Wen
Wen
VLG – Book Six
Vampires, Lycans, Gargoyles
By Laurann Dohner
Wen by Laurann Dohner
When Gerri’s VampLycan stepfather died, her mother moved them far from his clan. As a teen, it was the most devastating day of her life, because it took Gerri away from Wen, the boy she’d loved since childhood. Fifteen years later, that boy has become a gorgeous man straight out of her wildest fantasies—and when he requests to meet her, Gerri suspects just seeing him will set her up for heartbreak all over again.
The petite blonde he fell for as a young VampLycan is still beautiful—and all human. Though Gerri’s always been the one he longs to be with, Wen can’t mate her. After the death of his brother, Wen was forced to assume the duties of firstborn, which include mating another VampLycan. But he needs a human to pull off his current mission for his clan, hunting a rogue Vampire in a human city. And he’ll take any stolen moments with Gerri he can get.
As the danger surrounding the mission mounts, so does their passion, until it’s equally perilous. It will take everything in him to keep Wen from claiming his mate…because doing so could mean her death.
VLG Series List
Drantos
Kraven
Lorn
Veso
Lavos
Wen
Wen by Laurann Dohner
Copyright © May 2017
Editor: Kelli Collins
Cover Art: Dar Albert
eBook ISBN: 978-1-944526-82-5
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal, except for the case of brief quotations in reviews and articles.
Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is coincidental.
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Wen - VLG – Book Six
By Laurann Dohner
Chapter One
There was no mistaking that the tall biker-looking dude in the leather jacket had to be Wen. His hair was shorter these days though, no longer flowing down to the middle of his back. It was dark brown, a bit shaggy, and fell to his broad shoulders. His father towered above other men at six feet seven, and his son inherited more than just his height. He had the same bodybuilder frame, with broad shoulders and thick biceps that stretched out the material covering them. The graceful, predatory way he stalked down the sidewalk in the opposite direction also assured her she had the right guy. Men moved out of his way, giving a wide berth, but women turned their heads, taking second looks.
Gerri sighed, stepping out of the shadows of the building across the street. Her blonde curly hair, falling almost to her waist, might as well have been a flag waving to say hello. The strong breeze whipped it into her face from behind now that she’d left the shelter of the doorway. She’d tried keeping it short but the tight curls drove her insane after a few weeks. The weight of having it long left it wavy instead. There was also the drawback of resembling a blonde version of a famous fictional orphan after she cut it off—and the jokes that went along with that. So she just let it grow, usually kept in a single braid down her back, but she hadn’t had time to do that earlier. She’d hit snooze on her alarm clock too many times.
It had been hard to fall asleep the night before, knowing she’d see him again.
The wind blew down the street in his direction and he spun around, now striding her way, eyes hidden by the dark sunglasses he wore. She resisted cursing in case his hearing was as good as she imagined. It was a hot day, and she’d begun to sweat. He’d clearly picked up her scent. She could have gone bald or had facial surgery and Wen would still be able to locate her with his eyes closed…something she should have remembered. They’d grown up together. It didn’t matter what hair products or laundry detergent she used. It had been a game to try to fool him when they were kids. Wen could always track her.
He made a beeline toward her, crossing the street.
The urge to run struck but she held still. He’d catch her before she made it half a block, and the results could get messy. They were no longer kids. A game of chase could easily turn deadly if she triggered him to go into hunt mode. She wasn’t willing to risk it. They weren’t friends anymore.
He stopped two feet away, and she hated having to lift her chin to stare up. The size difference between them had always been drastic but now it seemed ridiculous. He was well over a foot taller than her five-foot-five frame, and he had to have about a hundred and fifty pounds on her.
“You didn’t grow much.”
His deep baritone voice was just a reminder of what he really was. It gave her chills down her spine. He appeared to be human, a large one, but he wasn’t. “You reached out to me and I came.” She loathed the reality she called her life at that moment. He’d have hunted her down if she’d have refused a meeting. Seeing him again was painful and something she’d wanted to avoid. “As if you really gave me a choice. Your message on my voicemail was a bit threatening. I didn’t appreciate that.”
He tilted his head, and she was grateful that the sunglasses resting on the bridge of his nose were too dark to glimpse his eyes. She had a feeling they probably weren’t as human-looking as his face at that moment. The soft growl that rumbled from him hinted that she’d pissed him off.
“Sorry.” She lowered her gaze to his immense chest. “You have to admit this is a bad idea. We said our goodbyes and they should have stuck.” She refused to step back and bow a little at the waist to show regret. The verbal apology would have to be enough. His customs weren’t hers anymore. “It’s too dangerous for me to be anywhere near you. It was rude to make threats toward me if I didn’t text you back and meet with you today.” She didn’t add the part about how she realized he wouldn’t be concerned if he got her killed by association. “What do you need?”
“We have to talk. Why did you pick this place? It’s too public. What are we doing here?”
She wasn’t surprised that he knew where she lived, since he’d somehow gotten her cell number. “I rented a room upstairs. I figured you’d want privacy.” She backed up, turned, and prayed he wouldn’t do something to get even for her rudeness. The boy he used to be wouldn’t be so easily offended but he’d grown into a man she didn’t know. “Follow me.”
He didn’t snarl a warning that she was being too pushy, so she breathed easier as she entered the cheap motel. The desk clerk wasn’t there, probably in the back watching porn. Two drug addicts hung out in the corner of the small lobby and she guessed they were waiting for their dealer to show. The place was a hive of undesirable criminals but it didn’t have any security cameras. They also accepted cash, rented rooms by the hour, and never asked questions.
“You don’t trust me inside your den?”
She waited to answer until they reached the elevator and the doors closed them inside. “It’s called an apartment out here in the real world, and it wasn’t about trust. I figured that it was best if I could just say I’m a hooker doing a john if we’re seen together. I have no idea why you’re in Reno or who you’re hunting.”
“What makes you think I’m looking for someone?”
She sighed as the elevator doors opened, then dug out the plastic key and strode forward. The room was between the stairs and elevator. She unlocked it and pushed open the door, waiting for him to pass. He took a few steps inside, sniffed, and frowned.
“Hooker would be correct. This place reeks of sex.”
She closed the door and locked it. “Sorry. I did a visual and it appeared okay. I even sprayed some scented stuff around.”
“So I smell. Flowers and unwashed bodies don’t mix.”
Gerri leaned against the door and lifted her gaze, peering at his sunglasses. “What’s up, Wen? I figure it has to be pretty dire for you to go to the trouble to reach out to me. I’m not easy to find.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“You’re hunting for someone. You wouldn’t leave Alaska otherwise. It’s what you guys do. Is he a bloodsucker, a Were, or a combo?”
He paused. “It's complicated.”
“A fur bat? Shit.”
His generous mouth curved upward. “You know they find that term offensive.”
“I learned it from you. I’ll make sure I share that fact if you tattle and a GarLycan comes after me to extract a little payback.” The past blurred with the present for a second. It was a teasing conversation they may have had as kids. “Why call me? I don’t know shit. I avoid anything that I think isn’t what it appears to be.”
“The city is full of bloodsuckers. How do you avoid them?”
“I don’t go out after dark.” She forced a smile and clasped her hands together over her stomach. “It’s pretty simple. There are bars over my windows on my brick-exterior apartment. They would have to make a lot of racket, waste too much time and energy to break in. There’s easier prey to go after. I keep the curtains closed, don’t display myself as a snack, and I own a few poison-tipped crossbows bolts, just in case.” She paused, a memory flashing. “Plus a really sharp ax. I’ve only ever had one come after me.”
“I take it he won’t do it again?”
“Nope. It was before I learned to live behind bars and thicker walls. I shot him full of arrows, kind of pinned him to a wall so I had time to take his head off, and used my ax to do it.”
“His nest didn’t come after you?”
“He was rogue. You should have smelled him. He probably hadn’t bathed in months or changed his clothes. No master would ever allow one of his to stink that bad.” She cleared her throat. “I also moved the next day without a forwarding address, just in case he had banded together with a few others. I’m good at getting lost.”
“What did you do about the blood? It sounds as if it was messy. Humans have police and crime techs, if you left what they would have viewed as a murder scene.”
“UV lamp, and I opened the curtains to let in a lot of sun. Vamp blood just goes away when you expose it to both. I remembered that. I had to patch the walls though. Good thing hardware stores open so early.”
“How is your mother?”
It hurt to think about her, even after four years. “I have no clue. She hooked up with a Were, so I split. I know you don’t like that term but I live in the human world, and they called themselves Werewolves. Some of his pack began sniffing after me. Becoming a human version of a bitch in a pack isn’t in my life plans.”
“None of them interested you as a mate?”
She hesitated, glanced around before staring at his dark glasses. “They weren’t traditional. I’m not one to judge but that sickened even me. Let’s leave it at that.”
He leaned in, one hand flattening on the door near her face. “Let’s not. Explain.”
Anger stirred but she wasn’t going to test his patience. He’d never had much as a kid, and she figured he’d have none at all now, since he’d become an adult. “They had a sharing-is-caring motto, okay? They don’t believe in mates. I wouldn’t bend over and take it from any guy who wanted me, even if huge sums of money were involved, so I sure as hell wasn’t going to do it for free just because my mother was with their alpha. Any woman was viewed as community property by the men. Not my thing.”
“The alpha allowed anyone in his pack to fuck your mother?”
“Didn’t I just tell you their pack motto?”
“I don’t understand. How many men shared your mother?”
“I really didn’t want to know who Mom was getting it on with or how many it involved. She ordered me to stay but that wasn’t going to happen.”
“Damn. I liked Carol.”
“Then join their pack and you can nail her too, since they’re into that.”
He growled low, sounding his irritation. “I didn’t mean it that way and you know it. I assumed she avoided all the other races after her mate died.”
“I think she missed the type, you know? Domineering, total control freak, with a bonus side of worship-me mentality.” She ducked under his arm and quickly got past him, not comfortable feeling pinned in. “She’s different now.”
“Obviously. What changed her?”
“The whole slower-aging thing finally wore off and she kind of flipped when she got her first gray hair. I think it made her feel human and she didn’t want that.”
“But she is.”
“Tell her that and see how much she rants. Been there and done that.” She walked to the other side of the room and turned. “I think she joined up with that pack hoping they’d turn her. They aren’t into claiming a mate, so it could only happen with a shitload of biting, bleeding, and hoping she survived long enough to become one. I wasn’t going to stick around to watch. You know the success rate is so low because it’s too brutal. While I was there, she was just drinking some of the blood they shared with her. That’s dangerous too, when you’re not mated, but she was willing to risk her body rejecting the blood. I hear that’s a horrible way to go. I didn’t want to be there to see if that nightmare happened.
“Now let’s stop playing catch-up and just get to the point. What do you need from me, Wen? I don’t know the right people if you’re looking for contacts. I have a human-only policy on friends now.”
“Okay.” He stalked closer, invading her personal space again. “I need a human, and you fit the bill.”
“Why me?”
“You know what I really am.”
“Just pick someone else and tell them, then.”
“They might not handle the truth well, and I couldn’t trust a stranger.”
“You can’t trust me. It’s been fifteen years since I left.”
“You’re still alive. You never told anyone about your life in Alaska.”
“I know better. I don’t need a big target on my back with everyone nonhuman tracking me to make sure I can’t blab. Plus, even if no one in your world considered me a real threat, humans shove people ranting about Vampires, Werewolves, and Gargoyles into straitjackets. I hear the meds are excellent in mental hospitals but that’s not my thing. I don’t do drugs.” She backed up. “Why are you so close?”
“I don’t smell a man on you.”
“And you won’t. I’m not dating anyone right now. It ended poorly with the last boyfriend.”
“Why?”
“I dump guys who cheat and play head games.” She stared up at him. “Are there any boundaries you won’t cross? I’m not asking about your sex life.”
“I’m single.”
“This week. I know too much about your kind. You obviously haven’t found your mate, or you wouldn’t be tracking someone without her on your heels.”
“I wouldn’t have left Alaska. Mated males don’t hunt this far from home.”
She nodded, hating the tiny bit of relief she felt. There had been a time when she’d daydreamed about becoming his other half. I was just a stupid kid.
Yeah, keep thinking that, and maybe I’ll even buy that excuse one day.
She chewed on her bottom lip. “What do you need me to do? Is this going to take more than a day? I have a job.”
/>
“Not anymore.”
“Damn it, Wen! What does that mean? I can’t afford to lose my paycheck. It keeps me fed and a roof over my head. You have to pay for those things out here in the human world.”
He said nothing, but she could feel him staring at her.
“What? Your leader deals with shit like taxes, paying any human bills the clan incurs and all that. I’m on my own.”
He reached inside his front jacket pocket and withdrew a thick wade of cash. “For your time. I’m not sure how many days it will take, but you aren’t to leave my side until the bastard is dealt with.”
“What is he and why do you need me?” A sinking feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. She refused to take the money, despite the fact it was probably more than she made in six months working her job. “Shit. I’m bait, aren’t I?”
“No.”
She still didn’t reach for the money. “Then what do you need me to do? Just cut the crap. Don’t sugarcoat it.”
“Fine. Sit.”
She studied the bed. “No way. Do you know how many germs and tiny bugs are probably crawling all over that thing?” She glanced at him. “I’m not the weak-kneed type.”
He grinned as he returned the bills to his pocket. “That’s why I want you. You’ve always been tough, Gerri. You’re the strongest human I’ve ever met.”
“Knock off the false flattery. Just spit it out.”
“I’m tracking a ghoul maker.”
“Those don’t exist.”
His dark eyebrow lifted above the sunglasses. “Are you sure?”
“Shit. What are they exactly? Give me the highlights.”
“It’s what we call a master Vampire who’s creating an army of soldiers.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
He reached for his sunglasses, removing them. The sight of those beautiful blue eyes made her feel like an idiot for believing she’d be impervious to him after all the years they’d been apart. She’d never forgotten they were mesmerizing, but the memory of their sheer magnificence had faded over the years. He had the kind of eyes that someone could get lost in. A brilliant blue that reminded her of sapphires. Her gaze dropped to his mouth, avoiding looking directly into his eyes again.