Page 100 of Eternally Bound
“Lucky punch,” Nathan replied.
Ronan chuckled. “Lucky shot from you. The fact you’re her brother made me hesitate in taking you down.”
Kadence rolled her eyes as the two of them stared at each other. She could practically taste the amped up testosterone on the air. “Yeah, yeah, you both heal fast and are manly men. Could you please move on so we can discuss more important things sometime today?”
Settling next to Kadence, Ronan rested his hands on the table as he waited for Nathan to sit across from him. Finally, Nathan tore his attention away from Kadence and focused on Ronan again as he settled into the chair across from him.
“What happened back there, I’ve never seen a vampire do what you did,” Nathan said to him. “What was with the weird skin change?”
“You’ll probably never see it again,” Ronan replied. “It’s a trait of purebreds only.”
“And that is what you are?”
“I am fifth generation purebred, the only one of my kind to ever exist with such breeding and the only who can trace their lineage back to the first demon offspring.”
“So, you are the leader?” Nathan asked.
“When I was younger, I was raised to one day be king; I never took that role.”
“Why not?”
“Many reasons.”
“Are the other non-Savage vamps unwilling to follow you?”
“We would follow him to Hell and back,” Declan said. “You know naught of our history.”
Nathan clasped his hands before him as he leaned back in his chair. “We apparently don’t know much about you at all. I didn’t know there were such things as turned and purebred vampires, Savages, and well… you.”
“He looked like a Savage to me earlier,” Logan muttered.
Ronan didn’t bother to acknowledge him as he remained intent on Nathan. “Almost a thousand years ago, I chose not to become king. It is a decision I will be changing, somewhat. Because they have been so scattered over the years, most vampires don’t know our history either, how we were originally created, or the full extent of what some of us can do. It is time that is rectified. I will not be king, that title died with my father as far as I’m concerned, but from now on, I will work to gather the vampires and lead them.”
Declan grinned while Saxon, Lucien, and Killean exchanged surprised looks before nodding enthusiastically.
“Why?” Nathan inquired.
“With or without the help of the hunters, Joseph must be taken down and what he is doing must be stopped.”
Ronan didn’t tell him about the Savage attack he’d survived when he’d been younger. They may end up working together against Joseph, but he couldn’t have the hunters knowing about their small purebred numbers.
“The Savage that attacked Kadence, he knew you.”
“He did,” Ronan confirmed. On the half hour drive it had taken to get here, Declan recalled who the Savage was. “He was a purebred who tried to make it through Defender training under Joseph.”
“What is a Defender?” Nathan inquired.
“The purebreds who work to keep humans and innocent vampires safe have always been known as Defenders. While he was with us, Joseph worked to train purebred vampires. He also worked with turned vampires and taught them how to differentiate a Savage from another vampire.”
“How can they tell the difference if the turned ones can’t smell them?”
“It’s easy enough to look for the signs of a Savage hunting in the area. An increase of missing people reports, unexplained deaths, animal attacks, and such. Then they focus on a Savage’s favorite places to hunt, like bars and clubs. They prefer anywhere a human is more vulnerable and their defenses are lowered. Once the vampire is located, it’s simply a matter of confirming that they are a Savage.”
“By witnessing the death of a human?” Nathan asked.
“No,” Ronan replied. “When we feed from humans, we do not enjoy making them suffer. It is usually the opposite, and we seek to give them pleasure, or we shut down their emotions so that they feel nothing.” That was the way he’d fed from others, with no emotional involvement, until Kadence. “Afterward, we change their memories of what occurred. However, a Savage prefers to experience the pain of their victim. They thrive on the fear and agony. It gives them a bigger rush, as does hunting and killing other vampires in such a way. If you come across a vampire whose victim is suffering during the blood taking, then you have come across a Savage.”
Nathan looked dumbfounded by this revelation. Ronan glanced at the other hunters who were hiding their shock with far less success than Nathan as they gawked at him and exchanged looks.
