Prophecy: Child of Light (45 page)

Lapping it up, she inhaled deeply through her nose and savoured the taste of it. She bit her lip, barely registering the sharp stab of pain when her incisor punctured it. Looking up at Valentine, she grew a little more confident when she found blue eyes watching her. His pupils were dilated, making his eyes dangerously dark and full of intense desire. His lips parted slightly, revealing his fangs to her. She moved back to his neck and slowly, gently bit down on it. He tensed beneath her and she resisted her desire to moan into his throat when his blood flooded her mouth.

Her whole body trembled when Valentine leaned towards her, one of his arms wrapping about her waist while the other cleared her hair from her neck. Her brows furrowed when his incisors penetrated her. She dug her fingernails into his side and focused on the dual sensations of pleasure and pain that were racing through her. The feeling of his fangs in her, his tongue drawing blood from her, and his own blood flowing into her, was like nothing she’d ever felt before. The intensity of it was overwhelming. All she could feel, all she could sense, was him. She felt as though she was a part of him and he was a part of her.

She slowly ran her tongue over his neck and the wounds she’d created, sealing them at the same time as he sealed the marks he’d placed on her. When she drew back, she could see nervousness in his eyes. Raising her hand, she went to wipe her lip clean with her thumb but he caught hold of her wrist before she could reach it. His hands were shaking as they held her. She frowned into his eyes and saw the uncertainty swimming there.

She noticed the blood on his lip. Her blood.

She didn’t have time to say anything before her breath was stolen from her by him.

He leaned towards her, his eyes dropping to her mouth and his hand still tightly clutching her wrist. She watched his eyes close as he neared her. She couldn’t breathe when his tongue darted out and swept gently along her lower lip, capturing the blood that lingered there. A shiver ran through her, making the stars on her skin tingle, and her eyelids dropped, hooding her eyes. She frowned when he pulled back and she realised that it was over when she didn’t want it to be. Finding her courage, she held his wrist tight, holding him fast. She moved closer to him, edging her mouth towards his, and slowly licked the blood off his lips.

She tensed when her tongue touched his and then relaxed into him, letting him hold her in his arms. She felt drowsy, lost in a sea of pleasure and willing to drown. She felt sure that she would if he kissed her. If the simple act of their tongues barely brushing each other’s made her feel like this, she couldn’t imagine how good it would feel to have him kiss her.

Drawing back, she heaved a sigh and felt the haziness inside her start to disappear. She gave him a small smile when he looked awkward and the corners of his mouth tugged slightly into a smile. When it dropped off his face and he looked over her shoulder, she remembered that they weren’t alone.

Turning around, she found Mia and Dmitri were sitting in silence opposite them, both wearing blank, stunned expressions.

She was thankful she couldn’t blush.

“Why do you not bite me like that?” Mia raised a brow at Dmitri.

She wanted to bury her head in Valentine’s neck and never come out again. She’d just had the most intimate moment of her life and she’d shared it with two other people. She cringed inside and glanced at Valentine. He looked as uncomfortable as she felt.

“Because I would devour your sweet neck, little one.” Dmitri bared his fangs. “It took three weeks for you to heal after our mating.”

Mia looked a little flustered and embarrassed. Prophecy smiled when Dmitri grabbed hold of the female vampire and growled into her neck. Mia looked shocked and pushed against him, struggling to get free of his grasp.

“Not here, my love,” Mia said and Dmitri let her go.

Prophecy smiled when Dmitri looked a little crestfallen.

“They have young love. Wait until they have shared a bicentenary. They will not be so sweet with each other.” Dmitri patted Mia’s hand and grinned, seemingly blind to the scowl his mate was giving him.

She glanced across at Valentine and noticed that the awkwardness that had filled his eyes was now gone. Moving closer to him, she smiled inside when his arm came to rest around her shoulders and she leaned into him.

He pointed to something. “Look.”

She frowned and turned towards the window. The sky was lightening. She could just about make out the scenery through the heavily tinted windows. There were mountains in the distance and behind them the sky glowed brightly.

“Sunrise?” she said and looked at Valentine for confirmation. He nodded. “How is this possible? I mean... why aren’t we—”

“Affected?” Mia said, cutting her off. “The windows are made from glass that is impregnated with the highest anti-UV film. It is the latest technology produced by the Nocens bloodline. They have invested many years in its creation. The sun cannot penetrate it.”

“Could you use it in houses?” She looked back at the window again, watching the dim orb as it rose into the sky. She’d never seen a real sunrise. This was probably the closest she would ever get to one.

“I cannot see why not. I was considering having the mansion windows re-paned with it, but Dmitri sometimes enjoys the sun.”

“Sometimes, but never enough to risk you, my love.” Dmitri placed his arm around Mia’s shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. “When we return, we shall contact the Nocens. What my love wants, my love will have.”

Prophecy smiled at how sweet Dmitri was when it came to Mia. When she’d first met him, she would never have thought him capable of such tender emotions and gentleness, but he was proving that her original impression of him was wrong. Although he seemed brutal on the exterior, inside he was loyal and fiercely protective. She looked out of the corner of her eye at Valentine. He was watching her rather than the sunrise. He was fiercely protective too. In Paris, he’d gone out of their way to lure the hunter, Caden, out into the open so he could make sure that the man knew never to touch her again. He’d been protective of her from the moment he met her. That’s why he’d saved her. It was his destiny to be with her and his loyalty to his family had been replaced by loyalty to her.

She wondered how much this upcoming battle would test that loyalty. She didn’t want him to risk his life by attempting to protect her during the fight, but she knew in her heart that he would. Even with the power she commanded, he would still want to keep her safe from harm, even if it meant he got himself hurt. The last thing she wanted was for Valentine to be hurt again because of her. She could protect herself now, and she wished she could tell him that, but there was no way of wording it that wouldn’t make him feel unwanted. She was all he had. He was all she had. She would die to protect him, and her heart told her that he would do the same for her.

Valentine watched Prophecy press her hand to her chest and frown down at it. He wondered what she was thinking about. The happiness he’d seen in her eyes a few moments ago and her relaxed air had gone, clouded by the heavy thoughts that flitted across her features. He leaned forwards in the seat, resting his elbows on his knees and looking back at her out of the corner of his eye.

He glanced at Mia and Dmitri. They were huddled close together again, talking about things he had no interest in hearing. He stared out of the window at the rising sun. He could still vividly feel the brush of Prophecy’s tongue against his. He’d been a split-second away from kissing her, had been so lost in being close to her that he’d completely forgotten their company. He’d never felt like this before. He and Lucya had never shared blood in the way he and Prophecy did. Glancing over his shoulder, he stared at the marks on her neck. She’d gone from having none, to having so many. How many times had he bitten her now? He’d lost count. How many times had he wanted to bite her? Many more than he had, that was for sure. He wasn’t sure what made him do it. It wasn’t just the exquisite taste of her blood. It was something else.

It was a compulsion.

He felt a constant need for connection between them and it seemed she was the same. He was drawn to her in a way that was impossible to resist. The vision she’d shown him on the train flashed in front of his eyes, giving him an answer to the question he’d been asking himself.

In the heat of the moment, he’d wanted to claim her.

He still did.

The need to exchange blood, to establish a connection via sharing it, was exactly the kind of thing that he’d read about in claims where the bond was strong. But he hadn’t claimed her and she hadn’t claimed him. If the desire was this strong now, what would it be like if they actually mated and bonded with one another?

He moved his gaze back to the window and thought about how it had felt to taste his blood on her lips. Overpowering. The desire he felt for her had spiralled out of his control and he’d been on the verge of completely surrendering to it when he’d remembered that they weren’t alone. When she was near him, there was nothing but her. Years of training and lessons on keeping his senses open at all times was forgotten and his guard dropped. His focus became trained on her, leaving him open to attack and danger. Not that he was in danger with Mia and Dmitri, but it was a hazardous way to feel.

All it would take was for him to become this distracted when they were out in the open alone and it would give someone the perfect opportunity to attack undetected. Caden would be first to take advantage of such a chance. He had to learn to control his feelings for Prophecy or at least not let them affect his awareness of the things that were happening around them.

It seemed so impossible whenever he thought about how it had felt to share such a quiet intimacy with her. He’d never be able to control his feelings.

He closed his eyes and sighed.

His ears pricked when he heard Prophecy shifting on the seat beside him and then he relaxed when he felt her hand on his shoulder.

Her other hand came to rest on his other shoulder and she slipped them about him, clasping them together in front of his chest while she leaned her cheek against his back. He placed his hand over hers and held them, letting her know that he was all right. When she leaned more heavily against him, he realised that she was falling asleep. The dawn was finally catching up with her.

He gently unclasped her hands and put his arm around her shoulders, letting her head rest against his chest. Pressing a solitary kiss to her hair, he thought about what was coming. There was still a long way to go before they got to the Romanian border. Once they did, it would take at least another half a day to get to the valley where the Tenebrae had their home.

Glancing across the car, he saw that Mia and Dmitri were fast asleep, curled up in each other’s arms. He shifted in the seat until he was in a more comfortable position and held Prophecy a little tighter when she sighed in her sleep. He looked at her right hand, which was resting against his chest, her amulet centred directly over his heart. Bringing his hand up, he took hold of hers.

The best thing they could do now was sleep. The battle that lay ahead of them was going to be hard and they would need to save all of their strength for it. Closing his eyes, he sighed out his breath and let sleep take him.

P
rophecy looked up at the rickety building in front of her. It looked as though it had been thrown together in a hurry. The sky above it was rapidly darkening, the sun having set a few minutes ago. She listened to Mia talking to Dmitri and heard the car door close. A hand on her shoulder drew her attention away from the inn and she turned to look at Valentine. He seemed concerned. She’d been quiet for most of the journey and she knew he’d noticed. She placed her hand over his and smiled to alleviate his worry. She wasn’t out of spirits or feeling down about the things she’d learned about herself back at Dmitri’s bastion, she was just tired. She wanted this battle over with already so she could move on with her life, hopefully with Valentine by her side.

A noise in the street caught her attention. A hay cart was trundling towards them. She’d never seen anything like it. It wasn’t the kind of thing she’d been expecting. The whole village wasn’t what she’d imagined it would be. She stepped forwards, away from Valentine and towards the cart as it approached. It was drawn by a tired looking horse that must have been older than her. The hay was piled haphazardly on the back and great chunks of it were falling off, covering the dirt road. The man sitting at the front of the cart had a kind face, worn with age and care. He pulled the horse to a halt when he saw her. She smiled. He lowered his head, almost in a bow. She was surprised when he made the same gesture to Valentine, Mia and Dmitri. It was strangely respectful, as though he knew what they were.

She nodded in return and frowned when he cracked his whip and the horse began to move again. Her eyes followed him for a moment and then she looked back at the village. The buildings were made of wood and there were patches of tiles missing in their roofs. It looked as though time had forgotten the village. Behind the buildings steep mountains began to rise up, their slopes covered in dense forest and their peaks dusted with snow.

Looking down the valley, she followed the line of the mountains until her eyes fell to rest on the distant castle. It was at least a few miles away. It had seemed closer in the vision. She looked back at the village again, watching the small number of people who were going about their business in the poorly lit street. They nodded each time they noticed she was watching them.

Turning to face Valentine, she frowned.

“Come,” he said, ushering her towards the inn.

She did as instructed and followed Mia and Dmitri into the inn. The ceiling was low, forcing both Dmitri and Valentine to stoop in order to stop their heads from touching it. Valentine looked at her with concern in his eyes. She wished she knew how to ease his worry and make it disappear but everything she’d tried so far had failed. She waited for him while he spoke to the short old woman behind the bar and avoided looking around her at the patrons that had all stopped drinking in order to stare at them. It wasn’t just because they were newcomers. Her instincts told her that they knew what creatures they were in the presence of. It surprised her that they didn’t seem to mind. The old woman busily filled out the register for Valentine to sign. If they hadn’t wanted their kind here, they surely would have turned them away.