Dark Challenge

Chapter Nine

At once Desari was gone, leaping away from him like a gazelle, her taunting laughter floating on the wind as she alighted on the huge fallen tree trunk. She took his breath away, standing there naked in the moonlight, branches swaying all around her. The wind tugged at the waves of hair cascading around her body like a cape. A sound escaped his throat, something between a growl and a groan.

Julian was a hard man honed by centuries of a harsh existence. If he had ever had a sharing of laughter with others, it was but a vague memory of his youth. He had been damned to a life of solitude, yet now he wanted nothing more than to be with this one woman, to share his life with her, the mountains, the cities, the world. He didn’t know how to play, didn’t think of having a sense of humor other than an occasional strange amusement at the actions of another. But something new was rising in him. The sound of Desari’s laughter was finding an answering playful note somewhere deep within him.

He leapt after her onto the fallen log, reaching for her waist, but she was already gone, her body shimmering in midair then changing even as she landed lightly on another log and sprang away. Sleek, glossy dark fur now covered bare skin; her muzzle was rounded and beautiful. The female leopard glanced back once enticingly, then was gone, running lightly through the forest, blending in with the foliage.

Julian grinned and followed her, his frame stretching and contorting into the heavy, well-muscled shape of a male leopard. He could smell her wild scent reaching out on the night wind to beckon him, and the wildness in him grew in response. To the male leopard, the female’s scent was as alluring as the most expensive perfume. The female leopard’s cry echoed eerily in the night, calling out to him. The male responded as if the call were a whisper of seduction.

He picked up speed, and moved effortlessly, a streak of golden fur as he silently stalked his prey. When he saw her, the wildness in him increased until he was more primitive leopard than modern man. She was rolling playfully on a soft bed of pine needles, her curves sensuous, almost serpentine. She was so alluring, the male leopard could only watch for a moment, until his age-old instincts triggered his rising need and he cautiously approached the female.

The female eyed him warily but did not rebuff his approach. He circled her, watching her every moment. She rolled again, moved closer to him so that he could touch her with his muzzle. She accepted his caress, returned it with one of her own. They looked at one another and then began to run together, leaping over logs and branches, winding through the forest with consummate grace.

Inside the body of the leopard, Julian reveled in the stretch of muscles and sinew, in the night itself and the freedom of the forest. He smelled her welcoming invitation, read it in the seductive playfulness of her body. He stayed close to the female, nudging her occasionally, enjoying the way his body thirsted after hers. He was patient. A female leopard’s rebuff could be dangerous, and no male was going to risk her solid swipe. He simply stayed close to her, following his instincts.

She slowed her run, then began to circle him playfully, occasionally crouching in front of him in invitation. When his heavier body went to blanket hers, she growled a warning and leapt away, only to return with another seductive invitation. Julian could feel the male cat’s rising urges; they grew stronger and more intense with each pass she took. She was so beautiful, her fur so sleek and soft, her muzzle perfect. Once more she crouched in invitation, tempting him. He blanketed her body, his teeth finding her shoulder to hold her still as he pressed closer to her, using his heavier weight to keep her motionless.

At that moment, he was so much a leopard, so much animal and instinct, he never knew afterward whether it was the leopard or the man that reacted. He sensed the dark shadow reaching for them just as the attack came. He used his considerable power to knock the female far from him to give her a better chance to run. At the same time he tried to roll, to take the oncoming blow on his shoulder.

The pain was intense as razor-sharp claws ripped through his shoulder to the bone. Instantly he cut off feeling to the area even as he melted out from under his attacker, shape-shifting as he did so. He faced the vampire in his human form, elegantly dressed, blood streaming from his wound, his golden hair a mane around his harsh face.

Was this the one? Had his blood called his tormenter, betrayed his lifemate?

From across the short distance between them he assessed his enemy, keeping his human body placed squarely in front of Desari. He didn’t look at her, didn’t waste time warning her to obey him. His entire focus had to be centered on the vampire. A small smile curved his mouth, unreflected in the icy gold of his eyes, and he bowed slowly. “Very clever, I salute your timing.” His words were soft, his voice gentle and pure. There was no recognition, this was not his archenemy. Julian didn’t know if he was relieved or disappointed.

The vampire regarded him with hooded eyes. He was tall, taller than Julian, but without his heavy muscles. His face was flushed from a fresh kill. Some unlucky camper, no doubt. Julian was uneasy when the vampire refused to be drawn into a dialogue. The creature simply stared at him. It was unusual for one of the undead not to boast or brag when he had scored a blow such as Julian had just received.

Around Julian the forest seemed to blur, the ground rolling almost gently beneath his feet. Deliberately his smile widened, showing strong white teeth. “A child’s trick. I learned that when I was but a fledging. I am insulted that you treat me with such a lack of respect.” At no time did Julian’s voice change pitch. It remained a hypnotic blend of mesmerizing compulsion and purity. His voice was grating on the vampire, he could clearly see. The vampire actually winced and shook his head in an attempt to stay free of the compulsion.

The soulless creature moved then, his steps a gliding pattern, a hypnotic dance. Julian remained still, not drawn into following the strange dance. He stayed alert, his body relaxed and ready, on the balls of his feet, his mind scanning the areas around him, even the skies. This behavior in the undead was totally unnatural. Julian was missing something, and, with Desari in danger, he dared not act too soon or make a mistake. His lifemate had not run, so he had to protect her.

You think there is another out there?

Desari was a shadow in his mind, aware of his thoughts, of his unease. She had scanned but, had been unable to detect another being.

And it would be better to face the two of them together? I would have a better chance to orchestrate the battle.

Desari had made herself small, wanting to give Julian as little to worry about as possible. Now she drew herself up to her full height and, with great confidence, stepped to his left. It gave her lifemate plenty of room to maneuver yet allowed him to see her so that he would not have to seek her with his

mind. Do not listen to the music I will make, Julian,

she cautioned, the words like the brush of fingers in his mind. She lifted her face to the blanket of stars and began to sing softly.

Julian’s entire body clenched at the first silvery note. It took tremendous will power to force himself to shut out the sound. Her voice was haunting and beautiful, rising into the night air and spreading throughout the forest. It was carried on an unusual wind that seemed to swirl through the trees, reaching into the heights of the canopy and delving into the deepest ravines. It was a summons, a soft command to come forth, to come to her. All creatures, good or evil. Who or what could resist that otherworldly voice? It was pure and beautiful, the notes gold and silver, shimmering visibly in the dark night. Calling. Reaching out. Beckoning. A demand so soft and hauntingly beautiful it was mesmerizing, impossible to ignore.

Julian watched the effect of Desari’s singing on the vampire. The face became gray and drawn, the skin shrinking over the bones until the undead looked like a skeleton. The clothes began to tatter and shred, rotting from his body like his skin. He could no longer keep up the illusion of youth and cleanliness. He looked a thousand years old, decayed, soulless, a parody of a living man. The notes drove him insane, beckoning him with the light of goodness and compassion, the things he had given up along with his soul.

Growling, spitting, fighting every inch of the way, the vampire hissed and dragged itself closer to Julian and death. Still Desari sang. The night air groaned with the effort to support the gathering weight of the owls flying in, settling on branches all around them. Deer, mountain lion, bear, even fox and rabbits, were drawn to the spot, circling the three upright figures.

The vampire covered his ears, grunted oaths, swore vilely, yet his feet continued to drag through the dirt toward Desari. From behind Julian another crawled forward from the bushes. His eyes were red and glowing with hatred. He was staring at Desari, his jagged teeth snapping together, his hot, fetid breath heralding his arrival. He was more ancient, more skilled than the first one, evidently using the other vampire as his pawn to draw out the hunter. He was fighting Desari’s compulsion with every breath in his body.

But he was not the one.

Julian knew immediately that he was dangerous and cunning. There was a ruthless set to the ancient undead’s mouth and something alarming in the way his eyes never left Desari’s face.

Take care not to look at him,

Julian cautioned her, a rush of fear invading his calm confidence. He cursed the fact that she was there, that his senses were divided by such overwhelming emotion—terror for her.

Julian struck without preamble, moving with the speed he was so famous for among his kind. But the vampire was not there. He had somehow broken the spell Desari had woven and was on her before she could move. Julian whirled immediately and went for the second target, his fist slamming into the wall of the chest, driving through muscle, bone, and sinew until he reached the one thing that could destroy the lesser vampire. The corrupt, pulsating heart was in the palm of his hand when he withdrew it from the chest, stepping back quickly from the screaming undead.

The tainted blood spewed everywhere as the vampire insanely spun around in circles before falling to the ground, where he convulsed hideously. Julian was moving again, drawing energy from the lightning arcing from cloud to cloud overhead. The bolt hit the writhing body, incinerating it immediately. The flames then jumped to the heart where Julian had tossed it. In seconds the lesser vampire was nothing more than smoking ashes. And Julian simply vanished as if he had never been.

Desari’s breath slammed out of her lungs when the clawed fingers of the ancient vampire circled her neck. His touch was vile, making her skin crawl. The air around him was foul, and she didn’t want to breathe it. Julian had destroyed the other vampire so quickly she was barely aware he had done so before he dissolved, leaving no trace of himself anywhere. She was completely confident in him. She didn’t stop to think why, but she knew with a certainty beyond anything she had ever known that he had not deserted her.

“Why have you been stalking me, old one?” she inquired softly, using her voice as the weapon it was. The musical notes raked at the evil one.

The vampire flinched and hissed, his poisonous talons pinching her skin in warning. “You will not speak,” he ordered, spitting and growling as the words burst out of him.

“I am sorry,” she replied gently, her voice soft with innocence. She was determined to give Julian every advantage.

The vampire was turning her in every direction, using her slender body as his shield, all the while keeping a razor-sharp talon pressed over her jugular vein. The tip pierced her skin, sending a thin trail of blood trickling down her neck onto the white silk blouse she had donned on shifting. Her captor desperately scanned the forest around them. He could find no trace of Julian.

Above their heads, the owls began to shift their weight. Two of the mountain lions screamed, the human-sounding cries eerie. Other animals paced restlessly, outside the invisible circle Desari had created. Their eyes glowed fiercely as lightning continued to arc among the clouds.

“Your hero has deserted you,” the vampire taunted her, his hate-filled eyes searching the night endlessly.

“You believe that I need him to save me? I am an ancient. I can defend myself. Besides, you do not wish to slay me. You have not stalked me time after time simply to rid the world of my presence.” Her voice was like velvet, the notes musical. “You have challenged two of the most powerful ancients I know to get to me. You would do this and then slay me? I do not think so, old one.”

His fingers tightened around her throat with bruising force, threatening to cut off her air. She laughed softly, tauntingly. “You think to frighten me with your empty threats? Your stench is more likely than your fingers to take my breath from me.”

The undead hissed in her ear, spat curses and threats, but suddenly he screamed, dragging her backward and spinning wildly, attempting to escape the flames erupting all over his rotting clothing and flesh.

The vampire wrenched Desari’s hair cruelly in retaliation for Julian’s unexpected assault. But as he did so, the owls launched themselves from every direction, a hundred strong, talons extended, going directly for the vampire’s glowing eyes. The beating wings created a swirling frenzy of leaves and twigs and pine needles, obliterating sight. Desari ducked as the owls rushed at the vampire’s head. A huge owl, his feathers soaked in blood, materialized out of thin air, strong, curved talons outstretched. They bypassed the vampire’s eyes and went straight for its chest. Even as the talons bore into flesh, the other owls were raking and slashing at the vampire’s face, keeping him howling and off balance, unable to use his power and ancient skills.

Desari dropped to the ground and covered her head, but not one of the birds even scratched her. Julian had orchestrated the battle perfectly, giving the undead no time to harm her. She lay perfectly still, forgetting for the moment that she, too, could disappear. The sound of ripping flesh was terrible, the screams of the vampire unearthly. It wasn’t until his foot touched her that Desari remembered to dissolve into droplets of mist and streak quickly into the safety of the trees. Perched in the top of one tall tree, she turned around and reappeared, biting her lower lip nervously as she watched.

The scene was like something out of a horror film. Darius had always sheltered her from his hunts, as had Julian when he put her into a deep sleep. This was brutal and terrifying. The vampire’s stink of evil intensified; he was deliberately attempting to foul the air, making it impossible for beast or man to breathe. But as hard as the vampire tried, Julian countered every poisonous hiss, bringing forth a cooling wind of fresh air.

The undead was nearly blinded by the owls raking at his eyes. His chest cavity was cracked open and spewing a geyser of tainted blood that seemed to purposefully spray every creature in its path, burning like acid, even killing some of the birds. The animals were closing in tighter and tighter, a ring of restless, hungry beasts aroused to a fever pitch by the spectacle of violence and the smell of fresh blood.

Her gaze was drawn to the huge owl she knew to be Julian, her lifemate, terrible to see in his role as destroyer. Touching his mind tentatively, she discovered he had pushed out all thought of her, was as ruthless and merciless as the most efficient predator. He attacked from every angle, again and again, swift, deadly, wearing down the evil one with every razor-sharp slash, every deep laceration, always driving for the heart.

The vampire had no chance to dissolve and escape, but his claws and tainted blood were doing immeasurable damage. Even in the shape of the owl, Julian was still severely injured by the first vampire’s surprise blow. She could see the feathered creature protecting one side, its wing never spreading its complete span. Desari realized he would have escaped even that blow if his only thought had not been of her. He was incredibly fast, moving like lightning, striking and moving, striking and moving, giving the ancient undead little chance to gather his energy and wield his considerable evil power.

Its howling was terrible to hear. The ugliness of it hurt her ears. She wanted to close her eyes, not see the dead and dying birds, the spray of blood shining black in the moonlight, hissing and sizzling as if it were alive.

She didn’t want to see the grotesque vampire, covered in blood, his straggly wisps of hair greasy with it, his eyes pits of it. The deep gouges on his face added to the horror of his hideous features. He was ragged and torn with a multitude of wounds, yet he refused to go down, refused to acknowledge he had no chance of survival.

On the ground the tainted blood was moving, stretching out across the vegetation to seek a victim. Everywhere it touched, plants withered and blackened in the moonlight. Then Desari realized the blood was following the large owl’s movements, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

The tiny spot where the vampire’s talon had pierced her neck was throbbing and swollen, as if his claw had been dipped in poison. If that tiny wound hurt her, what did Julian feel from his bone-deep slash? She could not imagine it and again she touched his mind, but she found he had blocked all pain so that his entire focus was on destroying the evil one.

Desari wanted to rush forward and gather up all the fallen birds that had aided Julian in the fight with the ancient undead. Wounded as he was, he had no choice but to accept their help, yet she knew instinctively that he would feel sorrow over the destruction of such beautiful creatures.

Her heart ached for Julian, for her brother, for all those who had to fight and destroy a living entity. She knew the undead were wholly evil, that the only thing to do was rid the planet of them, yet those forced to do so risked their lives and, worse, their very souls, while they did so.

Desari attempted to calm herself, so that her mind was not in turmoil, so that it contained only confidence and strength. Then she sent herself into Julian’s mind, giving him the rush of energy her ancient blood and power could supply. She was incapable of killing, could not end a life—compassion ran too deeply in her—but she prayed that she did not impede Julian’s ability to do so.

Julian was grateful for the strength pouring into him. He had suffered tremendous blood loss, and the tainted blood of the vampire contacting his skin through the owl’s feathers was burning deeply into his flesh. Still, he never hesitated but continued his relentless attack, beating back the powerful undead with his talons, driving deeper and deeper into the chest wall. Only when he was beyond the protective muscle and bone did he shape-shift back to his own body, his mind reaching for the remaining owls to release them of the compulsion to attack.

Desari gasped, her hand going to her throat as she saw the blobs of tainted blood on the ground rush together to form a large pool. The blackened liquid began to obscenely form the parody of an arm, then stretched farther into a diabolical, shadowy hand that began to furtively crawl across pine needles and over fallen branches to reach its goal.

Julian, on the ground!

He didn’t respond or acknowledge her warning; he simply faced the vampire calmly. His handsome face was lined with weariness, his golden hair flowing wildly to his shoulders. He stood straight and tall, his shoulders square, his amber eyes gleaming with a kind of fire.

“I bring you the justice of our people, old one. What you have done is a crime against humanity, against the very earth itself. I carry out the sentence pronounced on your kind by the Prince of our people and hope you find mercy in another life as I can give you none here.” The words were soft and gentle, hypnotic and compelling.

Even as the vampire’s body began to contort in a last effort to escape, as the tainted blood came within inches of Julian’s shoes, the Carpathian hunter plunged his hand into the crack in the chest of the undead and extracted the heart. There was a horrible sucking sound as the pulsating organ came out of the shrieking fiend. Julian leapt away from the spray of blood and the grotesque hand reaching for his feet.

The vampire flopped to the ground, tried twice to rise, then began to blindly feel around him, seeking the only thing that could keep him alive. Julian dropped the heart a safe distance from the apparition, who refused to believe he had been defeated.

Desari felt the terrible weariness then, the pain throbbing and burning in Julian’s body. She watched as he gathered the energy from the lightning and directed it first at the heart, then the body of the undead, and lastly into the ground itself, incinerating the dark blood that spread like a stain over the forest floor. Only then did he sink down onto a fallen log. Desari watched in fascination as he called down more glowing light to hold for a moment to cleanse his hands and forearms.

Desari leapt from her high perch and would have run to him, but Julian shook his head and pointed with his good arm toward the forest. Moving slowly but steadily, several humans were heading directly for the ring of restless animals. Desari instantly began to sing, soothing the large animals, releasing them from the enthralling spell she had woven. Growling and snarling, the animals slunk into the forest’s dark interior, away from the group of humans.

“They must have been camping within the sound of my voice,” she told Julian.

“We have much to do this night before we can seek rest,” he replied. “We must find the vampire’s kill and destroy all evidence. This ground must be cleared of any trace of the undead.”

Desari could hear the weariness in his voice, feel it in his mind. His blood loss had been great. “I will take care of those things. You return to our campsite and place yourself in a healing sleep while I complete the tasks.”

A small smile softened the hard edge to Julian’s mouth. “Come here,

piccola. I

need you close to me.” His voice was a velvet heat she couldn’t ignore.

Desari found her feet moving toward him before it registered that she was obeying his soft command. The moment she was within range, his hand snaked out, shackled her wrist, and exerted pressure so that she was forced to sit beside him on the log. “Hold still,

cara,

” he ordered. “The vampire’s claw was tainted. The poison is already moving through your system. I will drive it from your body, and then I must remove the memory of your song from these humans so that their lives will remain unchanged.”

“You need healing far more than I do, Julian,” she protested. “Do not worry about so small a thing as this scratch. We can take care of it later.”

“I will not allow such a thing,” Julian said. “Your health comes before all else. The vampire has been destroyed, but his poison is still lethal. Be still, Desari. I will do this. I know what it is to have the darkness growing and spreading inside, a thing that that cannot be removed. I will not allow such a thing to happen to you.”

She read his determination, wished she could see the source of his grim resolve, but still it was hidden from her. Although she felt foolish having Julian attend such a tiny laceration when he was so badly wounded, Desari didn’t attempt further protest. There would be no changing his mind, and she was not about to waste his time and energy on arguing.

Julian’s golden eyes closed while he centered himself and once more disassociated himself from his own pain and fatigue. He sent himself seeking outside his own body and into hers. He found the foul drops of poison almost immediately. The thick black flecks were growing insidiously, spreading throughout her bloodstream and multiplying. He was light and energy, fire moving swiftly to overtake each and every speck of toxic venom and neutralize it. It was a difficult task. He took care not to overlook the minutest particle, delving into every artery, vein, and organ to ensure she was completely free of any residual toxin that might later grow and spread, causing illness or harm.

When he was finished, he made the journey back into his own body. Desari touched his face with loving, gentle fingers. He was gray and swaying with weariness. She pushed back his hair, her heart aching for him. She could feel the burning of his flesh, of his insides, the gaping wound in his shoulder. “You must rest. Let me do what needs doing.”

Julian shook his head. “You would be a great help to me if you would take care of the humans. I cannot allow you near the remains of the vampire or his victims. You cannot trust the undead, not even in death.”

“He is destroyed, Julian,” she reminded him softly.

“Trust me,

cara mia,

I have dealt with his kind for centuries. Their traps often lie in wait long after they are dead.” He brought her hand to his mouth. “Do as I say, Desari. Help the humans. You do not want them to live the rest of their lives as zombies. Go now. And then go through the air to Darius. Call to him, have him put you in the earth. I will go to ground as soon as I safely can.”

Desari laughed softly at him. “Persist in your fantasies, my love. I am certain they will see you through this difficult time.” She pulled her hand away from his and left him while she went to attend to the group of campers stumbling around the edge of the clearing.

Julian watched her walk away from the scene of brutal death. She looked so serene and beautiful, so untouched by the violence and ugliness surrounding them. He felt his heart lurch, and a curious melting sensation followed. He shook his head in wonder at his luck, pushed back his hair, and stood on shaky legs. He was weak, far weaker than he had allowed Desari to see. The wound in his shoulder was a fiery pain that encompassed his entire chest. He could feel poison spreading throughout his system, and each laceration of his skin throbbed and burned. But he had a duty; he was honor-bound to see to his lifemate first and then remove all signs of the vampire to hide their race from those mortals who would seek to destroy them.

He knelt beside the dead and dying birds. Those already dead he could do nothing about. Those that still lived were suffering. Gathering the live ones to him, he once more sent himself seeking outside his body and into the creatures who had answered the call to help him. No matter how difficult, he would heal every one that he could. Julian had a deep respect for wildlife. He ran with the wolves, soared in the sky with the birds, swam in the waters with the fish, and hunted with jungle cats in Africa. He lived as one with nature, and nature lived within him. Before Desari, wildlife had been his only solace in the long centuries of his existence.

Desari completed the task of masking the hideous scene in the forest from the humans and turned back to see Julian kneeling beside the fallen owls. He looked like a warrior of old, battle-scarred but undefeated. His golden hair flowed around him, blood dripped steadily, his face was set as if in stone, lined with pain and weariness, yet his hands were gentle as they touched the birds, stroked the feathers, and chanted the Carpathian healing ritual in words as old as time itself. She found tears swimming in her eyes. This man who stood so calmly and faced death, who could destroy an enemy mercilessly, ruthlessly, thought first to heal her and then the creatures of the forest. Pride rose in her for this man. She might never understand what his words had done to bind them together, but she was suddenly glad that he had done so. Julian was an exceptional Carpathian male; it was clear to her that he thought of others before he thought of himself.

I might just be falling in love with you.

She brushed the words in his mind, her voice a stroking caress.

Julian didn’t look up at her, but she felt his smug smile.

You already are in love with me,

cara mia.

You are just too stubborn to admit it to yourself. I walk in your mind with you. I know you love me. Keep on fantasizing,

she teased, and turned back to the task at hand, leading the group of humans back toward their campground.

Julian was uneasy with her leaving his sight.

Call me if you feel in any way disturbed. Do not forget the recent trend of vampires traveling together in these parts. And you have now seen for yourself that lesser vampires, those who have recently turned, are often used by the more ancient and skilled undead. You must be very careful. I am beginning to think your lectures are even more tedious than my brother’s,

Desari replied, somewhere between laughter and exasperation as she led the humans away. She was no fledgling to be treated as if she weren’t very bright. Sometimes the males of her race set her teeth on edge.

Julian could not hurry the healing of the owls. Each feathered body had to be entered and healed from the inside out. He tried to push away every thought but becoming energy and light so that he would make no mistakes. Still, he felt guilt for using the beautiful creatures—the price to be paid for once more feeling emotion. Sorrow and guilt over the owls that had lost their lives. Fear for Desari, for the separation forced on them through his own weakness.

Wearily he tossed the last owl into the air and watched the powerful wings lift the bird high so that it soared away. He was swaying now from the tremendous drain on his energy, from the volume of blood he had lost. He desperately needed to go to ground and seek the rejuvenating sleep of his people while the soil healed his body.

Julian turned and surveyed grimly the blackened ground strewn with the owls he could not save. With a sigh he once more called down the lightning from the clouds and sent a bolt slamming to earth to ignite the bodies. When the last of the forest floor was clean, he stepped away from the area to bring up the wind. It whirled around like a small tornado, sweeping ashes high into its funnel and dispersing them in all directions.

Julian shape-shifted slowly, his muscles and sinews protesting, his shoulder shrieking in outrage as he once again compressed his body into the shape of a bird of prey. One wing did not want to move correctly, so it required great concentration and skill to take flight. Once in the air, Julian soared over the forest, seeking the vampire’s recent kill. It, too, was a grim task, and he did not want Desari anywhere near the site. He spotted her with her charges, returning the campers to their tents and motor homes.

He dipped low to ensure no danger threatened her before proceeding up the riverbank away from the main campground. Desari touched his mind with warmth and concern, and he attempted to feel strong and able so she wouldn’t worry. He could feel her compassionate nature, her soft heart a beacon to guide her lifemate back from the edge of predatory madness.

Below him, he smelled the stench of death. He dropped low, and circled the riverbank twice before gliding to earth. He shape-shifted as he landed. At once his body protested again, this time the pain nearly driving him to his knees. He had never been able to abide weakness in himself. Swearing eloquently to himself in the ancient language, he walked to the bodies of two young gold-panners. They lay broken and discarded in the usual messy vampire manner, their faces rigid with terror. These two had seen the undead exposed in all his horror. They were young, not more than twenty-three or twenty-four. Julian shook his head, irritated with himself for not having sensed the ancient’s presence earlier. Ordinarily, no vampire could approach within miles of him without his knowledge. His emotions were so new and intense, colors so vivid, desires so compelling, he felt almost blinded. He certainly had been occupied with his lifemate and his own needs instead of what was happening around him.

Desari?

He touched her mind gently, needing to know she was not in any danger.

Everything here is taken care of, Julian. Shall I come to you?

Her voice was a soothing breath of fresh air in his head.

No!

His warning was sharp.

Do not,

cara.

Go to the others and the bus, and I will meet you there.

He was grateful for the beauty of her voice and longed to be away from the sight of evil and death, back in her presence, where he would find comfort.

She withdrew without argument, sensing his weariness, knowing he was hiding the true extent of his injuries from her. She fed, certain he would need blood, but took care to use only women. The last thing she needed was for her lifemate to go berserk on her.

Julian, still a shadow in her mind, found himself smiling at her thoughts. He might be too weary to go berserk at this precise moment, but he was grateful she was considerate of his feelings. He incinerated the human bodies and blew their ashes over a large area, leaving their camp scorched and blackened, as if it had taken a bolt of lightning in a ferocious storm. The authorities would never find the bodies, and would perhaps presume the campers had drowned, the currents carrying them off. Julian felt for the families, but he could leave no evidence of the vampire’s handiwork or tainted blood to be analyzed by some human coroner. Protecting his race was top priority. He had no other choice. He took one last look around to assure himself he had done all he could to hide any evidence of the undead. Satisfied, he began to walk toward their own campsite.