Christine Feehan: Dark Descent (Dark Series - Book 11)

“Really? You just sort of stumbled in blindfolded, did you? An interesting way to explore caves. Where am I? I’d like to come back here.”

It was his turn to arch his eyebrow. “You floated through the air blindfolded?”

She grinned at him. “I do that sometimes when I don’t want to be wherever I am. A bad habit.”

Her form shimmered and her smile faded. “They’re doing something nasty to me, I can’t hold the projection.”

He sat up, bit back a groan as the embers beneath his skin burned fiercely. “Do not go yet.”

“I’m sorry.” She looked down at her arm, looked back at him, tears swimming in her eyes. “They’re cleaning my wound. It hurts like a bear.”

And then she was gone. Just that fast. Vanishing without a trace. He sat there alone in the dark of the cave, astonished at how life could change in the blink of an eye. She was real. Her psychic abilities were strong. He had shared her space, shared her mind, and the path was imprinted on his brain. She would not escape him.

Traian lay back and waved his hand to close the soil over him, stilling his heart, his breath, allowing the song of the earth to send him into a deep, healing sleep.

“You’re losing it, Joie, there’s nothing here.” Gabrielle Sanders sank gracefully to the ground and drew up her knees as she regarded her sister with cool gray eyes. “Stop making yourself crazy and enjoy the view. It’s breathtaking up here. You’ve been in a frenzy for hours now.” Tipping her head back, she stared up at the sky. “We’ve been climbing forever. If you were going to find anything, you would have done so by now.”

“I’m not losing my mind, Gabrielle,” Joie insisted. “I’ve already lost it.”

There was a sudden silence. The wind paused. A hawk screamed as it missed its prey. Gabrielle exchanged a long look with her brother, Jubal. They both stared at their younger sister. She seemed focused entirely on the rock surface she was studying. “Well, that’s a relief,” Gabrielle replied, laughing. “All this time I thought I was the abnormal one.”

Joie let her breath out slowly. She knew she was acting crazy, almost out of control. What was she going to tell Gabrielle and Jubal? That she really had lost her mind some weeks ago and this was a last-ditch effort to hold on to her sanity? That she wasn’t joking, and she belonged locked up somewhere on heavy medication?

What are you doing?

The voice came out of nowhere, unexpectedly as it always did, catching her by surprise. Masculine. Sometimes amused. Sometimes teasing. Always alluring. She tried not to hear it. Tried not to respond. But she could never help herself. She always talked to him. Laughed with him. Wanted him. In spite of the beauty of his voice, this time he sounded infinitely weary, strained, as if he were in pain.

“Come on, I’m so close to the entrance I should be able to see it. Jubal,” Joie appealed to her brother, “you know I’m right. I’m always right. There’s a network of caves, most of them unexplored, and we’re right on top of it.” Joie was certain she’d already begun her descent into madness. She’d rather be with that voice in her head than with any real person in the world. She lived to hear that voice. She thought about him day and night, was consumed by him. Joie lifted her chin.

I’m proving you don’t exist so I can get over you. I have a list of would-be lovers a mile long, and I’d like to have a little fun for a change. Now is not the time. Get out of here. It is dangerous. Of course you would say that. You don’t want me to know you aren’t real. Look, honey, it’s been fun, but we have to break up. I can’t have a mythical lover, even if you’re an awesome lover in my dreams. A girl wants to have the real thing once in a while. It isn’t like I can introduce you to my family. Hey, guys, this is my invisible pal, Traian. He has a name like a locomotive, but that’s my fantastic imagination. Traian is a very old and respected name. Go away from here, Joie. I will not comment on your name, as it would be considered extremely rude. Comment away, ‘Traian. You’re not real and neither is this conversation, so insult me all you want.

“You’re always looking down when you should be looking up, Joie,” Gabrielle said with a sigh. “If you reach straight up, you might be able to catch a cloud. Have you even noticed the flowers? They’re gorgeous. I wish I knew what they were called. For once in your life, think of something besides caves.” She waved her arms to encompass the countryside. “This is Dracula country. If you’d forget your obsession with caves, we might be able to explore the old castles for a change.”

The flowers that are pink with a yellow middle are called Tratina. The white daisies are Marguarete. I cannot remember offhand what the blue ones are called, but it will come to me. Are you eavesdropping on our conversation? You are thinking loudly. And denying my existence, which seems to be a habit of yours lately.

Joie gave a little sniff. He was a figment of her imagination and he knew the names of the flowers. “Gabrielle, the pink ones are Tratina, and the white daisies are Marguarete. I have no idea what the blue ones are called.”

“You’re a walking encyclopedia,” Gabrielle said, impressed.

Jubal stared at the wild countryside surrounding them, on either side and below. There were many deep gorges and several caves. Green valleys and plateaus made the view breathtaking. Below them, in the heavier depressions, water had soaked the ground, causing peat bogs. There were vivid green beds of moss and numerous shallow ponds winding their way around stands of birch and pine. It was magical, and yet Jubal was uneasy. The air was crisp and cold and the sky seemed clear, yet a strange mist covered the surfaces above them. At times he thought something moved in the mist, something alive and terrifying.

“Joie, give it up and let’s get out of here,” he said. “This place feels haunted to me. I don’t like the vibes.”

Gabrielle turned her head. “Really?” She arched a winged brow at him. “That’s strange, Jubal, I feel the same way. Like we shouldn’t be here, or that we’re intruding in some way. Do you suppose it’s all the vampire stories we were listening to at the inn last night? Normally, creepy stories are amusing, but I definitely feel apprehensive.” She raised her voice. “What about you, Joie? Does this place give you the creeps?”

“We came here to explore the caves,” Joie said firmly. “We’re always very respectful when we go spelunking, so there’s no reason to be nervous. I know the opening is here; I’m so close to it.” She walked carefully around an outcropping of the mountain, stepping over her brother’s outstretched legs without even glancing at him. “The entrance is here, I know it is,” she muttered.

The others feel the threat of the vampires. You must go, Joie. Oh, now you’re going to tell me you believe in vampires. I just picked up that thought from Gabrielle. You aren’t real, so be quiet and stop trying to frighten me away. I’m not leaving until I know for certain. You already know; you just cannot admit the truth. I am trapped and will not be able to rescue you should you come upon them.

“Rescue me?” Joie nearly shouted the words, her dark eyes flashing with indignation. She turned her head to smile in reassurance at her brother and sister.

Gabrielle and Jubal exchanged a long, amused glance, used to Joie and her ramblings when she was on the scent of a new cave. Few people were as adept as their sister at discovering magical worlds below the surface.

Rescue me?

She hissed it into his mind.