She visualized turning down the radiance of her aura like the wick of a lamp, until no ray of light leaked through her shrouding web. Next, she added a cushioning layer of silk to block sound.
::Excellent. I can't perceive you through any of my senses. I'm touching your mind, yet it feels as if I'm probing in a void.:: A mental chuckle tinged the thought. ::It's a bit unsettling, actually.::
Although pleased with how fast she'd picked up the technique, she felt unsettled, too, when she realized she saw her surroundings, including Karl, as ghostly shadows. As soon as she tried to sharpen her vision, he cautioned that her barrier was disintegrating.
She groped for the threads of her web and wove it tighter to repair the gap. With his help, she worked through the process several times before she managed to use her own senses while blocking his. Finally, he let her relax, and the normal world snapped into focus. "How am I supposed to do this with Josef or some other vampire boring holes in my skull?"
He drew her into a loose embrace. "You won't have to rely on your own strength for concealment. If the need arises, I'll support you through our bond." He brushed his lips over the top of her head. "It'll work best if you stay as quiet as possible in his presence, mentally and verbally. Behave as if you're enthralled by me."
"Enthralled?" She slipped out of his arms and faced him with hands on hips. "In your dreams."
"That's what Josef will expect. Remember, we're supposed to share a deep psychic bond. You must act as if you adore me."
"You just remember it's only an act."
He smiled at her sharp retort. "Of course. You won't mind if I bask in your simulated devotion while I have the chance?"
She only hoped he'd keep his promise to respect her mental privacy, so he wouldn't discover how close to "enthralled" she did feel in spite of his feral nature. Now that she'd glimpsed his thoughts and shared the vulnerability of his thirst, she wasn't afraid of him. Instead, she feared the longings he stirred in her. Yet it still hurt that he'd expressed similar reservations at the most intense moment of their union.
After Cordelia dropped off the house key with her neighbor, Karl hustled her to his car. As they fastened their seat belts, he cast a hesitant glance at her. "When I said I didn't want to need you, that wasn't a rejection of the experience we shared. It's because I'm reluctant to put my life in your hands."
That settled the question of whether he would casually read her surface thoughts. "How's that?"
"When a vampire forms a relationship with a donor, the true power lies on the human partner's side. If I care for you, I can't use force against you, physical or mental. I would be dependent for nourishment--for life itself--on your will."
"I don't have any desire to become your only source of nourishment, so neither of us has to worry about that."
The last thing she'd want was a long-term relationship with a man who could stroll through her brain at will. On the other hand, she enjoyed the novelty of sharing her secrets with a person who knew all about her strange abilities and accepted them as routine. With this one man, she didn't have to hide behind a perpetual mask.
Too bad he wasn't human.
Chapter 7
* * *
Karl's driving would have jolted Cordelia into heart failure if she hadn't been so tired she had trouble keeping her eyes open. Once they cleared the congestion around Washington, he zoomed south on Interstate 95 at twenty miles above the speed limit. When she asked whether he wasn't worried about the highway patrol, he said, "If we're pulled over, I'll hypnotize the officer into forgetting about the incident. It's not likely to happen, though."
So far, he'd turned out to be right. Whether by luck or some preternatural instinct for slowing down when the cops lurked nearby, no sirens wailed in their wake.
They rushed through the unavoidable pit stops. She noticed Karl stayed close to her side, often clinging to her arm, except when they had to separate for restroom visits. "Afraid I'm going to run off?" she murmured in one gas station parking lot.
"Hardly." His breath ruffled her hair as he lean over to answer in a low voice, "Maybe I just enjoy your warmth and fragrance." Her pulse quickened at the caress in the words. Silently he added, ::I've discovered an unexpected side effect of this bond--when I'm touching you, close enough for your aura to overlap mine, the emotions of bystanders bother me less than usual. It's as if your proximity creates a sphere of protection.::
It hadn't occurred to her that he had the same problem with the clamor of people's minds as she did. Come to think of it, with his superhuman perception, he probably suffered even worse from the psychic noise.
In predawn darkness they drove through a small town he identified as the community nearest to Josef's renovated hotel. They spotted a single fast food restaurant on what passed for the main street, otherwise lined with antique shops, other closed stores, a bed-and-breakfast inn, and a pair of competing gas stations. Karl said, "You need to replenish your strength. I'm ordering you a meal."
Her stomach gurgled. She pressed a hand to her abdomen. "I don't think I could eat. Anyway, we don't want to waste any more time."
"Another five minutes won't make a difference. Don't try to deny you're hungry." He flashed her a smile. "Have you forgotten I sense what's happening in your body as well as your mind?"
"How could I?" she grumbled.
At the drive-through window, he reminded her not to eat anything containing garlic, such as sausage. While reciting her order, he added milk for himself.
"You drink milk?" she said as he passed her the food and a cup each of coffee and orange juice.
"It's a vital fluid, so we can get nourishment from it, even though it's not essential to our health like blood. I'd prefer it warm, but this will do."
She unwrapped her egg muffin and nibbled on it. At the first taste, she realized the light-headedness and cramps she felt did signify hunger, not just nervousness. "Thanks," she mumbled around a bite of cheese and fried egg.
"Be sure you eat everything, especially the fruit and yogurt." He'd insisted on including that item in her order. "Even at your tender age, it wouldn't do for you to consume too much fat. I want your arteries to remain in perfect health."
She choked down a giggle along with the food. Only a creature with centuries of life behind him would classify twenty-seven as a tender age. A second later, it occurred to her he might mean "tender" as a deliberate pun, and she took a scalding drink of coffee as an excuse not to look at him. Aside from his status as a bloodthirsty prowler of the night, Karl displayed more attractive qualities by the hour. Not only had he ravished her with his kisses and gone out of his way to protect her and rescue her sister, he showed a surprising desire to take care of her in smaller ways. His sentimental attachment to the memory of his human lover proved his capacity for affection, even if he called it "foolish" himself. On top of all that, he owned a unique collection of antique books and even wrote books himself. She'd read one of his historical works about the Elizabethan period and found it fascinating. No wonder, he must have been an eyewitness.
That thought jolted Cordelia with a reminder of what he was. Longing for him was a waste of energy. She couldn't dream of a future with an immortal predator.
She peered out the window, wishing she could see more of the mountains than darker outlines against a dark sky. Leaving the town behind, they followed hilly, two-lane roads through stretches of field and forest. Her ears popped as the slopes grew steeper. The sky she glimpsed between trees turned blue instead of black, although still dark.
Ten miles out of town, Karl took a right turn from pavement onto gravel. "This road becomes Josef's private drive within a mile or so, according to Corinne's instructions."
Soon the headlights shined on a sign proclaiming that fact, with a "No Trespassing" admonition at the bottom. Karl switched off the lights without reducing the car's speed below twenty-five.
Cordelia yelped and clutched the armrest. "What do you think you're doing?"
&nbs
p; "I can see better without them. They ruin my night vision. I run the lights only for the benefit of human drivers, none of whom I expect to meet here."
A minute later he slammed on the brakes with a muttered curse.
The seat belt jerked tight across her chest. The shock set her heart racing. "What happened?"
He opened his door and sprang from the car. She did the same, with the night air chilling her bare arms. She caught sight of a human form crouched at the side of the road. A pair of eyes shone with pinpoints of red. The person--a woman with long, dark hair--started to crawl toward Karl, then collapsed at full length, facedown.
"Corinne?" he cried. He flashed toward the woman too fast for human eyes to track. When Cordelia sprinted after him, he thrust out an arm to block her path. "Don't touch her. If her blood gets on you, Josef will smell it."
"What? That's harsh."
The woman rolled onto her side with a stifled moan and propped herself on one elbow. "He is right. You can't take that risk."
Now that Cordelia's vision had adjusted, she could make out a thin, pale face framed by tangles of black hair. The eyes gleamed silver except for the red glint at their centers. A torn blouse, half unbuttoned, exposed one shoulder and part of the woman's breast. Blood from a wide gash stained the blouse and matted the ends of her hair. A rip in her cream-colored slacks revealed another bleeding laceration. Cordelia glimpsed mangled flesh, a wound more than skin deep. More blood soaked the hem of the blouse.
She swallowed hard to squelch her nausea. "You're my mother?"
"Yes, she is," Karl said. He knelt beside Corinne. "I take it you got caught?"
"Yes." She exhaled the word on a labored breath. "I hid under the trees until I heard your car. Had to warn you."
"Did you find Randy?" Cordelia asked. "How is she?"
"Still unharmed."
"Didn't I advise you not to try anything?" Karl broke in. "What happened?"
The icy demand shocked Cordelia. No matter how Corinne had neglected her in the past, she couldn't help feeling appalled at the woman's condition. "Don't hassle her. She's in terrible shape. I thought you people could heal yourselves."
"We can't regenerate from injuries like this without fresh blood. You haven't been able to summon prey?" he said to Corinne.
She shook her head. "Nothing near enough for me to call when I'm this weak."
Cordelia had to strain to hear the thready whisper. She gulped down a fresh surge of queasiness and sat on the grass with her arm outstretched. "Here, drink from me. Karl didn't take much, did you?"
He gripped her forearm. "No, I only sampled your elixir. You still have plenty to spare. But it's too dangerous to let a vampire in this desperate condition sink her teeth into you."
Corinne attempted a tiny smile. "He's right again."
"I don't believe you'll hurt me. Not after it looks like you almost got yourself killed trying to save my sister. Anyway, Karl will stop you if things go too far, right?" Maybe Corinne's agony would keep her from noticing the quaver of fear in the words.
Shuddering, Corinne turned her face away. She projected her pain and hunger with no attempt to shield. They battered Cordelia like storm-driven waves on sand.
The anguish burrowed under her skin and gnawed like a rat. She cast a pleading look at Karl. "Make her drink."
Corinne shook her head. Karl said, his voice heavy with reluctance, "Actually, your daughter has a point. A modest amount of her blood would start the healing, and I won't allow you to harm her." He bent over Cordelia's arm and licked her wrist, then nipped it. The electric shock of his bite tingled through her whole body. He pressed the thinly bleeding incision to Corinne's lips.
For a second Cordelia's stomach lurched at the memory of how lust had overwhelmed her when Karl drank from her throat. Would a female vampire's feeding arouse her, too? The idea sounded even worse when the vampire was her mother. She closed her eyes and braced herself to fight the allure.
It didn't feel that way at all, though. With a snarl, Corinne clamped onto Cordelia's wrist. Teeth pierced the skin with a sharp sting that made her veins burn. Life streamed out of her. The suction seemed to draw energy from every cell. Vertigo swept over her like fog rolling in.
Karl's firm grip on her shoulders kept her from toppling over. His thumbs traced soothing circles on her shoulder blades, while he crooned under his breath. To calm her? No, the tuneless song had another purpose. His voice exerted pressure that made the air vibrate in expanding circles, pressure like the force he'd applied against Howard, yet more gentle. Karl was broadcasting a summons. For what? Hollow inside from the draining of her essence, she couldn't dredge up the energy to ask him.
After he let the song fade into silence, he said, "Enough, Corinne. Stop."
The command cracked like a whip in Cordelia's head. It must have had the same effect on Corinne, for she instantly withdrew her lips from the wound. Pulling Cordelia to her feet, Karl hugged her against him, her back to his chest with his fingers laced under her breasts. She opened her eyes.
At their feet lay a deer. A doe. "You lured it here?" she said. Not only that, he'd cast the animal into a trance. It stretched out on its side, eyes half shut.
Growling deep in her throat, Corinne pounced like a cat and sank her teeth into the doe's neck. Trying to block out the sucking noise, Cordelia turned in Karl's arms and hid her face against his shoulder.
He rubbed her back and murmured, "It's all right. She didn't take too much from you, and between that and the deer's blood, she'll start healing. She'll also be able to tell us what happened." Raising her hand to his mouth, he licked the wound.
Chills coursed up her arm. "What's that for?"
"To cover up the scent. You may have noticed I kept you from touching her any more than necessary. And not only for that reason." He squeezed her wrist to stop the bleeding. A low chuckle rumbled in his chest. "You can't imagine how hard it was for me to let her feed on you. You're mine now."
She tilted her head to meet his eyes, which gleamed in the darkness. "That's all an act, remember?"
::The passion we shared was no act,:: he silently reminded her.
Corinne shoved aside the deer's body, stood, and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Thank you." Now her voice sounded clear and steady. "My child, I know what it cost you to make that offer. From a human viewpoint, you have every right to detest me."
"Never mind that now. What about Randy?"
"I left my car two miles up the road and sneaked through the woods without getting noticed. Then I circled the building and caught her scent from a second-floor window. It had no bars, as a few others did, so I was confident I could break in and free her."
"How?" Cordelia asked. "Climb up the wall?"
"Levitation. Did Karl explain that power to you? I intended to shift to my winged form in order to reach Miranda and carry her to safety."
"Wings. That blows my mind."
Her eyes blazed. "I never got the chance to shift. Just as I was unfastening my blouse and invoking the energy to change shape, Josef's two assistants descended upon me. He must have sensed the psychic resonance I generated."
Karl bared his teeth. "They did this to you?"
"No, Josef did."
Karl emitted a furious hiss. Cordelia felt the air crackle with his outrage.
"Your own brother?" she said.
"The other two overpowered me and held me while his claws ripped my flesh. When he decided he'd hurt me enough, he warned me to stay away in the future. Then they threw me off the property." A shield of ice prevented any emotion from leaking through the words.
Cordelia turned on Karl. "That's got to be against your rules!"
"Killing our own kind is utterly taboo, except in self-defense. Maiming--that's a gray area."
"You can't be serious. Didn't you tell me how important the sibling relationship is?"
With a sigh, Corinne swept her tangled hair back from her face. "Granted, little one, when the elders le
arn of Josef's transgression, they will doubtless punish him. But that will occur too late to help Miranda."
"You say she's unharmed so far?" Karl asked.
"From what her scent conveyed to me, she's still healthy."
"Then we aren't too late. You can't return, obviously. Josef and his henchmen would catch you before you got anywhere near the house."
"That is why I was so desperate to intercept you. I depend on you to save my daughter." Her gaze shifted to Cordelia. "I don't like to see you taking my other daughter into the beast's lair."
"We have a plan that involves me," Cordelia said. "Anyhow, there's no way I'll stay behind. She's my sister a lot more than she's your daughter."
Anguish flickered in the vampire woman's eyes before vanishing behind the shield. "I don't deny the validity of your feelings. But please believe that I want you safe, both of you."
Karl already stood by the open door of the car. "Get in, Cordelia. As I explained, we have to arrive before dawn, or Josef will become suspicious. We can't let him guess the urgency of our visit."
Hesitating, she said to Corinne, "What about you? I hate to thinking of leaving you out here like this."
"I want to stay nearby in case you need my help later. It's too near sunrise for me to walk comfortably to my car, so I will rest in the woods for the day. There's a stream where I can wash, and I've found a dense thicket to protect me from the light. Hurry, do as Karl says."
"There you have it, straight from your mother," he said as they got into the car. "You have to obey me."
"You wish." Suddenly chilly, Cordelia snagged her denim jacket from the backseat and shrugged into it. As a bonus, it covered the bite on her wrist.
Following her thoughts, Karl said, "Yes, it's just as well that Josef not notice how fresh that wound is. Luckily, our bites heal fast enough that in a few hours it won't attract attention."
As he accelerated up the gravel drive, she glanced over her shoulder. Corinne had already vanished.
Pine trees crowded the verge of the lane, turning it into a tunnel. Within five minutes, the car pulled up to a closed gate in a six-foot-high chain link fence. The fence bore another "No Trespassing" sign but no lock. Karl got out, opened the gate, drove through, and shut it before driving on. "Josef apparently wants to discourage casual intruders but not customers."
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