Primal Kill (The Order of Vampires #5)

Chapter 31

CHAPTER 31

D ane and Juniper waited at the table for over an hour, drifting in and out of sleep but never fully resting. This news was clearly deeply disturbing to both Lilias and Lazarus.

“Should we do something? I feel like we’re just wasting time.”

“I don’t know what else to do. If they’re going to help, we need to work together.”

The floor creaked and Lazarus appeared, his expression resolute. “We’re going to help you.”

Juniper sagged with relief, glad to hear they were fully devoted to their cause. “Thank you. If I do a locator spell, I can probably?—”

“Fire magick will not work on a draugr .”

She glanced at Dane to see if he understood what Lazarus was saying, but Dane only shrugged. “I’m sorry, a what?”

“Cerberus is not of our species. He’s a walker . A draugr. They are of dragon ancestry and immune to fire-born incantations or death by flame.”

That must be why she was having so much trouble locating him. “I can use other magick.”

“Depending on other elements would be best, but magick can only detain him. It cannot destroy him. The only way to ensure a draugr doesn't come back is to sever the head from the neck, burn the body, and dump the ashes into the sea—a Norse warrior’s burial. Otherwise, the body could be purified by sunlight and eventually return. The ashes must be scattered far enough apart to ensure that doesn’t happen. The sea will carry him to his ultimate end. But first, I intend to do my part.”

It looked like they were going to a Viking funeral. “Okay. Any clue how we disarm him?”

“Aconite.” Lilias appeared in the doorway. Her eyes were devoid of light as she stared blankly at them. “It’s what we used to sedate him the last time.”

Juniper’s brows shot up. “So, you know him?”

A tear slipped past her lashes. “He was my guard, long ago, when I was married to the mortal King.”

Juniper’s eyes again widened. Adriel’s mom’s history was sick. “If he was your protector, why would he do this to your daughter?”

“Not just my daughter. All of our children were taken from us. I had suspicions, but… Now, I’ m almost positive our cruel fate has been by Cerberus’s design.”

“He was in love with Lilias when I claimed her as my mate,” Lazarus explained. “She’d been ordered to court and forced to serve the King for bloodletting purposes.”

“I married the King to enhance my station.”

“He was a measly little whelp.” Lazarus curled his lip. “Cerberus guarded her like a hound as part of his service to the crown. He did not take it well when she was called.”

“I warned him that I would not stay in the kingdom once my mate found me, but he did not believe in such things. Draugr are said to be soulless, so they cannot be called.”

Juniper’s heart hurt for Adriel. To think, all this time she believed this monster was her destiny. The courage it took to walk away from her faith and choose herself became that much more astounding, but this also explained how Cerberus had been able to hurt her and how Adriel could tolerate being apart from him for so long.

“This is starting to make a lot of sense.”

Lilias’s hand rested on her arm. “I can sense your emotions. You care very much for my daughter.”

Juniper tried to keep her reactions in check, but it was a lot to process. She wiped her eyes and cleared her throat. “He was not kind to her.”

The solid table cracked as Lazarus gripped the slab of wood. “Perhaps you should tell us what you know. ”

Juniper’s stare went to the crack in the surface and she swallowed. “He beat her. Broke her down. Left her starved.”

Lilias’s eyes closed as she turned her face away. “This is my fault.”

“It’s mine,” Lazarus argued. “I should have killed him when I had the chance.”

“She was so young. I knew better.” Lilias dashed away more tears. “Immortals are rarely called so early. Her body had only just flowered. I should have cautioned her, but I feared questioning the gods.”

Juniper found it interesting that all the faiths among their species generally followed the same rules when it came to fated mates, but cultural differences linked their belief systems to different deities. Yet the stories were all the same, just as mortal religions tended to be when one looked deep enough. Father, son, Allah, Mother Earth, Spirit, they were all merely humanized messengers of the universe’s plan.

“Tell us how to kill him,” Dane said, looking Adriel’s mother in the eye.

It seemed that the only acceptable plan of action to any of them was one that ended in Cerberus’s death. “The challenge with any draugr,” Lazarus explained, “is in the absolute certainty that it is, in fact, dead before you are killed.”

Over the next several hours, they were given a crash course in historical lore. Aconite was a powerful plant, poisonous to draugen, and they planned to use it to bring Cerberus down. Only this time, when they ended him, it would be final.

“We will rest tonight and leave at dawn.” The day had been long and they were all exhausted. They needed to recharge if they were going to stand a chance.

Juniper organized their packs, ensuring everything was where she needed it to be. Tomorrow morning’s locator spell would be the final one to lead them to Adriel.

“Can’t sleep?”

She glanced up from her supplies. “I’ve been up for so long, my body’s fighting it.” Lazarus moved through the house with the feline grace of a giant predator that demanded a person’s full attention. “When we arrived, you used a word I didn’t recognize. Kitsy or?—”

“ Kitsune .”

“What does that mean?”

He raised a brow. “Are you not aware of what you are?”

Heat tinged her cheeks. “My immortal father didn’t raise me. Adriel said because my mom was a witch and my dad was a vam—immortal, that my blood would create a genetic mutation. Is that what that means?”

“A kitsune is a powerful shifter of fox decent. One of your parents must have been sired in Asia. Kitsunes are extremely rare in these parts.”

There must be some mistake. “But I’m American. And not a shifter.”

“That you know of,” he explained. “I had a close childhood friend who was kitsune. I know the smell. There’s no mistaking the breed.”

She scrunched her face. “Are you saying I stink?”

“No,” he chuckled. “The scent isn’t unpleasant. But it is unique.”

“Wouldn’t I know if I was part fox?”

“Not necessarily. There are more than a dozen different kinds of kitsune, each kind corresponding with a different element. As a witch, you’re probably familiar with the four basics—water, earth?—”

“Air and fire—yes, I think I’ve heard of them.”

He smirked at her sarcasm. “Well, the celestial faiths take it a bit deeper. There is darkness, river, ocean, thunder, forest, time, sound, mountain, and many more elements to be honored. A specific one calls to kitsune more than the others.”

“Fire,” she breathed, settling back in her chair, no longer making jokes. “That’s where my magick started. I was in the woods. My friends and I were sitting around a bonfire when it started to rain. They went back to the car, but I stayed a little longer. Something happened to me that night. I took control of the fire. It moved with my breath. I could make it rage or make it flicker smaller than a birthday candle.”

“That’s exactly right.” When Lazarus shared his knowledge, he became less intimidating. He encouraged others the way a patient teacher might, further deepening their alliance. “Did it ever happen again? ”

Fire often helped her feel the spirits, but strange things had happened before then. She nodded. “Something happened to me the night I escaped The Order.”

“The Order?”

“It’s an Amish sanctuary for immortals. They hate witches, so it wasn’t a sanctuary for me. More of a prison.”

“But you escaped.”

She flashed a cocky grin. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

“Tell me about your escape and how fire aided you.”

Juniper told him about how she awoke in a field, confused and smelling like an animal. She explained the incredible power she channeled from Adriel’s burning house and how she used it against the immortals.

“I stopped when I realized the females felt whatever pain I inflicted on the males.”

“Because they were mated,” Lazarus explained. “Called mates also share pleasure. The longer the partnership, the deeper the link. It’s why we rarely survive the death of a mate.”

“That explains why the elders never killed Cerberus.”

“But he would not share such a link with Adriel. True mates are the other half of each other’s soul.”

“And exactly why Cerberus should have never been able to hurt her,” she said angrily.

But if Cerberus wasn’t Adriel’s true mate, that meant someone could be. What if some dude was out there, waiting to get called to her? What did that mean for them?

Saving her was a given, but what if they found her, killed Cerberus, and the moment they started their life together, some new immortal showed up to claim her.

She scoffed. That was not happening.

“You are distressed,” Lazarus observed.

“I’m just thinking.”

Why were there so many complications? Was mating like menopause? After a certain time did the chances of a calling get smaller? Maybe Adriel was at an age where that immortal clock stopped ticking.

Aware that Lazarus was watching her, she squirmed uncomfortably, the heaviness of these new worries weighing on her. “Do you know how long half-breeds live?”

Lazarus glanced at the fading sky. “They’re all different. Like mortals, it typically comes down to genetics. Kitsunes, however, are said to live more than a thousand years.”

Relief flooded her. “That’s good.”

The front door slammed, and Juniper sensed Dane was the cause. She looked at Lazarus in concern, unsure what upset her friend. “Do you mind if I?—”

“Go ahead,” Lazarus waved a hand and she followed Dane outside.

The night was silent, as all the birds were now asleep in their nests and the residents were tucked safely into their beds. “Hey, what was that about?”

He stood at the gate, with his back toward her and his face angled up at the moon, hands stuffed deep in his pockets. Unease radiated from his broad shoulders.

She approached slowly. “Dane?—”

“Don’t,” he snapped, bunching his shoulders when she touched his back.

“What’s the matter?”

“Didn’t you hear Lazarus? He’s a draugr. ”

She hadn’t realized anyone was listening. She also didn’t understand why he was so upset. “Yes, but there are ways to end a draugr . Lazarus is super smart and?—”

“He’s my father, Juniper.”

She took a step back fearful he was suddenly suffering a change of heart. “But you said you didn’t feel anything for him.”

“I don’t. That’s not my point.” His voice broke, and his eyes shimmered. “What if I’m like him?”

Her heart hurdled into her throat. “Oh, Dane?—”

“I don’t want your pity.”

“Empathy is not pity.” All of this talk about how awful Cerberus was, and she hadn’t once considered that he was a part of Dane’s DNA. Her heart broke for him. “We are more than genetic pieces of our parents. Our experiences matter.”

He looked away, his jaw tight with tension and his body vibrating with the effort to keep his anger contained. “All this time, I was lying to myself—lying to all of you. I thought if I gave Gracie space, something would change, and we could end up together. It was me against one faceless guy. Turns out, I’m a soulless monster?—”

“Hey,” she snapped, yanking his arm and forcing him to look at her. “You have a soul, Dane Foster. All of those religious constructs, they’re just desperate ways to rationalize coincidence. That’s what religion does, it puts a pretty story over nature. It’s just nature. Just like instinct, hunger, and love. Having a little competition does not mean you drop out of the race.”

“You don’t honestly believe that.”

Her jaw twitched. “I have to. I love Adriel, but I’ll never be her called mate.”

“Oh, shit.” Realization and understanding flashed in his eyes.

“Yeah. There could be someone else out there, someone way more capable of stealing her heart.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think of that.”

She shook her head. “It’s fine. It’s not like I’m going to give up. I don’t care what her destiny is. She’s mine. Even if I only get a handful of moments with her, I refuse to give up a single one.”

He finally pulled his hands out of his pockets and hugged her. “We’ll save her, June. You guys will have your chance.” He pressed a kiss to her head.

“The hour’s getting late.”

They turned to find Lazarus standing in the doorway. He held a tattered book in his hand .

“I’ll uh…get our stuff together.” Dane shot a thumb over his shoulder and slipped past Lazarus into the house.

Her gaze dropped to the book in Lazarus’s hand. “What do you have there?”

He stepped past the doorway and held it out to her. “The pages are delicate, and the ink’s mostly faded, but I figured you might want to read it.”

Juniper took the offering and frowned at the cover.

“It’s written in Akkadian, but there are several sections about the kitsune. It will help you understand. ”

“Thank you.” Looked like she had a date scheduled with Google Translate. “I can’t wait to read it.” She wasn’t ready to go inside, so she sat on the step.

Lazarus joined her. “Something is weighing on you?”

She sighed as she stared out at the black night, the horizon slowly shifting into shadows as the dawn approached. “I just keep thinking we could all die today.”

“That, little one, is a truth you could tell yourself every morning.”

She thought about the other children Lazarus and Lilias lost and how they all perished at the hands of one monster. She didn’t understand how anyone could tame such rage. Lazarus was one of the chillest immortals she’d ever met. But he was also scary as fuck when he needed to be .

“Do you think we can kill him?”

“Yes. Some animals simply need to die, no matter the cost. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to see to my family’s safety.”

Was he saying he was willing to die? “What about Lilias?”

“Lilias is willing to risk the same. Adriel’s our daughter.” He cleared his throat. “But I find myself wondering… What is she to you?”

“Oh.” Juniper dropped her gaze. “You know… We’re friends.”

“Foxes are a member of the canine lupus family. Like wolves, we cannot hear their thoughts.”

She frowned. “Are you telling me I’m part dog?”

He chuckled. “I’m trying to delicately explain that after nine hundred years, I’ve learned to lean on my disciplines to communicate. Your thoughts are blocked to me, so that puts me at a bit of a disadvantage.”

“How so?”

“I don’t like it.”

“Oh.”

“Care to enlighten me about your and my daughter’s friendship ?”

Her lips pressed tight as she tipped her face to hide a blush behind the curtain of her hair. “I’m relieved you can’t see into my head.”

“So it appears.”

That also explained why Adriel and the others could never pass her defenses. She glanced nervously at him .

“What if we were more than friends?”

“Who am I to judge how she lives her life? She’s made it this far on her own. I’m a stranger to my only surviving child.”

Her heart pinched when his voice turned to gravel. “It won’t always be that way.”

A smile ghosted over his lips. “I hope not.” He stretched out his long legs like two tree trunks. “I would like to know her. And you.”

She smiled at his acceptance. “And Dane. He’s sort of ours. Like a stray dog that goes wherever we go.”

Lazarus chuckled. “And Dane.”

She fidgeted, nervous about the upcoming hours. “Once we’re on our way, I can implement a protection spell.”

“That will be helpful.” He glanced back at the house. “After losing the children, Lilias lost part of herself. She entered what I refer to as her endless winter. If it comes down to it, I’ll ask that you protect her before me.”

His love for his mate had never been more evident. “If that’s what you want.”

“Her safety is always paramount.”

“I won’t let anything happen to her.”

“Thank you.” He glanced at the book he’d given her. “As you get older, your powers will become more defined. Kitsune are of fox and Asian descent. Once they reach their full maturity, they become tenko— celestial beings able to commune with the heavens. They’re patron thieves, so they have a reputation for stealing. ”

“Swiper no swiping,” she muttered under her breath. Her fox knowledge was limited to cartoon characters. “How do I do it?”

“Shift?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s one area where I have very little insight.”

“Well, this helps.” She patted the book. The weight of his grief shrouded the home. She looked up at him with concern. “Are you okay?”

“I regret that I’ve lost my sons. They would have fought for their sister.”

“You’re afraid we can’t beat him?”

“I’m also concerned with the cost of victory.”

He meant they weren’t going to walk away unscathed. If a big old bastard like Lazarus was concerned, the rest of them should be shitting their pants. “There is someone who might be able to help.” When he met her stare, she explained. “Adriel had a son.”

“A son?” His eyes lit with wonder. “We have a grandchild?”

“A very old grandchild.”

“Who is his father?”

“Cerberus, but?—”

“Then no.”

His rejection of Adriel’s son brought instant relief, but logic set in. Damn her for opening her mouth. But Adriel was in trouble, and the only thing that mattered was getting her out safely.

Putting her personal feelings aside, she said, “Christian is a Schrock. Adriel raised him with her values, and I’m sure he would do anything in his power to help his mother.”

“How are we to know his loyalties don’t lie with his sire.”

“Because Cerberus already tried to kill him and his mate to get to Adriel.” She thought about Dane and how he feared others would judge him. “We can’t hold sons and daughters accountable for the sins of their father.”

“You’re very wise, little witch.”

She grinned. “It must be my kitsune showing.”

Lazarus chuckled. “Lilias will be happy to meet our grandson.”

Juniper’s heart jolted. Contacting Christian meant returning to the farm and facing The Order again, something she vowed never to do, but as she’d already decided, for Adriel, she would do anything.