“He is a good man, Destiny. Did you have time to examine his memories to see what actually happened?”
Destiny nodded. “It was as he told me. Martin Wright came in and confronted him. Father Mulligan offered money, asked him to sit and talk, tried to reason with him, but Martin attacked him.”
Nicolae sat on the floor beside the priest’s bed. “That makes no sense.”
“No, it doesn’t. Velda and Inez told me a similar story about John Paul coming home and attacking Helena.”
“I am not familiar with them. I have seen Wright in the bar, but not this other couple.”
“John Paul adores Helena. He would never beat her.” Destiny tapped her fingernail against the bed frame. “Something is definitely wrong.” Nicolae looked pale and drained, appearing gray in the darkness as he rubbed his shadowed jaw thoughtfully.
“Do not look so worried, Destiny. We will figure it out. Are you certain Father Mulligan destroyed that letter? Mikhail Dubrinsky is the Prince of our people. We cannot afford to let anything or anyone endanger him in these tense times. Our very existence as a people is threatened.”
She leaned toward him, needing to examine his features up close. Her fingertips moved over the angles and planes of his face, brushing at the lines near the corners of his mouth. “You need to feed.” She hadn’t meant it as an invitation, but it came out that way. Soft. Seductive. Unexpected. And it startled both of them.
Nicolae’s body responded to the temptation of her voice, of her invitation; a relentless, savage ache hit him hard. Heat swept through him. Lightning streaked through his veins with white-hot intensity. His eyes met hers. He was lost immediately, drowning in the depths of her aquamarine eyes. She turned her head slightly, exposing her soft, vulnerable neck, an expanse of smooth, scented skin.
Nicolae reached for her, drew her close. She fit into his arms, her soft body lush and pliant. She was hot silk and satin, elevating his fever. Slowly he bent his head to her perfect skin.
No! It was no less than a command. His brother’s voice was sharp with warning. Nicolae inhaled her scent, felt her pulse jump beneath his lips. The call of her blood was potent in his mind, in his heart. She is tainted. You are not yet bound! Stop Nicolae, you endanger both yourself and her.
Nicolae closed his eyes, wanting to shut out reason and thought. You endanger both yourself and her. It was true. Reluctantly he drew back, away from temptation. His incisors receded. He could not risk Destiny. Would not risk her.
Destiny sat very still with the warning echoing in her mind. She is tainted. She is tainted. It played like a terrible refrain in her head. Beat at her with the intensity of a horrific truth. She shoved Nicolae away from her as she leapt to her feet.
“Destiny.” Her name was wrenched from his heart. “Stay with me.”
The aching loneliness in his voice was haunting, soul destroying. For the first time she could see how much he needed her. It wasn’t just wanting; he needed. Everything feminine, everything human in her struggled to be what he needed. She is tainted. The ugly refrain reverberated loudly in her mind.
She shook her head as she backed away from him. “What do you think will happen if I stay with you, Nicolae? Do you believe in miracles? I prayed for miracles night after night when I heard him coming for me, when I huddled in a little ball in the corner of a dirty cave.” She curled her fingers tightly into a fist so that her nails dug into her palms. “You belong here with Father Mulligan. With these people.” She gestured toward the priest with her clenched fist. “I don’t, and I never will. Please thank Vikirnoff for his warning. I wouldn’t have wanted to infect you.”
“Destiny.” The ache in his voice was raw, real, expressing a pain far beyond her own.
“No.” Someone had to have sense. “Answer me. I would have infected you if you had taken my blood, isn’t that right?”
Her eyes were glittering like rare gems, sparkling with tears. She dashed the moisture away with an impatient sweep of her arm. Nicolae thought her the most extraordinary woman he had ever seen. The most courageous. He refused to be anything less. His gaze met hers squarely, and he nodded. “Yes, Destiny. And as I have no anchor to hold me to the light, it would be very dangerous.”