“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.”
“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.”
