Christine Feehan - Dark Demon 16

«Betrayal is never easy to handle and there is no right way to accept it. It doesn't matter now. We are going to be okay.»

Natalya was silent for a long time. He could hear the beat of her heart begin to accelerate. She turned her face up to his, one hand reaching back to catch him around the neck as she looked into his eyes. «Exchange blood with me.»

His own heart began to pound wildly, matching the rhythm of hers. «I thought we were not going to take any chances that you can't access the memories of the knife.»

«If I won't be able to find the book, neither will they. Neither side will have it and that's probably a good thing. Anything Xavier made and sealed with the blood of three magical species is no doubt powerful, deadly and too dangerous for anyone to try to wield.»

Vikirnoff took a deep breath and let it out. There it was. Total commitment. There would be no going back once she converted. She was tied to him now, but that last step, that important difference would seal her to him and his kind for all time. He wanted her to choose that path for herself. Not to escape from who she was.

«Natalya…» What could he say? He could deny her nothing, especially now when pain was her world and she was so shattered. «If we do not know where the book is, how can it be protected? What if they find a psychic woman with your talent to help them find the book? We need to destroy it.»

«How can we destroy the book? If it could have been destroyed so easily, then my father would have done so.»

«You have a good point. I do not know the answer to that, Natalya, but I think all Carpathians would sleep better knowing our prince had the care of the book rather than

knowing it was floating around somewhere the vampires could find it.»

«What if the book corrupts those who touch it? Power corrupts.»

«That is something we do not have to think about yet, Natalya. The truth is, you want to exchange blood with me not because you are committed to me, to our relationship, but because you believe something is wrong with you.»

The gentleness in his voice made her want to weep and she turned her face away from his so he wouldn't see tears glittering in her eyes. «It isn't what you think.»

«It is, ainaak enyem, you think your blood is tainted and you wish to escape from it. Not all of the mages were evil. Most were kind and intelligent and so generous. Our people were friends. Even Xavier, at one time, was well respected and a tremendous help to all who sought his advice. You said yourself power can corrupt. I do not know how it happened, but it was not the blood running through his veins.»

She pulled out of his arms and made her way to the small waterfall, catching the water in her hand to rinse her mouth. She was still so cold. She couldn't seem to find warmth in spite of the natural heat in the cave.

Vikirnoff could feel her anguish and cursed his own inadequacy at taking her pain from her. There was no way to ease betrayal, no way to kiss and make her better. His throat was raw with the need to help her, but he couldn't undo this terrible tragedy.

«Maybe it wasn't his blood, Vikirnoff, but I'm tied to them. They invaded my mind. My mind. They removed memories and planted stories. They traded on my love for my brother and corrupted my good memories of him.» She ran her hand over her ankle again. «And they put parasites in my body. I don't want them to know me. I don't want them to ever crawl inside my mind again.»

He stood up and followed her across the chamber. «The conversion will change your entire life.»

She stepped into the heat of the pool. The water felt hot on her icy skin. Even her insides felt ice cold. She hoped the heat of the springs would stop her shivering. «My entire life has already changed.» She held out her hand to him. «For the better.» A faint smile rose up unexpectedly. «I've decided you're trainable.»

His eyebrow shot up as he stepped into the pool beside her. «Trainable?»

She nodded. «You can't possibly think you're going to get away with bossing me, right? So once you're past the fact that I'm always right, we'll get along just fine.»

He shook his head. «You are impossibly optimistic for your chances.» He pulled her down into the water with him so that she was tucked in close beneath his shoulder.

«Chances of what?» Her head felt too heavy and she leaned it against his chest.

«Of being right. I am one of those obnoxious people who know everything. You think I am bossy, but in fact, I am merely directing you when you start to go off track.»

«And you expect me to thank you, I suppose, for your brilliant direction.»

«I have many ways in mind for you to show your appreciation.»

«I'll just bet you do.» She rubbed her ankle beneath the water. «This is never going to come off, is it? It's part of my skin now.»

«I do not know. I am not really a healer, although I can perform basic healing skills. When Gregori returns we can have him take a look at it. If he cannot remove the mark, we can seek out Francesca. She is in Paris and is said to be amazing.»

«Is it possible the conversion would remove it?»

His hand slipped beneath the water to circle her ankle. «I wish I knew. I doubt it, Natalya. You are very different from any other I have known. I do not know what the conversion would do to you. I do not believe it will take away your skills as a mage. Rhiannon possessed more talent than most wizards. You must have received that from her as well as from the mage blood to make you so powerful. It is no wonder Xavier wanted your blood.»

Natalya's eyes met his. «Razvan wouldn't allow it.»

Vikirnoff's strong fingers moved over her ankle in a soothing massage.

Natalya began to relax again, the hard knot in her stomach easing. When had Vikirnoff become someone she could feel peace with? She slid her hand over his belly, without sexual intent, but needing to feel his body beneath her fingertips. «Do you think I could have held out against Xavier? If I had been the one to visit him instead of Razvan? If Xavier took my blood?» She would not call him grandfather. «Do you think Razvan could have been saved?»

«There is no way of knowing.»

She looked so distraught, so different from her confident, sassy self that his heart shifted with pain. Vikirnoff touched her mind to read her, needing to know how to help her. Natalya possessed a will of iron. Her brother was her twin. They thought alike. They protected one another. They had lived through harrowing times even as young teens and found a way to survive without adult guidance.

Vikirnoff looked into her heart and found her shaken all the way to her soul.

Razvan had honorably chosen to give his blood to Xavier, He had successfully deceived

his grandfather into believing he was the one with the superior skills in magick, when it was really Natalya. They had carried out an elaborate deception and Razvan was often punished when Natalya couldn't complete experiments and pass the information on fast enough to her brother. She had hidden in safety while her brother had taken all the risks and now, after all of his sacrifices, she couldn't bear to think she hadn't been there to save him as he had saved her. She hadn't been there for him and he'd turned to evil. Her guilt was soul-consuming, a terrible burden he felt penetrating his own soul.

She looked up, her gaze locking with his. «Is there a way to get him back? Can we undo the damage done to him?»

«Natalya…» There was a warning note in his voice. «He has Carpathian blood running in his veins. There is every possibility that he is now part vampire. I never thought vampires would ever join forces, but they have. And your brother is in league with them. Maxim and his brothers are arrogant and believe they should be ruling the world. I think that both Xavier and Razvan feel they should be the rulers and they have united with the vampires in the hopes of gaining control of everything. The vampires are using your experiment to recognize one another, those participating in this conspiracy. I found the parasites first in my brother's lifemate's blood. She had been taken as a child and converted by a vampire. She was able to defeat him, but her blood called to the others. That's how they identify the members of the conspiracy, those with the parasites in their blood. It has to be that.» He gentled his tone. «You know Razvan is lost to you.»