Christine Feehan - Dark Demon 16

«You already suspect.»

«Your bone marrow was taken when your ankle was punctured. Your own stem cells were used; that's how it was done, wasn't it?» Gabrielle asked. «All potential immune system rejection is eliminated because any material cloned from the host will be host's exact genetic match.»

Jubal held up his hand. «Wait a minute. What are you saying? Someone attacked her and scooped up her stem cells to clone her skin? I thought you could only use embryonic stem cells for that kind of thing.»

«No.» Gabrielle shook her head, but she was watching Natalya closely. «The latest research tells us adult stem cells work just as well and, of course, one of the most successful sources of stem cells is bone marrow.»

«This is just bizarre. Why would anyone want to do that to you? Just to mark you? I can't buy that when the technology has to be very sophisticated,» Jubal argued.

«It's my technology.» Natalya's voice was very low.

«What?» Jubal demanded.

«It was my idea, my experiment. I was given challenges all the time, things to accomplish through a blend of science and other skills I have. I had to find a way to inject

microorganisms into a host without detection of the parasites and without rejection at the site.» She stared down at her hands. «I did this. The vampires can mark people, track them through the parasites.»

«How are the microorganisms injected into the body?» Jubal asked.

«Through the hand, although I didn't do anything so dramatic as branding a hand onto anything. It works on the same principle as a mosquito bite.» Natalya rested her head against the wall and wiped at the small beads of sweat dotting her forehead. She had known the moment Vikirnoff explained to her what was going on in her leg. Her own research had been used against her. «The parasites are injected into the host. The thing is this. I wasn't simply experimenting with putting parasites undetected into a body, I was using those parasites as weapons. I was able to bind highly dangerous chemicals to the parasite. I was able to bind several different things to the parasite and get it into a host undetected.»

Jubal looked at Gabrielle. «Is this possible?»

Gabrielle nodded. «Yes, of course it is. The research into stem cell and grafting and even binding chemicals onto microorganisms is very advanced. Yes, it can be done.»

«How would the vampires get ahold of my research?» Natalya asked the question out loud. She had no idea why she hadn't confessed to Vikirnoff when she told two perfect strangers, but somehow it had been much easier.

There was a small silence. Gabrielle sighed softly. «Where did you do your research, Natalya, and why haven't I heard of you? This is a field I'm very interested in and I keep up with all the latest.»

Natalya hesitated. Her body was rocking back and forth without her knowledge again and when she became aware of it she wrapped her arms around her knees tightly in an effort to regain control.

«I don't remember a lot of things about my past. There are gaps, but I love knowledge and when told to do challenges, I couldn't resist.» Especially if it meant Razvan wouldn't be harmed. How could she explain her life?

It didn't make sense to her, and with the gaps in her memory she couldn't figure it all out.

«Who knew about your research?»

«I don't know.»

There was another silence. Natalya read the suspicion in their eyes and couldn't blame them. «Obviously someone who betrayed me to the vampires. Which means someone I know is in league with them.» Her grandfather. It had to be Xavier. She couldn't remember him ordering the experiments, but from her dreams she knew Razvan protected her and she tried to protect him. Even after accessing the crystal globe, she couldn't remember what

Xavier looked like. And that was truly frightening.

She rubbed her hands up and down her arms in an effort to warm up. «Are you cold? Is it cold in here?» She was shaking she was so cold. The tiger was rising in an effort to protect her, to keep her from being so agitated, and it was looking for a target.

Natalya dug her fingers into the floor of the bedroom, nails gouging the wood before she could stop herself. She wanted to weep again, to claw at something until the wild grief in her was gone forever. It was sharp and terrible and took over when she least expected it. Even the tigress was weeping, deep inside, a stark loneliness that seemed to eat her from the inside out. The wood came off the floor in long narrow strips. She looked down at the slender splinters with horror.

«Maybe you should go. I'm not certain it's safe anymore. I seem to be having a very difficult time.» She swallowed the lump in her throat that was threatening to choke her. «This lifemate business is very uncomfortable.»

Jubal nodded. «So I've heard. He's really asleep, healing in the ground. He isn't dead, you know.»

«Intellectually I know he's not dead. And right now, I don't even like him all that much, but my mind needs to touch his for reassurance. He said some words, like a binding spell and I could feel the difference immediately. Even if you don't believe in that sort of thing, which I do, the binding works. I'm working on a way to reverse it.»

Gabrielle's eyebrow shot up. «You think there's a way to reverse it? I thought lifemates wanted to be together. You don't want to be with Vikirnoff?»

Natalya opened her mouth to emphatically deny it. Of course she didn't want to be with him and he certainly didn't want to be with her. It was a chemistry thing. Lust maybe. She loved kissing him. But to spend her life with him? For eternity? Did she want that? With a man who wanted June Cleaver?

She was so distracted by her fears for Vikirnoff, she nearly missed the footsteps stopping outside her door. Natalya held up her hand for silence and inched her gun closer to her. Jubal took the knife.

The knock on the door was tentative. «Natalya. It's Slavica with your nightly chocolate.»

Not cans of hairspray. Chocolate. Natalya didn't order chocolate on a nightly basis. She signaled Gabrielle to go into the bathroom and Jubal to stand to the left of the door. She took the right, gun rock-steady and every trace of agitation gone.

Chapter 12

«Please come in, Slavica,» Natalya called out. «Can you get the door?»

«Yes, I have my key.» Which was unusual. Slavica would never enter a guest's room uninvited. She would knock and expect the guest to open the door.

Natalya inhaled. Brent Barstow. She'd known all along he was something other than a guest. He was too observant and he'd visited her room once, which meant he was either a very creepy pervert, or he was up to no good.

The key turned in the lock and Slavica pushed the door open. Heavy drapes covered the windows and doors, and night was falling. Natalya knew it would take a moment or two for eyes to adjust from the brightly lit hall to the dark of her room. Slavica stepped into the room carrying a tray with a steaming mug on it. Her eyes were red-rimmed and there was a faint bruise on her cheek. Anger flashed through Natalya and she pushed down the tigress before it could rise and wreak vengeance.

Directly behind Slavica, Brent Barstow followed her, matching pace for pace, the muzzle of his gun pressed tightly against her neck. Natalya swung the door closed and pressed the muzzle of her gun against his neck. «Here's the thing, my man, I've had a really bad day. You don't even want to know about my day. And I think I'm PMSing on top of everything else. That's just wrong, you know? I'm betting that you care more about your own life than I do about a total stranger's life. What do you think?»

«You're not going to pull that trigger,» Brent said.

«Actually, I want to pull the trigger. You threatened the innkeeper; it's not like I'm going to get in a lot of trouble. Take a look around my room, darlin'. Do I look like a sane chick to you?» She jammed the muzzle harder into his neck. «Cuz, I'm not. Quite sane that is. I like blowing things up.»