Drantos Read online

  “I’m glad one of us understands what you’re saying. Did you know my mother? You seem to have.”

  “I know more about your family than you seem to. Aveoth’s lover died a week ago. He’ll be looking for another to replace her…and he wouldn’t be able to resist your sister if she were offered to him.”

  “Offered to him? Who the hell is Aveoth? Some alien warlord in your head?”

  “Stop with the aliens. I’m not insane. Aveoth is a powerful clan leader. He will be looking for a new lover and Decker will give your sister to him.”

  “Whatever.” She was getting a headache trying to make sense of his ranting. “You’re making my grandfather sound like some pimp, as if my sister is a hooker. She’s not.”

  “I’m telling you the truth.”

  “Oh hell,” Dusti sighed. “I’m not even going to try to follow what you’re saying. There’s medication out there that will help you. You really need to see your doctor. I believe Decker Filmore is a rich ol’ perv, but you’re saying he wants to turn Bat into some kind of hooker? No way.”

  “Your mother should have told you the truth.”

  “About what? That there are crazy people who live in their own made-up worlds? She covered that when I started noticing boys and she taught me about stranger danger.”

  He hesitated. “Now isn’t the time to go into all of this. We’re going to talk later, when we’re somewhere more private.”

  She wasn’t about to point out that he’d dragged her out of the clearing so no one could see them. She just wanted to get away from him. “Great. Let me go.”

  He took a deep breath. “Your mother wasn’t human.”

  “Really?” Dusti relaxed, the bark of the tree lightly digging into her back when she leaned away from the man pinning her to it. “She was an alien?”

  He smirked and his eyes seemed to crinkle at the corners. “We’re from the same planet, just different worlds.”

  “Ah. That makes total sense.” Dusti rolled her eyes, not caring if he saw her reaction. “So we’re talking different dimensions? Okay. Why don’t you let me go and return to yours then? Have a safe trip. Do you click your boot heels together to get there?”

  The amusement left his strangely intriguing gaze. “There’s the world that humans live in and the part of it that they never see.”

  “Ghosts then?” She couldn’t resist. Her hands brushed the front of his shirt, feeling the warmth that seemed to radiate from him even through the thin cotton material. “You feel solid enough to me.”

  A soft growl came from deep within his throat. It disturbed Dusti, frightened her. She pressed tighter against the tree and jerked her hands away from his chest. Something in his dark gaze flashed, seeming to glow for a split second, before he leaned in closer until their noses touched.

  “We’ll discuss this later.” He backed off, released her, and took a few steps away. “Return to camp.”

  Drantos watched Dusti stumble away, nearly running back to the blanket. The taste of her blood remained on his tongue. He’d only taken a few drops, but it was enough.

  She didn’t know what she was. It stunned and pissed him off at the same time. He thought she might have been lying at first but her responses were proof enough. She thought he was crazy and didn’t believe anything he’d said.

  Uranus. He snorted and turned, quickly moving into the woods. The sister was easy to find. She softly cursed, almost walking into a tree. Her night vision seemed nonexistent.

  He approached her, making sounds so she wouldn’t be alarmed. She froze, eyes widening.

  “It’s Drantos,” he called out.

  She turned in his direction. “I went too far. I can’t find the camp.”

  That made his anger deepen. It was obvious she didn’t know what she was, either, and her senses were those of a human. She was only about fifty yards from temporary camp but the thick vegetation blocked the fire from her view. She still should have been able to smell burning wood and hear the soft voices of the survivors.

  He reached out and curved his fingers around her upper arm. “I’ll lead you back.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I take it you can’t see anything?”

  “No. I hope I didn’t pee in poison ivy.”

  “There isn’t any in this area.”

  “That’s the best news I’ve heard all day.” She gripped his arm as they walked. “Thank you for looking after my sister.”

  He escorted Bat past the edge of the trees to the clearing. “Could you help me calm some of the passengers? They’re still pretty upset.” He wanted to keep her away from Dusti. “I think you’d do a better job of it than I would. My size seems to scare a few of them.”

  “Sure.” She turned her head, staring at her sister. “I should check on her first.”

  “She’s fine. I just left her to look for you. She was worried.”

  Bat walked away from him and toward an elderly couple. He stood there watching her, to ensure she kept far from Dusti. He needed to think.

  Decker Filmore had been denied using his own daughter to bargain with Aveoth when she’d fled, but now he must be planning on doing the same thing with her daughters. Daughter, he corrected. Decker believes he can only use Bat. He mistook Dusti’s scent to mean she didn’t inherit any of her mother’s traits.

  Aveoth would never want to take Dusti as his lover with her being so human. She’d be considered too frail. She’d age faster too, if the harsh life of living with the GarLycan didn’t kill her outright. He’d want Bat instead. She’d be considered more worthy because at least there were hints of some of her mother’s heritage, implying she would be tougher.

  The smell of a fresh kill teased his nose and so did the familiar scent of Kraven. He backed into the darkness and located his brother quickly. Kraven dumped the deer on the ground and bent, wiping his hands on the grass to clean them of blood.

  He heard Drantos approach. “That was easier than I’d thought.”

  “I know why Decker sent for the women.”

  “I’ve been thinking about it too. Aveoth lost his lover. They’re Marvilella’s granddaughters. Her sister was once promised to Aveoth, so he’ll be interested in her kin.”

  “We’re both in agreement then.”

  “Yeah. Decker wants to break the alliance we have with Aveoth. That is, if the rumors are true that Aveoth is addicted to that family’s blood. Maybe it’s just a bullshit tale.”

  “I don’t want to bet on it. Do you?” Drantos softly growled, annoyed.

  “Hell no.”

  “It’s Bat that Decker will use. We can’t allow that to happen.”

  “Damn.” Kraven sighed. “I might want to wring the mouthy one’s neck when she gets going but not literally. I thought about killing them at first but it was just the shock of finding out who they were. I got past that. I’m not going to hurt a helpless woman.”

  “We’re not going to kill them. We need to get them to safety.”

  “Decker isn’t going to just allow them to return to wherever they’ve been living. Hell, he probably sent some of his men searching for the crash site as soon as he realized what happened when the plane didn’t land. We might have company by morning if they can pinpoint where we went down.”

  “Do you recognize this area? I think we’re about fifteen miles from our southern border.”

  “I agree. That means Decker is about thirty miles away. The darkness will slow down whoever he sends but they can cover a lot of ground when the sun rises.”

  “We have the advantage,” Drantos whispered. “Decker doesn’t know someone warned us about those women, or that we were on the plane to stop them from reaching him. And we used false names so we’re covered if he gets a look at the passenger list.”

  “That’s true.”

  “We have another problem.”

  “What’s that?”

  Drantos hesitated but his brother needed to know. “Dusti and Bat don’t know the truth.”

&nb
sp; “You mean that Decker plans to use one of them as a pawn?”

  “I mean they’re unaware of anything about our existence. Their mother mated to a human and they were raised that way.”

  Kraven sucked in a sharp breath and his eyes widened. “What?”

  “I mentioned to Dusti that she smells totally human and she had no idea what I was talking about. She thought I was crazy. They honestly believe Decker is dying of old age or illness.”

  “Son of a bitch.” Kraven growled. “I thought that was just a bullshit story they made up, hoping to fool us. And that they’re really good at masking their scents. I figured they just perfected how to do it while living with humans.”

  “Nope. Dusti is clueless and I’m certain Bat is too. I found her lost not far from the camp. She’s never been trained to use her senses. Her mother would have done that if she had told them what they were.”

  “But how is that even possible? They lived in a city with Lycans and Vamps. I could pick up a hint of what Bat was right after the crash. She has a few small cuts. It’s faint but there. Why haven’t any Lycans or Vampires gone after her? They would have attacked her as soon as they got a whiff. You think the mom is protecting them? She might have made some kind of pact to protect her daughters with both packs and nests.”

  “Antina is dead.”

  “You sure?”

  “You were gone when they discussed losing their parents. It happened when they were younger.”

  “None of this makes sense.” Kraven softly growled. “Maybe they left Bat alone because she’s a lawyer? I’ve heard some of the city packs have an agreement not to touch someone with an important job. Doctors, lawyers…even anyone in law enforcement can be seen as neutral and helpful to all of them, regardless of their associations. They sometimes work together to keep humans from discovering the truth. But that doesn’t explain why Vamps leave her alone, unless she’s got a client associated with them. Maybe she unknowingly keeps their day guards out of prison? They’d want her protected if that’s the case.”

  “I agree.”

  “This just gets better and better.” Kraven sighed again. “I can’t believe what a mess this has become.”

  “I know.”

  “I still think maybe those sisters aren’t as ignorant as they’re leading us to believe. I’ll buy that the younger one might not know the truth. I smelled her when Bat gave her a shot. There was nothing to indicate she’s more than what she seems. I can understand how she could pass as totally human, but the older one? Not a chance. She has periods, she bleeds. At some point she’d have had to cross paths with someone who hates our kind enough to go after her, regardless of any city rules or her being on the payroll of some suck head. Lawyers make enemies. That means she had to know how to defend herself.”

  Drantos considered it. “Maybe the packs are confused by her human blood. I smelled her too when she was still bleeding. It’s possible they believe she’s half Lycan, since that’s all I picked up off her. Not all half-breeds are taken into a pack. They get rejected for being too human and never showing any traits. She’d be deemed harmless.”

  “Maybe.”

  “It’s possible none of them would even consider that one of us would live amongst them. We stay with our clans. Anyone checking into her would know she isn’t just visiting the area. She has a job and a home in the city.”

  “I will say that Bat seems to really love her sister. Is it possible her and the mother decided not to tell the mostly human one? To keep her safe? Ignorance would have kept Dusti from doing anything to draw suspicion. Humans are oblivious to our kind unless they know what to look for.”

  “I’m stumped by the entire mess, Kraven. I don’t think Bat was aware of me out in the woods. It would have been easy for her to find the camp if she had used her senses.”

  “I don’t trust Bat. She’s sneaky. Just keep your guard up around her. I think she knows exactly what she is.”

  “Why would she visit Decker? I can’t see her agreeing to be handed over to Aveoth. Her mother fled to avoid that from happening. She would have warned Bat that Decker might plot to do the same thing to her one day. Do you think Bat realized he’d take her by force, so she figured it would be easier if she just came back on her own?”

  “Maybe it’s a revenge quest for Bat. Her mother fled Decker and had to give up her heritage to live amongst humans. That had to be tough and it left her without the safety of numbers. We should find out how Antina died. Maybe it wasn’t a human who took her life. Decker might have wanted his daughter out of the way by killing her. I’d want revenge for our mother, if that were the case. Perhaps Bat thinks she can kill him if she gets close enough. We’ll have to proceed with caution, but one thing is certain. Decker is going to come after the granddaughter he can use. He needs to force Aveoth to side with him.”

  “I agree. Decker murdered his own mate out of greed and from what I’ve guessed, he wasn’t able to find his runaway daughter until after she’d mated to a human and had two daughters of her own. Aveoth already had Lane as his lover by then, so Decker had to bide his time until Aveoth needed another.”

  Kraven softly cursed. “Do you think Decker had Lane murdered?”

  Drantos debated it but then shook his head. “No way in hell. Aveoth sent guards to keep her safe the few times she visited her parents. Decker and his enforcers wouldn’t have been able to get to her.”

  “We’re not even sure how she died, though.”

  “I’m certain Aveoth would have left a trail of blood if someone had murdered his lover, until he found the one responsible.”

  Kraven nodded. “Yeah. He’s not one to fuck with.”

  “No. He’s not. Decker wouldn’t be a problem anymore if he’d ordered Lane’s assassination. Aveoth would have ripped him apart to avenge her.”

  “Perhaps he’s become as cold as we’ve heard.”

  “Regardless, it would be a pride thing. If someone took something of his, they’d pay in blood for that offense and lose their lives.”

  “True.”

  “We can’t allow Decker to get his hands on either granddaughter. Dusti might smell all human but she’s not. I tested a few drops of her blood.”

  Kraven groaned. “Fantastic. That means we’ll have to take them back to our clan, where he won’t be able to get to them.”

  “I know.”

  “Decker will try to get them back by force.”

  “I’d rather we have to fight Decker’s clan than Aveoth’s. We have a chance of winning.”

  “What if he tells Aveoth we have them? Father would have to hand over the sister to avoid a fight with him.”

  “Let’s worry about that after we get them to the safety of our clan.”

  “One problem at a time.” Kraven nodded. “Right.” He paused. “You understand that taking them home will put us all in danger, don’t you?”

  Drantos reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. “Of course I do. I’d rather deal with Aveoth directly over Decker. He’s not insane.”

  “Are you certain? It’s been many years since we’ve spoken to him. He’s changed a lot since then.”

  “Aveoth has honor.”

  “We hope he still does. Who knows what happened to make him take over his clan. I mean, he killed his own father to do it. That’s pretty cold.”

  One of the passengers started to raise hell. Drantos cocked his head, listening to what the man was ranting about. He was starting to panic the other survivors about being attacked by wild animals or dying if the wreckage wasn’t spotted by rescue teams.

  “I’ll go deal with that,” he announced. “You work on getting them fed.”

  Chapter Three

  Bat collapsed on a blanket near Dusti hours later. The wind had picked up, leaving a definite chill in air. Dusti had watched her sister keep busy helping Kraven pass out the food after he’d dragged the deer carcass into the clearing. It had been impressive watching him roast meat on sticks over the fire. Afterward,
Drantos and Bat worked together to get everyone comfortable enough to sleep.

  “I’m never going to look at venison the same way again. It’s really disturbing how good that man is with a knife.” Bat smirked.

  Dusti glanced around looking for Drantos, and found him standing too close for her comfort, dumping more wood into a pile by the fire. She still wanted to warn her sister that he was crazy. It seemed he was never going to give her a perfect opportunity so she just needed to do it. She lowered her voice.

  “Remember my friend Greg?”

  Bat nodded. “The nut.”

  Dusti winced. “He’s bipolar. So is Drantos.”

  Bat stared at her. “What?”

  Dusti nodded. “Keep your voice down. He doesn’t want me to say anything to you but he’s off his meds.” She glanced at Drantos and found him staring at her. She waited until one of the passengers said something to him and he broke eye contact with her. “Don’t say anything, because I’m afraid it will set him off, but he thinks our grandfather is some alien or something. He hates him and plans to use us to get back at him somehow.”

  Bat paled. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “Damn.” Bat frowned. “That runs in families sometimes, doesn’t it? That means the brother might have the same condition.”

  “Did you hear what I said? We’re in danger!”

  “I heard. I have some clients like that. Just be cool and go along with anything he says. We’ll be rescued and the paramedics can sedate him until they get him the help he needs.”

  Dusti nodded. It was sound advice.

  “This sucks. I kinda like the brother.” Bat glanced anywhere but at Dusti. “He’s different. I’ve never met anyone like him before.”

  Dusti worried. “You’re attracted to him?”

  Bat held Dusti’s gaze. “Nothing can come of it long term but he’s definitely one-night-stand material. I admit I’m thinking about it.”

  “No,” Dusti whispered. “Trust me for once. He went along with Drantos’s crazy plan of grabbing us on that plane. What does that tell you?”