Bound by Danger (The Alliance #6) - Brenda K. Davies Page 0,34
stay sober, but she never could. My dad’s death tore my heart out. One day he was fine, and the next he was in the ICU on a ventilator.”
“What happened?”
“Massive stroke. He never woke up again.”
Callie pulled her hand from his to wipe away the tears sliding down her face. It had been four years, but the pang of his loss remained as intense as the day he died. It was no longer the constant, unrelenting grief that caused her to wake crying, but it was an ever-present thing.
One minute, she would be doing the most mundane task. Then, some memory would rise or something would remind her of him, or she would catch a whiff of his cologne, and she would find herself standing at the kitchen sink sobbing while she washed the dishes.
She’d accepted that she would never be the same again.
“What happened to your parents?” she asked.
He hesitated as he pondered how to reply. What happened to her was sad, but what happened to his family was disgusting and vicious. However, she’d opened up about herself, and if he was going to earn her trust, he would have to do the same.
“My brother became a Savage and killed them and”—Lucien pushed aside the memories and unexpected sorrow swelling within him—“and my little sister.”
Chapter Fifteen
Callie’s hand flew to her mouth. “That’s horrible! How old were you?”
“I was thirty-five; he was thirty-three. The weak, pitiful coward barely fought against becoming a Savage after he reached maturity.”
Callie tried not to let her fear get the best of her as his increased hostility vibrated against her skin. She’d only been around one other man who was ever this mad, and it had not ended well for her. There was nowhere for her to run, and he’d catch her before she made it ten feet.
He’s not mad at you. Still, it didn’t matter. She couldn’t control the anxiety building in her chest or the cold sweat breaking out on her body. Stop being afraid! She shouted the command at herself, but she wished it was so simple.
She swallowed the lump in her throat before speaking. “What do you mean by reached maturity?”
“I’m a purebred vampire, and so is he, which means I was born this way. Most vamps are turned into a vampire by another vampire. Both my parents were vampires. Being a purebred means I’m stronger than a turned vamp, but when a purebred vampire reaches maturity and stops aging, it is more difficult for us to restrain ourselves from killing. We have… darker needs than a turned vamp.”
Something about the way he said needs sent another shiver down her spine at the same time as it caused more butterflies to erupt in her stomach. You’re losing your mind.
Unfortunately, she thought this was true.
“Such as?” she prompted.
“Such as some, like me, need to kill and unleash violence to maintain control.”
He felt her recoil from him a little, but he didn’t temper his words. She’d asked, and he found himself telling her the truth in a way he never had with any other before. It was wrong, he was revealing too much information, but she’d never use it against him or any of the others.
Even if she fell into the hands of the Savages again—something he was never going to let happen—her knowledge couldn’t cause them any damage. And she could never reveal any of this to the human world and not expected to be treated like she was insane.
“But you said you don’t kill innocents,” she whispered.
“I don’t. I maintain control by hunting and killing Savages.” In brutal, satisfying ways, but he kept that to himself. “Many purebred vampires fight their more volatile instincts, but others are weak and turn Savage.”
“I see,” she murmured. “And your brother didn’t fight his instincts.”
“Not for very long, and barely at all. Yannis was always weak, but I never expected that from him. My parents didn’t love us, but they were our parents. I was never quite sure why they had children. They weren’t in love with each other, and they didn’t enjoy having children, that much was obvious, but they reproduced three times. However, I don’t think they knew the insidious desires male, purebred children harbored; otherwise, they probably would have killed Yannis and me at birth.”
“That’s horrible!” Callie cried.
Lucien shrugged. “They were not loving.” It was a giant understatement, but he wasn’t going to go into more detail about it now.
“Is it only males who experience these urges?” she asked.