Damn it. The Kurjans could venture outside with cloud cover like that. They needed to run.
“Which way do you think?” Emma asked anxiously.
“That way.” Cara pointed to the opposite direction from the underground tunnels. Emma nodded and quickly led the way through two monstrous pines as thunder clapped with fury above them. Cara followed her sister through trees, over deep brush, and alongside rocky hills as lightning flashed bright around them and rain pelted their light shirts and jeans. She gasped and stumbled in the sudden darkness more than once. Finally, her foot caught on a low-lying branch and with a cry, she went sprawling onto her hands and knees on the pebbled earth.
“Cara!” Emma, her dark hair plastered to her wet face, instantly rushed to her side and pulled her to her feet. “Come on,” she yelled over the driving rain and yanked Cara along the rock side to a small opening.
Cara looked around the secluded cave before sliding down one smooth rock wall to sit on the hard, packed dirt. The storm raged outside. She pulled her soaked hair out of her dripping face and shivered until Emma sat beside her and put a gentle arm around her shoulders.
“We’ll ride out the storm and then keep running,” Emma soothed.
“Good plan.” Cara shivered again while her hands and knees ached worse than a compacted tooth. The sensation of huddling with her sister while a monster sought them brought a raw ache to her throat. They’d been here before. “I’ve never thanked you.”
“Hmmm?” Emma murmured, rubbing Cara’s shoulders to warm her up.
“Em. I’ve never thanked you—for saving me from Daddy. For getting hit so I wouldn’t.” She turned her gaze, now blurry with tears, toward her older sister.
Emma breathed out, her own eyes filling with tears. “We saved each other, Car. He would’ve killed me the night with the knife, if you hadn’t charged him.” She tilted her head to rest on Cara’s shoulder. “We survived him—we can survive this.”
They could, and they would. She wondered if she should warn Emma about Dage.
“So”—Emma lifted her head to lean back into the rock—”tell me about this husband of yours.”
“Talen,” the name was a sob on her lips. “He’s big, strong, stubborn as hell …”
Emma laughed. “Sounds perfect for you.”
“Humph.”
“That’s not a word. So, does he love you or not?”
Cara was quiet as she thought about it. As she fought it.
“Come on Cara. Even if we lie to ourselves, we don’t lie to each other.” Familiar blue eyes gave no quarter.
Cara sighed in defeat. “Yes, I think so.”
“So, why did you run?”
“To rescue you,” Cara huffed as she leaned into her sister, fighting a sneeze.
“Humph.”
“That’s not a word,” Cara retorted.
“You ran because you love him, too.” The words sunk in. “Dumbass.”
Cara chuckled. “He’s larger than life, you know? And besides that, he has this power. To manipulate or control the physical actions of other people. I won’t be helpless again, Em.”
Emma sighed deep. “No. You can’t compare him to Daddy—he wasn’t larger than life, Cara. He was small. A very small, mean, pathetic man.” Emma tightened her hold. “It sounds like your Talen is nothing like our father.”
The wind whistled a mournful plea, sending a chilled air inside the cave. “It’s just,” Cara struggled to explain, “he takes over everything, like Daddy did but in a different way, I guess.”
“Is Talen mean?”
The image of Talen carrying a giggling Janie over the threshold of his house filled her mind. “No.”
“Does he hurt you? Or Janie?”
“No.”
Emma snorted. “Geez, Cara. Is Talen one of the good guys or not?”
Cara was silent for a moment. “Yes. He is definitely one of the good guys.” She breathed out heavily. “Though he’s going to be really pissed about this.”
Emma shrugged. “Can’t blame him too much for that.”
“Hey. You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“Always.” Emma was quiet for a moment. “You mentioned vampires have different eyes from us. How did you mean?”
“The color. Talen’s are gold.”
Emma tensed next to her. “Like a metallic gold?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Have you met one with eyes that were, I don’t know, like silver?” Emma’s voice cracked on the end.
Oh crap. Emma knew about Dage. “Um, well, actually yes. A couple of his brothers have silver eyes.”
“And they bite. Like vampires?” Emma turned breathless.
“Yes. I’m taking it you have dreamt of one? Maybe a big, rather dominant one named Dage?” Oh boy, was Em in for a rude awakening. Or Dage was. Maybe both.
“I don’t know his name,” Emma said.
She owed Emma the truth, if for nothing else so she could prepare herself. “Now you do. He thinks he’s your mate.”
“He’s not.” Stubborn pride lit her sister’s face.
“I told him that.” Not that he’d listened, of course.
“Thanks.”
The rain slowed to a drizzle outside as the sisters sat, both lost in their own thoughts. Cara had the sudden need to find her mate. She had been so stupid. He filled her with power, and damn it, they belonged together. Fate or not.
“We’d better get going,” Cara said as she stood to her feet and pulled Emma with her. They moved gingerly out of their safe haven to the now calm rain bathing the earth. Cara turned to her sister just as a strong arm enclosed her neck and lifted her off the ground. She threw her elbows and kicked back until she turned and saw Emma in a similar position, held by a Kurjan soldier off the ground with a glowing gun pressed against her temple, her eyes shooting furious blue sparks as she struggled.
“Hello, sotie,” Lorcan’s voice in her ear chilled her to the bone. “Stop struggling or I’ll have my soldier shoot your sister.” Cara stopped kicking and moved a hand toward her back. “No, no, no,” Lorcan chuckled as he pulled the gun from her waistband and gave her a hard shake. “No more shooting Kurjans, Cara. You’ve shot your limit today.” He leaned in closer to whisper in her ear. “If you fight me, I will give your sister to Matre; you remember the soldier you shot in the tunnel? He’s itching for some payback.” Cara stopped fighting and shook her head in warning at her sister before closing her eyes and trying to manipulate the Kurjan leader’s nervous system. A rough chuckle sounded in her ear.
“You’re not strong enough to influence me, sotie.” With that, he slammed her focused thoughts back into her own head along with sharp spikes of pain. Cara clenched her eyes shut as the pain webbed through her whole system. Lorcan started running through the forest with her still in his arms while the other soldier carried Emma.
“Cara? Keep your eyes open, mate. I need to see where you’re going.”
“Talen!” She shouted his name in her head, the trees flying by her. Her heart leapt as she realized she could hear him
again, and she watched carefully as the forest blurred together until they emerged in a large field outside of an older white farmhouse. They had made it back to the entrance much faster than she and Emma had run away. She kept her eyes wide open as Lorcan walked inside and stomped down several stairs to a big stone door that he kicked open with one boot—then they were in tunnels again. He walked for a few moments before opening a door leading to a familiar room.
“We’ve taken your sister’s lock clip,” Lorcan hissed too close to her ear. “This time you stay put.” He dropped her on her feet and pushed her inside with Emma. “Say your goodbyes.” He slammed the door shut behind him.
Emma slid to the ground with her back against the wall and a sad look of defeat on her classic features. Cara hurried over to sit by her sister and place a comforting arm around her shoulders. “Don’t worry, Emma, Talen and his brothers will be here soon.”
“How do you know?” Emma whispered.
“Trust me, I know.” She patted her sister. “He’s in my head, we can communicate that way.” She rolled her eyes. “Not to mention my hip is heating like crazy.”
“Your hip?” Emma asked, turning to face her and raising an eyebrow.
Heat filled Cara’s face. “Um, long story.”
“I believe we have time.” Emma’s lips trembled in a parody of a smile. “What, is it something like old Ms. Tulley’s arthritis—when it rained she could barely walk, remember? Do you have Talen arthritis near your ass?”
Cara snorted. How many times had her sister made her laugh while they huddled, praying for safety? A true gift, that was. “Okay, don’t freak.” The woman should be warned anyway. If Dage got his big old paw anywhere near Emma, her hip would probably ache, too.
Standing, Cara unsnapped her jeans, pushing them down enough to show the mark.
“What the heck?” Emma rose to her knees, poking the flesh. “A tattoo?”
“Um, kind of.”
Emma prodded harder. “What does ‘kind of’ mean? What is this design?”
Cara studied the intricate design. “It’s the Kayrs marking. The design appeared on his hand, then on my ass during, um, well …”
Falling back against the wall and sliding down, Emma gasped. “You let the man
brand
you?”
Cara yanked her jeans back up. “I didn’t know about the branding until too late.” She rolled her eyes, sitting near her sister. “I was otherwise occupied.”
“Holy crap.”
Yep, that about summed it up. “I know. Apparently vampire mating involves biology—the exchange of fluids, a marking, and now I have his defenses.”
“Oh my God! Are you a vampire?” Emma’s eyes went wide and blue.
Cara snorted. “Of course not. Vampires are born, not made.”
Emma relaxed. “Will you age?”
Shrugging, Cara straightened her top. “Not very fast, if at all.” She cleared her throat. “It’s good you know, Em. I’m pretty sure Dage has plans for you to wear his mark.” God help the king.
“Then he can plan to lose his balls.”
Yep. The king had his work cut out for him. Cara sighed.
Time moved too quickly, and they both jumped to their feet as the door swung open and Lorcan filled the space. Both women moved to shield the other from the monster facing them with a mean looking gun in one hand. With a sigh, Emma won the battle and put Cara behind her, whispering, “Save my nephew.”
Cara stumbled to a stop.
“Emma, come with me.” Lorcan nodded at Cara over
Emma’s head. “I promised you I’d let your sister go, sotie. She’s free to go.”
“I’d rather stay here,” Emma said angrily, knowing as well as Cara that Lorcan had no intention of letting her go free.
“Too bad. Come with me now, or I’ll shoot you both.”
“You’d shoot your future mate?” Cara challenged.
“Yes. The gun is set to stun, but you never know what kind of damage a Kurjan weapon will have on a human.”
Or an unborn child.
“We can’t risk it,” Emma muttered. She raised her voice, “Don’t worry, Cara. I’m sure he has better plans for me than death.”
“Of course.” Lorcan gave up the pretense and gestured Emma forward. “You’ll like my cousin Franco. You’re a perfect match.” He laughed at his own joke.
Emma turned and gave Cara a quick hug. “I’ll see you soon.” She turned and followed Lorcan out of the room.
Tears filled Cara’s eyes as the lock slammed home. She closed her eyes on a sob as she leaned against the far wall and slid to the floor.
“It’s all right mate, I’m coming.”
“I
’m scared,” Cara whispered into the empty underground room. The Kurjan facility even smelled of brimstone and decay—pure evil.
“I
know.”
How in the world could they communicate like this? It didn’t matter—thank God they could talk again. She would discuss the fact that he had short-circuited her communication skills with him later.
Cara closed her eyes and leaned back against the stone wall before placing both hands against her stomach. How could she not have known? It was so obvious. What would the Kurjan virus do to the baby? She shielded her thoughts about the baby from Talen before she reached out again. “How close are you?”
“Five minutes,”
came back clearly. Concern and anger rode through the words.
God, she hoped she had five minutes until they injected her with the virus. She bit her lip to keep from sobbing and tried not to wonder what was happening to Emma. She reached out with her thoughts, with her heart, and found nothing. Where was Emma?
Talen would arrive in time. She was so stupid—why hadn’t she turned to him for help in the first place? They should’ve made a plan together.
The silence hung thick and heavy in the room as she waited.
For what, she couldn’t be sure. Emma would stall Lorcan as long as possible to keep him from injecting Cara with the virus, and she hoped her sister didn’t get herself killed in trying to protect her.
She concentrated again on Talen and saw Dage, Conn, and Jase running away from a black helicopter toward a small farmhouse surrounded by fields. With a start, she realized she saw through Talen’s eyes. He was coming.
She refused to just sit and wait to be rescued. So, she jumped up and headed for the door with determination—a quick twist of the knob confirmed it was locked. She searched for something to pick the lock, but only dirt and stone walls stared back at her. With a sigh, she returned to her former seat and shut her eyes to concentrate on Talen.
Her eyes slammed open with the door. Lorcan stood in the opening with three bloody red scratches slashed down one side of his inhumanly pale face, his eyes the color of dark death.
“It looks like my sister kicked your ass,” Cara said smugly from her seat.
“She got in one while I got in several,” Lorcan retorted, yellow fangs flashing in the muted light.
“Where is she?” Cara still didn’t move, dread pooling in her stomach.
“On her way to meet her destiny. Franco has very specific desires in a sotie, and believe me, killing her would have been kinder.”
“You know at some point I am going to kill you, right?” Cara asked, tilting her head to the side.
Lorcan’s laugh crawled over her skin like the legs of a centipede. “You are welcome to try, sotie. But as I expect you to be pregnant within the first couple of months, I assume you’ll have your hands full.”