on the human, lying so still and storing a few more quarts of blood. Rene closed her eyes tight and shook her head roughly to clear it. Bad vampire, concentrate on the issue at hand.
When she opened her eyes, it was to find Ira jumping at her, teeth bared and one eye full of rage. His wolf form was massive, brown and with the same dark green eyes. Rene jumped out of the way at the last second, and he crashed into the wall. The silver in his eye wasn’t slowing him down nearly as much as she needed. He righted himself immediately and came at her again, catching her this time, with all of his weight and pinning her to the cell floor. Rene had her hands up in a second, holding his snapping maw back by the throat. His claws dug deep into her shoulders, releasing the blood she’d only just replaced.
Using one hand to keep hold of his neck, she brought the heel of the other one up before he could notice it and slammed it into his eye. The silver dove dug into her own skin even as it lodged deeper into his skull. Blood spattered her face and neck. The scent of it was pine and dirt and mint. It made her stomach heave.
Ira howled and fell backward. Suddenly he was human again, clutching his eye and rolling on his back.
Rene scrambled to her feet to stand over him, waiting for him to get back up, come at her again. He didn’t. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, lending strength from nothing and filling her with rage and too much energy. Disgust and hatred and a deep ugliness she could feel seeping through her muscles and staining her bones. Without thought, she hauled back her leg and kicked him in the side with all her might. Her ragged boot dug deep into his side she could hear ribs breaking and it fed her blood lust. She kicked him again. And again. Curling in on himself, he tried to protect the rest of his body. He couldn’t protect himself from her though. Not anymore.
Because she wasn’t Sarah. She wasn’t human, or weak, or too young and unprotected.
She was Rene Kaplan. And only one of them was going to leave that cell alive.
∞∞∞
To say the wolves were unprepared for an invasion would be an understatement. It was ironic, considering how many surprise attacks they had wrought on the vampires recently. Here, in the heart of their territory, they were complacent, under guarded . . . sleeping at night.
The vampires moved through their community, silent as shadows, cutting them down before they could rise and challenge. As the wolves discovered they were under attack, mayhem began to break out. They rose from their tents, pouring out and running in circles trying to find where the murderous shadows had disappeared to. Adding to the confusion, the shapeshifters had become wolves as well, and began attacking the weres.
How they could tell the difference between each other and the weres, Will wasn’t entirely certain. They smelled different, true, but in such an
enormous community, it was difficult to tell them apart. Apparently the werewolves had the same problem, as many began attacking each other.
The plan was working.
One by one, the shapeshifters changed forms, becoming larger, more ferocious creatures. Now there was a brown bear, two Bengal tigers, and an African lion all tearing through the camp.
“Oh my . . .” Will mumbled under his breath, grinning savagely at the destruction as tents collapsed and wolves fell by the wayside. Now that the shifters had changed out of wolf form, the shadows were back. Will unsheathed his sword and went in for round three, keeping an eye out for the small stone building Aubri had described for him. Wolves came at him, baring teeth and claws. He cut them down and kept searching. He couldn’t even stop and enjoy the fight because his mind was whirring into overdrive, picking apart the encampment piecemeal.
“Will!” Aubri’s voice called over the battle.
He looked and found her about twenty yards away, pointing to their right at a building that matched her description perfectly. Small, rectangular, with slits near the bottom that apparently let in light and fresh air to the cells below.
A wolf rammed into his side, its teeth sinking into his jacket and nicking skin. “Augh, dammit!” Slamming his elbow into the wolf’s head, Will dragged his sword up and deep into its chest cavity. Dead almost immediately, its teeth snagged in his coat and kept him down on the ground. Will ripped his body away and rolled to find himself face to fangs with another angry wolf. It lunged. Will rolled underneath the beast and slid his saber across its belly. No more wolf.
Dragging himself off the ground, he looked for his next assailant and, finding no immediate takers, took off toward Aubri and the prison. Werewolf blood soaked her shirt and dripped from her sword, but she appeared to be in one piece. “Doing all right?” he asked as she wrenched open the metal door.
She threw a grin over her shoulder. “When Damon Reine teaches you how to use a sword, you do better than all right.”
Weaken the Knees (The Immortal World Book 6) Page 26
