“You are that beast, Aidan,” Marie said severely. “Alex is a child. A terrified child. And she has good reason to be. Give her the time she needs to adjust.”
“What of the others seeking her? And there are others. At least two more. You read the papers. A serial killer on the loose, they say. But it is the vampires. I feel their presence. They seek her. They can feel her, that she is one of us and unattached as yet.”
“That is not so. You are her lifemate. Your blood is in her as hers is in you. There is no way one of them could lure her from you. In all our years together, I have learned that much. It is your Carpathian nature blinding you, Aidan, your urge to keep your lifemate always under your wing, to claim and protect her. Despite outward appearances, that part of you is still wild and uncivilized. But Alexandria is just as essentially human. She was not born Carpathian. She has no idea what is expected of her, what is even happening to her. She doesn’t understand yet.”
Aidan sighed, rubbing his temples. “She suffers needlessly. If she would but merge her mind fully with mine…”
“She wouldn’t yet trust what she learned anyway,” Marie insisted.
Aidan sighed and turned to Stefan. “We have to retire to the chamber soon. But you know I felt the presence of something unclean watching Joshua’s school. I believe the others will strike against us soon. Please be alert to any danger to any of you.”
Stefan nodded. “I have made the necessary calls, and the security system is in place. Do not worry about us. We have been through this before.”
“Too many times,” Aidan replied sorrowfully. “Why you stayed and chose to live this life so far from our homeland, so dangerous for you and your sons, I do not know.”
“You know,” Marie said softly.
Aidan bent and brushed her cheek lightly with an affectionate kiss. “I guess I do,” he admitted. “Please see if Alexandria is ready to go to the chamber. I do not wish her to think I am ‘dominating’ her.”
Marie nodded, and Stefan followed his wife through the house, uneasy with the way things seemed to be going. Aidan was dangerous, powerful, more beast than man when push came to shove. And he would allow no one or nothing to take Alexandria Houton from him. Stefan could easily read that in Aidan’s protective, possessive posture when he was close to her. And Aidan’s thin veneer of civility was wearing thinner by the day.
Marie and Stefan’s search for Alexandria came to an abrupt stop when they saw her huddled beside the front door. She looked small and lost, a forlorn little girl tormented beyond endurance. Her knees were drawn up to her chin, her face down, hair spilling around her, hiding her expression. She was shaking, pale, the terrible daytime lethargy of the Carpathian people slowly creeping over her, taking control. Clearly it was frightening for her to feel her body turning to lead, as if all control was lost forever.
“Alexandria,” Marie said anxiously, approaching the huddled figure, “are you all right?”
Her concern seemed genuine, but Alexandria was under no illusions. Marie’s first and only loyalty was to Aidan Savage. Anything she said would be reported to him immediately. Alexandria did not lift her head. Inside her was a growing dread that she was utterly helpless, caught in a snare, a maze so tangled, she would never get out. Aidan was far too powerful to fight, and for some reason, he wanted her with him.
“Alexandria?” Marie gently touched her bowed head. “Tell me, should I get Aidan?”
Alexandria squeezed her eyes shut. Aidan. It always seemed to come back to Aidan. “No, I… I’m just finding everything… overwhelming. I… I need time to adjust.” Her voice was so tight, she felt so close to a breakdown, she was afraid to speak. She struggled to stop the inner trembling threatening to shake her apart. Was she crazy? Did she belong in a mental institution?
She had to find a way to get Joshua away from these people. She should have asked Thomas Ivan for help. But the truth was, he could never hope to win against Aidan. Aidan would never let her go. She didn’t know why, she didn’t understand how, but she had an absolute conviction that he would follow her to the ends of the earth. She bit down on a knuckle to keep from screaming. How could she hope to fight Aidan? Could she even survive without his help? If she checked herself into a hospital, admitted to hallucinations, what would happen to Joshua?