Dark Nights

Chapter Ten

Joie dreamt of a hot, moist mouth pulling strongly at her breast, of hands stroking her body. Of lips traveling down her bare skin to her navel, swirling kisses and teasing bites over her stomach. Hands on her thighs tugging her legs apart. She was already damp with invitation.

She opened her eyes as the waves of sensation burst through her like a gift. The wealth of Traian’s silky dark hair slid over her skin, the sight more erotic than she had ever imagined. His fingers moved inside her, found secret ways to shimmer fire through her veins. And then his tongue took the place of his hands, stabbing deep, tasting and teasing and stroking her until she was crying with joy and her body no longer belonged to her. Wave after wave, orgasm after orgasm rippled through her body, so that she bucked and jumped as he held her firmly, his mouth devouring her, claiming her, feeding her sheer pleasure.

She clenched her fists in his hair, holding on while she took the wild ride, while the earth moved and her body shattered into fragments. He took possession of her then, kneeling above her, dragging her hips to him, thrusting deep with powerful strokes while she came over and over in a mind-numbing climax that seemed endless. He was everywhere, in her body, in her mind, their hearts beating in the same rhythm. She could feel the intensity of his emotions, a tidal wave of longing and love, of absolute need and hunger, of caring and loyalty, far more than she could understand, but real all the same.

Traian loved the way Joie clung to him as his body rode out the storm of roiling emotions, each thrust deeper and harder in a fierce, possessive joining. Thunder roared in his ears, lightning sang in his blood, fire raged in his belly until the conflagration merged together at the core of his body. Her feminine sheath was fiery hot, tight and velvet soft, the friction an unbelievable sensation. He tilted her hips, wanting her to take all of him, wanting to crawl inside her body, his home, his sanctuary after several lifetimes of loneliness. He wanted to give her the world, wanted her body to feel the same flames of passion and pleasure that she ignited in him.

He felt her muscles clench around him, the gathering of a great force. He threw back his head, allowed his body to explode with volcanic intensity, thrusting deep, taking her with him, holding her close as they burst into sunlight, the only time he could ever embrace such a thing.

Traian buried his face in her neck and breathed her in. It was early for him to rise, but he had to see her before he went hunting. He had been handed an unexpected miracle and he wasn’t about to lose her. “I used to think the word ‘forever’ was the worst word in any language. And now, I cannot imagine enough time with you.”

“I feel the same way,” Joie admitted.

His shifted her in his arms, pressed her body to the length of his. “Never go away,” he whispered in her ear. “Never leave me to face the endless years alone again.”

Joie brushed back the long silk of his hair, framed his face with her hands, and stared up at him—at the lines etched into his beautiful masculine features, put there by battles and years of knowledge of foul things walking the earth. Put there by sheer loneliness. “I want you always, Traian. We’ll find our way together.”

She shattered his heart so easily with her complete conviction. She had confidence in herself and in him.

“I should have really made you understand about our children and what our women have to go through in trying to have a baby. It has taken a toll on them—one miscarriage after another or carrying the child and loosing it that first year. It is so hard on a mother.” He shook his head. “I know I am asking so much of you, Joie, and when I think too much about it, it breaks my heart to think of you going through that same emotional loss.”

“I wouldn’t be going through the loss of a child alone, Traian. If I get pregnant, I believe you would feel the same sense of loss. We’d be in it together.”

“I don’t want that kind of pain for you.”

She smiled at him. “I can feel that you genuinely don’t, but no one can predict what is going to happen in the future, not even an all-powerful Carpathian. Because your prince’s wife miscarried, as sad as that is, doesn’t mean I will if we are lucky enough to become pregnant.”

“I will be more careful in the future to explain details to you, so you know what you are getting into,” he promised.

He leaned toward her, kissing her gently, with exquisite tenderness, with the overwhelming love in his heart that he couldn’t quite put into words but tried to show by worshiping her with his body. He kissed her over and over, long, slow kisses, his body locked deep inside hers, his hands tunneling in her thick hair. His mouth roamed over her throat, down to her breast, and found her heart unerringly.

Joie felt the swirl of his tongue, and her heart leapt in anticipation. Her body tightened around his. White-hot pain lanced through her, and then gave way immediately to pleasure. She cradled his head to her while he fed, while his body moved slowly and erotically deep within her. The sensation was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. He was in his body, in her mind, filling every empty space with—him while he took her blood, bringing her ever closer to his world.

She writhed helplessly beneath him, arching her hips up to meet him, her breasts aching and full with need. When his hand cupped the weight of one breast, his thumb sliding over the taut peak of her nipple, she pressed his head closer to her, offering more—offering everything she was to him.

Joie could hear her heart picking up the exact same rhythm of his. Her blood pounded in her veins, rushing toward him, hot and carrying the very scent and taste of her to him, matching the hammering beat of his blood. It should have been frightening, even disgusting, having him take her blood, but for her, the act was sensual.

Traian closed his eyes, savoring the taste of her, the craving for her growing as power and energy rushed through his body, soaking into every cell, sinew, and bone, filling him up with such strength he knew she completed him. She’d given him so much just by being born, being in his world, surrendering herself to save him. The gift was a miracle to him.

He swept his tongue across the pinpricks, tasted the temptation of her breast before finding her mouth to share the taste of their life’s essence. He took his time, his tongue thoroughly exploring her mouth, teasing and dancing and mating with hers.

“Come into my world, Joie. Another step closer,” he murmured in his dark, mesmerizing voice, a seductive invitation, she couldn’t possibly resist—nor did she want to.

This time she was locked in a dreamy haze, aware of his body’s sensations as she moved restlessly, wantonly under him. As her mouth moved against his chest, taking his precious gift, his fingers stroked her throat, her breast, keeping the intimacy between them sensual, as well as helping her to feed. His body thickened inside her, moved with greater force and purpose. She felt the now familiar flames, hot and white and pure, burning in his veins, pulsing through him even as they crackled with life, pulsing through her.

She was overjoyed to be able to bring him such pleasure, so much happiness. She wanted to be fully in his world, with him just like this, so close she couldn’t tell where he ended and she began. She moved more aggressively until he was surging into her with strength and power, until she felt the gathering of every nerve ending, every muscle, and the flow of blood, until they soared together higher than ever.

I want more time with you. I want to touch your body and know it the way you know mine. I want to see the things you’ve seen and make you feel the way you’ve made me feel, she whispered into his mind.

“We have time,” he said. “All the things you fantasize about, all the things that matter to you—we have time for everything.” Very gently he stopped her feeding, closing the slash across his chest. He laid her on the bed, his hands gentle, loving, stroking her bare skin while he brought her fully out of the enthrallment.

Joie blinked up at him. “That’s twice,” she said. “I’m that much closer to being in your world.” She touched his face with gentle fingers. “I’ve fallen pretty hard for you, Traian.”

He knew what she was saying. She was fully committed and just that little bit scared that somehow he would change his mind about her. There was no way to adequately explain the concept of lifemates when she lived in a human world where divorce seemed a way of life. It would be absolutely impossible to leave a true lifemate.

“You are not alone, Joie,” he assured. “I had no idea emotions could be so intense, but when I look around me, I can see only you. You are truly the light to my darkness.”

She sent him a small, tentative smile, rolling onto her side, propping up her head with one hand. “I don’t know about that. I doubt if either of my siblings would ever call me light to anyone’s darkness.”

“I guess they do not see you as I do.”

“You guess right.”

Traian gave a sigh of regret. “I have to go, Joie. It is almost sunset. I have to find at least one of the master vampire’s lairs before he rises.”

“Do you have an idea where to look?” She traced first his face, and then his mouth with her fingertips, committing his face to memory with each caressing stroke.

“I hope they did not leave the cave. They were so reluctant to leave it before, but we had not discovered the mage traps. It is a dangerous place to be, even for the undead—maybe especially for the undead.”

“Promise me that you’ll contact me if you run into any trouble.” She looked him straight in the eye, insisting on the truth.

“You are my lifemate, Joie. If I run into trouble, you will know.” He bent his head to kiss her. Slowly. Lingering over it. Pouring his heart and soul into it.

Her mouth went dry the moment he stepped away from her. She sat all the way up and reached for a blanket, holding it to comfort her. “Traian, it’s difficult to let you go alone.”

“I know it is, sivamet—my love, and I thank you for your understanding. I know allowing me to hunt alone is against your nature, but truly, you and your brother and sister are in great danger here. It is just as difficult for me to leave you unguarded when I know danger is close. Your scents still linger in the cave and the undead can hunt using scent alone. Do not think for one moment that you are not hunted.”

“Here? Surrounded by everyone in the village? Are they really that bold?”

“Vampires are very vengeful creatures. And they use humans to do their bidding. Anyone is a potential enemy.”

“I have a lot to learn about vampires,” Joie sighed. “All the training I’ve been through and my experiences on my job don’t seem to count for much in dealing with them.”

He caught her chin and kissed her again. When he stepped back, he was fully clothed, looked immaculate and a little bit lethal. “I removed the safeguards at your door so your siblings can enter without worry, but those at your windows remain. I will return as soon as possible.”

Just that fast, Traian was gone. Joie lay back on the sheets, staring up at the ceiling, her heart pounding in fear for him. He was gone, slipping out through the window, a cloud of vapor streaming into the air. It wasn’t yet sunset, but she felt as if the sun had gone down on her world.

Nothing can happen to you, she whispered into his mind. I would never forgive myself for letting you do this alone.

I can see I will have to impart my knowledge of hunting the undead as quickly as possible to you. It really is difficult for you to be left behind when there is danger surrounding me. Think of your siblings, Joie. They have great need of you.

Joie pressed her hand to her heart in an attempt to control the wild pounding. She took a deep breath to steady herself. This wasn’t just about him going off alone to fight. Dread built fast. Had she not been touching his mind, she knew she would have thought him dead to her. Sorrow lurked just behind the dread.

It is only the effects of our connection. I am with you. Feel with your mind as a Carpathian must. It takes time to learn our ways, I know, but I cannot have you suffering grief when I am alive and well and able to reach out to you.

Determined to combat her growing sorrow, when there was no real reason for it, Joie sat up. It is amazing how intense the feeling is. And it is a little frightening to think that emotion is stronger than logic. I know where you are, yet I still have such a need to touch you—to feel you in my mind. It makes no sense.

The terrible need inside of her didn’t make sense. Joie considered herself a very logical woman. She didn’t like this out-of-control feeling, a dark dread that stole her good sense and her ability to reason. She lifted her chin. There were changes taking place in her body and mind, but that didn’t mean she would give in to melancholy.

I’ll be perfectly fine, Traian. You worry about yourself. I’ll hang with Jubal and Gabrielle while you’re gone, she assured him. I’m strong and can get through this. Don’t you worry about me, just take care of yourself.

Stay close to Gary as well. He knows both the undead and my people.

Joie did the mental equivalent of rolling her eyes. As if. Traian, you’re going to have to get over your outdated attitude toward women. It must be your age. Gary is the one who needs protection. He lives in another world, just like Gabrielle, I can see it in him. He’s more at home in a lab than fighting vampires.

But he knows the ways of the undead and how best to combat them. Stay close to him.

Joie clenched her teeth. She was never going to be the little woman, hiding behind the big brave man. If that’s the kind of woman you want, you started something you never should have.

She felt a stroking caress along her face—feather-light—the gentle touch of fingers, yet he was no longer close to the inn.

I know exactly who you are, Joie, and what you are capable of. I do not mean to make you feel as if I don’t think you can handle yourself. I know you will not panic and that you will fight the undead without hesitation. I am merely saying stay safe and keep the person who has been around Carpathian hunters close while I am gone. That makes sense, does it not?

Of course it made sense. She didn’t have to like it, did she? Nor did she want to let go of her irritation, not with the strange grief of separation edging so close to her.

You might have mentioned your archaic attitude and your stubbornness when you were being so blasted charming a few minutes ago.

His soft laughter echoed through her mind. You might have warned me I was going to be dealing with a modern female who is determined to get herself into dangerous situations.

The teasing in his tone warmed her—settled her. She took a deep breath and let it out. She knew he had to go without her in his mind. The vampires could detect him through his connection with her.

Just do whatever you have to do and return home safe to me.

Again she felt that feather-light brushing caress along her face. She placed her palm over the invisible mark, holding him close to her as his mind slipped from hers. At once she felt bereft, as though instead of mist streaming through the sky toward the caves, Traian lay beneath the earth dead to her. She was astonished at the strength of emotion pouring into her mind, once he was actually away from her.

Determined not to give in to the strange reaction to their separation, Joie took a long, hot shower. It was nearly impossible to stand beneath the cascading water without thinking of Traian, but she concentrated on pushing him out of her mind enough to figure out how to tell her parents that she was essentially married—and to someone not quite human.

Her father was accepting of everything his children did and was a very tolerant man. Her mother was fiercely protective of her children and loved them very much. Her family was her world. It had been her mother who insisted all of them take self-defense lessons almost from the time they could walk. Her father had been the climber of mountains and delved deep into the caves around the world. He had taught them a love of nature.

Joie sighed. Her mother wasn’t going to welcome Traian. She had a major problem with alpha males, bristling the moment they walked into the room—almost as if she had radar. She’d been particularly hard on Jubal as they’d grown up.

She found she could hear conversations whispered in the rooms around her and even as far away as people moving in the sitting room. It took some practicing to turn down the volume, but not before she heard her sister and brother walking down the hall to her door. The cursory knock didn’t at all surprise her, but the sound of a tool scratching in the lock did. She tensed and eased one hand out of the shower enough to grip her weapon until she recognized her sister’s scent as she stuck her head in the bathroom.

“What are you doing, you crazy woman?” Joie demanded. “Were you hoping to get a peek at my man? That’s grounds for shooting you.”

“Ha! You wouldn’t you know. And hurry up. Jubal and I are getting tired of waiting for you two. And you’d better not be doing anything perverted in that tiny little shower stall.” She sounded more hopeful than anything else.

“How did you get into my room, you peeping Tom?” Joie threw a wet washcloth with deadly accuracy. “It was locked.”

Gabrielle squealed when the cloth hit her square in the face. “I’m picking up your bad habits and wanted to show off.” She sounded a little smug. “You aren’t the only one who can pick a lock. In any case, Jubal double-dog dared me. What else could I do?”

“Pretend you’re discreet while I’m trying to land a man. Sheesh, Gabby, he’s going to think we’re all a pack of perverts. You don’t have to accept every one of Jubal’s juvenile challenges.”

“You do,” Gabrielle pointed out, not in the least repentant.

“He only does that to make Mom crazy,” Joie said.

“Are you in there alone? Because I don’t want to see any naked bodies.”

Joie let out a little sniff. “Then what are you doing in here, trying to see through the steam. I’m naked, if you want to know, but Traian already went back to the cave.”

Gabrielle sighed. “I’ve already seen you naked and it’s nothing to get too excited about, but that man of yours is drop-dead gorgeous. I don’t know about this Carpathian business. He likes to be underground so much, he could very well be a troll. What are you going to tell Mom and Dad?” This time there was glee in Gabrielle’s voice.

“I’ve been rehearsing,” Joie admitted. She emerged from the stall, wrapped in a bath sheet. “It has occurred to me to lie to them. And I thought you preferred skinny men. I saw you ogling Gary last night.”

“I don’t ogle,” Gabrielle sniffed indignantly. “I never ogle. I just thought he was rather on the cute side. And you weren’t looking close enough. He’s not skinny, he has plenty of muscle, just not obscenely sticking out everywhere.” She sighed heavily, frowning. “I wish I was one of those really beautiful, stick-thin model types all men fall over. Even if I dyed my hair blonde and learned to flip it around, I don’t think I’d ever perfect the art of flirting.”

Joie glared at her. “You are beautiful, you idiot. You’re just crazy. If this man can’t see your worth, he isn’t as smart as you think he is.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m all about brains and he’s going to be madly intrigued with my intellect and dazzled with my cushy body.” Gabrielle made a face, trying to laugh, but looking as if she might cry.

“Gabby, what’s gotten into you?” Joie asked, stepping closer to her sister, feeling waves of distress pouring off her sister.

“It’s just that I blow it every single time I’m actually attracted to a man. It doesn’t happen very often. Most of the time, I’m bored out of my mind and can’t stay in their company for five minutes. But when someone comes along who makes sense, and can discuss topics I’m really interested in, if I’m physically attracted, I come off looking like an idiot—or next to you and Jubal—the damsel in distress who needs rescuing.” She stuck her chin out. “I’m not, you know.”

“Of course I know. You forget, Gabrielle, Jubal and I climb with you and go into caves. We’ve gone down the Amazon and into the rain forest. You never flinch.”

“I flinched in the ice cave.”

“Yeah, well, here’s a news flash for you, sister, so did I. Anyone who doesn’t flinch inside that place is plain suicidal and out of their mind.”

“Really?” Gabrielle asked. “Neither you or Jubal looked as if you freaked out.”

“Of course we did. Bodyguards can’t show freak-outs, babe, that’s the bottom line and Jubal prides himself on never showing a freak-out because we’d tease him unmercifully until the day he died and maybe after as well.” Joie shared a grin with her sister. “Is Jubal hanging out in the bedroom? I need my clothes?”

“I’ll get you something presentable.” Gabrielle disappeared.

Joie heard her giggle. Gabrielle never did anything so undignified as to giggle. Unashamed, Joie listened to the murmured conversation in the next room. Gary had joined her brother and sister in her bedroom and Gabrielle had clearly forgotten her mission to produce clothes for her sister.

Joie stalked to the door. “Hello! I hate to remind you all, but I’m stuck here, naked in the bathroom. Vacate or toss me some clothes.”

Jubal groaned and covered his eyes. “You are so sick, Joie. I didn’t need that visual. Gary, you ought to try having a couple of sisters bent on tormenting you. They gang up on me like you wouldn’t believe.”

Gabrielle blew him a kiss. “We keep your life from being extraordinarily dull and boring.”

“Don’t believe her,” Jubal cautioned Gary.

Joie caught the bundle of clothes her sister tossed inside the bathroom. “Thanks for remembering me,” she hissed.

“I remembered,” Gabrielle replied with a smirk. “Getting your clothes just didn’t seem all that important all of a sudden.”

You are truly a hussy, Joie said and closed the bathroom door firmly on her sister’s teasing laugh. I know exactly what you were doing. That poor man has no idea you’ve got your hook out and you’re fishing.

I’m going to dose his drink with a love potion, Gabrielle shot back.

Gabrielle rarely was depressed or upset for long. She was naturally upbeat and had a sunny personality. Joie found herself smiling in spite of the deep dread in the pit of her stomach. Being with her family was exactly what she needed.

She dressed carefully, for war. She didn’t want to be unprepared for anything. She had weapons stashed in both the bedroom and her bathroom and she donned as many as she could carry without detection. Her clothes were loose enough to hide the weapons and to move in fast, yet wouldn’t get in the way should she need to climb or fight hand to hand.

Gary stood up when Joie entered the room. “Good evening.” He bowed slightly, a habit he’d acquired from the Carpathians. “I take it Traian left already? I figured he’d rise as early as possible. There were clouds blocking the sunlight. They sometimes arrange the weather to protect their sensitive eyes.” He smiled at Joie. “He wants me to get you to drink some juice this evening.”

Joie pressed a hand to her stomach. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, but I’m sure Gabrielle and Jubal are hungry.”

“Starved,” Jubal agreed instantly. “I thought Joie was going to sleep forever.”

“You’ll get used to the different hours they keep,” Gary said. “I work in the lab and forget the time myself. If I’m on to something promising, I don’t seem to need sleep.”

“I’m the same way,” Gabrielle said. “Sometimes I look up and it’s two days later.” She exchanged a long smile of complete understanding with Gary.

Jubal threw his hands into the air. “I’m starving. I need to get food and whether you’re hungry or not, Joie, we need to stick together. Let’s go down to the dining room.”

Joie rolled her eyes. “Big surprise that you’re starving, Jubal. I swear you were born that way. Are you armed?” Joie dragged on her boots and shoved a knife down into the leather scabbard built in.

Gary raised an eyebrow, but Gabrielle just shrugged, her grin sheepish. “We’re used to Joie. She’s nearly always lethal.”

“Of course I’m armed.” The smile faded from Jubal’s face as he turned to Gary with sober eyes. “Are you?”

There was a small silence. Gabrielle pressed her lips together. Joie and Jubal just waited for the answer. If Gary was even remotely interested in their sister, he’d better know how to protect her.

Gary gave them a small smirk, not in the least intimidated. “I carry weapons at all times. Here, working with the Carpathians, I have no choice. They rest during the day and if the undead send human puppets to find their resting places, they have to be protected.”

“Great,” Gabrielle said. “We don’t just have to worry about vampires trying to kill us, but other things as well.”

Gary nodded. “Sadly, it’s true. And don’t ever forget the secret society of humans that hunt and condemn various people to death and torture and kill them. This is a dangerous part of the world to live in, so if you’re going to be here, you have to learn as much as you can about protecting yourself at all times. Basically, expect the unexpected.”

Jubal pulled open the door. “I won’t have to worry about ghouls or crazy vampire hunters if we don’t eat soon. Go now!” He glared at his sisters.

Both of them laughed at him, but obediently followed Jubal into the hall and down the stairs.

Gabrielle leaned close to Gary. “Jubal is very grumpy until he eats,” she whispered overly loud so her brother could be certain to hear her. “We still call him ‘grumpy pants.’ ”

Jubal groaned. “Never have sisters. Just an FYI.”

“News flash, Jubal,” Joie said, her gaze, like his, on the few people milling around the dining room as they entered. “You adore your sisters and everyone knows it.”

“I do make you think that, otherwise you wouldn’t do my laundry for me,” Jubal pointed out smugly.

Joie noticed Gary was every bit as alert and watchful as Jubal and she were. Food was served buffet style, so they quickly got the dishes they preferred, Jubal taking plenty of healthy helpings while Joie settled for a small glass of juice. They sat down at the table nearest the door for a quick exit.

Joie frowned as her siblings ate with gusto, needing the calories after the ordeal in the ice caves. Her stomach lurched at that thought of food. She felt Gary watching her and she wrapped her fingers around the glass to forestall any attention he might draw to her sister and brother to the fact that she couldn’t eat.

“Do you live here permanently, Gary?” she asked.

He nodded. “I’m needed here. The work that I do is very valuable and there’s satisfaction in that. This species is too amazing to go extinct. There has to be a way to solve the problem of successfully carrying a baby. Besides, it’s heartbreaking to live among them, get to know them and then have one of the few women miscarry or lose her precious child.”

“I can’t imagine how painful that would be,” Gabrielle said, compassion pouring into her voice. “If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to see what you’re doing, since I’m here anyway. Maybe I could help.”

“Usually Carpathians erase all memories of an encounter with them,” Gary said. “I was surprised that Traian hadn’t done so.”

Jubal looked up, a dark scowl on his face. “Yeah, I don’t think so. He can forget that.”

Joie kicked him under the table. “He isn’t going to do that. I’d shoot him and he knows it. Don’t be such a dork.” She saw Gary watching her, so she put the glass to her lips and took a small sip. Her stomach cramped almost instantly. She set the glass down with great care. “Do you travel much?”

Gary shrugged, shaking his head. “I’ve been on a hit list for a while now and it isn’t safe. The Carpathians protect me and in all honesty, I’m pretty focused on my work.”

“That’s the way I am when I get in a lab. Time passes and sometimes I’m there for days without sleep,” Gabrielle admitted.

Joie became aware of the exact moment the sun set. She didn’t see the orange and red hues, but in the midst of the conversation going on around her she simply knew. She felt the sudden shuddering of the earth as the vampires rose. Her heart leapt in fear.

Traian! She reached out to him. Touched him. Felt his immediate reassurance. He had not discovered the resting places of the vampires. They had not gone to ground in the cave of the mages.

“Joie?” Gabrielle touched her hand. “Are you all right?”

Jubal put down his fork and looked carefully around the room. The bracelet is heating up again, it’s merely warm, but that isn’t a good sign.

A dark shadow passed over the inn, moving fast, so that for a moment silence fell in the dining room and people looked at one another uneasily.

Gary reacted instantly. He caught Gabrielle’s wrist, rising so fast his chair fell backward. “Come with me, right now.” He tugged Gabrielle to her feet and began to weave his way through the tables, dragging her with him.

Jubal looked at his meal with regret as Joie smacked the back of his head. “It might be your last meal if you don’t move it,” she cautioned.

“It might be my last meal anyway,” he groused. But he was on his feet and rushing after Gary and Gabrielle, covering his wrist with his other hand as the band began to give off a faint light.

Definitely going hot, Jubal told his sisters. The blades will come out next.

“Call him back, Joie,” Gary ordered over his shoulder. “Call Traian and get him back here. We don’t have much time.”

Joie didn’t hesitate. There was too much urgency in Gary’s voice. Traian. They are here. The undead are here at the inn. Gary says it’s urgent that you return as quickly as possible.

Do as Gary says. He will know what to do until I am able to return. They cannot get their hands on any of you. Go for the heart if you have to defend yourself. They often inject poison into the bloodstream, and they are great deceivers and shape-shifters.

Traian’s matter-of-fact voice calmed Joie. Jubal’s bracelet is going hot. The last time that happened, the blades came out. Gary will see them, there’s no way to hide it from him.

We have no choice but to trust him. We do not know your ancestry, but you are my family and under my protection. He will know that. If any Carpathian should threaten you because that mage weapon is seen, you tell them all of you are under my protection. This time there was steel in his voice.

Gary shoved open the door to his room on the first floor. It was faster to get there and provided an excellent escape should they need one. “Quick, get inside and stuff everything you can find in the cracks around the doors and windows.” He tossed Gabrielle shirts as he hurried to the door leading to the verandah. “We’ll have to hole up in here. They’ll try to call us out, using compulsion. Jubal, there’s a small CD player on the desk. Pick some obnoxious music from the collection and turn it up loud. Very loud.”

Joie locked the door behind her. “The keyhole, Gabrielle—stuff something in that as well.” If vampires could do what she had seen Traian do, stream through tiny spaces as vapor, she didn’t see how they were going to keep them out. “So why are they here?”

“Most likely because you are,” Gary answered. “The surest way to bring a Carpathian male out into the open is to go after his lifemate. They’ll want one of you to invite them in. If you hear a voice talking sweetly, it is a deceiver. Put cotton in your ears, put your hands over your ears. Do anything to keep from listening. If one of you observe another going to the door or even talking, inviting someone into the room, stop him, even if it means knocking him out.”

“They’re definitely here,” Jubal said, pulling back his sleeve. His bracelet spilled light into the room, the wicked curved blades very much in evidence.

Gary stepped back, shook his head, and sighed. “I’m not even going to ask.”

Shadows passed across the window, moving back and forth as if searching for something. The wind picked up so that the tree branches scraped against the inn with a sickening screech. Clouds spun and boiled, casting hideous apparitions across the moon. A stain spread across the sky, slowly blotting out the stars, creeping insidiously until nearly all light was extinguished. The wind howled against the windows, slammed into the verandah door, carried with it voices. Soft. Cunning. Sweet and enticing. Pleading voices. Cries for help. A woman called out just beyond the door, begging for entrance, her voice rising on the wind.

“Joie?” Gabrielle looked to her sister for guidance.

Gary was close to her and he put his arm around her protectively. “Traian will be here soon. We can hold out until then.”

Jubal cranked up the CD player so that it blared loudly. Something grabbed the door handle and shook it so hard, the door rattled and splintered. Jubal leapt to place his body between the door and sisters. Joie stepped up beside him.

“Gary, get Gabby out of here,” Joie said, her heart pounding. Jubal had killed one of these things with his bracelet. Maybe it could happen again. She sent up a silent prayer.

“Believe me, we’re safer inside this room than anywhere else right now. And there’s less danger if we stick together,” Gary said. He took up a position at her side. “Jubal, watch the windows. If you see anything that looks like smoke or fog trying to get in through a crack, you have to stuff in a shirt, the blankets, anything at all to keep it out.”

The door was struck again from outside, hard enough to shake the frame. Gabrielle clapped her hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.

“You can’t come in,” Gary said, not raising his voice. “You have not been invited and you can’t gain entrance into this room.”

Maniacal laughter greeted Gary’s calm words. A great weight thudded against the door and began a steady pushing. The wood began to bulge inward.