Dark Magic (18 page)

"And you? Do you intend to quit hunting?" she asked softly, already knowing the answer, already in his mind.

"You know I cannot." He said it gently, his voice soft.

"I am your lifemate, Gregori." Her voice trembled just a bit. "You may have to hunt because you're the very best we have, and our people need you. But if something were to happen to you, I would follow you."

Gregori's thumb feathered back and forth across her inner wrist, lingering on her pulse. It was rapid. "It would be dishonest of me to allow you to think I have such a noble motivation. I have hunted for so many centuries, I do not know any other way of life." His face was impassive, but inside he was holding his breath.

A small smile flirted with her perfect mouth. "If it pleases you to think so of yourself, Gregori, that's fine with me. You are arrogant enough for several males; you don't need me to feed you compliments. But perhaps I might be able to do something about teaching you another way of life. In the meantime, I suggest you educate me in the ways of vampires, since it looks as if we'll be hunting them. And you might also remember you are the greatest healer among us. That is unchallenged by anyone."

"I am the greatest killer, also unchallenged." He tried to give her truth again.

She touched his hard mouth. "I will hunt with you then, lifemate."

His heart slammed against his ribs. Her smile was mysterious, secretive, and so beautiful, it broke his heart. "What is behind this smile,
bébé"
His hand caught and spanned her throat, his thumb brushing her lips in a gentle caress. "What do you know that I do not?" His mind slipped into hers, a sensuous thrust, the ultimate intimacy, not unlike the way his tongue sometimes dueled with her—or his body took possession of hers.

She was familiar with his touch in her mind. She knew he tried to keep its invasiveness to a minimum. He allowed her to set the boundaries and never pushed beyond any barrier she erected, even though he could do so easily. Both of them needed the intimate union of their minds merging, Savannah as much as Gregori. And her newfound knowledge of him was secure behind a miniature barricade she had hastily erected. Wide-eyed and innocent, she looked at him.

His thumb pressed into her lower lip, half mesmerized by the satin perfection of it. "You will never hunt vampires,
ma chérie
, not ever. And if I were ever to catch you attempting such a thing, there would be hell to pay."

She didn't look scared. Rather, amusement crept into the deep blue of her eyes. "Surely you aren't threatening me,
Dark One
, bogey man of the Carpathians." She laughed softly, a sound that feathered down his spine and somehow took away the sting of that centuries-old designation. "Stop looking so serious, Gregori—you haven't lost your reputation entirely. Everyone else is still terrified of the big bad wolf."

His eyebrows shot up. She was teasing him. About his dark reputation, of all things. Her gaze was clear and sparkling, hinting at mischief. Savannah wasn't railing against her fate, of being tied to him, a monster. She was too filled with life and laughter, with joy. He felt it in her mind, in her heart, in her very soul. He wished it could somehow rub off on him, make him a more compatible lifemate for her. "You are the only one who needs to worry about the big bad wolf,
mon amour
," he threatened with mock gravity.

She leaned over to stare up into his eyes, a smile curving her soft mouth. "You cracked a joke, Gregori. We're making progress. Why, we're practically friends."

"Practically?" he echoed gently.

"Getting there fast," she told him firmly with her chin up, daring him to contradict her.

"Can one be friends with a monster?" He said casually, as if he were simply musing out loud, but there was a shadow in his silver eyes.

"I was being childish, Gregori, when I made such an accusation," she said softly, her eyes meeting his squarely. "I wanted my own life, with no one to answer to. It was thoughtless and wrong of me. And I was afraid. But I'm not now, and I ask your forgiveness—"

"Do not!" he ordered sharply. "
Mon Dieu, chérie
, do not ever apologize to me for your fear. I do not deserve it, and we both know it." His thumb pressed into the heated satin of her lip. "And do not try to be so brave. I am your lifemate. You cannot hide from me something as powerful as fear."

"Trepidation," she corrected, nibbling at the pad of his thumb.

"Is there a difference?" His pale eyes had warmed to molten mercury. Just that fast, her body went liquid in answer.

"You know very well there is." She laughed again, and the sound traveled down from his heart to pool in his groin, a heavy, familiar ache. "Slight, perhaps, but very important."

"I will try to make you happy, Savannah," he promised gravely.

Her fingers went up to brush at the thick mane of hair falling around his face. "You are my lifemate, Gregori. I have no doubt you will make me happy."

He had to look away, out the window into the night. She was so good, with so much beauty in her, while he was so dark, his goodness drained into the ground with the blood of all the lives he had taken while he waited for her. But now, faced with the reality of her, Gregori could not bear her to witness the blackness within him, the hideous stain across his soul.

For beyond his killing and law-breaking, he had committed the gravest crime of all. And he deserved the ultimate penalty, the forfeit of his life. He had deliberately tampered with nature. He knew he was powerful enough, knew his knowledge exceeded the boundaries of Carpathian law. He had taken Savannah's free will, manipulated the chemistry between them so that she would believe he was her true lifemate. And so she was with him—less than a quarter of a century of innocence pitted against his thousand years of hard study. Perhaps that
was
his punishment, he mused—being sentenced to an eternity of knowing Savannah could never really love him, never really accept his black soul. That she would be ever near yet so far away.

If she ever found out the extent of his manipulation, she would despise him. Yet he could never, ever, allow her to leave him. Not if mortals and immortals alike were to be safe. His jaw hardened, and he stared out the window, turning slightly away from her. His mind firmly left hers, not wanting to alert her to the grave crime he had committed. He could bear torture and centuries of isolation, he could bear his own great sins, but he could not endure her loathing him. Unconsciously, he took her hand in his and tightened his grip until it threatened to crush her fragile bones.

Savannah
glanced at him, let out a breath slowly to keep from wincing, and kept her hand passively in his. He thought his mind closed to her. Didn't believe she was his true lifemate. He truly believed he had manipulated the outcome of their joining unfairly and that somewhere another Carpathian male with the chemistry to match hers might be waiting. Though he had offered her free access to his mind, had himself given her the power, to meld her mind with his, both as her wolf and as her healer before she was born, he likely didn't think a woman, a fledging, and one who was not his true lifemate, could possibly have the skill to read his innermost secrets. But Savannah could. And completing the ancient ritual of lifemates had only strengthened the bond.

Chapter Eight

Peter Sanders's ashes were buried on the grounds of a mansion Gregori had built for Savannah while waiting for her to come to San Francisco. Savannah's crew and Detective David Johnson arrived for the memorial service, but they were able to keep the actual location, well outside the city, a secret from the majority of the press. Only Wade Carter showed up, having tailed one of the road crew members to do so, but he wasn't allowed inside the gates. His cameraman had refused to come; something about Savannah Dubrinsky's husband scared the hell out of him. That left Wade with the unwieldy camera around his neck and a very uneasy feeling. The grounds were fenced, and wolves ran loose within the compound. With Gregori's supporting arm around her, Savannah spoke quietly to her crew, thanked them for their service, and announced her retirement. They were each presented with an envelope containing a sizable bonus as they left. Gregori spent a few minutes talking with Johnson. The police detective, satisfied there was no more information to be gained, left the residence.

Savannah lingered at the memorial site, staring down at the beautiful marble plaque Gregori had designed for Peter. The tears in her eyes were in part for her sorrow at losing such a good friend, and in part for Gregori's thoughtfulness. He had kept Peter close to them, and he had made this day as comforting as it could have been under the circumstances.

She was turning to go back toward the house when the wolves lifted their heads and howled. Gregori whirled around and caught her arm, dragging her close to him. "I believe it is Aidan Savage," he said softly. "We must go inside, where Carter has no chance to catch sight of Aidan. We do not want to lead assassins to Aidan's door." He hissed a command to his wolves and hurried Savannah toward the mansion.

"I thought you had this place safeguarded," she said.

"With your crew and the police coming to the service, it was too dangerous. Someone could have wandered away from the site and been harmed." His hand brushed her hair tenderly. "I know you are tired. You should lie down for another hour or so. It was too soon for our rising."

She leaned against his hard strength and read the remorse in his mind. "This was never your fault, Gregori, never. I never blamed you for Peter."

His hand caressed her hair. "I know you did not." His attention was on the stirring of the wind, heralding one of their kind. "But if I had not been overwhelmed with physical feelings—lust," he condemned himself, "I would have known the vampire was stalking you that night. I had released Julian from his responsibility; you were in my care."

"Do you have to be so hard on yourself?" she asked with a sigh. "You are not responsible for all Carpathians, nor all humans. If anyone is to blame, it is me for insisting on my freedom. I was thoughtless, not realizing what I was doing to you or even to the unattached males of our kind. I didn't once give a thought to what you would suffer while I was running from myself and our life together. I certainly did not think Peter would be in danger. I should have. I should have known I would be hunted."

His arm swept around her, a tight circle of comfort. "You did nothing wrong,
chérie
," he said fiercely. He was moving her steadily toward the protection of the house.

Rainbow prisms suddenly danced and sparkled through the trees. Gregori shook his head as the light began to shimmer into a substantial shape. "You always were a show-off, Aidan," he greeted his visitor, his voice as expressionless as always. "Let us go inside."

Savannah, touching his mind, felt his affection for the other man. She had heard of Aidan Savage, a hunter of the vampire, but he had left their homeland half a century before her birth to establish residency in the United States. He was one of the few of their kind built like Gregori—tall, like all Carpathian males, but much stockier, with defined, sinewy muscles. Instead of the dark hair of their race, however, he had a long, thick, tawny mane, and his eyes were a peculiar amber flashing with brilliant, glittering gold.

This man's identical twin had guarded her these last five years. Aidan was an imposing figure, so his twin must be also, yet not once had Savannah seen him. Nor had she detected his presence. How had Julian kept himself hidden, with the confidence all males of their race exuded, the power and authority that came with centuries of the hunt, with the acquisition of knowledge?

Gregori's arm moved from around her waist to circle her neck, a male gesture of ownership. Savannah laughed to herself. Carpathian men were not far from the trees.

I caught that
, mon amour. Gregori's soft voice brushed at her mind, a low caress that curled warmth in her stomach. He sounded close to teasing, but she noticed he didn't drop his arm from around her neck.

"Aidan, we did not expect you this early. The sun has not yet gone from the sky, and it is uncomfortable to travel in the evening light," he said aloud, once they were indoors.

"I must apologize for missing the service," Aidan replied softly. "But I could not risk it. Still, I wanted you to know you were not entirely alone in this country," he added to Savannah.

"Savannah, this is Aidan Savage. He is loyal to your father and a good friend to me," Gregori introduced them. "Aidan, my lifemate, Savannah."

"You look like your mother," Aidan observed.

"Thank you. I take that as a great compliment," she said, suddenly wishing her mother was there. She missed Raven and Mikhail. "You honor me, to come at this time of the evening to share my grief. I know it's difficult for all of us, but I had to choose a time to accommodate Peter's human friends."

"There is danger for you nearby, Aidan," Gregori warned. "I would have you and your family safe from these butchers. They are human, of the same secret society that hunted in our lands several years ago."

A shadow crossed Aidan's face. He had humans in his family to protect, as well as his lifemate. The amber eyes glowed a deep gold. "The reporter." A soft growl of menace rumbled deep in his throat.

Gregori nodded. "I will find out what I can this night from Mr. Wade Carter. I intend to take Savannah and lead him and whoever his cohorts are far from this city, so that there is no danger to you or yours." They were in the house, free from prying eyes, but Gregori could feel the reporter's evil presence permeating his territory. "I sent a clear warning to you, Aidan." There was a hint of censure in his words, although his voice was soft.

There was a hard edge to Aidan's mouth. "I received your warning. But this is my city, Gregori, and my family. I take care of my own."

Savannah rolled her eyes. "You could just beat on your chests, you know. It probably works just as well."