He tilted her chin back. Her lashes lifted. “I didn’t die. You saved me.” He lifted her wrist, kissing the faint bite marks. “You gave me your blood. You gave me life.”
“And I’d do it again,” she said, and he could read the truth of that statement in her shining eyes.
“I don’t deserve you,” he whispered. “You’re too good—”
She pulled back and placed a gentle fingertip against his lips. “Stop. I’m not perfect.” She laughed softly. “I’m far from perfect, and you of all people should know that.”
But she was perfect. Kind. Strong. Beautiful. “I want to keep you safe,” he told her. “I’ve put you at risk already. Stay here, and as soon as I find the vampire . . .”
“You’ll what? Attack him on your own?” She shook her head. “I already told you, no. There’s no way you’re getting out of here without me.”
“Fine, but you stay close to me,” he ordered. “I felt his strength. He’s an ancient, at least as old as I. I don’t want him to get a chance to hurt you.”
“He’s not going to hurt me.” She frowned. “I just don’t understand why he’s following us. He was obviously Geoffrey’s enemy. He tried to kill Geoffrey! I could feel his hate, his rage.”
Yes, the vampire had been full of hate and blinding rage. Both had seemed to be directed at Geoffrey. In fact, the creature had almost seemed impervious to their presence.
“I don’t understand,” Savannah said again. “Why would he now choose to attack us?”
“I don’t know.” His eyes flashed red. “But I’m going to find out.”
Chapter Seventeen
I am not afraid.
—Entry from the diary of Henry de Montfort,
December 30, 1068.
SAVANNAH COULD feel his gaze upon her. Silent. Watchful.
She could feel the vampire, but she couldn’t see him. He was hidden in the shadows, hidden in the night.
I feel him, too. He’s close. Very close.
Savannah glanced quickly at William’s impassive face. They’d searched the village, gone down every street and alley, but still they hadn’t found the mysterious vampire.
Why doesn’t he attack? What is he waiting for?
She heard the rustle of leaves, blowing gently against the cobble stone lane.
He’s biding his time,
William answered.
Waiting for the perfect moment.
Two drunken teens staggered out of a house, laughing and talking loudly. They saw William and froze, fear widening their eyes.
“Go,” he ordered with a wave of his hand. “Get out of here.
Now.
”
They ran.
“Fools,” he muttered.
Savannah ignored the boys as they brushed past her. She paced down the street, her gaze searching the shadows. The moon hung heavily in the sky. In a few more hours, the sun would rise.
Her body felt numb with exhaustion. The blood she’d taken from William had healed most of her injuries, but now, she felt a deep weariness.
She just wanted to close her eyes and sleep, to dream. She didn’t want to see visions of death, pain and horror.
She didn’t want any more nightmares. She just wanted to dream.
“And of what do you dream, my dear?” His voice whispered from the darkness.
Savannah stiffened. She’d lowered her guard, given into the exhaustion, and now he was standing in front of her, his eyes gleaming red, his fangs sharp and white.
William. He’s here!
He smiled, stepping forward into the dim street light. He was tall, with muscled arms and strong shoulders. His hair, a light blond mane, curled loosely around his head.
He looked like an angel. A fallen angel.
“Who are you?” Savannah asked, boldly meeting his stare.
He blinked. The red vanished, replaced by a bright blue. “I asked my question first.”
“Savannah!” William was at her side in an instant. His fingers locked around her arm.
The stranger tensed.
“Dear God . . .” William looked as if he’d just seen a ghost. She could feel his fingers trembling against her.
Understanding hit Savannah in a blinding flash. William recognized the vampire, but did he know the vampire as a friend . . . or as an enemy?
Savannah wasn’t going to take any chances. She glanced quickly around the dark street. What could she—There!
An old wooden sign, just a few feet away. She grabbed it, snapping the wood over her knee in one quick move. Her fingers wrapped around one of the pieces, the longest, sharpest piece that she saw. It wasn’t much of a weapon, but it would have to do.
She stepped in front of William and lifted the makeshift stake. “I don’t know who you are, but—”
“He’s my brother,” William said, his voice hollow.
Savannah blinked. Just how many brothers did William have running around the countryside?
The vampire smiled. “It’s been a long time.” He stepped forward, and Savannah leapt at him, thrusting the stake at his heart.
He froze. The stake hovered an inch away from his flesh.
“Don’t move,” she ordered, her voice soft.
“Savannah.” William still sounded shaken. “It’s all right. He’s not a threat to us.”
Are you sure?
She made no move to drop the weapon.
“I would never hurt William. He’s my brother!” The vampire seemed offended.
“Yeah, well, Geoffrey was his brother, too, and he spent his life trying to hurt William and anyone else that he could.”
“I know,” he said quietly. “He left me for dead centuries ago.”
Left him for dead? Could this be—?
No, impossible. Henry was dead, wasn’t he?
“No, I’m quite alive.”
Savannah’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t like it when William read her thoughts. She sure as hell didn’t want some stranger jumping into her mind. “And how is it, exactly, that you survived?” She wasn’t ready to trust this guy, not yet. She wasn’t going to put William’s life at risk.
He stared at William. “I was hoping you could answer that.”
“What?”
Henry shrugged. “I don’t remember much about those hellish days before my transformation. I remember the pain, the blood. But not a damn lot more. The last thing I remember . . . I was attacked.” His jaw clenched. “Geoffrey, that bastard, came to the tower. I thought he was there to help me, to free me. Then I saw Guy’s sword. I saw the blood still dripping on the blade, and I knew he was there to kill me.”
“But why? Why would he attack you?” William shook his head. “You were the only one he ever seemed to care about!”
“He cared for power, for strength. But he didn’t care for me. He didn’t care for anyone.” Bleak words that rang with the harsh sound of truth.
“What happened after the attack?” Savannah asked, never moving the stake.
“I held on. I knew that William was coming. He’d given his word. William always keeps his word.”
Yes, he did, Savannah thought. He’d promised her vengeance, and he’d kept his promise, even though the vow had almost cost William his life.
“I remember seeing you,” he said, his gaze fixed on William’s face. “You came to the tower. You told me to fight, to hold on. But then I heard the soldiers . . .” He took a deep breath. “I saw them surround you. There were at least a dozen of them. I tried to help. Believe me, I tried! But I was weak, too weak. And one of them ran me through with his sword.”
His story matched exactly with William’s. Savannah slowly lowered the stake.
“The next thing I remember was waking up in the cave. I don’t know how much time had passed. It could have been days or even weeks. I didn’t know how I’d gotten there. I didn’t know if you were alive or dead.”
“I wouldn’t have left you there if I’d known!” William’s eyes blazed. “I stayed in that cave with you for hours, praying for you to wake. But you didn’t move. I thought I’d waited too long, that the transformation hadn’t worked.” Softer, “That I’d killed you.”
“No, brother. You didn’t kill me. You saved me.”
She could feel William’s pain. Hear it in his voice as he said, “You were alone. You had to learn to survive on your own.”
Henry lifted one brow. “As you did.”
“I was supposed to protect you,” William whispered. “But I just left you—”
“No!” He took a step forward. “Do you think I don’t know what you did? You went to the vampire to save my life. You knew what would happen to you when you went to him. You knew the price you’d pay. But you did it anyway. You traded your life for mine.”
“I couldn’t just stand by and let Guy torture you.” William’s hands clenched.
“You always protected me, William. Even when we were small lads, I knew I could always count on you.”
“I left you alone,” William groaned. “For nine hundred years . . .”
“I’ve been searching for you,” Henry admitted. “I didn’t know for certain that you were alive. My last memory was seeing you surrounded by those guards. I didn’t know if they killed you, or if you’d survived. I
hoped
that you’d survived. And I held on to that hope for many dark nights.”
“I left Normandy,” William admitted. “I wanted to get away from all of the blood and death that seemed to surround me.”
He’d wanted to get away from his past, Savannah realized. He’d wanted a fresh start, a new life. “But Geoffrey followed you and he started killing,” Savannah said. “And you realized that you couldn’t get away from him.”
“No. I could never get away from Geoffrey. So I started hunting him. I wanted the nightmare to end. I wanted the murders to stop.” He shook his head sadly. “But he always eluded me.”
And left a trail of blood for William to follow.
“I hunted him, too.” Henry admitted. “He’d attacked me. I wanted him to pay. So when I saw him on the cliffs . . .” His eyes flashed red. “I wanted to kill him. To make him pay for everything that he’d done to me. For every innocent life that he’d taken. For every life that he’d destroyed.”
“It’s over now.” Savannah dropped the stake to the ground and locked her fingers with William’s. “He can’t hurt us anymore. He can’t hurt anyone.” The nightmare had finally ended.
The two men stared at each other. Both were tall, strong and, Savannah sensed, afraid. They had both suffered so much pain, so much tragedy. It was time to heal the wounds of the past. It was time for a new beginning.
She kept her right hand locked around William’s. Her left hand reached out to Henry. “My name is Savannah Daniels. It is a pleasure to meet you, Henry de Montfort.”
He blinked, staring down at her hand. His fingers lifted slowly, clasping lightly around hers.
She smiled. “I feel as if I already know you,” she murmured.
He frowned.
“I read your diary.” She looked back at William. “Actually, it was your diary that led me to William.” She could still remember how frightened she’d been on her way to that first meeting. But then she’d seen William. “So I guess you could say that I am in your debt.”
“No. You brought my brother back to me. It is I who owe you.”
“I can’t believe—” William stopped, and then he stepped forward, embracing Henry.
Savannah felt her eyes well with tears at the sight. William had been alone for so very long. Walking the earth endlessly. Always alone.
He would never be alone again.
“It’s been too long,” Henry said.
William stepped back. “Yes.”
“I’m sure you guys have a lot of catching up to do.” Nine hundred years worth, Savannah thought. Maybe she should give them some privacy.
No. Stay with me.
She rubbed William’s arm lightly. “Is there someplace that we can go? Someplace where we can talk?”
Henry spoke quickly. “I have a cottage nearby. It’s safe. We could go there.”
William nodded.
“Show us the way,” Savannah murmured.
“SO, IS SHE your mate?”
William pulled his gaze from the crackling fire and stared at his brother.
Henry.
It still didn’t seem real. Henry was alive. He looked the same. The same blond hair. The same laughing blue eyes. The same slow smile.
But William could feel the differences in his brother. He could feel the echoes of pain. Of rage. He could also feel Henry’s strength. His power.
Henry didn’t need anyone to protect him now.
“No,” Henry murmured, reading his thoughts. “I can protect myself.” His lips curved slightly, revealing the tips of his fangs. “But you didn’t answer my question, brother. Is she your mate?”
Savannah had slipped from the room moments before. She’d sensed the rising sun and had gone to prepare for the sleep that would come.
Like William’s home in the mountains, the cottage was equipped with a series of underground rooms and tunnels. Henry had asked them to stay and sleep in one of the many rooms.
William knew that Savannah had left to give him a few moments alone with Henry and that she would be waiting for him when he returned to the room. Waiting for him with her gentle smile and her mysterious eyes.
“The first time I saw her,” he recalled, “she asked me to kill her.”
“What?”
“Geoffrey killed her brother and her sister-in-law. And he was stalking her. She wanted to find Geoffrey, to fight him.” He sighed, remembering his first sight of Savannah. “She was dying. And she knew she wasn’t strong enough to defeat Geoffrey on her own.”
“So she turned to you.” Henry whistled softly. “Brave one, isn’t she?” He rubbed his chest lightly, as if he could still feel the stake that she’d pushed against his heart.
William’s lips curved. “She’s the bravest woman I’ve ever met.”
“So she
is
your mate.”
His smile disappeared. “No. I forced her to stay with me. I told her that I would only transform her if she promised to be my companion.”
Henry stilled. “That isn’t like you.”
“I know. But I wanted her so badly that I would have said anything, done anything, to have her.” He would have traded his soul for a moment in her arms.
“You love her.”
William blinked. “Of course.” There had never been any question in his mind. He’d loved her from the moment his door had opened and he’d seen her standing in the entranceway. “But I have to let her go.”
“What?”