Veritas

Chapter 17

Fortunately for Aislinn, she'd brought her new dagger to bed with her. She had kept it under her pillow, so it would be within easy reach as she often slept with an arm under her pillow. Luck was on her side, since she could feel the dagger touching her fingertips.

Just as the vampire's hand was about to touch her arm, she used one fluid motion to grab the dagger in one hand, and the vampire's wrist in the other. She sat up and pulled the startled vampire towards her while plunging the dagger into its chest.

Once again, though, something inside of her was telling her what to do. It told her not to kill him; and so, she stopped the dagger before it went too far. Now, it was deep enough that it had essentially paralyzed her foe without killing him.

"You're awake." Was the stupid, first sentence that fell from his lips. It wasn't a question, and it wasn't said with shock; instead, it was a monotone statement.

"I am" she retorted saucily. "And you're apparently trying to harm me and my family. Give me a good reason not to end you" she added with a quirked brow.

"I wasn't trying to kill you. I just wanted to kidnap you" the vampire said, as if that was an innocent explanation.

Aislinn gaped at him for a moment in disbelief, before letting out a laugh. "Am I supposed to be appreciative of that fact?"

"No. I am just explaining. I mean you no harm" he said in that irritatingly monotonous voice of his.

"Why would I believe that? What vampire has ever meant no harm to a werewolf?" Aislinn demanded, knowing the hatred between wolf and vampire went back as far as the beginning of existence.

"Because...I was once a werewolf" he stated bluntly.

Aislinn's eyebrows shot up in surprise. A werewolf turned vampire? That shouldn't be possible. A werewolf, once bitten by a vampire, could survive; however, if they were then fed a vampire's blood, it would kill them. As far as she knew, that was the method that vampires used to turn humans into vampires. Both witches and werewolves were said to simply die if a vampire tried to turn them.

"Nice try. That's not possible" she said, narrowing her eyes at him. His voice lacked all emotion, making it hard for her to read him. She had no better luck reading his expressionless face, either.

"And a werewolf unharmed by silver is not possible, either" he pointed out, glancing down at the silver dagger in her hand and lodged in his chest.

Her brows raised in surprise, realizing he did have a point. "Alright, you've got me there...I'm an anomaly. That doesn't mean I believe you though. What proof do you have?"

"None" he replied, which threw Aislinn off. She thought he'd at least try to lie his way through his weird claim.

"None? No werewolf family to vouch for you? No friends? Nobody who can confirm you were once a werewolf?" She demanded, frowning.

This seemed to have struck a cord with him, because she could see a sadness in his eyes at her questions. It almost made her feel guilty for asking; but, she reminded herself he was trying to kidnap her! No remorse!

"I do not have anyone" he began. "My pack was attacked...Many of my friends and family were killed, and I was captured. I was experimented on, by witches and vampires together...And somehow they figured out how to turn me into a vampire, and trap me in my own particular brand of Hell...You don't understand the bloodlust of a freshly turned vampire...It was insatiable, and uncontrollable. I am ashamed of the lives I took...The ones who turned me released me into the human world as a continuation of their experiment, and watched as I rampaged. It took years for the bloodlust to die down...When I finally came to my senses, and realized what I was...And what I'd done...I knew I could never go home...I still tried, though. I hoped they would let me explain myself...I was a fool for thinking that, though. Given the memory of such a recent attack on the pack by vampires, it's no surprise that they wouldn't even listen to me. They chased me out, and wanted me dead...I don't know if anyone recognized me, because they never gave me a chance to speak...And so I have wandered ever since. I do not wish to fit in amongst vampires or witches, and I am unwelcome amongst werewolves...So I have lived alone for over a century now, with no family or friends to vouch for the truth of my story, or my identity" he explained.

While his voice remained emotionless and level, his eyes showed the pain and sadness he felt. Despite not wanting to believe such a fantastical tale, Aislinn felt a twinge of sympathy for this man. He was an outcast, if his story was to be believed. Wouldn't it be hypocritical of her to not give him a chance, given she was an outcast herself? She'd have surely been killed, or at least experimented on herself, had her secret been outed to the wrong people.

She sighed, and stared into his eyes, willing herself to distinguish if he was trustworthy. Of course, his story had her conflicted and had given him a sympathy vote, so she knew she couldn't trust her heart. Instead, she decided to change tactics.

"Why did you want to kidnap me?" She asked, although with much less venom in her voice than she'd originally intended.

"I saw you at the witch's market...The witches will sell to vampires, as well, although they'll deny it if you ask...They use magic to hide werewolves and vampires from one another, even though you are in the same room. Presumably because of my heritage, it doesn't work on
me...So I was able to watch you and your boyfriend. I was initially intrigued by your purchase, although now it makes sense...And then your exchange about running away also piqued my interest...I merely wanted to learn more about you" was his strange explanation.

"That is the stupidest reason to kidnap someone I've ever heard" she said in disbelief.

"Perhaps" he admitted, then let out a sigh. "But would you have willingly spoken with me had I simply come up and asked?"

"I don't think you'd have been able to get near me" she admitted, knowing Rei and Ryan would have killed him without question.

"Precisely" he said.

"What did you do to them, anyways?" She demanded.

"I purchased a sleeping talisman from the witches meant to lull werewolves into a deep sleep. They will wake up by morning" he explained without any hint of a lie.

Aislinn stared at him for a long moment. She looked at his chest where her blade was, knowing she could press it in a bit further and he'd turn to ashes. There'd be no risk, no danger, and she could go back to sleep. Still, that nagging feeling inside of her told her that she shouldn't kill him.

But should she trust him?

Listening to that inner, gut feeling, she took a deep breath...And then pulled her dagger out of the vampire's chest.