[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.Skyler, can Paul reach out to his uncles? If so, have him convey the news that we are beingpursued by an assassin.We re certain the assassin is Sange rau.There was a brief silence, presumably while she conferred with Paul.He has exchanged blood withNicolas.Tell them to keep moving as if nothing has changed, but one will have to take Zev from Fen.I mgoing to start dropping back just a little at a time, giving the impression I m hurt and the flight isbeginning to tell on me, Dimitri said.You are hurt.Dimitri, you can t fight this monster, not in your condition, Skyler objected.He laughed softly in his mind, reaching for her to surround her with love.Csitri, I ve got nointention of fighting him.I ll leave that to Fen.He needs to feel needed and I d never take that awayfrom him.For a moment he thought Skyler wouldn t catch on, but she did.He s listening, isn t he? You reprovoking your brother again.Of course I am.Fen gave a little derisive snort.He just can t handle that I m better in a fight.Says you.As I recall, the last time, it was me saving your sorry butt, Dimitri pointed out.You have to take this threat seriously, Skyler insisted, somewhere between laughter andexasperation.No worries, sívamet.We ve got this, Dimitri said with confidence.He was confident.He d survived the Lycans worst torture and he had his lifemate.It didn tmatter that his body was torn and exhausted, his mind was stronger than ever.His senses were rapidlydeveloping.You and I both know, the Sange rau will be difficult to kill, Fen cautioned on their private path ofcommunication.I know you re trying to keep Skyler from worrying, but don t get overconfident.In all the centuries we ve been traveling, different continents even, how many times have either ofus ever run across the Sange rau? Dimitri asked his brother.I ve seen four, counting Abel and Bardolf.I ve only come across Abel and Bardolf, and they were specifically sent to kill Mikhail, Dimitrisaid, waiting to let the implication sink in.Dimitri knew the precise moment Paul conveyed the warning to Nicolas and Nicolas sent it toZacarias.There was no change in them, but he felt the difference.He hoped their pursuer didn t aswell.He faltered just a little, looked as if he tried to recover and slipped back, away from hisprotectors.Nicolas and Rafael in bird form flew past him, hesitated a moment and then continued onas if he d told them to keep going.Fen got the meaning fast.Someone is creating them, using mixed blood to enhance them and usingthem as assassins.They aren t necessarily vampire.And they re probably newly made.Abel and Bardolf were most likely their most experienced andoldest.They would never send an amateur after the prince in our territory.Whoever is behind this is creating his own army of mixed bloods.Dimitri allowed the body of his bird to dip a little, seeking a lower altitude, his wings beatingdouble the time the others did, but not actually getting anywhere.The wind shifted just a little,blowing into him, making him falter more.He tried to redouble his efforts the others seemed to bemoving away from him faster but he was too worn-out.The large bird of prey a bald eagle seemed to come out of nowhere, dropping fast, talonsextended, its beak a strange color.Dimitri shifted from an owl s body to that of the larger eagle, sofast it was impossible to detect the change until the other was nearly on top of him.Dimitri had justenough time to realize the talons and beak were silver weapons, designed to shred, stab and kill fast.He met the bird s talons with his own, locking them together so that they tumbled from the sky, endover end.Neither could shift, and the ground seemed to be rising fast to meet them.The assassin tore at Dimitri s body, stabbing repeatedly in the chest, seeking the heart.He neverheard or saw the attack from behind, Fen streaking through the sky, going for the kill.The Sange raudidn t even feel the stake going through his body to penetrate his heart.When Fen removed the headand the bird landed dead on the ground, Dimitri called down the lightning to burn it.He sank into the soft soil, sitting abruptly, pushing both hands through his hair.There was bloodon his chest, seeping from a dozen slashes and stabs. You know, Fen, I think I ll take that ride now, he said when Fen strode up to him. 16n his last return home, Dimitri had taken up residence in the old family dwelling, deep in theforest where the wolves gave him warning if visitors came too close.He d done a few modernOrepairs on it, but he wasn t in residence often.The outside stone was covered in moss, and trees andbrush had grown so close they nearly covered the house.Thick vines wove around the stone columnsthat formed the verandah.The vines were so thick they d nearly formed an impenetrable wall, yetthere was an archway at the stairs as if it had been designed that way.Beneath the stone building, deep underground, Dimitri and Skyler lay entwined together, theirbodies slowly healing.Dimitri woke each rising and hunted, sustaining the two of them and then goingback to ground to allow Mother Earth to rejuvenate them both.He woke and lay listening to the beat of the earth s heart.Over time the rhythm had becomereassuring, a constant, steady drumbeat he could always count on.It didn t matter where in the worldhe was, if he lay in the ground, it was there.He opened the soil above their heads, staring at the underside of the house his parents hadconstructed so many centuries earlier.He had played in the room above them.He remembered thesound of his mother s laughter and the murmur of his father s voice.He realized he wanted to stay, tomake this their home.It was deep enough in the forest to keep their wolf pack safe and yet still closeenough to the other Carpathians that Skyler could have company whenever she wanted.He leaned over her.He loved watching her as she slept.Skyler always looked peaceful now sodifferent from the nights he d entered her room and found her tossing and turning caught in the throesof a hideous nightmare.Gently he brushed back silken strands of hair that had come loose from thebraid he d woven for her just the last rising.Her lashes were long and feathery, dark, yet tipped with gold.He traced her high cheekbones withthe pad of his finger, absorbing the satin-smooth skin.It had always annoyed her that she couldn t tan
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]