Page 101 of Eternally Bound
“Plus, you now know you can smell the difference too. Remember that before you stake your next vamp,” Ronan continued.
“I will,” Nathan replied though some of the hunters scowled behind him. “So the vamp who attacked Kadence was one of you?”
“No, he didn’t successfully make it through the training, and it seems Joseph decided to recruit him to his cause. That Savage was a new edition to Joseph’s collection. He hadn’t killed many, yet. Otherwise, he couldn’t tolerate the sun as well as he did. By next week, he probably would have burst into flames like the others. I’d be willing to bet there are others who have also failed their training and that Joseph is looking to recruit them too.”
“Others who have been trained to fight by one of your men?” Nathan asked.
“One of ourexmen,” Ronan replied.
“But Joseph is highly trained, they’re highly trained, and there’s a chance they could have a grudge against all of you.”
“Theycouldhave a grudge against us, buteveryone of them hates hunters,” Ronan said pointedly.
“It’s hard not to, you stake happy bastards.” Lucien smirked.
Ronan shot Lucien a silencing glance before continuing. “They know they can’t take us down, not without a lot of help, and they have no idea where to find us. You, on the other hand, unless you plan on calling off all your hunts until this danger is eradicated, they’ll be able to take you out with far more ease than us.”
Anger flashed through Nathan’s eyes before he smothered it. “We are stronger and more capable than you think.”
“Believe me, I know that.” Ronan clasped one of Kadence’s hands within both of his. “But that will get you nowhere if you’re outnumbered by Savages. The more they kill, the more limitations they have on them such as not being able to handle sunlight or cross large bodies of water, but they also grow physically stronger.”
“Do you really think that Joseph organizing an army is the bigger threat the Savage was talking about, or do you think there is something more out there?”
“I don’t know,” Ronan admitted. “I can’t think of what else it could be, but Savages are extremely cunning, and they do not want to die. They’ll do everything in their power to eradicate any threat to their lives.”
“It won’t be easy to convince the elders we should work together, or the other strongholds around the world,” Nathan replied.
“After last night and this morning, it will be easier,” Asher chimed in. “I know I would prefer not to kill a vampire who isn’t looking to kill me or a human. That whole blood drinking thing is still disgusting, but we all do what we must to survive, and if they’re not hurting someone—”
“They’re draining the blood of another and changing their memories; there is something wrong with that,” Logan sneered.
“There is a difference between that and killing, Logan, and you know it,” Asher said.
“There is,” Nathan agreed.
“We can continue to work in opposition and possibly all be slaughtered because of that, or we can all work together and destroy the bastard who killed Dad,” Kadence said.
Nathan quirked an eyebrow at her. Kadence lifted her chin as she waited to be admonished for her language. If they’d been sitting in the stronghold, she would have been, but Nathan didn’t comment on her word choice. She wasn’t his to take care of anymore, and she realized her brother was coming to grips with that.
Her hand tightened around Ronan’s as she spoke. “Nathan, we can do this together.”
Nathan leaned back in his seat and rubbed at the black stubble lining his jaw. Dropping his hand down, he leaned forward again. “You will be taking control of the vampires, rising to the position of leader, the one you claim was supposed to be yours,” he said to Ronan.
“Like you, I was specifically bred and groomed to one day take control of my kind. Unprecedented events detoured my course for a while, but unprecedented events have steered me back onto it.” Lifting Kadence’s hand, he placed a kiss against her knuckles to ensure her brother understood his point.
“And how will you go about taking control?” Nathan inquired.
“I will organize them. Most vampires live in peace, but what Joseph is doing is threatening to all our kind and the entire world. For many millennia, only purebreds have been Defenders against the Savages. I was reluctant to bring turned vampires in to become a Defender, reluctant to change our customs, but I realize it has to be done and that living in the past may be the downfall of us all. You will do what you must to protect your kind, and I will do what I must to ensure the same thing, but we are both working toward the same common goal.”
“And these vampires you aim to bring in and organize, they won’t want to destroy us too?” Nathan asked.
Killean shifted behind him, his face remained stony, but the gleam in his golden eyes told Ronan he’d happily destroy every hunter in this room and consequences be damned.
“I’m sure some of them will,” Ronan replied honestly. “Just as some of the hunters you bring in will still prefer to see every vampire dead. Continuing to fight and kill each other is pointless. No matter the resentment and history that is sure to boil forth on both sides, we must find a way to either work together or stay out of each other’s way.”
“I agree about that,” Nathan said. “But what are we going to do? Go on patrols with each other?”
“We can start there,” Ronan replied. “And over time work toward more. Perhaps one day, we can train together. It would create some very lethal fighters.”
