Dark Celebration (14 page)

Julian swept his arm around Desari's narrow waist. "Do not listen to him. I was not the bad boy of the Carpathians. Just independent—and for good reason. I had a vampire using my eyes to spy on our people. I could not very well stick around."

"And you have since destroyed this vampire?" Mikhail asked.

Julian nodded. "I had built him up to be so powerful. As a child, to me, he seemed so, but like most monsters in our lives, once I became an adult, he was not nearly as powerful as I remembered. Looking back, I should have told an adult and perhaps they could have hunted and destroyed him, giving me back my childhood, but I thought he would harm our hunters."

Mikhail shrugged his shoulders. "It is easy for us to look back and say what we should have done, but that is because later we have different information and, of course, knowledge always changes our decisions."

Julian flashed a faint smile. "I would have wanted those years back with Aidan. He has been so good about it, but I know it hurt him to be separated."

Desari reached for his hand in an offer of comfort. "We see him as often as possible now, Julian," she reminded him, and then jerked her hand away to rub her palm on her thigh. "You're all greasy."

"The infamous roast," Julian said, presenting the large, dried up hunk of meat to her with a small courtly bow.

Mikhail covered his reaction with a small cough, turning his face away as Desari glared at her lifemate.

"It's all squishy, Julian, you ruined my roast. What am I going to do now? I have to provide something for tonight's dinner."

"Ask Corrine to help," Barack suggested. "She told Dayan she cooked quite a bit before he claimed her."

"There is nothing squishy about that roast," Julian protested. "It has turned to leather."

Desari made a face at him and then down at the roast. "Disgusting stuff. I think I will ask Corrine to help me make something else."

Barack held out his hands. "Throw it, Desari, we may as well finish our football game."

Mikhail shook his head. "I wanted to let you all know that Alexandria and young Skyler ran into trouble a few minutes ago. We all need to be on alert and give added protection to our women and children."

"Syndil was at the house, thinking she might prepare something for the party. I think I will check on her. If I reach out, she will simply say she is fine." Barack sketched a small salute and immediately took to the sky.

The smile faded from Julian's face. He stepped closer to Desari. "What kind of trouble? Aidan did not send word that Alexandria was hurt."

"She is fine now, but both she and Skyler felt the presence of a subtle flow of power, enhancing emotions to the point of irrationality. Even Gabriel was affected, losing his temper with Dimitri."

"I knew Dimitri had arrived," Julian said. "I can feel the darkness in him growing by the hour. He is unstable and we have to find a way to keep him safe. Gregori gave me a task to keep me going when I thought to give up my existence, and perhaps if one was given to Dimitri…"Julian sighed. "He is alone, killing more often than a hunter should have to, and that is slowly destroying him."

"Skyler is his lifemate," Mikhail stated.

Desari gasped. "Oh, dear, she's just a babe. Is he certain?"

"She restored colors and emotions."

"That cannot be good," Julian said. "At best emotions can be difficult to deal with, and in this situation when she was so brutalized, he must be going through hell. I should go to him," he added, "see what I can do. Desari has amazing power with her voice. It might help him get through this."

"He cannot bind her to him," Desari protested, her hand to her throat. "She is much, much too young and from what Francesca said, far too fragile. It takes both Gabriel and Francesca to distance her enough from her past to allow her to function normally. Do you know that she has no childhood memories in her mind they can bring out to aid her? It must be so difficult for Dimitri to suddenly feel all these things. For a time, he will be raw and wounded with her old scars."

"It is a very dangerous situation," Mikhail agreed. "If Dimitri stays near her, he will continue to fight his need to claim her. If he chooses to return to Russia, the danger to both increases." He rubbed his temples, suddenly feeling old. The weight of his responsibilities was wearing on him far more these dark days.

In the midst of the Christmas season, when he should have been feeling joy and hope, he felt tired and the beginnings of despair. How could he save them? Two or three children were not enough. Even if Shea gave birth to a female and the baby survived, it would be years before a male would be saved. Too long to wait in darkness. Too many males. One or two lifemates were not going to keep their species from extinction, especially as their enemies were banding together and becoming bolder and bolder in their attacks.

"We had the advantages for so long," he murmured aloud. "We could scan and know the thoughts of our enemies, but now they've found a way to block us. We could smell the evil stench of the vampire, sense the presence of such an abomination, yet now we can no longer trust our own senses to guide us." He spread his arms out wide. "Before, they would never have come here after us, fearing our power, yet now they chip away at us on nearly a daily basis. Our enemies outnumber us and as we grow weaker—they grow stronger."

Desari glanced at Julian. His amber eyes seemed to glow as he stepped forward to put his hand on the prince's shoulder. He looked very much a warrior, and she couldn't help that small rush of pride in him.

"We grow stronger too, Mikhail. Under your leadership, we have come together when before we were scattered and apart. You have worked tirelessly to get the word to any of our ancients, to continue to look for any lost as Desari and the others had been."

"The women are reluctant to become pregnant and give birth," Mikhail pointed out, shaking his head. "Without children, Julian, no matter our longevity, our species will not survive."

Desari smiled at him. "We
will
survive. This is the season of miracles, remember? I thought you were a believer, Mikhail. Where is your faith?"

There was a small silence. The hard lines in the prince's face softened. "Perhaps this celebration of Raven's is just the thing I need to restore my faith, Desari." He rubbed the bridge of his nose thoughtfully. "Should Josef decide to give us his rendition of
any
carol, please do volunteer to sing. Is it possible your dancing notes can muzzle the boy?"

"Josef's reputation precedes him," Desari said with a laugh. "I understand he's quite a handful."

"Let us just say I do not envy Byron and Antonietta trying to keep an eye on the boy. They say he is quite intelligent, but not very diligent when it comes to mastering any of our practices. I think he has been spoiled and allowed to mix so much with human children that he has forgotten his duty to our people."

Julian flashed Desari a secret smile at the sternness in Mikhail's voice. As a child, he'd often heard that same edge to the adult male's tones. "He will grow to a fine man," Julian assured him. "Perhaps not a hunter, but we need our society to return to progress once more. We need men who look to business and the arts and especially science."

"I have no doubt Josef will succeed in anything he does," Mikhail said dryly. "But the rest of us may not survive his youth."

"I seem to recall Gregori said the same thing about me—many times." Julian grinned at him, his strange-colored eyes glinting like gold. "The man needs a sense of humor. Now, I am his brother-in-law. Fate has a way of playing little jokes."

A slow answering smile lit Mikhail's face. "I must confess, Julian, I did not think of that at all. His brother-in-law. He is also my son-in-law and as I am Dear Old Dad, I think it is time the man performed some family duties. He will be perfect in the part of Santa Claus tonight."

Julian's eyebrow shot up. "My prince." He bowed low. "I acknowledge you as the master in this game we so often play with the Dark One."

Desari looked from one man to the other. "I can't imagine you asking Gregori to be Santa, and if Julian is endorsing it, that's a bad thing."

"I see she knows you well, Julian," Mikhail observed.

Desari rested her head on Julian's chest. "Was he the resident bad boy growing up? I can well imagine that he would have been."

Mikhail shook his head. "Independent. A smart mouth. He loved knowledge and had little fear in him. But no." He frowned. "There was a young man, a few years older than Julian, who Gregori had to stay on top of all the time. He was far worse than Josef could ever conceive of being. He questioned authority all the time."

"I remember him," Julian said. "He was amazing with weapons even as young as he was. Tiberiu Bercovitz. I haven't heard or thought of him in centuries. Did he come to the celebration? He was good friends with Dimitri."

There was no real inflection in Julian's voice, but Mikhail caught a flare of wariness in the hunter's eyes. The man shifted subtly, but protectively toward his lifemate.

"This is what our lives have become," Mikhail murmured aloud. "We can no longer trust our friends, men who have dedicated their lives to honor, to saving Carpathian and human alike. We treat our best hunters with suspicion."

"It is the way we have always lived," Julian remarked.

Mikhail shook his head. "There was a time, Julian, long ago, when only nature balanced us. There was harmony and peace in our world and we held celebrations such as this one often."

"And we are holding one this night," Desari pointed out. "A unique reunion with all Carpathians welcome to participate, celebrating strengthening our friendship with each other as well as our human friends. We have not done so in centuries. It sends a message to our people that we are once again united, and a message to our enemies that we are strong together, and will continue to grow stronger. It is a start, don't you think? You have given us that gift, Mikhail."

A small smile teased at the curve of the prince's mouth. "Raven has given us that gift. Carpathians never celebrated Christmas before, but she used this time of year as an excuse to bring us all together. I thought she was wrong—but I see that I was."

"We have the chance to get to know one another," Desari said. "My family, well, not the Daratrazanoffs or my lifemate Julian, I mean our band—the Dark Troubadours—was not raised with other Carpathians, and this is truly a unique opportunity for us. We didn't even use the same common mental path as all of the rest of the Carpathians."

"Your brother, Darius, is truly a miracle worker in that he kept so many young children alive when he was merely a babe himself. Shea and Gregori wanted to meet with him to discuss the various herbs and plants he used to keep so many of you alive."

Desari nodded. "All three of them have been together until the early morning hours since we've arrived. I think it is only today that the others have taken a break from research to cook. I heard Shea was not feeling very well. She must be so frightened to be having a baby when our infant-mortality rate is so high."

She flicked a quick glance at Julian, who tried to catch her eye, but she refused to meet his gaze. Julian reached out his hand and took hers, bringing her palm to his heart.
If you choose not to get pregnant this night, so be it, Desari. I would never take away your choice
.

Desari turned her head away from the prince, blinking back tears, rubbing her cheek along Julian's shoulder as she did so.
I do not know if this year is special or if returning to our homeland has caused a leap in fertility, but many of the women have said they can get pregnant, though few wish to try
.

Desari, we will have children when you are ready. If the miracle happens, and I believe it will, it is meant to be. If not
… Julian shrugged his shoulders and sent her a wealth of love and reassurance.
So be it
. He was not a man to follow the path of others. If Desari didn't want to chance the heartbreak of losing children, he was not going to take her to task, or point out her duty to their people.

Desari smiled at him. She knew he would never pressure her, and she loved him all the more for his patience—for his complete faith in her.

"Julian, I ask again that you reach out to Dimitri," Mikhail said. "I am on my way to speak with Darius. I wish to question him more on how he kept you all alive."

Julian nodded in agreement, and watched as Mikhail shimmered into transparency and streamed upward through the snow toward the house Darius had chosen to stay in. He dropped his arm around Desari's shoulders, sweeping her long hair away from her neck. "We are actually alone."

A slow smile teased the curve of her mouth. "Really?" She quirked an eyebrow at him. "We may be alone, but since you ruined my contribution to tonights feast, I have to cook. Or better yet, you should do the cooking."

His golden eyes gleamed at her. "I would very much like to oblige." He swept her into his arms, tossing her over his shoulder as if she weighed no more than a feather, and sprinted for the house.

"Julian! You savage!" She gripped him around the waist as he vaulted over the railing and kicked open the front door. "Stop being a caveman."

"Ha ha ha." He brought his hand down on her squirming bottom as he strode through the house toward the bedroom. "As I recall, technically you are a Savage as well."

She laughed and deliberately wrapped her arms around his waist, fingers sliding over the front of his jeans in a stroking caress. The action distracted him immediately so that he nearly stumbled, losing his long strides. Desari took the opportunity to dissolve, leaving him holding empty air as she streamed through the house, a comet of flashing colors. Her soft laughter teased his senses, while her fingers seemed to brush over his face and down his chest.

"That's not nice, Desari," Julian objected, following the prism of colors at a more leisurely pace. "And definitely unfair."

Back off big boy
, she warned, trying to give the impression of a snarl, but instead it came out laughter.
Can I help it if you re so susceptible to a little accidental touching
?