Crave by Melissa Darnell Read Free Book Online Page B

either side and would be…well, normal. But it’s just too dangerous now for you not to know. Your being sick for a whole week is a strong sign that one or both sides might begin to kick in. Which means you could start developing any number of abilities or impulses. If and when you do, we all need to be ready so we can help you learn to control them.”
    Impulses. Abilities. What was I, some sort of wild animal about to go out of control?
    Mom sat down beside me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “You could try to think of it as if you were learning you have just an ordinary hereditary illness. Your parents’ genes have predisposed you toward developing certain…issues in life. But they might or might not affect your daily life. We just have to all be prepared in case they do.”
    â€œYou mean, in case I start to develop a taste for blood?” I couldn’t believe I was even saying this.
    Dad’s nod made it even more surreal. “You could begin to crave human blood. Your gaze might begin to have adverse effects on others when you look at them. Heightened reflexes, physical speed and mental processes are all possible. And then, of course, there is the possibility of fangs.”
    Fangs. O. M. Freakin’ G. He sounded like one of those drug-commercial announcers rattling off possible side effects.
    â€œOr strange things may start to happen when you get upset,” Mom added. “Like…”
    â€œLike flying plates,” Nanna said, a hint of a snicker in her voice. As if any of this were funny.
    Mom glared at her. “That wasn’t an accident. Now if I’d set the kitchen on fire…”
    And that’s when I realized they were serious about this. This wasn’t a prank, and unless I woke up soon, I wasn’t dreaming, either.
    Which meant…I was half vampire, half witch. And all freak. Just like the Brat Twins had been saying for years. Oh, crap. “The Clann. Do they all know…?” I remembered the way the Brat Twins called me “freak” all the time and seemed scared of me sometimes…. They definitely knew. Did Tristan know, too?
    â€œThe adults know. The kids don’t,” Mom said. “At least, the elders swore they wouldn’t tell the younger descendants after they cast us out. Only the adult descendants were supposed to be warned.”
    Nanna grunted. “Now, whether the elders actually kept that promise…”
    â€œWhy do the adults know about me? And what do you mean, cast out? ”
    It was Nanna and Mom’s turn to look confused. Mom was the one to answer. “We thought you’d figured that part out already. Our family used to be in the Clann, too. Magic is what ties all of Jacksonville’s founding families together in the first place. I’m sure you must have heard at least a rumor or two about it.”
    Jacksonville’s gossip grapevine had it right, then. “So the Clann are all witches. Like a coven.”
    Mom and Nanna both nodded.
    â€œBut…we go to church,” I argued, trying to wrap my mind around the idea that the Brat Twins were witches in more than just a figurative way. Not to mention Tristan.
    Holy heck. Tristan was a witch.
    â€œMagic isn’t a religion for us like it is for Wiccans,” Nanna said. “Most of the Clann’s descendants are Christians who just happen to be gifted with the ability to do magic. It’s genetics, not a lifestyle choice.”
    Yeah, and I was sure everyone here in the Bible Belt of East Texas would really understand that distinction.
    When I could make my brain work again, another thought hit me. “Wait. Dad, if you’re a vampire, how can you go out in the daylight? And what about garlic, and holy water, and—”
    â€œVampires are like any other species, Savannah. We have evolved over the years. Sunlight no longer hurts us. Garlic and holy items never did—that was just religious