There was a curious whisper brushing Gabriel’s mind. A soft note of censure almost, yet not quite. Gabriel was not using his own voice to defeat the ancient killer as he should have been. He was tired from blood loss; the stench of death filled his mind and heart. He was tired of destroying his own people time and time again. He would do what was necessary, but he did not have to enjoy it.
The vampire suddenly covered his ears and began to wail in a high-pitched tone, attempting to drown out the insidious whispering of that velvet voice. There was a quality to that voice that insisted on being heard. It was sapping his strength, taking his power, removing his abilities. Shrieking his hatred and fear, the vampire played his last card, jerking his arms wide and calling his minions to the kill.
At once the mire erupted with hundreds of huge leeches, boiling out of the mud to swarm at Gabriel. Even as they did so, the air groaned with a sudden infestation of owls, a black cloud of bodies that dove, talons ex- tended, straight for the hunter. The vampire turned to make his escape and ran straight into the Carpathian. The hunter seemed to shimmer out of the air itself, his face a mask of granite.
The vampire looked down and saw his chest, wide open, his withered heart pulsing in the fist of the hunter. The man never changed expression, yet he seemed to be fading in and out, almost an illusion. Only his fist was all too real. The vampire screamed his hatred and defiance, lunging forward in an attempt to recover his stolen heart. He fell facedown in the muck of his own making, the leeches finding him immediately. They covered his body, filling the empty hole in his chest.
Gabriel had been forced to dissolve when the vampire sent his servants to attack. He had risen high above the ground, into the clouds themselves. Now he directed the electrically charged air in a thin whip along the ground to sear the leeches and fry the raptors right out of the sky. They rained on the earth, their blackened bodies plopping into the bog. He could see the vampire lying in the muck along with his minions and wondered for a moment what trick the undead thought to play. What good would it do to pretend death?
With his superior eyesight, Gabriel could see the vampire’s heart several feet from his body, lying atop a rock.
Lucian.
He had definitely joined the hunt, removing all other players from their battleground. Gabriel could see that the vampire was dragging himself forward, inching his way ever closer to the withered heart. At once Gabriel directed the whip of lightning, reducing the heart to a pile of ashes, ensuring the undead could never rise again. The vampire let out a hideous hiss, a last protest just as the lightning bolt took him, incinerating his body, removing all evidence of his existence. There was nothing left to do but clean up. Gabriel took care to eliminate all evidence of the vampire and his work from the area. The bog would be a trap for animals and humans alike, and Gabriel used precious energy to eradicate it. It took a long time to extract every evil thing from that place, replacing it with good.
Whatever game Lucian was playing, it would have to wait. Gabriel’s wounds were throbbing. He kept the pain at bay, but his energy was gone. He would not attempt to pursue Lucian this night. He could only find it in himself to be grateful his twin had come down on his side in the battle.
When Gabriel turned toward his home, weariness immediately set in. He was tired and his wounds could no longer be ignored. He needed blood and Francesca’s healing presence. He was eternally grateful he had a home and a lifemate to go back to.
Chapter Seventeen
The moment he entered the house, Gabriel knew something was wrong. There was an oppressive feeling of danger. Some menace disturbed the usual tranquility. Automatically he touched Francesca and found her filled with fear. But the fear was for Gabriel and their unborn child, not for herself. Gabriel glided through the upper story, his feet barely touching the floor. There was blood oozing from the deep scratches on his arm, and the puncture wound in his side was throbbing with each movement. The pain in his ribs took his breath away. He was tired, his great strength drained.
Naturally Lucian would choose this time for their battle. He knew Lucian was in the house; there was no other explanation. Only Lucian was powerful enough to conceal his presence from the air itself. As Gabriel continued through the house, he shut off his emotions, his fear for Francesca and Skyler, his doubt in his ability to defeat his brother, the pain of his wounds, and his fatigue. He became the emotionless robot he would have to be to defeat the greatest, the most powerful vampire ever in existence.
The large living room was empty, but he caught a glimpse of Santino and Drusilla lying together on the floor of their bedroom. He didn’t bother to check if they were alive or dead; it wouldn’t make a difference at this point. He accepted that he could do nothing for them until he had taken care of his greatest task. Lucian must be defeated. Gabriel scanned the house for Skyler’s presence, and found her in her room seemingly fast asleep. He could sense Francesca’s hand in that; there was a very feminine feel to the power that clung to Skyler’s room. It was like Francesca to think of the girl even in her own moment of stark terror. If she could help Skyler sleep through this nightmare, then she would do so.
Gabriel scanned farther, checking the underground chamber where Brice slept fitfully. The vampire’s tainted blood was still in his system, poisoning him, making him restless despite the healing herbs and the deep sleep he had been placed in, but he was not in danger from Lucian. Those safeguards were intact.
Gabriel continued moving through the house, making no attempt to hide his presence. Lucian was expecting him. He moved slowly into the drawing room. Francesca was seated in a high-backed armchair facing his twin. Lucian was in the shadows, his face hidden from Gabriel, but he stood tall, shoulders wide, his clothes, as always, immaculate.
“We have a visitor, Gabriel,” Francesca announced, her voice matter-of-fact. “Skyler thought he was you when he came to the door.”
Gabriel nodded. He merged with Francesca to “see” her memories, not wanting to ask questions in front of Lucian. Skyler didn’t know she had allowed their enemy entrance into their home. Lucian, a powerful ancient, had easily changed his thought patterns and aura to those of his twin. He hadn’t revealed his true identity to Skyler and neither had Francesca. Francesca had put her under compulsion to sleep in an attempt to save her from what was to come.
“Did he touch you, harm you in any way?” “He asked me questions.”
Therewas a note in Francesca’s voice that Gabriel couldn’t define.
“Personal questions about myself. He did not come near me, but stayed in the shadows where I could not see him ortouch him. He did not attempt to take my blood or the blood of any residing in this house.”
“I trust your greetings are satisfactory and are over now,” Lucian said in his beautiful voice. It seemed to send out a wave of purity and goodness.
“You are welcome in our home, brother,” Francesca said suddenly, softly. “Please come in and sit with us for a visit. It has been long since you and your brother have had an occasion to visit in a tranquil setting.” She gestured toward a chair, her movements graceful.
Francesca had a way about her—her voice, the way her body moved, her very presence—that soothed and made those near by feel at peace. She was wielding her magic now, her greatest gift, in an attempt to reach Lucian. She knew it was hopeless. Once a Carpathian male had chosen to give up his soul, he was lost for all time. There was no going back. Even Francesca, with her great healing powers, could not do the impossible. Gabriel ached to gather her in his arms and hold her to him, both as comfort for himself and for her.