Brice went limp, his eyes rolled back in his head, and his knees buckled so that he began to topple to the floor. Francesca easily caught him with preternatural strength, easing him to the floor, reaching to open his shirt, frantically seeking to find if his airway was open.
“Gabriel!”
She reached for him almost automatically.
“Help me.”
He was there instantly in her mind, a soothing calm in the eye of the storm, assessing the situation. Francesca was attempting to breathe for Brice, but no air could make it through his passageway. When she tried to enter his body using pure energy and light, there was some obstruction she could not pass. Gabriel was grateful that she had suspected him only fleetingly, had turned instantly to him for aid. She was beginning to trust him far more than she realized.
“Lucian, I know you are there.”
Gabriel was very calm.
“You are killing this man. Let him be.” “You do not fight your own battles.”
Itwas a taunt, a reprimand. Francesca renewed her efforts to enter Brice’s body to heal him, but the obstruction was like a brick wall. Sharing Gabriel’s mind enabled her to “hear” the exchange between the twin brothers.
“Who is this man that you do not remove him when he causes you such annoyance? You have grown soft, Gabriel. You expect to hoard these two women when you cannot even destroy your enemies?”
The voice was beautiful. So beautiful that Francesca had to try to block it out. It was compelling without the vampire even trying to make it so. She was frightened to think what power he wielded so easily.
“Hurry, Gabriel.”
She whispered it on their own private mental path. Brice had been without air for far too long.
At once she heard the soft, beautiful laughter echoing in her mind.
“She is begging for the life of this worthless human. Your woman, begging for the life of another male. What does that mean, brother? You cannot even keep your woman.”
It was shocking to discover that the private path used between lifemates had been so easily invaded by the vampire. It was unheard of. Her heart began to beat loudly. She felt very vulnerable and she was desperate now to save Brice. Gabriel, however, remained as calm as ever, completely unruffled.
“Keep this between the two of us, Lucian. You are becoming rather tedious with these displays. Showing off for women is beneath you. Are you so afraid, then, that I am not paying enough attention to you? I will come to you at once if that is your desire.”
Hewas searching for a path to locate the vampire.
All at once, Brice coughed and choked, gasping for breath. Francesca felt the unmistakable ripple of power. It filled the spaces around her, vibrated in the air, and then it was gone. She shuddered, sitting back on her heels beside Brice, her hand on his shoulder, her large dark eyes anxious. “Should I call someone?”
“Water,” he croaked, his voice strangled and hoarse. His hands groped their way to his neck rather weakly.
Francesca could feel Gabriel’s frustration as he realized that once again the vampire had slipped away before he could pinpoint his exact location. Since there was nothing she could do to help Gabriel, she hurried to find a cup of water for Brice, nearly spilling it as she helped him into a semi-sitting position.
“It was Gabriel,” he accused, his voice rasping. “I felt his hands on my throat strangling me.”
“Brice, it was not Gabriel. He is nowhere near this hospital. You were choking. I cleared your airway so you could breathe.” She made the suggestion calmly and clearly.
Brice’s eyes flashed at her. “It was Gabriel. I even smelled him. It was his hands around my throat and he tried to murder me. I saw him. I know I did and you’re trying to cover up for him.”
“There is no use trying to persuade him otherwise, Francesca.”
Gabriel said it softly, matter-of-factly, not bothered by Brice’s opinion of him.
“Lucian is far too powerful for you to overcome the compulsion he has buried in this man. I have seen him destroy an entire army. When we hunted together he often ordered a vampire to rid the world of its existence using only his voice and it was done without a fight. The vampire ended his existence without so much as a struggle. You know vampires will do anything to continue their life, yet Lucian is able to control them with only his voice. You have no idea of his power. Allow Brice to think what he wishes. I will have established a perfect alibi with the judge. It will not be hard to do so.”
Francesca climbed slowly to her feet, turning her full attention to the problem at hand. “You may think anything you wish, Brice, but remember when you accuse Gabriel of this terrible crime, you are also accusing me of aiding him by my denial. I was here with you, I helped you. What motive would I have for lying to you?”
Brice shook his head, rubbing his sore throat and neck. “I know he’s evil, Francesca, and I know you have to do as he tells you. I know you wouldn’t want me hurt. He’s making you say and do the things you’re doing. You’re afraid of him, aren’t you? You probably did save my life, but you’re covering up for him because you’re afraid. If you’d just tell me what he’s holding over your head, I could help you.”
Francesca sighed, swept a hand through her long silken hair impatiently. “I thought you knew me, Brice. Really knew me. If I was afraid of Gabriel and thought him capable of outright murder, if he was threatening me in some way, even with so trivial a thing as blackmail, do you think for one moment I would expose Skyler to such a person? Never. I could never, under any circumstances, be persuaded or induced to place her in jeopardy. If you know nothing else about me, you should know that. And if Gabriel had tried to strangle you, you would be dead. I would not be able to fight him off, nor would anything induce me to protect him if he had attempted to murder you.”
“I don’t know what he’s done to you, but you can expect a visit from the authorities, because I intend to press charges against him.” Brice massaged his neck and throat, coughing several times.
“Do whatever you think you have to do, Brice,” she said softly. “Obviously you think me capable of being an accomplice to murder.” Regally, she turned and swept down the hall toward the double doors, leaving Brice to stumble unsteadily to his feet by himself.
“
I do not know where Lucian is, Francesca.”
Gabriel’s voice was as calm as ever but she was beginning to know him well enough to hear he was worried.
“Do not leave the hospital until I am once again with you. I am on my way.” “What if that’s just what he wants? What if he is using me to lure you out where he can harm you?”
There was real fear in her voice.
“He has never defeated me in battle, sweetheart. You should have more faith in your lifemate. Lucian is a very unusual vampire, just as he was an unusual Carpathian. There is no other like him. It does no good to try to second-guess him. He always does the unexpected. He could just as easily have attacked you or Skyler. He is intelligent far beyond your imagining, just as he is more powerful than the legends have told. To guess what he is up to is impossible, but he has found you and he has found Skyler. I do not want you to set one foot into the night without me by your side.”
For some reason, Francesca was annoyed. “
I am not about to allow this vampire to change my life, Gabriel. This is my city. There is much I do here, much I love. Over the centuries there have been many vampires who have come and gone. For that matter, there have been many Carpathian males, yet I live on and do as I please.” “Lucian likes games, Francesca. His mind craves action at all times. He is not one you can ‘play’ with and expect to win.” “I will not live my life in fear of him.”