Honoria Ravena by The Devil's Trap [In Darkness We Dwell Book 2]

against Dorian.”
    I snorted and crossed my arms over my chest, giving her my most mocking expression. “Wow, that’s ambitious. Don’t most of them think you’re nuts? And even if they believe you, most of them would rather go back to their lives.” And a lot of them were vampire hunters raised by witches. They wouldn’t like taking orders from them. They were some of the most aggressive hunters out there because of early negative encounters with vampires due to the fact that they attracted vampires. I’d often wondered if I was one, but Alaric would never confirm it. I wasn’t even sure he knew. He’d found us, after all.
    “They don’t get that choice.”
    My sarcastic smile slipped away. “So you’re enslaving people?”
    “If you wish to call it that. I don’t. They are treated well, and when Dorian and his army are killed, they may go back to their lives if they choose. I would like to believe that most of them wouldn’t.”
    The problem with giving them an option once the war was won was that if the vampire they belonged to didn’t want them to go, they would have no choice but to stay. I’d experienced what the blood-bond could do. The only reason I was able to resist was years of training. Anyone without that training would be lost to them.
    She waved a dismissive hand. “At any rate, it’s a necessary evil. Dorian has been building his army for thousands of years. He wants to enslave the humans.”
    Jesus, thousands of years to build an army? We should have attempted to kill him, even if he had been healing remarkably fast. But her methods of recruitment still turned my stomach. I curled my lip at her. “A necessary evil? You have no right to kidnap these people. They know nothing of our world, and they shouldn’t. If they want to join the fight, they should choose to.”
    Dara’s gaze heated. It looked like the ice queen was getting pissed at my insolence. “They are the children of vampires. They are of our world, and if I didn’t take them, Dorian would. To serve him would be true slavery. And that’s if he let them live.”
    I spat on the ground and succeeded in getting a disgusted look from her. Goody. “I won’t be a part of this. If you try to keep me here my…master will come for me.” God, calling Zarek “master” was almost physically painful.
    I turned to leave, and Kalen and Kennedy stepped in my path.
    “Kennedy, come on. We’re friends. Why are you working with this whack-job?”
    She shook her head. “This is important, Regan.”
    My lips turned up on one side. “You’re really going to want to move.”
    “You don’t understand, little girl. Dorian is the biggest threat this world has ever known, and most don’t even know he exists. He was a bloodthirsty psychopath in life. With the power of the Scourge, he is more of a threat than your atomic bomb. His only failings are his overconfidence and the fact that he would rather toy with his victims before he kills them. It’s the only reason you’re still alive.”
    I sighed and pivoted around. “So what do you want me to do? I’ll hunt vampires with the Scourge, but right now I’m kind of running from the oldest and most powerful vampire in existence.”
    She smiled, apparently trying to appear friendly. It didn’t quite reach her eyes. Even if it had, I wasn’t buying into the sweet lady act.
    “I suggest you stop running from Zarek. He’s become a good man, and with Dorian after you, you have bigger problems.”
    I snorted. “I’m not going back to Zarek. I’ll make it on my own.”
    She nodded. “When I was you, I wouldn’t have gone back either.”
    I arched an eyebrow. What the fuck did she mean by that?
    “I was once kidnapped by vampires, too, but I won’t tell you that story.”
    “I will.” A masculine voice came from behind me. A vampire’s presence sent a shiver up my spine. Another one. Great.
    Dara bared fangs and hissed at him.
    I jumped back. “Holy shit, you’re a