Blood Secrets (The Wolf Born Trilogy, #2)
Jen L. Grey
Chapter One
My heart raced as we pulled onto a narrow road to Lillith and Katherine’s vampire nest. Even though the two vampires had become close friends of mine and Roxy’s at Kortright University, I wasn’t sure how their family would react to everything. I’d be squirming with concern if it hadn’t been for Donovan’s head on my lap and his injured body sprawled across the seat in the back row. I asked, “Is your nest similar to you?”
“Meaning, do they drink straight from the human and kill?” Lillith’s dark brown eyes reflected in the mirror. It was late, but her dark makeup and eyeliner were still intact, contrasting against her pale skin and almost matching her black hair and all-black clothing.
“Well, yeah.” I wouldn’t lie to them. It wouldn’t do any good. Everyone would smell the lie. My focus went back to my mate, who was barely alive beside me. Even though we’d killed the evil vampire, she’d drained him and his best friend, Axel, so much that their survival was barely plausible. Roxy and my only choice had been to bite them and hope they survived the transition.
I ran my fingers through Donovan’s short jet-black hair and gently brushed his cheek. His dark stubble scraped my hand. His skin was warm like he had a fever; the transition was still underway. Or I hoped the fever was due to the change. The other consideration I couldn’t bear. I needed to see his gorgeous, bedroom blue eyes soon.
My rose-gold hair fell over my shoulder and blocked a portion of his face. I lifted my blood-tinged hands and pushed my hair behind my ear. I could feel the deep circles under my light blue eyes. They were a few shades lighter than his.
“Yes, all the members are focused on retaining their humanity,” Katherine reassured me and turned to face our group in the back. She’d pulled her long, dark brown hair into a ponytail, and I could see her brown eyes, which were almost as dark as Lillith’s. The concern was clear on her face.
“How much longer until we get there?” Roxy complained as she stretched. She’d been stuck, sitting on the floorboard between the two middle row seats since Axel needed to recline. He was just as injured as Donovan and also undergoing the change, and there was no way in hell Egan could fit anywhere else but in the other chair. She’d kept her hand on Axel’s leg the entire time, needing to touch him for reassurance.
“About five minutes,” Lillith replied curtly. “We have to go down the road a ways.”
“God.” Roxy shook her head, her bright red hair brushing my legs with each movement. “I’m not sure I can make it much longer.”
Egan’s slight accent made his words sound rough as he said, “That comment isn’t appropriate right now.” His whole body stiffened. He wasn’t fat by any means, but he was huge. He looked like a can of biscuits in the chair. Blood had crusted on his arm from where the vampire had ripped scales off his body, and dark circles lined his golden eyes. His normally styled, longish blond hair was in disarray, but the worst part was that he smelled of burnt skin from the vampire he’d blazed. He rubbed the blond stubble on his chin. “Axel’s and Donovan’s lives are teetering, and I can barely breathe without cramping, but I’m not complaining. They have it much worse.”
“You don’t think I know my mate’s life is hanging in the balance?” Roxy snapped, narrowing her hazel eyes at him. “This whole situation sucks ass.”
I loved how eloquent my best friend always proved to be. “Everyone needs to calm down. All our nerves are frayed.” I touched Roxy’s shoulder. “Just focus on the fact that their hearts are still beating and we’re getting more distance from my dad.”
It was crazy. I was now an alpha in my own right. Granted, it was only a pack of two—me and Roxy—but I was an alpha, nonetheless. If the two guys made it, our pack would increase to four. Dad had never thought I’d be an alpha because I was a girl and weak, but here I stood. I pushed away the fact it had only happened as a means to survive. It didn’t matter. I was officially responsible for Roxy’s safety.
“You’re right.” She scooted back and rested her head on my legs. “It’s just … I don’t see how we can survive long-term.”
I didn’t either. Dad was the strongest alpha out there, and he had his sights set on becoming king over all supernaturals. It was absurd, but our family had been building this legacy for years. My great grandfather had built most of the supernatural neighborhoods and businesses in the world. Having another supernatural in charge meant they didn’t have to hide what they were or what rooms they needed and why. But what they hadn’t anticipated was that my family would have all of the blueprints and knowledge on how to take down ninety percent of the population if need be. There weren’t many places we could run and hide. “How long has your neighborhood been established?”
“It’s not a neighborhood.” Katherine licked her lips and checked her phone. “It’s about ten acres of land with one huge house on it.”
“So, my family didn’t build it?” Could we be so lucky?
“Nope. That’s one reason your dad shouldn’t be able to find us.” Lillith kept her focus on the road. “We stay off the grid for several reasons.”
I wanted to push for more information, but I dropped it.
Donovan groaned, pulling my attention to him. He jerked his head from side to side as if he was having a bad dream.
“We’re almost there.” Katherine pointed to a huge mansion about a mile away. It was a symmetrical, three-story, brick building. A large red door sat in the middle with a few brick steps leading to it. “Just hold on tight.”
“Holy shit, you weren’t kidding when you said it was a large house.” Roxy’s mouth dropped. “How many bedrooms?”
“Fifteen with sixteen full bathrooms.” Lillith flew down the dirt road, leaving a cloud of dust behind us. “Don’t worry. We have plenty of room for clothes and enough space that we won’t want to kill each other.”
“What clothes?” Roxy sighed, and tugged at her Kortright sweats.
Donovan’s jerking intensified as we pulled up to the house. His arms thrashed, and he groaned in pain.
“Guys, something’s wrong.” I’d almost thought this would end okay, but this reaction couldn’t be good.
“What’s wrong?” Egan asked as he tried to turn around to see in the backseat.
“I don’t know, but he’s thrashing around.” I tried to keep the hysteria from my voice, but I failed miserably.
“We’re here.” Lillith drove through the grass and pulled right up at the front door. “Let’s get him out.”
“Should I be concerned or relieved that Axel isn’t doing that?” Roxy straightened, careful not to hit her head on the car ceiling.
“I’m not sure,” Egan said. He opened the sliding door to the van and jumped out. “I’ll go get Axel while you two pull Donovan out.”
Lillith hurried over to Axel and opened the side door.
“Okay.” Roxy turned around, her forehead creased with worry. “Let’s do this.”
Right as she reached for Donovan, he began to flail around, and he punched her in the face.
“What the hell?” she grumbled and grabbed her nose. “Damn, that hurt.”
“Come on.” We had to get him out of here and get him in a bed or on the floor. Something better than a damn cramped backseat.
“Fine.” She grabbed his feet and tugged them toward the middle row. His body slid awkwardly, and I snagged his arms, trying to hold them in place despite his wild movements.
Roxy struggled and dropped his feet on the floorboard, jarring his body even harder.
Loud noises came from outside, but I couldn’t even pretend to listen. For all I knew, Egan was getting attacked and sucked dry. The only reason I didn’t flip out was because I trusted Lillith and Katherine to protect us, which I hoped I didn’t regret.