Shadow's Claim (37 page)

“Why would you do that?” They’d died with her name upon their lips?

“I wanted each to acknowledge why death had come for him, to whom he was paying the ultimate debt.”

“And they complied? When they knew you were going to kill them anyway?”

“By that point, they did as I commanded—so that I
would
kill them.”

I’d once known pain that great. . . .

“Protecting you is my purpose in life, Bettina. I was born to defend you. To be your shield.” He eased even closer, staring down at her. “After a single dream, I also became your sword, your vengeance.”

She averted her eyes. “In that dream, did you see my cowardice?”

He gently pinched her chin, raising her face to him. “There were four of them. Males in their prime—”

“I begged.” Shame scalded her.

“I experienced your pain. It was some of the worst I’ve ever felt. And I’ve lived so long, Bettina.”

“What else did you see of my life?” She knew he would point out her weakness, her dependency on her guardians, her useless panting after Caspion.

“You view the world differently than I do.”

“Of course I do. You’re a brave warrior. I’m . . . not.”

“You’re an
artist
. You see beauty in so much, noting details I never would have seen. You have a sensibility I could only imagine before.” He parted his lips, then paused for a moment, as if he wanted to get his next words exactly right. “I’ve spent my entire life killing. I destroy. You create. You’ve opened my eyes to a new world. I crave more of it. More of
you
.”

After he’d experienced her memories, he wanted her
more
? She hadn’t seen
that
coming.

But then his words sank in. He wouldn’t
get
more, even if she decided to give it to him.

“You’re talking of things to come?”
You’re going to die in less than twenty-four hours!
“Your future likely
ends tomorrow night. And mine? I’ll be given over to Goürlav with war brewing. That creature will possess my summoning medallion, and whoever controls it, controls me. It’s a bond I can’t break, one I can’t outrun. I will never be free.”

“Your medallion will never make it from Raum’s hand to Goürlav’s.”

“How can you say that?” she cried.

“I’ve instructed my cousins to do whatever it takes to save you should I fall. Three Dacians have vowed to protect you eternally. And, Bride, there’s little three Dacians can’t do if they actually unite in a cause.”

His precautions stunned her, but her flare of hope quickly died. She didn’t see how they could circumvent the blood contract of the tournament. “Raum will be compelled to hand over my medallion.”

“And he will—in a bank of mist where
anything
can get lost. Should my kinsmen fail to seize your freedom, they’ll trace Goürlav to a hell plane and slaughter him. They’d do it now if he wasn’t protected.”

Not
to be wed to a monster? Could she actually remove one worry from the mountain of them?

Great. Now all she had to do was figure out a way to save her childhood love—as well as this vampire who’d invaded her thoughts, her very life.

Who’d given her this gift.

She must’ve looked stunned, because he grated, “When I said I’d protect you, female, I
meant
it. I’ll do it from the godsdamned grave if I have to.”

Such . . .
devotion
. Yet she couldn’t understand how he could feel so strongly for her in such a short period of time. “You’ve only known me for a week.”

“Time enough to know we’re connected.”

“Because I’m your fated, mystical Bride.”

“Yes, you brought me
back to life,
” he said wryly, “an event that shouldn’t be discounted so easily. But we’re connected by more than that. I
felt
you, long before I first saw you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“At the very time you were attacked, I was roused from sleep. My chest ached with the need to protect . . . something.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “It was an unformed, chaotic urge, but, gods, it was strong. I thought I’d go mad from it. Had I been out in the world, I could have sensed you better, could have found you sooner. It was my fault you were vulnerable to those four. That’s why I was so determined to discover who they were—to right the wrong I did to you.”

“It wasn’t your fault—it was solely mine,” she insisted. “I went to the mortal plane without guards. I told myself if I didn’t use sorcery, I’d be hidden from their kind. But I used it unconsciously. They tracked me by it.”

“
I
should have been there to watch your back!” he insisted. “After a millennium awaiting you in Dacia, I should have known my Bride would be out in the world.
Zeii mea,
I felt something that day.”

“Do Dacians have a sense like that?”

“We’ve abilities unknown to most. But I believe that you called for your male, your protector. That night, you called for
me
.”

My male.
Why did that sound so totally right to her? Had she somehow reached out to this vampire? If Daciano was in fact
hers
. . . .

Then she remembered their present circumstances. “Even if we do share some bond, it won’t matter!”
The
vampire’s in it to win it.
But that was just it: he
couldn’t
win. No matter what, they could never be together. “Tomorrow, you’re probably going to . . .
die
.”

“How would that make you feel, Bettina?”

Another tear slid down her face.

He pulled her into his arms. “You would mourn me?”

“Yes!” she said in exasperation. “But just because I don’t want you to die doesn’t mean I’m not confused about everything. Tonight was a shock, and I don’t know how to react.”

“I see. You need a break from all this, a night to recharge.”
I wish!
“Here. I have a surprise for you.”

“I don’t like surprises.” She raised her chin. “Such as when heads tumble out in front of me.”

In a gruff tone, he admitted, “I thought I’d have time to prepare you for the sight. I didn’t want to frighten you.”

“I happen to frighten very easily.”

“Forgive me. For now, I’ve little else to give you.”

She softly said, “Because you abandoned your kingdom for me.”

“A worthwhile sacrifice. Now, can you trust me that this will be a pleasant surprise?”

“I don’t . . . oh, very well.”

“Close your eyes.” When she reluctantly did, he traced her . . .

To her favorite place in all of Abaddon—her folly in the great rain forest.

She was about to ask how he knew about it, but remembered that he probably knew everything about her now.

And he still wants me.

She sighed, gazing around. Located near the marsh’s
edge, the structure consisted of a marble base with ten columns, each carved to look like a different type of basilisk.

Above, over a net of gold filament, a dome of vines grew in a tightly knit riot of green. More vines stretched between the columns to fashion walls. Oversize blossoms fanned out intermittently, bold circles of vivid yellow.

My folly.
Compared to Rune, the rain forest was ablaze with color. How she’d missed this place!

The vampire had slain her enemies, had taken pains to protect her from Goürlav, and now had given her this.

Then she noticed that he’d already been here, bringing furs from his tent as well as wine and food for her.

“A picnic?” She raised her brows at him. “You expect me to believe you don’t plan to seduce me? You’ve gone and set up all those precautions to protect me from Goürlav, and yet you’re not confident enough to have sex with me?”

In a husky voice he said, “Do you desire me to do so this night?”

“No!”
If circumstances were different . . . maybe?
“You just keep telling me you don’t intend to have sex with me.”

“Not by choice—I fantasize about it without cease!” He leaned down to rasp at her ear, “How I’ll prepare your sweet little body to receive me, how I’ll ease you into lovemaking so you crave me as much as I do you.” As she shivered from his words, he pulled back with a sexy curl of his lips. “In any event, I said I wouldn’t seduce you
fully
. Though
up to a point
is still in play.”

Flustered, she reached for a mask that wasn’t there, then backed away from him to stroll the perimeter. She surveyed all the pie blossoms, named so because each
bloom was as big as a pie, its scent as sweet. As she ran her fingertips along damp marble, registering the sensation, the vampire said nothing. But his gaze followed her every move.

A guy who likes you wants to watch you all the time
. Daciano stared at her—as if there was nothing else to behold.

“If you do win this tournament, vampire, you’ll be king of this plane,” she said. “Don’t you care to see any of it? This is probably the prettiest place in Abaddon.” And there was a natural phenomenon that took place on nights like this.
Before the rain comes the clear.
Soon a break would open in the fog bank, revealing a breathtaking scene above.

He joined her. “I want you to show it to me.”

She waved a hand around. “Look on.”

“I see a swamp. The flora is visually appealing, the air muggy, the trees gigantic. But I now know there’s so much more. I want to see it as you do.”

She nibbled her bottom lip. “I see . . . function. Nothing is static. I see the growth patterns in a line of vine: bursts of it each rainy season. Those broad leaves toward the ground are much fuller to catch the snippets of sunlight that filter through.” He looked so interested, she found herself saying, “In a few minutes, if you go to the glade just there and look up, you’ll see a unique sight. It’s beautiful.”

“You will show it to me.”

Her? Walking into that clearing? In the center of all those towering moonraker trees? She nearly snorted.
Not going to happen, vampire.
Even with Daciano here, she couldn’t tolerate that risk.

But wasn’t this folly also flanked with those trees?

Where Vrekeners were wont to perch.

She looked at the closest tree, a massive wooden tower looming beside her. Next to it, she felt as tiny as an ant. As powerless as one.

Her breaths began to shallow as her gaze followed the trunk up and up—until it disappeared into the ghostly fog above. That oh-so-familiar seed of anxiety grew.

There could be a colony of Vrekeners up there, and she’d never see them.

But they could see her. . . .

T
rehan saw the exact moment panic quickened inside her. Her body shot still even as her heart began to race.

“Easy, love.” He was at her side in an instant, hands covering her shoulders.

Her eyes were wide and locked on a nearby tree, her breaths hitching.

“Look at me, Bett. Look at me!” He cupped her paling cheeks, making her face him. “Breathe. Inhale, exhale.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, gripping his shoulders, digging her nails into the muscle. “I’m supposed to take breathing advice . . . from someone who didn’t use his lungs . . . for centuries?”

“Nothing can ever touch you when you’re with me,” he said in a comforting tone, placing his palms over her back. She seemed so frail as she gasped for air, her shoulder blades so fragile beneath his callused
palms.
My delicate little Bride.
His hands felt too large and rough against her, but when he rubbed her back, it seemed to soothe her.

“I-I want to return to my spire.” Finally she opened her eyes.

He gazed down at her, studying her expression.
She’s trying to get control.
He could wrap her in mist, but he didn’t believe she needed it. She appeared to be tamping down the worst of her panic. “I don’t think that’s what you want me to do.”

“Why on earth not?” Her voice was shrill, even as her breaths were steadying.

“You’re reining this back in. You’re beating it.”

“I can beat it—back in my rooms!”

“Those Vrekeners stole more than your ability, they stole your enjoyment of this place. You can reclaim it tonight.”

Her heart sped up again. “This is some kind of test? Some kind of catharsis? You’ll help me past my fear? No, thanks! I don’t have to do this now. One day I’ll get my power back, and then I’ll be cured.”

“You’re more than just power.”

“So says the male that has so much of it!” She fretted her bottom lip. “Look, I appreciate what you’re trying to do. I-I don’t want to be like this—cowards don’t
want
to be cowards. But I also never wanted to be the type of female who needs a male to be strong.”

“Fitting. Because I never wanted to be the type of vampire who can think of nothing but his Bride. In any case, you don’t need me to be strong. You simply need me here for this first step—which is that way.” He pointed to the three stairs leading out of the folly into the glade.

“What can possibly make you think I’m capable of this? Why do you have so much faith in me?”