Kalena shook her head slowly. “When Thane told me he was nearly three hundred years old, I was in shock. I knew shifters existed, but I didn’t know much about them. I still don’t. What Thane has told me and what you’ve shared are true eye-openers. I am in awe and fearful at the same time, I have to admit.”
Tracy shrugged. “Who wouldn’t be? We are hesitant of and often fear the unknown.”
“Are you telling me that there are others out there like shifters? I mean, what else can there be?”
“Vampires.”
Kalena’s eyes widened. “You’re shitting me.”
“I swore to Thane that I would tell you the truth and nothing but the truth. I’ve wanted to all this time, but couldn’t. I knew you were different. I’m so glad there aren’t secrets between us anymore.”
“So, you’re telling me vampires are real? Have you actually seen one?”
Tracy nodded. “I see them every day. I’m sure you have, too. You just didn’t realize it.”
Kalena thought back to the lifeless-looking pilot who’d flown her and David to the estate. “Maybe I have.”
“The vampires gave us the benefit of an extended lifespan. One of our ancients took the blood of a vampire into his veins to prolong his life and expand his abilities. Some say, it took thirteen injections before he started having vampire-like reflexes, and others say it only took one since the blood was so potent. And, of course, many say he drank the blood, as well. After a few injections, he took many mates and dozens of female wolves bore his offspring. They too had vampire-like traits, with the most prevalent being super slow aging, but they still kept their shifter genes and they were much stronger than their counterparts. Eventually, the ancient took a vampire mate and chose to accept her eternal bite. A lethal bite that killed him and destroyed his precious wolf soul, but he rose the next day as a vampire. His name is Silvano, and he sits on the Council to this day. He’s still looked up to as a hero to many of us, even though he is no longer a wolf shifter. That’s a short account of our history. This is how we came to be. It’s how we’ve come to live so long.”
“And that’s why Thane is so old…”
Tracy chuckled. “Exactly. We have a few hybrid Packs, but for the most part the vampires are the only race that chooses to live in secrecy. We’re the closest things to humans that know they exist. Because of the blood truce, we’re forbidden to bring attention to their existence. Do you see how all of this relates to D996 and what Gavril is doing and has done?”
“Not really.”
“By creating a deadly drug and offering the life-altering DNA as the only cure to it, he’s bringing attention to more than just shifters. Exposing the drug would be exposing everything.”
“Oh. If the formulas ever got out—if any of this information ever got out—humans would want to know why the DNA is the cure. It’s the cure because it ultimately comes from vampires.”
“Exactly. The plan here is to eliminate the bad drug entirely, along with the perpetrators, not expose the production.”
“Why couldn’t Thane just tell me all of this? I would have agreed in a flash to give him the information he needed to infiltrate the Silex backdoor system.”
“He’s going through a lot right now, Kalena. He has a Pack to uphold. His own brother took his parents from him. He risks scrutiny from the FDA, as well as UCON, which is our ruling body. His cousin and heir to the Silex fortune was held captive and had her life threatened by the same nutcase. Lives have been lost over this drug. Gavril is Thane’s twin. Would you want to kill your sibling, even if you knew they deserved it?”
Kalena swallowed. “No, I wouldn’t.”
“This is his matter to handle. His burden. It’s all falling to him. UCON has an eye on Thane and this Pack now. If he upsets them, there is nothing he can do to save his ass. But if no one saves his ass for him, and he accepts defeat, at least there is always Danika to carry on his family’s bloodline.
“What’s UCON?”
“The United Council of Nightdwellers.”
Kalena sighed. “I wish I had known earlier. About all of this.”
“Earlier, the both of you were trying to ensure that you got out of Area S2 unharmed. And you did. You both did.” Tracy rose from the window bench. “I’m gonna go. You need to get some rest. A good ten hours of sleep will help with the nausea I’m sure you’re experiencing. Thane knows what could happen if you don’t rest. If you don’t settle your nerves, the cure will take longer to settle within you and you risk losing more of your memory. Understood?”
“If you say so, Doctor.”
Tracy held out her arms and Kalena accepted her embrace.
Her friend had made her feel better and calmed her nerves a bit. Just a bit.
CHAPTER FOUR
Valdron Cole, Alpha of the Black Crescent Pack, tapped the bottom of his glass against the marble coaster. He looked up from his seat directly across from Thane and said, “You’ve escaped certain destruction not once, but twice. Not to mention, you’ve managed to snatch your youngest kin from the clutches of your enemy. Why not let the humans take care of this mess involving the production and distribution of this illegal drug? Report him to the FDA and let them take care of it.”
There were a total of four Alphas, including himself, seated at the long conference table. Thane had known Valdron Cole for decades. Like him, Valdron had been a Beta within his Pack before he’d ascended to his Alpha position after the previous one had died. Valdron’s family was affluent in the winery business and had acquired many refineries over the decades.
Jackson St. Pierre was Alpha of the Gulf Bay Pack. For hundreds of years, the St. Pierre family had made their living in shipping and foreign trade.
And last, Zaid Devoe was the Alpha of the MoonVeil Valley Pack. Like Thane’s family, the Devoes had made a name for themselves in the science and medical field. While Silex’s specialty catered to internal medicines and painkillers, the Devoes specialized in life-like prosthetics. More than fifty percent of Devoe’s Pack members were hybrids, including Zaid himself, whose father is a vampire.
“The initial drug belonged to the Federal government,” Thane replied. “We don’t own the rights to it; therefore, Gavril never had the go-ahead to modify the formula. If news got around that the producers of the drug were also abusing its uses, Silex Pharmaceuticals would be no more. I’m certain the humans would open up a case. I’m not going to introduce scrutiny we don’t need. And it would be a gross misconception to say that every shareholder at Silex knew what Gavril was doing. The government only funded this project under the condition that the outcome would be short-term memory loss, not certain death.”
“Why would Gavril risk our truce with the vampires and do something like this to threaten all of our livelihoods?” Valdron asked. “He’s literally welcoming his own destruction.”
“Money, power…” Thane shrugged. “Because he can, maybe. He has no control over his kind, and can never lead a Pack because the shifting gene never passed to him. However, he likes to think that he’s superior to humans. As long as he has something they want, he feels he’s in control. Turning Gavril over to the FDA could be disastrous to our kind. If he presents the humans with the information about the reversal or what our DNA can do, he may net trillions. All he needs is a few of us shifters who are willing, or unwilling for that matter, to pump Silex’s labs with donations. My spies have already told me that he’s instituted such a program. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out how he plans to extract our DNA. He owns two of the three shifter prisons, because he out bid other potential buyers. And when he couldn’t outbid one, he challenged and killed that one. He has access to inmates, dead and alive. Each prison holds about one hundred persons, mostly shifters. Area S2 held more than that. To him, all those inmates are living blood bags. Many will never escape. There is no reprieve for the crimes they have committed. All who are exiled are meant to die in the wilderness. These prisons were made to secure and
keep our vicious killers off the streets so the federal penitentiaries made to house human criminals don’t have to.”
“So when he had the murder of your parents pinned on you, he knew you’d end up at one of his facilities?” Valdron inquired.
Thane nodded. “Multiple attempts were made to kill me while in transport to Area S2. I could have sworn I had died when they threw me in a ditch and left me there. I had a hole in my gut the size of a baseball.”
“What happened? How did you recover?”
“The human, David. He saw me in the ditch. I trusted no one at the time, obviously, and I warned him off with a growl. He threw a bag of supplies and water down beside me and left. With the supplies, I was able to survive long enough to heal.”
“But why? Why would Gavril think creating this drug is a good idea?” Zaid asked.
“I grew up with Gavril. Our father told us both that we were destined for great things. Sometimes I wonder if Gavril truly believes this is what my father meant,” Thane replied. “His hatred for anyone who dares to deny his reasoning is great.”
Valdron put a hand on Thane’s shoulder. “You’ve taken the blame too long. You’re not responsible for his actions. How did the drug alterations begin anyway?”
Thane rubbed his chin. He was not fond of others delving too far into the past and his family business, but this wasn’t a family issue anymore. “He began tweaking the formulas when he took over the company. At the time, I was transitioning into my role as Pack Alpha, but our parents discovered his treachery before anyone else did. My father and I weren’t on good terms. We’d had a disagreement two months prior because I declined to approve funding for land expansion of a paper mill. My parents tried to reach out to me for help while I was on a business trip in Russia, but the night my plane landed was the night Gavril took matters into his own hands. I caught him in the act, but it was too late.” Thane crushed his fists against the table. “My wolf wanted to rip out his throat, but I wanted to kill him with my bare hands. That’s when he told me he had Danika, and if I were to kill him or rat him out, she would starve to death before I ever found her. The police showed up while I had my claws deep in his chest. We were turned over to UCON. Human prosecutors oversaw the court proceedings since they were made aware of the murders. We were both tried, but in a three to two vote, I was convicted and he was not.”
“How?” Jackson St. Pierre asked.
“My fingerprints, along with my dad’s, were the only prints on the gun found at the murder scene. I picked it up when I discovered my parents lying in cold blood. Gavril didn’t expect me to visit that night, and he was still there and told me what he’d done. I clawed him within an inch of his life. He was barely breathing when they rolled him out on the stretcher. The humans wanted a closed trial and prosecution, and of course, they pointed the finger at the animal. And UCON wanted the humans out of their affairs as quickly as possible. I was sentenced in less than a week, and because I knew Gavril had Danika, I acquiesced.”
“Do you think he has an ally on the Council?” Valdron asked in a low voice. “There’s little explanation as to why this wasn’t given a thorough investigation.”
Thane swallowed hard. “UCON has already passed judgement on me. My final decision is to clean up the mess Gavril made. It’s my duty. If UCON wants to speak with me on any other issue, they know where to find me.”
“And they likely will find you,” Zaid said. “Word about Area S2’s breach, your escape, and Gavril’s disappearance has reached far and wide.”
Thane raised his gaze to meet Zaid. “I’m not hiding, am I?”
“So...what do you want done about Gavril in the meantime?” Jackson St. Pierre asked in a cool, calm tone.
“I want him hunted down and captured,” Thane replied sharply. “My Kappas and Lambdas have already been given these orders.”
“Do you want him dead or alive?” Jackson St. Pierre inquired again.
“I want him breathing and conscious,” Thane clenched his jaw. “When I face him again, there may be reason enough this time for everyone to call me a murderer.”
“My Pack will join yours on the hunt,” Jackson St. Pierre declared.
The Alphas shook hands in agreement and convened the meeting. All except Thane and Valdron filed out of the room.
“By the way…” Valdron’s gaze lingered on Thane. “How did your crew manage to escape with Danika?”
“It wasn’t my crew’s doing,” Thane stated bluntly.
One of Valdron’s thick eyebrows raised. “Oh?”
“A very old friend of mine owed me a favor.”
Valdron shook his head. “Danika was being held underground in a vaulted home, no?”
“That’s the story going around, isn’t it?” Thane teased.
Valdron smirked and threw him a knowing glance. “And that’s the half of the story I have. Do you mind telling me the other side? Your side, what happened in Area S2…”
“If you must know, the vampires helped me. Only the vampires can move at lightning speeds without detection.”
“Ah…makes sense.”
“My connection got the box inside one of the cargo bins three months into my exile sentence. If I pushed the button, they’d come to my aid in a flash.”
“You could have escaped at any time?”
“I could have. But I didn’t push the button for me that night. I pushed it for an innocent woman. The woman who has inside connections to Silex’s backdoor system,” Thane said.
“So you have a vampire ally on your side, huh?”
Thane nodded. “I’ve known of Tor for decades, even though we don’t cross paths very often. He came to me while I was being held. I refused him at first. He wanted something I didn’t have. Something I might never have.”
“What?”
“A child. If Tor got me out undetected, he wanted one of my future daughters. A betrothal. He wanted to start a hybrid clan under his leadership. He needed a bride to bear his children. Just any shifter woman wouldn’t do. He wanted a shifter bride with an old bloodline. I couldn’t promise him that. So, I declined. He explained that he wouldn’t come again, but that he’d send me a gift just in case I changed my mind. The bag would be orange, and it would be holding an activator that would send me a helicopter.”
“And you pushed it…now you must deliver,” Valdron replied.
“I must. It could be another twenty years before that happens. It might never happen. You and I both know that we don’t always bear offspring.”
“Oh, but when we do, they are plentiful. My mate and I hope to breed three more sets of twins, if we’re lucky.”
“Good for you.”
“Why aren’t you optimistic? Isn’t Tor a good vampire?”
“Yes, he is a good person all around, but I think back to why Danika is not happy about her betrothal and I feel guilt.”
“It’s our way of life, old friend. Everything will work out. What’s meant to be will be.”
CHAPTER FIVE
In late fall, night fell quickly in this part of the region. However, Kalena couldn’t bear to spend another minute shut up in a room, no matter how extravagant the interior and lush the bedding was.
After Tracy had left, Kalena persuaded the maid to walk her outside to witness the splendor of the tall, stone water feature by the pool.
As Kalena sat on the stone edge, she let her fingers glide across the pool’s surface. The water was still and calm and the sound of the cascades reminded her of the beautiful stream Thane had taken her to while they were in Area S2.
“Miss, it’s getting late,” the maid urged quietly, standing beside her. “I have orders to ensure that you’re resting.”
“Yes, I know, Anna,” Kalena said without looking up. “I just want to stay for a little while longer. I’m sitting. That qualifies as resting, doesn’t it?”
The wind whistled in the distance and pushed gently against her back. She wrapped the shawl Anna had given her tighter around h
er arms. The distant hum of voices flowed toward them, but, of course, Kalena couldn’t make out anything other than the fact that they all belonged to males. The water feature was behind the home, and the voices had come from the front of the property.
“If you don’t mind me asking, what are you, Anna?” Kalena asked, glancing up momentarily at the maid who’d been helping her with getting clothes and food since she’d arrived.
“I’m just like you.”
Anna was short and walked with calm, graceful movements. Her hair was tied loosely in a bun, and she wore a long, simple dress that clung to her body. The woman was also lean and fit. Her skin was youthful and bright. Kalena couldn’t quite tell her age, but whenever the maid was close, she noted the creases on her skin around the outer corner of her eyes.
“Human?” Kalena inquired.
“Yes…and then some.”
With that revelation, Kalena turned her full attention to Anna, forgetting about the water feature. “Does that mean you’ve taken the DNA?”
Anna nodded. “A long time ago when I was a child. My family has been loyal to the shifters for centuries. I used to work in Thane’s father’s home before his murder. After that, I came to the ShadowRock mansion where I knew Thane’s people would accept me.”
“Were you there when it happened?”
“The murders, you mean?”
“Yes,” Kalena said.
“No. None of the housekeepers lived on the property, and the murders happened after hours. But I knew Thane had nothing to do with it. I knew all along.” She spoke in a low voice.
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Anna shrugged. “We were ordered not to because it would ruin Thane’s plans.”
Kalena frowned and narrowed her gaze. “Ordered not to by whom?”
“Thane,” she said. “I don’t like talking about this. It won’t bring them back.”
“I’m sorry. That must have been hard for you.”
“It still is.” Anna lowered her gaze and said nothing else.
Ascend (Wolf in Exile Part 3): Werewolf Shifter/Vampire Paranormal Romance Page 3