Tenia shrugged. “I could use my power on him, then send him back to Cain to see if we could gain some intel. But I don’t know the limitations of my magic when the subject leaves my sight. And his age might affect how long my magic would work.” She tapped her chin, appearing to weigh her options. “As an ancient, he could possibly fight it off easier. I might need to see him frequently to re-enforce the commands. I’ve always avoided using my powers as much as possible, so I don’t exactly understand all the ins and outs.”
Myanin shook her head. “My girl thinks it’s wrong to take over a person’s free will. Respectable… I guess.”
Tanya sighed “Although I still think messing with the vamp would be hilarious, in most contexts, taking over someone else’s free will is the epitome of wrong.”
The djinn shrugged. “This is not in most contexts.”
“I need you to try, Tenia,” Fane said. “We have a situation. A wolf and his mate are being held at a human military base called Area 51. From what research I’ve found it’s not hidden, but there are lots of mysteries surrounding the things that go on there. None of which have ever been confirmed by the public or any military official. It’s located in Nevada. In fact, you can literally have your GPS take you there.”
Myanin spun the knife in her hand. “All right, let’s kick some ass!”
Gerrick gently wrapped a hand around the back of his mate’s neck. “Hold on, killer. Let’s find out the details before we go in flinging knives everywhere.”
“Who’s the wolf and his mate?” Lilly asked.
“His name is Finn St. James. His mate is called Lizzy Fairchild,” Fane explained. “She is a dormant.”
“What pack?” Tanya’s brow furrowed. “The names don’t sound familiar.”
“That’s because they’re rogues, or at least he is,” Fane said. “I’m not really sure about Lizzy. From what I could pick from Finn’s mind, she’s recently found out about her dormant status. But the captured wolves aren't the worst part.” He took a deep breath. “Cain has a gypsy healer.”
Gasps erupted from everyone in the room. Lilly took a step toward Dillon, a murderous gleam in her eyes.
“Who?” Dillon asked through clenched teeth that no longer looked human.
“We aren’t sure. Jacquelyn called all the packs. No one is missing a healer.” Frustration laced Fane’s voice.
Myanin stared at the phone as her mind sifted through this new information. “So that means there’s an undiscovered healer out there?”
“Holy crap.” Tanya breathed out. “How is that possible? Could there be even more?”
“That is an excellent question,” Fane answered. “But not one we can worry about right now. Cain has injected Lizzy with vampire blood and gypsy healer blood.”
Laughter rang out in the room. Every head snapped to the vampire strapped to the chair. “He’s figured it out.”
On instinct, Myanin’s hand whipped out and smacked Claude in the back of the head. “You don’t get to laugh. Or did you forget that I’m itching for a reason to slit your throat?”
“Stand down, Myanin.” Lilly snapped her head to look at the djinn. The vampire smirked, and Myanin fought the urge to smack him again.
Fane snarled. “Figured what out?”
That vamp is damn lucky Fane can’t come through the phone. Myanin didn’t know if the alpha would have held back on slitting the pig’s throat, and the damage would be with claws, not a blade.
“How to make a hybrid, of course.” Suddenly, the vamp was all smiles, looking like he’d just eaten the best cotton candy in the world. “He’s been trying unsuccessfully for months. If he’s injecting dormants now, that must mean he’s figured out the rule. He wouldn’t risk that without at least having some sort of proof that it could work.”
“Rule?” Myanin stepped closer to the vampire. “What rule?”
Claude sighed as if he’d just been asked a simple question from a toddler for the fifteenth time. “The supernatural world has rules, if you hadn’t noticed. Cain figured that there had to be a way to make vampires out of other supernatural beings. And like any formula, there must be rules. Guidelines, if you will.”
“If you hadn’t noticed, there are consequences when those rules are broken.” Myanin’s eyes bulged. “Vampires are made by a virus, not created by the goddess. Supernatural beings are not meant to house such a virus. It’s one of the reasons we can heal so quickly. Our bodies fight off the virus.” Myanin couldn’t believe the audacity of the vampire king, thinking he could pervert the Great Luna’s plan.
Claude gave a toothy grin. “Rules are made to be broken.”
Myanin lunged for him, but Gerrick pulled her back. “Not yet, love.”
“How many dormants does he have?” Dillon's eyes glowed with his wolf as he stared down at the vampire.
Claude was finally talking, and that was an opportunity they needed to take advantage of. So Myanin fought the urge to cut his damn head off. That wouldn’t get them anything except a mess in the dungeon. And Myanin had a feeling that Lilly would make her clean it up. She seriously didn’t feel like cleaning up this parasite’s blood. For now, maybe letting him gloat and act like he had a leg up on them would keep his lips moving.
