Dark Destiny (17 page)

Anger flooded Nicolae's body, took over his heart and head.
How would you know? Why do you think you know her better than I do
?

Because I do not think of her day and night, my every waking minute. I saw her defend the human. She was hunting as she believed she should. Nothing more. Nothing less
. Vikirnoff was not in the least disturbed by Nicolae's outburst. Nothing seemed to provoke him these days.
Do not take that away from her
.

Nicolae was immediately ashamed that he had taken out his fear on his brother.
I am sorry I was harsh
.

Were you? I had not noticed.

Nicolae glanced at his brother's impassive face as they settled to ground deep within the earth. There was no humor, nor hint of reprimand; Vikirnoff really hadn't noticed his momentary anger. And that worried Nicolae. He packed Destiny's wounds with his own saliva and the healing earth, chanting softly as he worked. "She's lost far too much blood." He examined the wounds, nasty rips and bite marks, great gaping holes. The vampire had sought to destroy her as painfully as possible.

"That is good for our purposes, Nicolae," Vikirnoff said. "Instead of killing her outright, they tried to prolong her death, to torment her." He was collecting herbs from a small cache they had stored in the underground chamber. It took only seconds to light the flames of aromatic candles.

"Her enemies do not know her." Nicolae's voice was soft, filled with emotion held tightly in check. "She has lived with pain every moment of her existence. This is nothing to her." He blinked back unexpected tears as he carefully wiped her face clean. The wounds on her throat and shoulder were horrible to see. "This is nothing to her," he repeated. His hands were gentle on the gaping wounds in her throat. He leaned close to her, put his lips to her ear. "Stay with me, Destiny. I will follow where you lead this time. Let it be here, in this time and place. Stay in this world."

Nicolae allowed his body to drop away from him, transforming himself into an immaterial instrument of light and energy. It was much more difficult to shed the emotional storm that whirled within him. He needed to be calm and steady to save her. To heal her wounds. This was the most important task of his life. Her torn, mangled flesh was a mess, and, as always, the vampire had left behind a poison that would quickly destroy the cells around the area of the bites. The decay was spreading quickly.

Nicolae was meticulous in his work, fast and efficient but steady as he repaired the damage to her arteries and muscles and tissue. He paid attention to the smallest detail, ferreting out every drop of the vampire's poison. It wasn't an easy task. Her tainted blood made his job especially difficult because of the damage it had already done to the inside of her body, damage that tormented her continually.

Twice Nicolae thought something moved in her bloodstream, something microscopic, a shadow darting away from his healing energy, but when he went back to inspect, he could find no more of the bacteria.

He came to himself swaying slightly, his face pale from concentration and from expending so much energy. Pale with the knowledge of what she endured on a nightly basis. His eyes met Vikirnoff's. "I do not know how she has survived," he said softly.

Vikirnoff held out his wrist to his brother. "We are Carpathian. We endure. She is Carpathian and has honor and instincts as old as time. It matters little that a vampire converted her. He could not have done so successfully if she were not of the light. You think with your heart, Nicolae."

"And it is breaking." Nicolae bent his head to his brother's offering, drinking deeply to replenish his strength, to be able to pass the gift on to his lifemate.

Vikirnoff shook his head. "One of you must be whole. She searches for a way to you. Do not make the mistake of failing her because your compassion is too great."

Nicolae allowed the rush of ancient blood to fill his being. What could one say to Vikirnoff? His words were a double-edged sword. Painful but logical. Full of wisdom. As long as Nicolae could remember, Vikirnoff had spoken so. When he had carefully closed the wound on his brother's wrist, using his healing saliva, he gathered Destiny to him.

Cradling her on his lap, he opened his shirt and pressed her mouth to his skin.
You will take what is freely offered, that we both may live
, he commanded her, using the strength of an ancient, of a lifemate. And she obeyed. Her lips nuzzled him. Gently. Almost sensuously. He closed his eyes as a white-hot pain sent lightning whipping through his bloodstream, tightened every muscle in his body. Instinctively he held her closer, his arms protective.

Nicolae glanced up at his brother. "How do we remove the taint of the vampire? In all your years, have you ever encountered this problem?"

Vikirnoff shook his head slowly. "Destiny is not vampire, so there must be a way. I can only think to dilute the blood as you are doing. She has lost more than she can afford. We will both give her ancient blood and call to the healers. Perhaps the soil of our homeland would be of help."

Nicolae rested his brow gently against Destiny's. "She is a fighter, Vikirnoff. If anyone can beat this, she is the one."

"You do not object to my giving her blood?" The question was put mildly.

Nicolae shrugged his powerful shoulders as he looked down at the face of the woman he loved. "I will give her all I can; you will have to replace my blood as you have done so many times. It is one and the same. She has a need, and we can do no other than to meet it." His fingers flexed in Destiny's hair, crushed the silken strands in his fist. He wanted to take her away from this place, back to his homeland, where the healers and the soil would have a chance to work their magic on her.

You have always been my magic. I have no need of others
. Her voice came out of nowhere, brushed at the walls of his mind like gentle butterfly wings. His gut clenched in reaction. His heart rolled over in his chest.

It is about time you admitted it.

Well, don't get a big head or anything. I still think you're annoying.

That sounded so much more like his Destiny that he breathed a sigh of relief. He felt the sweep of her tongue, closing the pinpricks on his chest.
You have not taken nearly enough to replace the blood you lost, Destiny
.

I feel you growing weaker. Go hunt. I can wait. A
ripple of pain went through her body, a certain sign that she was waking. Her eyelashes fluttered, two thick crescents that lay like feathery fans against her pale skin.

Nicolae bent over her, brushed his lips across her eyes. He trailed a series of kisses along her cheek-bone, down the line of her small nose, then lingered by the corner of her soft, curving mouth.

You're taking advantage. I'm too weak to resist.

No, you are not. You do not wish to resist.

Maybe you're right. But if you are, it's because you mesmerized me while I was unconscious. It has nothing to do with the way you smell. Or the sound of your voice. Or the way your mouth is so perfect.

Nicolae teased her lips with his, rubbing gently, persistently until her lips moved under his. Softened. Accepted. He took her breath. Gave her his.

Destiny gasped, muffled a groan of pain, buried her face against his chest and held herself very still. "I'm sorry, it slipped out. It isn't that bad." The weakness was almost worse than the pain.

His hand stroked gentle caresses through her hair. "I know it hurts, Destiny. You need to go to ground and allow the earth to heal you. Vikirnoff and I will take care of your people."

"You're not at full strength. You gave me too much of your blood." Her voice was barely audible, even with his acute hearing. She opened her eyes to study his pale face. "Go feed."

There was too much pain in the depths of her eyes. "I thought I would just hold you for a while. I am not certain I will ever get the chance again. For once in your life you are being cooperative."

A small smile lifted her mouth. "Is that what I'm doing?" She winced as she shifted to get a better look at him. "I bet I look great."

His eyebrow shot up. "You look beautiful."

"I knew you'd say that. You're such a liar. Please go feed, I don't want to have to fight any more vampires tonight, and you're not in any shape to kick butt."

"You could not fight your way out of a paper bag," he pointed out.

"Hey! I destroyed my vampire," she said softly, her hand going to her raw throat as if it hurt her to speak. "What did you manage to do?"

"I bagged two of them. Vikirnoff took out his, although he should not have done so." Nicolae spared a quick glare for his brother.

"Do you have to do that? Is it a man thing or something? I'll admit I don't know much about men, but it's so annoying."

Nicolae leaned closer, took her hand away from her throat because he couldn't bear to see her fingers fluttering helplessly there. She looked so vulnerable with her pale face and her torn body. "Have to do what?"

"One-upmanship. I kill one, you have to kill two. The big bad hunter flexing his muscles. It's annoying."

"You are not going to whine simply because I have superior hunting skills, are you?" He rubbed her knuckles along his jaw, wanting the contact. Needing to show her what he felt too deeply to say. "It did not occur to me you would whine."

"It's hardly whining to point out how annoying you are. And you aren't superior, just luckier." Her voice was husky, sounding far away, but she was grateful she could talk.

"I hesitate to mention I am not the one in need of healing."

"You don't seem all that hesitant to me. You pointed it out just fine. I'm sure your brother heard you." Her impossibly long lashes drifted down to cover her uniquely colored eyes. She turned her face toward him so that her lips brushed the back of his hand where he was holding hers. "Did you know that there are laws against stalkers?"

He felt the jolt of her soft mouth through his entire body. It was an accidental brushing, nothing more, not even a real caress, but his heart did a somersault anyway. "I know you are not about to accuse me of stalking you. You came after me. I merely followed wherever you led." He sounded reasonable. His fingertip traced her sculpted mouth, her full lower lip, sending a shiver through her body. Through his.

You have the most fascinating mouth I have ever seen.

What's so fascinating? It's a mouth just like any other.

I think it is your pouty lower lip.

Now I know you're crazy. I never pout and neither does my lip.

"I beg to differ." The sheer pleasure blossoming inside him spilled over into his voice. She was alive, his courageous Destiny!

She opened her eyes again to look directly at him. "So what do we do now, Nicolae? I did my best to protect you, but you just don't mind very well."

He brought her knuckles to his mouth, his teeth scraping back and forth, gently, insistently, over her skin. "Is that where I went wrong? I should have been obeying?"

"At least listening." Her fingers touched the shadow along his jaw, a weak, trembling movement that conveyed more to him than her words ever could. "I want you safe, Nicolae. It's important to me."

"I am safe, Destiny," he assured her. The lump in his throat was threatening to choke him. "As long as I have you, as long as we are together, I will be safe."

Vikirnoff cleared his throat, drawing her attention to him. He was looking at his brother. "You are not bound together, Nicolae. You will never be safe if you do not bind her to you in the way of our people."

Swift impatience crossed Nicolae's dark, sensual features. Before he could react, Destiny laid her hand across his mouth and looked up at his brother. "Those words always beating around in his head—the 'you are my lifemate' words." Secretly she thought the ritual words as beautiful as they were terrifying. "How would simple words bind us together or make Nicolae safe?"

His strong teeth nipped at her palm so that she yelped and glared at him. "You are not to think about that, Destiny. We have plenty of time."

"I don't believe I was speaking to you," she responded huffily. "There's no talking to you when you're in your ridiculous alpha male he-man mode. Sheesh! All you think about is protecting the little woman. I'm talking to your brother right now." She attempted to lift her chin but it hurt too much, so she suppressed a squeak of pain and had to be content to challenge him with her eyes.

Nicolae's heart melted beyond repair. She was so brave, so filled with courage. She lay in his arms, beaten, torn apart, her flesh shredded. Pain coursed through her veins and the taint of the vampire stood between them, yet she met Vikirnoff's gaze without flinching. It mattered to her that Nicolae was safe. He read the determination in her mind, her complete resolve, even as he read her fear of what Vikirnoff might say.

"He must bind you to him so that you will act as his anchor. Once the words are said and the ritual is complete, he cannot turn vampire. Unless you die. You will provide the light to his darkness."

Destiny stared at Vikirnoff for several heartbeats. A singe sound escaped her. Muffled. Strangled. Somewhere between humorless laughter, hysteria and tears. "Are you crazy?
I'm
supposed to be the light to
his
darkness? Do you have any idea what you're saying? Nicolae is
my
light. My only light."

"Destiny." Vikirnoff's voice never changed. It was soft. Calm. Reasonable. "You have dedicated your entire existence to the protection of others. You think first of Nicolae even as you lie broken. Those are not the acts of someone who lives in darkness."

"Nicolae lives for the protection of others."

"He was bred to do so. It is his right and his honor. It is his way of life. It was not so with you."

"You can't see what's inside me." She turned her face away from him, only to find Nicolae. Always Nicolae. He was there in her mind. There in her heart. He held her safely in his arms.