Drantos (VLG Series Book 1) (7 page)

“I didn’t want to do this. I can smell your fear.” He blinked. “You’re safe and I won’t harm you. Being able to use my eyes this way is one of the many gifts I inherited.”

She tried to struggle but her body refused to obey, staying totally still under his heavier one. He adjusted his hips, moved one leg to push hers apart, and settled into the cradle of her thighs. Her skirt must have gotten pushed up, and her eyes widened with terror when she felt the hard press of an aroused Drantos against the vee of her panties. The rough denim of his pants brushed against bare skin.

“Easy, sweetheart. I’m not going to do anything to you. Yeah, you turn me on. It’s that simple. But I won’t act on it. You need to calm down and stop looking at me as if I’m going to attack you. I just want your word you’ll stop fighting with me.”

She couldn’t speak. His eyes slowly returned to a dark blue color, the glow fading. She gasped in air the second her entire body turned ridged with alarm. Her hands lifted to fist in the material of his shirt.

“Don’t make me control you again.”

“What are you doing to me?” she whispered, afraid despite what he’d said. “
Stop
it.”

“Your mother should have explained what she was so I don’t have to. Maybe she thought there would be no reason to have to tell you about your bloodline, since you had a human father and must not have inherited any traits that would betray you to your enemies.”

Dusti could deal with his crazy talk. She relaxed a little to allow her mind to calm down. With it came a sense of comfort she latched onto. “I’m not an alien.”

But he might really be one…

No. That’s nuts. Now he’s making me lose my mind.

It was possible exhaustion and too much stress had taken their toll. That would explain it.

“I’m not either. There’re regular humans but there are also other races. He took a deep breath, pressing against her chest a little while he inhaled. “I’m
other
—and so was your mom.”

“Other?”

She wondered if Bat could hear them but doubted it, since they were a good five feet away from the other couple. Drantos also had lowered his voice to a soft, husky level that wouldn’t travel. The voices from the survivors were just a murmur but their words weren’t recognizable. Drantos didn’t answer.

“Let me go. Please?”

He turned his head, reached for something, and then pulled the other blanket over their bodies. He met her gaze again but an almost sad expression softened his features. “Not until you know the truth.”

Dusti hesitated. “Okay. Hit me with it. I’m dying to hear this. What was my mother?”

Sincerity softened his gaze further. “We’re VampLycans.”

“Sounds Russian or something.”

“We’re considered blooded wolves.”

“You don’t look red to me and you hide your tail really well in those tight jeans.”

He ignored her smartass comment. “A long time ago, Lycans and Vampires banned together and had formed an alliance. The Vampires usually hired humans to protect them during the day, but they’d been betrayed too often and suffered heavy losses. They were desperate enough to turn to their enemies, the Lycans. It worked for a while. The Vampires got their protection and the Lycans enjoyed the lifestyle the Vampires could provide.”

Dusti let that settle into her mind. She decided to humor him. “They had good parties, huh?”

Drantos’s features tensed. “This isn’t a joke. I’m attempting to inform you of your heritage.”

Irritation arose inside her at having to listen to his insane garbage. “Two words for you: Take. Meds. Vampires and Werewolves
aren’t real
. You’ve watched too many movies.”

A soft growl burst from his parted lips. “Vampires have abilities that Lycans don’t. They can control minds and make humans do as they wish, and can even erase some of their memories. Lycans found that really helpful since they were forced to live nomadic lives. It meant keeping their numbers low and never staying in one area to build homes. It was a dream of theirs to settle in one place. The Vampires gave them that luxury. They suddenly could live without fear of being hunted. If a human happened upon a Lycan in a compromising situation, the Vampires could make the humans forget.”

“What did these Lycans do that gave them away?”

“They lose their skin if they’re highly emotional. Rage. Fear. Grief. Humans panicked when they caught sight of claws, fangs, sudden hair growth…and they told others about the ‘monsters’. They’d hunt and kill entire families of Lycans.”

“Why not just take out the person who saw something?” Her fingers relaxed their hold on his shirt since he wasn’t causing her pain. “That would protect them.”

“It wasn’t the way it is now. In the past, towns were smaller and they tended to be very superstitious when people just disappeared. They totally believed in monsters and they’d gather in large groups to hunt and murder anything they feared. Ever hear of the witch trials? Try a bunch of angry villagers with weapons willing to kill anyone they didn’t like or didn’t know well. They didn’t even bother to hold a trial for someone they suspected of being a monster. They’d just lynch them.”

“According to your Vampire and Werewolf tale, they would have been justified in trying to kill them.”

“Exactly, if you were to see us in that light. But we’re not really monsters. We’re just different. You asked why Lycans didn’t end the lives humans who discovered the truth. Lycans didn’t want to harm innocent people, period. Vampires don’t have to kill to obtain blood from their prey. I was able to control you with my eyes. I gained that ability from my Vampire ancestors. Their abilities to control human minds and wipe memories protected them but it was a constant fear they’d be discovered while they slept. They had Lycan protectors to prevent that from happening, to stand guard when they were vulnerable after the sun rose.”

“You didn’t burn up in the sun,” she pointed out. “Your teeth aren’t sharp either. Everyone knows Vampires are allergic to sunlight and have fangs.”

“I said I’m
half
. The sun doesn’t bother me at all. ” Drantos paused to glance toward the fire, then looked back at her. “The Vampires began to gorge on blood, feasting on humans after they formed the alliance with Lycans. They grew bolder with powerful guards to protect them when they were vulnerable. It made it safer for them to feed more often. They—”

“Started killing everyone?”

“No. They just overfed on them.”

“Wow. Do Vampires gain weight? Wouldn’t it make it kind of hard for them to turn into bats and fly? I’m imagining a big, bloated flying rat with little tiny wings now.”

He growled again. “You aren’t taking this seriously.”

“And you’re nuts. I’m trapped under you and you seem determined to share your dementia with me so forgive me for the snarky comments.”

“Stop it.”

“Ditto.”

He shifted his chest, pinned her tighter under his body. “No, they didn’t gain weight. But all the blood fooled their bodies into believing they were more human than Vampire. No one realized the consequences—until a few of the female Lycans who had Vampire lovers ended up pregnant. It only happened with Vampire males and female Lycans. Vampires aren’t able to breed with each other, but when they realized they could impregnate the Lycan women—”

She’d had enough. Dusti just wanting him to stop talking nonsense and get off her. “They threw a big ol’ orgy?” she interrupted.

“Damn it,” he snarled. “
Stop
.”

Fear hit her over the pure rage that darkened his features and she sealed her lips.
Don’t piss off the insane linebacker-size guy on top of you,
she silently ordered herself.

“The male Vampires secretly plotted to impregnate as many Lycan women as possible. They wanted to form an army of half-breed children. Some believe it was so they no longer had to keep an alliance with the Lycans. They could be guarded by their own children. Others believe it was just because they finally had an opportunity to breed, and that appealed to them.

“Some of the Lycan men started to disappear. The Lycans quickly figured out they were being murdered by Vamps so they could gain access to the widowed mates, whether they were willing or not.” Anger deepened his voice. “The Vamps were attacking Lycan women. They violated them by controlling their minds, and then their bodies. A war broke out between the two. A lot of Lycan men died but it gave the women a chance to flee. A group of them—some who were pregnant and others who had already birthed half-breeds—ended up in Alaska, since there were no major human towns here at the time. Vamps need humans to feed from. They can survive off animals but I’ve heard animal blood tastes like shit to them and weakens them over time.

“The Lycans and VampLycans were safer here, but we still broke into four clans in case the Vampires were able to track us. It was about survival. They wouldn’t be able to take us all on at once and it would provide time for the others to flee if one clan was attacked. It helps keep our numbers in check too. It’s how we stay under the radar, by monitoring the size of our population so we don’t draw attention to ourselves, and what we are. Humans just see our clans as small towns, not a threat to them.”

Dusti held her tongue. Drantos paused, licked his lips, and took a few breaths. The anger eased from his striking features.

“The survivors soon discovered a clan of Gargoyles in the area. They’d fled Europe to avoid being hunted by Vampires, humans, and others of their kind. They were dying out. Gargoyles tend to breed more boy children than girls. They had so few women of their own kind that they’d fight to the death at times, killing each other to gain access to one. They needed women to breed with and the survivors of the war didn’t want another fight, this time with Gargoyles. They had lost a lot of their males already.”

“I’ve heard enough.” She just wanted him to stop. None of it could be true. She didn’t want it to be.

“I’m telling you the truth.” Drantos paused. “Imagine a bunch of frightened people in a desperate situation. Many of the Lycan women had been raped, in mind and body, and had birthed children sired by Vampires. These women had lost fathers and brothers who’d died fighting to give them time to escape. Some had lost their mates. They were vulnerable, so some of their single women offered themselves to the Gargoyles. They formed a new alliance. The Gargoyles swore to live side by side with us in peace and to help fight any Vampires who came after us, if the need arose to defend the clans. We had the common enemies of humans and Vampires.”

“But according to your crazy story, the pregnant women were about to
birth
Vampires. Some had already. You said they were enemies. At least
try
to make sense.”

“The Gargoyles were willing to become allies with the half-breeds because they were desperate for the full-blooded Lycan women to breed with. Our clans are linked by bloodlines, but only on the Lycan side. Gargoyles and Lycans had GarLycan children. The children born in our clans are VampLycans. Half Vampire, half Lycan. Over a hundred half-breed children made up the first generation of our new clans. They frightened the pure-blood Lycans. They were stronger than them and had inherited some Vampire abilities. A vast majority of the Lycans not mated to Gargoyles left when those children started to mature and those traits began to show.

“Your grandfather is a first-generation VampLycan, Dusti—and after he matured to adulthood and took over his clan, he didn’t agree with how the clans were split into four. He’s power-hungry and believes there should be one ruler, one clan. He wants the GarLycans to help him take out the other clan leaders and anyone else who opposes him. He plans to start a civil war.”

“Didn’t the Gargoyles take off too when these super half-breeds grew up, if they’re so scary?”

“No. The Gargoyles were dwindling until they mated with the full-Lycan females. Their children born from that alliance filled their clan to a strong number. Aveoth is a half-breed who leads his own clan. They consist of a mixture of GarLycans and full blooded Gargoyles. His father was a Gargoyle, and his mother a GarLycan. Both Gargoyles and GarLycans are pretty damn tough. They fear no one. That’s why we can’t allow Decker to use you or your sister as leverage against Aveoth to force him into a war with us. It would be a bloodbath with few survivors.”

Dusti just stared at him, trying to take in everything he’d said. It was possible he didn’t believe in aliens. She almost wished he did, because she was used to Greg’s world. The one Drantos had made up in his head was
way
more complicated and involved mythical paranormal creatures.

His eyes…okay, she couldn’t explain that. Which unsettled her and made her nervous.

“So you’re telling me I’m related to Vampires and Werewolves?” She didn’t want to hear any more and felt hysteria begin to rise up. It
couldn’t
be true. “Or am I part Gargoyle? I’m a little confused but it’s all cool. Next full moon, I’ll try to howl just to see if I sprout hair. I guess now I know why I usually get sunburned instead of tan when I lay out. I just thought it was my fair skin but now I’ll know to avoid the sun and sharp wooden stakes. I don’t think I’d like to be a Gargoyle statue though. It sounds boring.”