Corinne continued to gaze at him, looking very young and vulnerable. Her face was pale, almost ashen, and it was becoming difficult for her to breathe. Automatically Dayan did it for her, taking over the job, directing her lungs to push air in and out. “By giving me your blood, did you make me like you?” Her voice was low, a mere thread of sound.
Dayan circled her slender shoulders with his arm. “We do not need to have this talk right now, my love. If you are not feeling up to it, I will remove your memories and we will try again at a later date.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “You can do that? Remove my memories?” Suddenly she glared at him. “Have you done that?”
He shrugged casually, without remorse. “Partially. I made them hazy so you would not be frightened, but left them accessible should you ever wish to put the pieces of the puzzle together.”
For a moment she stared at him; then she burst out laughing. “This really is crazy, you know, because I’m believing you and it’s too bizarre for words.”
“I cannot lie to you, Corinne. You have the ability, through our blood exchange, to look into my memories, into my mind, and see that I am telling you the truth. You are my lifemate. I would not attempt to deceive you for any reason.”
“And a lifemate means…?” she prompted softly, struggling to comprehend.
“For a Carpathian male, there is only one chance at true life. We lose our feelings early. We have the memories of emotion to sustain us, and we have the ability to touch others so that we can share their feelings, but after centuries of loneliness and bleakness, it is difficult to maintain the illusion that life has meaning. The whisper of power calls us continually, a dark stain spreading over our souls. Some give up and seek eternal rest; others choose the darkness and become the things of legend – vampires.”
“If all this is true, how can I be your other half when I am not Carpathian?” She wasn’t certain she wanted the answer. She felt like his other half. She felt as if she belonged with him. Every moment spent in his company only made the feeling stronger. She knew nothing about him, yet she felt as if she knew everything. But if she believed what he was telling her, she would also have to believe in the legendary vampires.
“You have psychic ability. Human women who have paranormal abilities often seem to be able to link with us – at least that is what I have been told. Syndil and Barack are lifemates. Desari’s lifemate, Julian, is Carpathian. But Darius found a human woman. Her name is Tempest, and she came to us through an ad Desari placed for a mechanic to travel with our band. Desari embedded a hidden compulsion in the ad in the hope that it would draw the right person to us, and Tempest answered.”
“Is she human still?”
Dayan brought her fingertips to the warmth of his mouth, nipped gently, tenderly. “Tempest chose to save Darius’s life and in doing so was fully brought over into our world. It was her choice, Corinne. Darius did not want any of us discussing the possibility with her, because he did not want to take any chances with her life.”
“Chances?” she echoed. She was very tired all of a sudden and wished for the familiar comfort of Lisa.
Or John.
Dayan winced visibly. He knew it was natural for her, as natural as it would be for him to think of Desari or Syndil. He had spent several lifetimes with them and loved them deeply. Yet it bothered him that Corinne wanted the comfort of another man’s company, of another man’s arms. He knew he would love the baby; he already felt a strong bond with her. And if he was successful in saving Corinne’s life, it would be his blood running in the child’s veins.
Dayan’s heart turned over at the thought of his child in her body. He framed her face with gentle hands. “There have been mistakes – human women who were not true lifemates, and they became deranged. Darius did not want to chance such a tragedy with his lady.”