Dark Lycan (Dark #24)(62)
Author: Christine Feehan

Mikhail inclined his head. "He was severely wounded and had lost a good amount of blood. To ensure he lived, Jacques gave him blood."

Fen closed his eyes, suddenly feeling weary. Tatijana had given Zev blood as well. In his travels and many battles, had Zev received blood from any other Carpathian? It was possible-and dangerous. Fen knew no matter how honorably Zev served his people, should he become the Sange rau, they would turn on him and condemn him to death without a second thought.

"I have no idea how much blood has to be shared before the mixture converts one into something else," Fen admitted. "When Vakasin and I battled the Sange rau, both of us had countless wounds and both of us lost blood often. I don’t know how often we’d given one another blood before I began to feel the wolf inside of me, but I felt it long before he felt the Carpathian traits, or maybe he simply didn’t recognize that he was any different."

"You’re afraid Zev may be in trouble," Mikhail guessed.

Fen nodded. "He’s a good man. His ability in a fight is unsurpassed by most hunters. He reminds me of Vakasin. I would hate to see him killed by his own people after the service he’s given them."

"That makes it all the more important to talk with their council," Mikhail said. "If they understand the difference between a vampire and Carpathian, we can convince them to look at the Sange rau in another light. We might distinguish the two by providing our own name for a Carpathian/Lycan cross."

Fen sighed. "I wish you every success, but I can tell you the Lycans will fight you on the issue of the Sange rau. Not only do they have legitimate reasons to fear the mixture of Carpathian and Lycan blood, but you’re fighting centuries-old prejudices. There are fanatics who belong to a secret society that’s not very secret and they dedicate their lives to ferreting out the Sange rau and destroying them. They draw in every misfit there is and brainwash them. The Sange rau gives them a target for their fanatical hatred. Not of course that they ever actually find one, but every sin is blamed on them."

"Surely cooler heads prevail on the council," Mikhail said.

Fen shrugged. "I would hope so, but I’ve seen some of these fanatics. They’ve become a religion and they preach to the packs and they’re very persuasive. You have to remember, this has been going on for centuries, so the prejudice is well established." He tried to find another way to explain it. "This belief of the Sange rau is at the very heart of their traditions. He represents everything evil. He is their demon, the epitome of every sinful thing."

"Like a religion," Gregori said.

Mikhail shot him a look. Gregori didn’t believe in any religion, where Mikhail was a devout worshipper.

"One that is very sacred to them and if not an actual spiritual belief, certainly one that is woven in the very fabric of their existence," Fen said.

Mikhail let out his breath. "All right then. It’s good to know what we’re up against. Still, I believe we have to try. In the meantime, how do we fight them? How did Dimitri fight such a creature when our warriors sustained so much damage?"

"The Lycans and werewolves are pack fighters. Carpathians are used to fighting lone monsters."

"Lately vampires have been banding together," Gregori said. "Vampires, as unnatural as that sounds, actually put an army together to attack us. For a little practice run, they hit the De La Cruz compound in South America."

"That must have been like stirring up a hornet’s nest. Of all the hunters in the world, I think I would prefer any other to come after me," Fen said.

"It was personal," Dimitri explained. "The Malinov brothers decided they were going to rule all Carpathians, and the De La Cruz brothers refused to join them."

"You can see why we would want the Lycans as allies," Mikhail said. "There are too few of us for an all-out war with any enemy."

"If your warriors embrace the Sange rau and deliberately seek to become one, the Lycans will attack you," Fen said. "The war would be endless, and no one would win in the end other than vampires. You have to go into a meeting knowing their prejudice is ingrained in them and will be difficult to change."

Mikhail nodded. "I do believe we need to have our own name for those Carpathians and Lycans who have not turned vampire yet have mixed blood, something to indicate they are very different than the demon the Lycans believe them to be. That must become part of our vocabulary before I even meet with Zev. Which means we should come up with it immediately."

"Do you really think changing a name is going to change their minds?" Vikirnoff asked. It was the first time he’d spoken, and Fen could tell by his tone that he didn’t like the situation at all. Had the situation not been so grave he would have smiled. Mikhail Dubrinsky fully understood the problem. He wasn’t going to throw his hands in the air and walk away, he was going to actually try for resolution. More than anyone there, other than Fen, it was Mikhail who knew what he was facing.

Many of his Carpathian warriors would be tempted to become Sange rau, just to make them better fighters. They would want to ignore the potential problems and they wouldn’t recognize that MaryAnn and Manolito and Fen and Tatijana as well as Dimitri would become experiments. They would be watched closely by both Lycans and Carpathians if Mikhail was successful in convincing the Lycan council that there was a difference. If not, what then?

Would the Lycans be willing to go to war to force the Carpathians to hand over those who were Sange rau? Sadly, Fen considered that a big possibility. Even if Mikhail convinced the council, that didn’t mean all the packs would agree, not over something that had been so ingrained in them. If the council agreed, their decision could very well cause a split among the packs.

"We need a lot more information before we allow any of our people to voluntarily choose this path," Mikhail said. "I am counting on the three of you to supply us with that information."

Fen nodded. "I have no choice but to follow the rogue pack if it moves. I have to hunt both Abel and Bardolf."

"After seeing Abel’s return to his homeland, I believe he has one purpose in mind, and he won’t be going anywhere very soon," Mikhail said. "He has returned in order to kill me. In the meantime, our hunters need to know how to fight Abel and Bardolf. You obviously trained Dimitri, who has known about this for some time."

There was the smallest hint of a reprimand in Mikhail’s voice.

Dimitri shrugged, unrepentant. "The rogues never came near our homeland. I chose to set up sanctuaries for our wolf brethren knowing Fen needed a place to rest and heal at times. It gave me a chance to be with him. What he was, during those centuries, had no impact on our people."