Page 26 of Rock Bottom
“Were you born a shifter, or changed?” Davy asked Micca.
“I was human until fairly recently.”
I missed some of what was said, thinking about Julian, wondering what this meant, and then Kirsten’s voice came through and caught my attention again.
“Sometimes, I detest supernatural law. The biggest rule is about humans not finding out, and then it’s all about survival of the fittest. If you can’t stop the vampires from invading your mind then tough shit, you don’t get a say in what they do while in your head. Same with everything, if you aren’t strong enough to stop someone then there’s no law that says they can’t do whatever they want — and that can include enslaving those weaker than you.”
“A few more details,” Nathan said, and he looked to the sofa to his right and our left.
“I’m a werewolf,” Ghost said. “I have tochangeon one of the three nights of the full moon, but I’m strong enough to dictate which, rather than doing it on all three, as new wolves do.”
“I’m a rare chimera,” Hailey said, “which means I’m both wolf and Lugat vampire. A few other things, too, but I’m not at liberty to talk about that. It means I can eat real food, while Lugat vampires only drink blood. I canchangeto a wolf and run with Ghost, but I don’t have to on the full moon, as he does. I can also drink blood, and frequently drink from Ghost. I take less in a feeding than the Red Cross does when you donate. Strigorii are the same — they don’t have to kill to survive.”
Okay, that part was good to know, but the overarching thought going through my head was whether I’d want Julian to bite me.
No, that wasn’t the question I should be asking. The proper question should be whether I wanted to ever see Julian again.
And then Collosa was suddenly a bear, standing huge and tall before he sat back on the sofa, still a bear, beside Ghost as if it were completely fucking normal.
I clung to Mikey’s hand like it was a life raft, and he didn’t seem to mind.
“And now it’s time for you to hear from me,” another man I hadn’t been introduced to said, and then there was a heavy, unsettling silence.
No one said anything for at least a full minute. Eventually the man said, “Supernatural rules say humans who knowThe Secretmust be bound to it. Josef and I have placed markers in your heads so we can erase all memories beginning when Aaron and Nathan arrived with Micca and ending once we get you back home, so you won’t remember anything of Alfheim, dragons, shifters, vampires — nothing.If you or any human present chooses not to take the oath, or if you refuse to allow it to bind you, that’s what will happen.”
Clearly, that included Mikey and me.
So, if I wanted to remember that Julian’s a vampire, I’d have to take the oath. No way was I going to refuse, if that was the case.
The man looked around the circle. “I believe the three of them need some time alone.”
I realized I was shaking. Yeah. Time alone sounded good.
A few minutes later, Kirsten disappeared along with Will, Micca, and Davy.
Aaron Drake looked at Mikey and me like he was checking whether our brains were still intact. “How are the two of you holding up? I can’t tell other people’s secrets, but I’m assuming you have some questions?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. I tried again and managed to say, “I wouldn’t know where to start.”
Mikey gestured towards the vampires who’d introduced themselves as Strigorii. “Vampires like them — the ones who aren’t like Hailey — they can drink from someone without killing them? Or turning them?”
“Yes,” one said calmly. “I am Josef, this is Venom. I frequently drink from shapeshifters, but I could just as easily drink from humans and cloud their minds so they don’t remember, if I choose.”
I tried not to think too hard about the phrasecloud their minds, or how casually he said it.
“I don’t drink from humans,” Venom said. “I, too, could cloud their mind and find sustenance, but I prefer shapeshifters. Most of our kind aren’t fortunate to have a variety of shapeshifters around, though, and usually drink from humans.”
“So,” Mikey asked, “we’re basically inferior?”
“No,” Aaron said, his tone steady, like he was used to delivering TED Talks to people in shock. “Different. Easier to kill, certainly, but never inferior. Human society is the bedrock of everything. Supernaturals of any flavor who think they are better than humans are simply ignorant.”
Well. That was… something.
“When Kirsten returns,” Nathan said, “She can take the two of you to either a single room with two beds, or two rooms.”
“Same room,” Mikey said. “Two beds.”
Nathan’s gaze flicked to me, and I nodded. “Yes. Same room.”
