Reclaimed (Wolf in Exile Part 4): Werewolf Shifter/Vampire Paranormal Romance (3 page)

“
A
re you sure about this
?” Tracy asked as she pulled out of the driveway of the ShadowRock mansion.

“Yes, please, let’s just go before Anna sees me,” Kalena said.

“Anna and everyone else are probably asleep at this hour,” Tracy said, pulling out of the gates onto a gravel road leading out to the main highway. “I can’t believe I’m letting you talk me into this. Thane will have my ass.”

“I’ll take care of Thane if and when it comes to that. Besides, why would he want to continue this relationship with me after I’ve been with his brother? I’ll leave soon, but not until I find out what really happened. Can you just drive me there and agree that I owe you one?”

“You can start by promising to make me some of those top-notch brownies you used to bring and share in the breakroom at Silex.”

“I’ll make a dozen just for you.”

They were on the main highway before Tracy spoke again. “I wish I had pushed more about that boyfriend of yours, but I was so busy. I had Thane’s assignment during the day, and to keep my dad happy, I was studying at night. Plus I didn’t want to appear too nosy. You and I had just met.”

“It’s okay. I withheld things from you because it seems he and I didn’t have a relationship to begin with. Just sex. But I agreed to it. I must have known nothing would come of it. Either that, or I lost my memories while I was still with him.”

“Well, don’t kick yourself in the head over it. I’m not the settling down type, and I’ve had a couple of relationships like what you described. I felt pretty much the same way you did.”

Kalena frowned. “Yeah, but I bet they were never as toxic. Your life wasn’t on the line.”

“Gavril will get what’s coming to him. I’m sure.”

“This is why I need your help. Danika said a more powerful vampire could dig deeper.”

“And she told you about the possible consequences of letting a vampire have that much of your blood, right?” Tracy asked.

“Death or the chance that I might turn into one.”

Tracy nodded. “Yeah, that’s why this sort of stuff is never done unless you absolutely trust one of them. You’d better be glad that our Pack is on good terms with this particular coven, or else I wouldn’t be headed there. Because of my family’s medical ties and the amount of information we’ve come across over the decades, it’s forbidden to allow any vampire to drink from us. There aren’t many wolves left who give freely, but there are enough of them to keep the vampires happy and deter them from pursuing the unwilling. I hope Danika hasn’t gotten herself entwined with this practice either. It’s not something the Silex family is known for.”

“Danika left an hour ago. I saw her get in one of the limos with a guard,” Kalena said.

“Back before she was captured, Danika and her friends had always been known for rolling with vampires, so I’m left to wonder about her.”

“Well, she’s gone through some things. The death of her parents. Her capture.”

“Listen…when we get there, I’ll scout out Danika. She can help us weed out the stronger ones or at least lead us to the right place.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

N
ot even an hour later
, Kalena and Tracy had found a nook right next to the bar. The clubhouse, which resembled an old abandoned warehouse on the outside, was filled almost to the max with bodies. Mostly vampires and their consenting human followers, but according to Danika there were a fair number of shifters and hybrids in the place, too.

Danika had greeted them at the door as soon as they’d arrived, but like any other teenager, she’d dispersed shortly after, with two young hybrid males and two of Thane’s guards following closely behind her. After being locked up in a room for months, who could really blame her? The girl seemed unbothered by the recent events and her near death experience, but Kalena had to remember that Danika wasn’t a human at all.

“Dude…” Tracy leaned across the table to gain Kalena’s attention. “I’ve spotted at least ten hungry-looking vampires staring at us. It’s creeping me out. Either you’re going to put on the band so we can do what we came here to do and then leave, or not. If not, let’s bounce.”

“Okay, okay.” Kalena fidgeted with the wristband on the table. Vampires played by rules here. Blood wasn’t exactly a free-for-all in this establishment. Only those wearing a neon yellow wristband had given consent to be approached for blood. According to Danika, verbal agreement was also needed to feed.

Apparently, these parties were common in the vampire world when feeding from the general human population wasn’t feasible.

Kalena fumbled with the band but managed to secure it around her wrist.

“From what I hear, the younger vamps need more of your blood than the older ones. Keep that in mind when you choose,” Tracy said.

“Like I can tell a twenty-year-old vamp from a two-hundred-year-old one. Can you?”

“Not really. Most don’t know how powerful a vampire is until it’s too late…right at the moment when they begin to consume your blood.”

Kalena shuddered as she thought back to how Tomas had extracted memories from her with such ease. Was she a complete fool to want to go through this again only because she wanted to know the entire truth and not just some of it?

“And one’s headed our way right now,” Tracy said. “I’m not surprised. They always go for the humans first.”

The fact that Kalena would identify more with Thane’s people than with humans if she continued to take the DNA was only just settling with her. She was cured of the ailment caused by D996, so that meant no other doses were medically necessary.

Half a minute after Tracy had spoken, a dark figure appeared beside their table.

“Hello. You’re new here,” were the vampire’s first words.

Kalena lifted her gaze slowly, craning her neck slightly to take in the full length of him. He looked like any other man, but her newly developed instincts already confirmed that he was far from ordinary. The way he stared her down with hunger should have had her running in the opposite direction, but she wanted something too badly—her memories back.

“I am,” Kalena answered.

“As well as your friend,” the vampire declared, glancing at Tracy.

For the first time since she’d met Tracy, Kalena noticed that her friend was speechless. She pressed her lips together and nodded her head in answer to the vampire’s observation.

“The presence of and color of your wristband tells me that you’re game for a little fun,” the vampire said.

“Kind of.”

“As do the recent extraction marks on the left side of your neck,” he added.

Kalena gasped, and her hand went up to stroke the side of her neck where Tomas had taken her blood. “I didn’t know they were still there.”

“With your human eyes and the weaker eyesight of the wolf, the marks aren’t detectable. But they are there, and I can tell they are recent,” the vampire replied.

“I’m going to get right to the point with you,” Kalena said, staring the vampire right in the eye. “I’m not here to offer my blood freely. I want something in return.”

The vampire grinned. “What is that?”

“My memories.”

“Your memories?” He leaned against a wood beam next to their table and propped one ankle over the other. “Well, what happened to them?”

“I was given a drug. I can’t discuss it fully. I just need them back.”

“How far back?”

“Months. Maybe three or four,” she said.

“Hmmm.” The vampire narrowed his gaze. “That’s going to cost you a lot of blood, but I’m not complaining.”

“Just as long as you don’t kill me or turn me. And I want my friend with me when you do it.”

“Of course, you’ll need a friend. You’ll be as weak as a fly when I get through with you, but please don’t take that as a negative. We rarely take as much as you’re offering. On any other night, it would take me three feedings to get what you’re suggesting right now. It’s against UCON’s laws to kill a willing host. Therefore, I will need your consent to turn you if you don’t pull through.”

“No,” Tracy finally blurted out.

Kalena swallowed down her apprehension and met Tracy’s gaze. “I have to know.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m older than most here. I can help you. A five-minute feeding will get you about a month of memories. Ten minutes: Just under two months. Fifteen minutes or more: I can take you back just under three months. Any more than that and you’re putting yourself at risk of death. Only rogues kill hosts needlessly, which is why I need your consent to save you and turn you if it comes to that. My record is clean with UCON and I wish to keep it that way.”

“I’ll settle for ten minutes. Two months back should be enough…I hope.”

“And your consent…you have to say the words. You willingly offer your blood in exchange for your memories. You give consent to turn you, should your heart stop beating.”

Kalena repeated the words.

“Follow me. If you want your memories, you must focus in quieter surroundings.” The vampire turned on his heels and parted through the crowd.

“You’re crazy,” Tracy whispered as they followed him.

“Evidently so.”

T
he vampire led
them down a long, narrow hallway past the main party and into one of the smaller rooms. The atmosphere seemed more relaxed as there were fewer people around to observe what was going on, but Kalena could still hear the throbbing music through the walls.

Black leather armchairs and ottomans were placed strategically throughout the small room. Pillar candles sat in metal scones on the walls. The flickering flames were the only source of light. A lavender aroma floated throughout the room. Whether it was to create a calming atmosphere or mask the scent of blood and vampire, Kalena didn’t know. Maybe both, since the aura was doing its job. Most of the seats were occupied, but there was a common element: vampires feeding from others. Not just males feeding from women, but female vampires also feeding from men.

“Change your mind?” the vampire inquired.

Kalena shook her head. “As long as you keep up your end of the bargain.”

The vampire chuckled in return. “Never trust a vampire. If you’d ventured into any other coven in search of your memories, you might not have been treated so kindly. You’re lucky and safe here.”

“What does he mean?” Kalena directed her question to Tracy.

“The Blanc coven doesn’t allow rogues within their circle. There are ruthless covens, meaning if you step into a vampire party during a feeding, you’re pretty much fair game and labeled prey. Those vampires are called rogues because they don’t follow standard rules.”

“She’s right about our coven. We may be considerate to others not like us, but don’t take that as a sign of us being meek or vulnerable.” The vampire pulled out a leather stool and motioned for Kalena to take a seat. “You’ve done this already, so it shouldn’t be as painful.”

“Sure.”

After Kalena was seated high on the stool, he picked up her hands, turned her palms down and placed them in her lap.

“You should relax,” he said. “If you can remember, focus on a time period from which you want the memories extracted.”

“Okay,” Kalena replied, after a sigh of reluctance. She glanced to the left in search of Tracy.

“I’m here,” her friend reassured her. “I’ll time him. Ten minutes.”

Kalena relaxed her shoulders, took several deep breaths, and let her mind take her to the place she least wanted to return: the moment of revelation about Gavril, when she was tied to a chair and he’d ordered the men to administer the D996 shots.

The vampire touched her skin in the process of swiping her hair away from her neck, causing a chill to run down her spine.

Kalena closed her eyes and zoned out of the present. She took a moment to realize that the vampire was counting down. 7. 6. 5…

She shut out his voice and forced herself to return to the moment when Gavril had decided her fate. She hardly noticed as the vampire sunk his fangs through the vein on her neck. Her fingers stiffened then gripped the fabric of her jeans.

Focus. I sense nothing but fear. What’s happened has already happened. Focus more.

This time his words were in her head, not spoken.

Weird. The other vampire, Tomas, had not had this type of power. In either case, he was right. The absolute worst-case scenario had already happened.

Kalena relaxed her shoulders, which wasn’t an easy task with a vampire’s fangs stuck in her neck, funneling her blood for nourishment.

“She’s seen too much. Get rid of her,” Gavin said. “Clean up her memory first. Three doses.”

“Why, Gavin?” Kalena screamed, struggling against the bindings used to secure her hands behind her back.

Gavin turned around and he looked as though he pitied her, but in one split second, the look was gone. “I have no choice. I told you I was a very dangerous man, but you agreed to continue seeing me anyway.”

Her gaze flew back and forth between the two men that had brought her to Gavin. They were wearing Silex security guard uniforms. “You lied to me! You work here, don’t you?”

Gavin laughed. “Maybe she’ll need more than three doses.” He directed this comment to the men. “As a matter of fact, bring me the first one.”

“A woman was murdered back there in the labs. Don’t you care? What’s going on here?” Her voice was hoarse from screaming.

Gavin sighed and shook his head. “Obviously you can’t handle all of this. I should have known. Which further proves my point that it will be best if we erase everything you and I shared.” He came closer and threaded his hand through her hair.

“What do you mean?” She glared into his eyes, but she was sickened by the haughty look in his gaze.

One of the men handed Gavin a needle. She nearly passed out from the sight of it.

“I trusted you.” Her breath came out in a rush.

“That’s why you must now forget me,” Gavin replied. “When you wake up, you won’t remember much of anything. I’m going to put you away for a little while. A few months maybe, just to be sure that your memories won’t come back.”

“My memories?”

“You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he stated before piercing her with the needle through the meatiest part of her arm.

She shrieked and jolted out of her memory.

It’s already happened.
The vampire’s voice was in her mind again.
Interesting. Shall we delve a bit deeper?

Kalena nodded, closed her eyes again, and tried to focus once more.

A couple of minutes passed before her attention faded to the interior of some room. Sort of like a master bedroom, but a little more formal. She wore a sheer nightgown and was seated on the bed. A notepad and pen with the name of a popular hotel chain gave her location away. She wasn’t in anyone’s personal bedroom. She was in a high-end hotel. A tray of empty champagne glasses was perched on the footrest near the bed.

Kalena swung her legs over the edge of the bed, prepared to rise, but happened to glance over her shoulder to see Gavin pulling out a wooden box with some needles.

“How long do you have to take your medication?”

“Indefinitely,” he replied. Gavin was always terse in his replies, leaving her to wonder if he was bitter about the illness he claimed to have, or just bitter in general.

“You always take one shot right before we’re together, and then one right after. Why?”

“Because I burn the most energy with you.”

“Is that good or bad?” she asked.

“Good because the shots make me crave sex. Bad because the supply is exceedingly low.”

“Can’t your doctor just increase your prescription?”

“It doesn’t work that way. The medication is only for a select few, and it’s not mass produced.” He aimed the needle at the vein near his inner elbow and administered the injection.

She cringed. “Looks like you’ve gotten used to sticking yourself with that thing.”

“It makes me less of what I am now and more of what I want to become
—
without all the hassles, of course.”

“What do you mean?”

“We agreed, no intruding questions, yes?”

Kalena swallowed down her rising suspicion and rose from the bed. “We did.”

This sexual relationship with Gavin had gone on for weeks. After tonight, Kalena wouldn’t see him again. She doubted he’d miss her. There was no love here. Only the need for satisfaction. Hers and his. Yet, she wondered who was on the better end of the bargain.

The memory faded…

Kalena’s breathing slowed and her muscles grew slack as the vampire continued to feed.

A couple more minutes…care to go for another round?

How odd that the vampire could intercept her thoughts and pull her memories at the same time. But whatever he was doing…it was most certainly working.

“Okay,” she whispered and took a deep breath. But before she could pull from any more suppressed memories, the vampire’s hold on her neck ceased and a biting draft wafted over her.

On her next breath, she brought in a very familiar scent.

“Thane?” She pivoted on the stool, slowly.

Thane was not pleased. He held the vampire in a vice grip about the neck. The vampire’s eyes were still widened in shock and his face had reddened. She presumed this was either from all the oxygen being squeezed out of him, or the fact that he’d just eaten. His toes barely touched the ground as Thane dangled him.

“Kalena, what are you doing in this place?”

She stood from the chair. “I came to find out what happened to me.”

The vampire’s skin was now losing color fast, and several other coven members sprang into action. They cornered Thane and his two Epsilons like prey. Tracy, Danika, and the girl’s two guardians were also surrounded. Almost everyone in the room, except for the humans, had fangs or canines dropped.

“Put him down. He was only helping me,” Kalena urged. She didn’t want to see violence here. Not now, not ever again.

“Did he hurt you?” Thane asked between clenched teeth.

“No, I asked for it.”

Thane’s eyes shifted to all of the vampires circling around them. “Asked for it…or were lured into it?”

“Let him go,” a vampire from the circle hissed. “We’re under the guidance of Luxar. You know we follow the rules of UCON here.”

“No one takes from what is mine.” Thane must have squeezed the vampire tighter because his eyes glossed over.

“How do we know she’s yours? She’s not marked…she’s a human,” another vampire challenged.

Thane growled. “Well, now you know…”

Tracy moved to stand between them. “I’m sorry, Alpha. I was only trying to help.”

“This was my fault,” Kalena said. “I begged Tracy to bring me, and they did what I asked and nothing more.” Kalena approached Thane and pressed her palm against his chest. She caught his gaze. “I’ll explain everything. Put him down.”

Thane loosened his grip and the vampire fell to his knees, gasping for breath and rubbing at the bruise around his neck.

“I’m so sorry,” Kalena said, pitying the vampire and feeling terrible about the way he had been assaulted by Thane.

The vampire glanced up slowly, his chest still heaving. “Next time, you oughta tell the vamp who’s helping you that you have a crazy ass shifter for a boyfriend.” With that, he got up and backed away through the crowd.

Thane stretched out his arm and opened his palm to her.

Kalena frowned and glared at him, but decided that arguing with him in the middle of a vampire party wouldn’t be very effective. Especially now that the vamps were looking at them like they were the enemies.

She placed her hand into Thane’s palm, and he led the way out of the building with Tracy and his two Epsilons following closely behind.